Risk factors associated with esophageal cancers, diagnosed at tertiary level in Afghanistan: a descriptive cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Worldwide, esophageal cancer (EC) is a common cancer in term of incidence and mortality and is the 4th common cancer in Afghanistan. Current study aimed to evaluate the profile of risk factors for EC among patients diagnosed at tertiary level in Afghanistan. METHODOLOGY: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out between January 2019 up to February 2021 including all esophageal cancers diagnosed at pathology department of French Medical Institute for Mothers and Children, Afghanistan. RESULT: 240 diagnosed cases were analyzed, in which 59.40% of squamous cell carcinoma and 41.07% Adenocarcinoma. Both histopathological type of were predominantly diagnosed in males. The majority of the patients were residents of rural areas. More than 80% of the patients were illiterate with only less than 2% completing higher education. Majority of the patients were laborers and farmers while less than 10% were employed. According to income assessment, more than 80% were from low-income household, the rest from middle-income and none from high-income family. Oral snuff consumption was noted in 33.9% of squamous cell carcinoma patients and 40% adenocarcinoma patients whereas, family history of esophageal cancer was observed in 37.8% and 36.7% in both types of carcinomas, respectively. More than 60% of both types of carcinomas patients were hot tea drinkers. CONCLUSION: Current study demonstrated that most patients diagnosed with esophageal cancers were male, uneducated, belongs to low-income groups, lives in rural areas. These findings suggest distribution of esophageal cancer in specific socioeconomic groups, clearly demonstrating the need further analytical study.

Primary hydatid cyst of the urinary bladder with associated eosinophilic cystitis: Report of a unique case.

Hydatid cyst of Echinococcus granulosus usually develops in liver and lungs of the affected individual and is considered a common health problem in endemic regions. Although, the cyst can be found in less common locations, such as brain, heart, and bones, the urinary bladder is extremely rare that may mimic malignancy radiologically and creates a diagnostic dilemma for clinicians and radiologists. Here we present a unique case of hydatid cyst in the urinary bladder with associated eosinophilic cystitis.

Congenital mature cystic teratoma of the parotid gland in an infant: Report of a unique case.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Teratoma is a germ cell tumor originating from pluripotent germ cells and embryonal cells that commonly occurs in the gonads with only 15 % of it arising in extragonadal sites. In infants and children, teratomas of the head and neck are uncommon that comprise 0.47 %-6 % of all teratomas, and their occurrence in parotid gland is extremely rare. It is considered a diagnostic pitfall preoperatively, and their definite diagnosis can only be made upon surgery followed by histopathological examination. CASE PRESENTATION: We present a unique case of parotid gland teratoma in a 9-month-old girl who was brought to the hospital by her parents with right side parotid region swelling since birth. The ultrasonographic findings were suggestive of cystic hygroma. Upon surgery, the mass was completely excised with a part of parotid gland. The diagnosis of mature teratoma was made based on the histopathologic examination. No tumor recurrence was noted during the 4-month postoperative follow-up. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Teratoma of the parotid gland is an extremely rare entity that may mimic diverse benign and malignant tumors of the salivary gland. Patients often present to the health care facility with a parotid gland swelling leading to defacement. Complete surgical resection of the tumor is considered the best treatment approach with careful preservation of facial nerve. CONCLUSION: Due to the scarcity of information available regarding the behavior and clinical management of parotid gland teratoma in the literature, a good follow-up of patient is required to exclude potential recurrency and neurological deficit.

A huge pseudomyxoma pleurii mimicking hydatid cyst: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Pseudomyxoma pleurii is a rare disease that is defined by the pleural extension of pseudomyxoma peritonei, usually secondary to a mucinous neoplasm of the appendix or ovary. It is characterized by diffuse mucinous deposits on the pleural surface. CASE PRESENTATION: A 31-year-old woman presented to the hospital with dyspnea, an increased respiratory rate, and decreased oxygen saturation. Following an appendectomy for a perforated mucinous appendiceal tumor eight years ago, the patient underwent multiple surgeries for the resection of mass deposits in the peritoneal cavity. At presentation, her chest computed tomography with contrast revealed cystic mass deposits on the right-side pleura with a massive multi-locular pleural effusion mimicking hydatid cyst. Upon histopathologic examination, multiple small cystic structures lined by tall columnar epithelium with basally placed bland nuclei floating in the mucin pools were noted. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Pseudomyxoma peritonei often leads to abdominal distention, intestinal blockage, anorexia, cachexia, and eventually death. It rarely spreads outside the abdomen, and its extension to the pleura is extremely unusual, with only a small number of cases documented in the literature to date. Radiologically, pseudomyxoma pleurii may resemble hydatid cyst of the lung and pleura. CONCLUSION: Pseudomyxoma pleurii is a rare entity with a poor prognosis that usually arises secondary to Pseudomyxoma peritonei. The risk of morbidity and mortality is reduced by early diagnosis and treatment. The present case places emphasis on the inclusion of pseudomyxoma pleurii in the differential diagnosis of pleural lesions in patients with the history of appendiceal or ovarian mucinous tumors.

Pathological Features of Ovarian Tumors, Diagnosed at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Afghanistan: A Cross-sectional Study.

