Chest wall resection and reconstruction for recurrent breast cancer - A multidisciplinary approach.

BACKGROUND: Despite therapeutic advances in the management of breast cancer, a significant number of patients present with locoregional recurrence. Treatment with hormonal, chemo or radiotherapy remains standard in such cases. However, in selected patients of recurrent breast cancer involving chest wall, multidisciplinary surgical approach could be considered. METHODS: Between 2010 and 2018, 21 patients with recurrent breast cancer, involving chest wall, were treated at a tertiary care center with resection and reconstruction. The mean age of the patients was 55 years (22-77 years). RESULTS: The median interval from first breast resection to chest wall resection (CWR) for recurrent disease was 6 years (1-24 years). Eighteen patients underwent bony resection and 3 patients required extensive soft tissue resection. Complete resection was achieved in 90% of patients. All patients had chest wall reconstruction. There was no in-hospital mortality. During follow-up, 8 patients died, of which 7 were due to distant metastases. The 1 year and 3-year overall survival were 90% (95% CI 66-97) and 61% (95% CI 31-81) respectively. The disease-free survival at 1 and 3 years was the same at 70% (95% CI 45-86). At a mean follow up of 23 months, the average survival in patients operated for local recurrence is 51.7 months (95% CI 37.7-65.7) and 24.5 months (95% CI 7.3-41.7) for patients with distant metastatic recurrence. CONCLUSION: A multidisciplinary oncoplastic approach for recurrent breast cancer, which includes chest wall resection and reconstruction is a useful adjunct in selected group of patients. This improves local disease control, symptoms and possibly disease-free survival.

Small cell lung carcinoma presenting initially with recurrent pneumothoraces: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Pneumothorax is a non-physiological collection of air in the pleural space. Pneumothoraces can be broadly divided into Primary, Secondary, and Traumatic. Cancer of the lung is a known cause of secondary pneumothorax in both primary and metastatic lesions, however, pneumothorax as the presentation of lung cancer is exceedingly rare. Non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) has been reported in the literature to present with a pneumothorax, particularly in adeno/squamous cell carcinomas. It is almost completely unheard of for small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) to present with a pneumothorax. CASE PRESENTATION: We present the case of a 62-year-old male patient, presenting twice in two months with spontaneous pneumothorax. The initial management involved admission and chest drain insertion. The patient has a past medical history of COPD and a significant smoking history. On the second admission, he underwent a video-assisted thoracoscopic (VATS) bullectomy and talc pleurodesis. The pathology report of the resected specimen confirmed SCLC with extensive infiltration. No gross evidence of metastatic spread was present on CT. Due to the R1 resection and significant risk of recurrence, the management plan included four cycles of adjuvant chemotherapy with carboplatin and etoposide, and radiotherapy as a consideration upon completion. CONCLUSIONS: Pneumothorax as the presentation of lung cancer imparts a very poor prognosis, however the reasons for this are largely unknown. Furthermore, the mechanisms underlying spontaneous pneumothorax in lung cancer are also not well understood.

Adenoid cystic carcinoma of the thymus gland.

BACKGROUND: Thymic carcinomas are rare and aggressive tumours. They constitute a heterogeneous group of tumours with various histological patterns and subtypes resembling epithelial tumours arising from other organs. CASE PRESENTATION: We hereby represent a case of primary thymic carcinoma with adenoid cystic carcinoma-like features (TCACC) which is an extremely rare variant of thymic adenocarcinoma. To date and to the best of our knowledge, there are nine reported cases in literature and ours is the tenth. Our case was treated surgically but the implementation of adjuvant chemoradiotherapy has been reported in few of the published cases. CONCLUSIONS: TCACC constitutes a rare entity of thymic adenocarcinoma with limited available literature. The current data is derived from few case reports and case series. The histological overlap of these tumours and primary ACC of salivary glands poses a diagnostic challenge. Radiological investigations, immunohistochemical phenotyping and genetic analysis are crucial in establishing the diagnosis.

Infected mediastinal cysts following endobronchial ultrasound guided biopsy-a case series.

Mediastinal cysts are commonly an incidental finding simulating a benign or malignant diagnosis. Infection is a recognised complication of mediastinal cyst and therefore early surgical management is essential. Endobronchial ultrasound guided biopsy (EBUS) has been used to diagnose and manage mediastinal cyst. We present a case series of three patients who presented with sepsis following diagnostic EBUS of mediastinal cyst. We would recommend that EBUS guided biopsy be applied cautiously if there is a high suspicion of mediastinal cyst to avoid post procedural infection, which can thus complicate any future therapeutic options.

