Impact of Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography on the Therapeutic Decision of Prostate Carcinoma Primary Staging: A Retrospective Analysis at the Brazilian National Public Health System.

BACKGROUND: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most common malignant tumor in males and conventional imaging does not provide accurate primary staging. Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) positron emission tomography (PET) presents superior performance and strongly affects therapeutic choice. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of PSMA PET, compared with conventional imaging methods, on the therapeutic approach in primary staging scenarios in patients with PCa treated at the Brazilian National Public Health System. METHODS: Overall, 35 patients diagnosed with PCa were evaluated using PSMA after conventional staging imaging with multiparametric magnetic resonance (MMR) and/or total abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan and bone scintigraphy (BS). The PCa extension identified by PET was compared with conventional imaging; staging changes and the management impact were then determined. PET comparison with conventional imaging, staging, and decision-making changes was analyzed using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: PET revealed local disease (LD) in 15 (42.9%) patients, seminal vesicle invasion (SVI) in 5 (14.3%) patients, pelvic nodal impairment (PNI) in 7 (20%) patients, pelvic and distant nodes in 3 (8.6%) patients, pelvic nodes and bone metastasis in 4 (11.4%) patients, and pelvic and distant nodes and bone metastasis in 1 (2.8%) patient. Staging changes were observed in 60% of patients, with downstaging predominance (76.2%). Volume increase was identified in 11 (31.4%) patients (only 4 related to upstaging, 36.4%). The board changed management decisions for 60% of the patients. The main limitations of this study were the sample size and its retrospective nature. CONCLUSIONS: PSMA findings changed the management decisions in more than half of the patients, which made the majority eligible for locoregional treatment and avoided unnecessary procedures in the systemic disease scenario.

Vaginal cancer: Why should we care? Anatomy, staging and in-depth imaging-based review of vaginal malignancies focusing on MRI and PET/CT.

Vaginal cancer often poses a challenge for clinical and radiological diagnosis, and its risk factors, progression, and treatment are still poorly established. Although vaginal malignancies are rare, even globally, their rates have increased due to the increased access to healthcare and the evolution of screening measures and diagnostic methods. Because the vaginal cavity is a virtual space, it can harbor lesions that often go unnoticed and, not infrequently, diagnosed belatedly. MRI and, more recently, PET/CT are part of the imaging armamentarium that have already been incorporated into the clinical staging and management of gynecological tumors, allowing excellent morphological characterization of the lesion, its topography and relationship with adjacent structures for the investigation of disease dissemination, overcoming limitations of clinical methods, such as speculum examination, usually restricted to observation only of the superficial characteristics of these lesions. Some vaginal neoplasms have characteristic MRI patterns, which, combined with expert knowledge of anatomy, allow identification of local macroscopic details (such as the mucosal, submucosal, and muscle layers). Furthermore, the application of PET/CT, already well established for identifying systemic disease, has a large impact on patient prognosis. The objective of this work is to review the epidemiological aspects of primary vaginal cancers and the imaging patterns of their main histological subtypes based on MRI and PET/CT, with a brief discussion of the local anatomy, oncological staging, and treatment.

The importance of PET/CT in the evaluation of patients with Ewing tumors.

The effective evaluation for the treatment of patients with Ewing tumors depends on the accuracy in the determination of the primary tumor extent and the presence of metastatic disease. Currently, no universally accepted staging system is available to assess Ewing tumors. The present study aimed at discussing the use of PET/CT as a tool for staging, restaging and assessment of therapeutic response in patients with Ewing tumors. In spite of some limitations of PET/CT as compared with anatomical imaging methods, its relevance in the assessment of these patients is related to the capacity of the method to provide further physiological information, which often generates important clinical implications. Currently, the assessment of patients with Ewing tumor should comprise a study with PET/CT combined with other anatomical imaging modalities, such as radiography, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging.

