Non-small Cell Lung Cancer Initially Presenting with Intracardiac Metastasis

Intracardiac metastasis as the initial presentation of malignant neoplasm is very rare. We report here on a 64-year-old man with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) initially presenting with intracardiac metastasis which was identified with 18-F fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG PET). The patient was admitted with complaints of exertional dyspnea and vague chest discomfort that had developed a few weeks ago. Two-dimensional echocardiography revealed a heart mass attached to its akinetic wall in the right ventricular chamber. CT and MRI demonstrated a large tumor involving the epicardium and myocardium in the right ventricle, and there was a mass in the right lower lobe of the lung along with multiple lymphadenopathies. Cytologic examination of the percutaneous needle aspiration of a lymph node in the anterior mediastinum revealed malignant epithelial cell nests, and this was strongly suggestive of squamous cell carcinoma. Subsequent FDG PET confirmed that the intracardiac mass had an abnormally increased FDG uptake, and again this was strongly suggestive of malignancy. By systemically considering these imaging studies, we were able to diagnose the mass as intracardiac metastasis of NSCLC.

A Case of Tunneled Cuffed Catheter Dysfunction Treated with Fibrin Sheath Stripping / 대한신장학회잡지

With the increasing proportion of elderly and diabetic dialysis patients, permanent dual lumen catheters are becoming popular. One of the most frequent causes for the failure of hemodialysis in CRF patients with the tunneled cuffed catheter is the catheter dysfunction. It is thought to be due to encasement of the catheter by fibrin sleeve or fibrin sheath, kinking or malposition of the catheter. Catheter dysfunction due to fibrin sheath formation could sometimes be managed by reversal of arterial and venous lines, urokinase lock or infusion, and catheter exchange. Recently percutaneous fibrin sheath stripping (PFSS) became another modality of salvaging failing tunneled cuffed catheter before attempting catheter exchange. There was no report of applying PFSS to salvage the permanent dual lumen catheter in Korea. Authors recently experienced a case of successful application of PFSS to extend the life of catheter in a CRF patients as a last resort after failure of repeated urokinase trials. It is thought that PFSS is a simple and effective procedure which extends the longevity of permanent dual lumen catheter.

A Case of Rapidly Progressive Glomerulonephritis Associated with Hepatitis C Virus / 대한신장학회잡지

Chronic HCV infection has been reported to be associated with several extrahepatic conditions such as cryoglobulinemia, lymphoma, lichen planus, porphyria cutanea tarda, autoimmune thyroiditis, and renal disease. Glomerular disease may occur in patients with chronic HCV infection. The most common patterns are membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis, and less frequently, membranous nephropathy, fibrillary glomerulonephritis and immunotactoid glomerulopathy. Few crescentic glomerulonephritis has been reported in association with HCV infection, and no case was reported in Korea yet. We experienced one case of rapidly progressive glomeruloinephritis with the pathology of crescentic glomerulonephritis complicated in membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis in a patient with HCV infection.