The value of video-assisted mediastinoscopy in pulmonary metastasectomy.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the role of video-assisted mediastinoscopy (VAM) in identifying involved mediastinal lymph nodes in patients undergoing pulmonary metastasectomy. METHODS: Over a 4-year period (2002-2005) a retrospective study was carried out in 57 patients (44 men, 13 women, mean age 59 years) undergoing isolated, unilateral or bilateral metastasectomy. Following staging CT scan, VAM was performed prior to open thoracotomy, median sternotomy or VATS resection of the metastasis. Follow-up was complete in all patients. RESULTS: Fifty-seven patients underwent 62 operations for metastatic disease. The majority had colorectal cancer (39) followed by renal (11), sarcoma (9), liver (2) and miscellaneous (8). Six patients (10.5%) had positive mediastinal nodes on VAM. There was no perioperative morbidity or mortality. At a median follow-up of 25 months, 63 patients (68.5%) were still alive. CONCLUSIONS: Mediastinal lymph node involvement has been reported to occur in up to 14% of patients with pulmonary metastasis. In our study, 10% of patients treated for pulmonary metastasis had positive nodal disease at metastasectomy. We believe our results confirm that VAM can be safely performed and may have a role in more accurate staging of metastatic disease and influence the decision for post-resection adjuvant therapy.

Role of aldehyde dehydrogenase in hypoxic vasodilator effects of nitrite in rats and humans.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Hypoxic conditions favour the reduction of nitrite to nitric oxide (NO) to elicit vasodilatation, but the mechanism(s) responsible for bioconversion remains ill defined. In the present study, we assess the role of aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) in nitrite bioactivation under normoxia and hypoxia in the rat and human vasculature. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: The role of ALDH2 in vascular responses to nitrite was studied using rat thoracic aorta and gluteal subcutaneous fat resistance vessels from patients with heart failure (HF; 16 patients) in vitro and by measurement of changes in forearm blood flow (FBF) during intra-arterial nitrite infusion (21 patients) in vivo. Specifically, we investigated the effects of (i) ALDH2 inhibition by cyanamide or propionaldehyde and the (ii) tolerance-independent inactivation of ALDH2 by glyceryl trinitrate (GTN) on the vasodilator activity of nitrite. In each setting, nitrite effects were measured via evaluation of the concentration-response relationship under normoxic and hypoxic conditions in the absence or presence of ALDH2 inhibitors. KEY RESULTS: Both in rat aorta and human resistance vessels, dilatation to nitrite was diminished following ALDH2 inhibition, in particular under hypoxia. In humans there was a non-significant trend towards attenuation of nitrite-mediated increases in FBF. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: In human and rat vascular tissue in vitro, hypoxic nitrite-mediated vasodilatation involves ALDH2. In patients with HF in vivo, the role of this enzyme in nitrite bioactivation is at the most, modest, suggesting the involvement of other more important mechanisms.

Insulin therapy in cardiac surgery.

Aside from its actions on glycaemic control, insulin has been demonstrated to have a wide range of effects on the cardiovascular system. During the peri-operative period, the stress response to surgery leads to hyperglycaemia. There is continuing debate with regard to the level of glycaemic control and the potential benefits of insulin therapy in both diabetic and non-diabetic patients undergoing cardiac surgery. This review article sets out to discuss the evidence for glycaemic control, as well as the potential benefits of insulin therapy in the form of glucose-insulin-potassium therapy in cardiac surgery.

Spontaneous chest wall hematoma with dual antiplatelet therapy.

Spontaneous chest wall hematoma is rare and has been associated with neoplasms and arteriovenous malformations. However, the increasing use of anticoagulant and antiplatelet agents has increased the clinical presentation of spontaneous hematomas. Clopidrogel and aspirin are antiplatelet agents widely used in the treatment of peripheral vascular, cerebrovascular, and coronary artery disease. Although bleeding is a known adverse effect, only a small number of cases of hematomas associated with antiplatelet agents have been described. We report a case of a large spontaneous latissimus dorsi hematoma in a patient receiving clopidogrel and aspirin therapy.

Spontaneous aortic rupture early postpartum without trauma or connective tissue disorder.

Rupture of the thoracic aorta is a rare but recognized complication following pregnancy. The common causes of thoracic aortic rupture in the peripartum period are trauma, dissecting aneurysms and saccular aneurysms secondary to systemic connective tissue disease. We report a case of non-traumatic spontaneous aortic rupture in a patient without trauma or systemic connective tissue disease 1 day postpartum, which was successfully managed by surgical repair of the thoracic aorta.

The new EuroSCORE II does not improve prediction of mortality in high-risk patients undergoing cardiac surgery: a collaborative analysis of two European centres.