A avaliação eficaz para o tratamento dos pacientes com tumores de Ewing depende de uma avaliação precisa da extensão do tumor primário e da existência de doença metastática. Atualmente, não há sistema de estadiamento universalmente aceito para a avaliação dos tumores de Ewing. O presente estudo tem como objetivo discutir o uso da PET/CT como ferramenta para a realização de estadiamento, reestadiamento e avaliação da resposta terapêutica em pacientes com tumores de Ewing. Embora a PET/CT apresente algumas limitações em comparação com os métodos de imagens anatômicos, a importância do exame na avaliação desses pacientes decorre de sua capacidade de fornecer informações adicionais fisiológicas, o que muitas vezes gera implicações clínicas importantes. A avaliação atual dos pacientes com tumor de Ewing deve ser composta do estudo com PET/CT combinado com as outras modalidades de imagem anatômica, como radiografia, tomografia computadorizada e ressonância magnética.

The importance of PET/CT in the evaluation of patients with Ewing tumors / A importância da PET/CT na avaliação de pacientes com tumores de Ewing

Abstract The effective evaluation for the treatment of patients with Ewing tumors depends on the accuracy in the determination of the primary tumor extent and the presence of metastatic disease. Currently, no universally accepted staging system is available to assess Ewing tumors. The present study aimed at discussing the use of PET/CT as a tool for staging, restaging and assessment of therapeutic response in patients with Ewing tumors. In spite of some limitations of PET/CT as compared with anatomical imaging methods, its relevance in the assessment of these patients is related to the capacity of the method to provide further physiological information, which often generates important clinical implications. Currently, the assessment of patients with Ewing tumor should comprise a study with PET/CT combined with other anatomical imaging modalities, such as radiography, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging.

Resumo A avaliação eficaz para o tratamento dos pacientes com tumores de Ewing depende de uma avaliação precisa da extensão do tumor primário e da existência de doença metastática. Atualmente, não há sistema de estadiamento universalmente aceito para a avaliação dos tumores de Ewing. O presente estudo tem como objetivo discutir o uso da PET/CT como ferramenta para a realização de estadiamento, reestadiamento e avaliação da resposta terapêutica em pacientes com tumores de Ewing. Embora a PET/CT apresente algumas limitações em comparação com os métodos de imagens anatômicos, a importância do exame na avaliação desses pacientes decorre de sua capacidade de fornecer informações adicionais fisiológicas, o que muitas vezes gera implicações clínicas importantes. A avaliação atual dos pacientes com tumor de Ewing deve ser composta do estudo com PET/CT combinado com as outras modalidades de imagem anatômica, como radiografia, tomografia computadorizada e ressonância magnética.

Osteocondromas: avaliação por imagem das complicações / Imaging of osteochondroma complications

O osteocondroma é a entidade mais comum entre os diversos tumores ósseos conhecidos. Sendo uma lesão com alta capacidade expansiva e em certos casos com crescimento contínuo, pode determinar complicações, principalmente devido à ocupação de espaços que promove. Pode se apresentar de forma solitária ou múltipla, estando esta última relacionada à maior tendência para transformação sarcomatosa, que é a complicação mais temida. O objetivo do presente estudo édemonstrar, por meio de um ensaio iconográfico, as complicações mais comuns causadas pelos osteocondromas, correlacionando seus aspectos clínicos e radiológicos.

Osteochondroma is the most common entity beyond all the known osseous tumors. It is a lesion with a high enlargement capacity and a continuous growing in some cases, and it may determine complications, mainly due to mass effect. It may be present in a solitary or multiple forms, and the last one is related with a higher tendency to sarcomatous transformation, which is the most frightening complication. The purpose of the present study is to demonstrate, through an iconographic assay, the most common complicationscaused by the osteochondromas, making the correlation of its clinical and radiological aspects.

Praying correlates with higher quality of life: results from a survey on complementary/alternative medicine use among a group of Brazilian cancer patients.