OBJECTIVES: Prediction of operative risk in adult patients undergoing cardiac surgery remains a challenge, particularly in high-risk patients. In Europe, the EuroSCORE is the most commonly used risk-prediction model, but is no longer accurately calibrated to be used in contemporary practice. The new EuroSCORE II was recently published in an attempt to improve risk prediction. We sought to assess the predictive value of EuroSCORE II compared with the original EuroSCOREs in high-risk patients. METHODS: Patients who underwent surgery between 1 April 2006 and 31 March 2011 with a preoperative logistic EuroSCORE ≥ 10 were identified from prospective cardiac surgical databases at two European institutions. Additional variables included in EuroSCORE II, but not in the original EuroSCORE, were retrospectively collected through patient chart review. The C-statistic to predict in-hospital mortality was calculated for the additive EuroSCORE, logistic EuroSCORE and EuroSCORE II models. The Hosmer-Lemeshow test was used to assess model calibration by comparing observed and expected mortality in a number of risk strata. The fit of EuroSCORE II was compared with the original EuroSCOREs using Akaike's Information Criterion (AIC). RESULTS: A total of 933 patients were identified; the median additive EuroSCORE was 10 (interquartile range [IQR] 9-11), median logistic EuroSCORE 15.3 (IQR 12.0-24.1) and median EuroSCORE II 9.3 (5.8-15.6). There were 90 (9.7%) in-hospital deaths. None of the EuroSCORE models performed well with a C-statistic of 0.67 for the additive EuroSCORE and EuroSCORE II, and 0.66 for the logistic EuroSCORE. Model calibration was poor for the EuroSCORE II (chi-square 16.5; P = 0.035). Both the additive EuroSCORE and logistic EuroSCORE had a numerically better model fit, the additive EuroSCORE statistically significantly so (difference in AIC was -5.66; P = 0.017). CONCLUSIONS: The new EuroSCORE II does not improve risk prediction in high-risk patients undergoing adult cardiac surgery when compared with original additive and logistic EuroSCOREs. The key problem of risk stratification in high-risk patients has not been addressed by this new model. Future iterations of the score should explore more advanced statistical methods and focus on developing procedure-specific algorithms. Moreover, models that predict complications in addition to mortality may prove to be of increasing value.

Posterior reduction aortoplasty for left pulmonary artery compression after Norwood procedure.

All patients following the Norwood I procedure have a very large ascending aorta. This can lead to extrinsic compression of the surrounding vessels. We report a case of left pulmonary artery compression secondary to an aneurysmal neo-aorta and describe a technique of posterior reduction aortoplasty to decompress the left pulmonary artery.

Simultaneous aortic valve and arch replacement with bilateral nephrectomy for massive polycystic kidney disease, aortic regurgitation and dissecting aneurysm.

Aneurysmal dissection of the ascending aorta and arch may be associated with polycystic kidney disease. We report a case of massive polycystic kidneys leading to respiratory and gastrointestinal embarrassment in combination with aneurysmal dilatation of a chronic arch dissection managed by simultaneous bilateral nephrectomy and arch replacement.

Video-assisted mediastinoscopy (VAM) for surgical resection of ectopic parathyroid adenoma.

BACKGROUND: Ectopic mediastinal parathyroid adenomas or hyperplasia account for up to 25% of primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT). Two percent of them are not accessible by standard cervical surgical approaches. Surgical resection has traditionally been performed via median sternotomy or thoracotomy and more recently, via video assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS). We present our experience with the novel use of Video-Assisted Mediastinoscopy (VAM) for resection of ectopic mediastinal parathyroid glands. CASE PRESENTATION: 4 patients underwent VAM for removal of an ectopic intramediastinal parathyroid gland. All of them had at least one previous unsuccessful neck exploration.In all cases histology confirmed complete resection of ectopic parathyroid glands (3 parathyroid adenomas and one parathyroid hyperplasia). Two of the patients required a partial sternal split to facilitate exploration. CONCLUSION: The cervical approach for resection of ectopic parathyroid adenomas is frequently unsuccessful. Previously, the standard surgical approach in such cases was sternotomy and exploration of the mediastinum. Recently, a number of less invasive modalities have been introduced. We found that VAM has several advantages. It has a short theatre time does not require a complex anaesthetic and is performed with the patient in classic supine position utilising often a previous cervical scar with good cosmetic results. It offers a short hospital stay; it is cost effective with minimal use of fancy and pricy consumables with a comfortable incision and no violation of the pleural space. Additionally the use of digital Video imaging has increased the sensitivity of the mediastinoscopy and has added safety and confidence in performing a detailed mediastinal exploration with an additional great training value as well.