CONTEXT: The use of complementary/alternative medicine has been little studied in Brazil. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of complementary/alternative medicine use among a group of Brazilian cancer patients and correlate these findings with the patients' quality of life. TYPE OF STUDY: Descriptive. SETTING: Oncology Institute of the Faculdade de Medicina do ABC, Santo André, São Paulo, Brazil. PARTICIPANTS: 100 cancer patients. PROCEDURES: The EORTC QLQ C-30 quality of life questionnaire was applied together with another questionnaire on the use of complementary/alternative medicine. MAIN MEASUREMENTS: Use of complementary/alternative medicine and quality of life. RESULTS: 89% of the patients had already used complementary/alternative medicine, 63% were currently using it and most of them (77.7%) believed in the efficacy of complementary/alternative medicine for their treatment. The type most used was individual prayer (77.5%). We found a significant association between believing in the efficacy of complementary/alternative medicine and praying (individually or in groups), in comparison with better scores on the functional (p = 0.001) and overall health (p = 0.001) quality of life scales. Multivariate analysis confirmed these findings regarding praying and also showed that believing in complementary/alternative medicine correlated significantly with functional and symptom quality of life scores. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of complementary/alternative medicine use in this group of cancer patients was high. Praying and belief in the efficacy of complementary/alternative medicine correlated significantly with an overall better quality of life, and therefore these practices should not be discouraged by physicians. New prospective studies should be conducted in order to better characterize the efficacy of such alternative therapeutic approaches.

Verrucous carcinoma of the bladder with koilocytosis unassociated with vesical schistosomiasis.

CONTEXT: Verrucous carcinoma of the bladder is a very rare malignant neoplasm, histologically similar to condyloma acuminatum. Usually it shows association with vesical schistosomiasis (bilharziasis). Only 13 cases unrelated to bilharziasis have been reported to date, and none of them reported koilocytosis, a typical finding in human papillomavirus infection. CASE REPORT: We report a case of verrucous carcinoma of the bladder that was unrelated to bilharziasis, with koilocytosis and absence of human papillomavirus. The literature relating to the topic is discussed.

Praying correlates with higher quality of life: results from a survey on complementary/alternative medicine use among a group of Brazilian cancer patients

CONTEXTO: O uso da medicina alternativa/complementar no Brasil é pouco estudado. OBJETIVO: Verificar a prevalência do uso de medicina alternativa/complementar por pacientes oncológicos e correlacionar os achados com a qualidade de vida. TIPO DE ESTUDO: Descritivo. LOCAL: Instituto de Oncologia da Faculdade de Medicina da Fundação do ABC. PARTICIPANTES: 100 pacientes com câncer. PROCEDIMENTOS: Aplicamos questionário de qualidade de vida da EORTC QLQ C-30 quality of life e um questionário sobre o uso de medicina alternativa/complementar. VARIAVEIS ESTUDADAS: Uso de medicina alternativa/complementar e qualidade de vida. RESULTADOS: 89% dos pacientes já usaram medicina alternativa/complementar alguma vez, 63% estavam usando no momento do estudo e a maioria dos pacientes (77,7%) acredita na eficácia da medicina alternativa/complementar para o seu tratamento. O tipo de medicina alternativa/complementar mais utilizado foi a oração individual (77,5%). Encontramos associação significativa entre acreditar em medicina alternativa/complementar e a prática de orações (individual ou em grupo) com uma melhor qualidade de vida em relação à escala funcional (p = 0,001) e saúde global (p = 0,001). A análise multivariada confirmou estes achados, mostrando que rezar e acreditar na medicina alternativa/complementar se correlacionam significativamente com uma melhor qualidade de vida nas escalas funcionais e de sintomas. CONCLUSAO: A utilização de medicina alternativa/complementar em nosso meio é freqüente em pacientes com câncer e a crença na sua eficácia e a prática de orações se correlacionaram significativamente com uma melhor qualidade de vida, de forma que tais práticas não devem ser desestimuladas pelos profissionais da área médica. Novos trabalhos prospectivos devem ser conduzidos para melhor caracterizar a eficácia destas práticas terapêuticas alternativas.

Verrucous carcinoma of the bladder with koilocytosis unassociated with vesical schistosomiasis

CONTEXTO: O carcinoma verrucoso de bexiga é uma neoplasia maligna muito rara, histologicamente semelhante ao condiloma acuminado. Normalmente apresenta-se associado à esquistossomose vesical (bilharzíase). Apenas 13 casos não relacionados à bilharzíase foram descritos até o momento, sendo que em nenhum deles foi relatada presença de coilocitose, um achado característico da infecção pelo papiloma vírus humano. RELATO DE CASO: Apresentamos um caso de carcinoma verrucoso de bexiga não relacionado à bilharzíase com presença de coilocitose e ausência de papiloma vírus humano. A literatura relacionada ao assunto é discutida.