Purpose: In Afghanistan, research work is still in its infancy and there is no national level tumor registry at the moment in the country that could elaborate the histopathological features of ovarian tumors in the country. The current study was conducted with the aim to describe pathological characteristics of ovarian tumors diagnosed at tertiary level in Afghanistan. Patients and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted, including 198 cases diagnosed with ovarian tumors, that were consecutively included in the study from July 2017 to August 2020. All the cases were diagnosed at the Department of Pathology, French Medical Institute for Mothers and Children, Kabul, Afghanistan, that receives biopsy samples from all of the tertiary care institutions in Kabul. Results: In the current study, majority of the ovarian tumors were benign and presented with nonspecific symptoms. The mean age at diagnosis was 34.4 (SD ±13.4). Benign tumors comprised 81.8%, borderline 1.5% and malignant 16.7% of the cases. Majority of the diagnosed tumors were from surface epithelium in origin, followed by germ cell tumors, sex cord stromal tumors, and a single metastatic tumor. The most common benign neoplasm was mature cystic teratoma, followed by benign serous cystadenoma. Considering the malignant tumors, serous cystadenocarcinoma and adult granulosa cell tumors were predominant, followed by endometrioid adenocarcinoma and mucinous cystadenocarcinoma. More than half of the ovarian tumors occurred between 21 and 40 years of age. Conclusion: In the current study, the proportion of malignant ovarian neoplasms was significantly less than benign lesions. Although, many of the pathological features related to ovarian neoplasms were similar to the features demonstrated in other regions of the world, there were important findings that were exclusively noted in the cases diagnosed in Afghanistan.

Prevalence, Distribution, and Histopathological Features of Malignant Tumors Reported at Tertiary Level in Afghanistan: A 3-Year Study.

Purpose: Cancer is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity, and therefore, tremendous research work is continuously being done around the world with consideration of etiopathogenesis as well as identification of therapeutic targets. Decades of continuous war in Afghanistan has left the medical infrastructure of the country in a miserable situation. There is a serious deficiency in research work in the fields of pathology and oncology at the moment with minimal data available to elaborate about the demographic characteristics of various malignant disorders in the country, which would be indispensable to pave the way for further research and development. Patients and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted to describe the prevalence, distribution, and important histopathological features of malignant tumors reported at tertiary level in Afghanistan. Results: Out of 2328 consecutive cases of solid malignant tumors included in our study, 93.8% were primary and 6.2% were metastatic. Breast was the most common site of origin for primary malignancy (29.5%) in females; however, in males, esophagus was the leading site for primary malignant tumors (16.3%). Invasive ductal carcinoma was the most common histologic type of malignancy in females (87.9%). However, in both genders, squamous cell carcinoma of esophagus and skin, osteosarcoma of bone and soft tissue, and glioblastoma of central nervous system were the most common histologic types of malignancies diagnosed. Small intestine was a frequently involved site affected by extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphomas. Overall, the majority of the cancers were diagnosed in stage-II. Conclusion: Findings in our study were somewhat similar to data presented elsewhere in the world, with some significant differences that could be related to the local factors. Our study revealed that most of the malignant tumors were diagnosed in later stages of the disease, attributable to scarcity of specialized oncology institutions and public awareness.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia with clonal evolution due to delay in chemotherapy: A report of a case.

Clonal evolution in acute leukemias is one of the most important factors that leads to therapeutic failure and disease relapse. Delay in therapeutic intervention is one of the reasons that leads toward clonal evolution. In this report, we present a case of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in which therapeutic delay resulted in clonal evolution that was detected by conventional karyotyping and was responsible for non-responsiveness of the disease to conventional chemotherapy. A 17-year-old boy presented with generalized body aches, rapidly progressive pallor and lethargy. Bone marrow analysis was consistent with the diagnosis of B-cell ALL. Karyotypic analysis revealed 46, XY male karyotype. The patient left the hospital due to financial reasons and after 40 days came back to the hospital. Repeated bone marrow analysis including cytogenetic studies revealed presence of three different clones of blast cells: one clone showed 46, XY with del(9p) and t (11;14), second clone showed 46, XY with del(7q) and del(9p), and the third clone showed 46, XY normal karyotype. The patient did not respond to chemotherapy and died within 1 week of induction chemotherapy (HyperCVAD-A). Timely diagnosis and institution of chemotherapy in acute leukemias patients is the key to prevent clonal evolution and thus resistance of the disease to therapeutic interventions.

Rare additional chromosomal abnormalities in acute promyelocytic leukaemia resulting in rapidly fatal disease: report of a case.

Background: Acute promyelocytic leukaemia results from reciprocal translocation between the long arms of chromosomes 15 and 17. This translocation leads to the formation of chimeric gene, which is both the diagnostic marker as well as the therapeutic target of the disease. Additional chromosomal abnormalities are randomly encountered either at diagnosis or during therapy. Here, we present a case of acute promyelocytic leukaemia that had a rare cytogenetic profile at diagnosis. Case presentation: Our patient was a 14-year-old boy, who presented with characteristic clinical and morphological features of acute promyelocytic leukaemia. Karyotypic analysis revealed trisomy of chromosome 8 with deletion of 9p in addition to t(15;17). The patient passed away within the first 8 h of presentation while receiving conventional chemotherapy and haemodynamic resuscitation. Conclusion: Our patient presented with a rare cytogenetic profile and rapidly progressive disease. According to our extensive literature search, this was the first case of acute promyelocytic leukaemia having pathognomonic t(15;17) along with trisomy 8 and 9q deletion.

Metastatic renal cell carcinoma involving colon with unusual histologic features and diagnostic challenges: A case report.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) accounts for 3% of all malignancies in adults, on its own being the 3rd most common urologic malignancy. Commonly RCC metastasizes to lung, bone, liver, brain but rarely to colorectum. Here we present the metastasis of RCC to colon with unusual histologic features. CASE PRESENTATION: A 40-year-old woman presented with abdominal pain and constipation. Colonoscopy showed an ulcerative mass 30 cm from anal verge. Subsequently, she underwent abdominoperineal resection of the involved portion of colon and the biopsy was sent to us for histopathological analysis. Grossly, it was a large fungating mass. Microscopic examination revealed a malignant neoplasm with polygonal cells, abundant eosinophilic cytoplasm, eccentric nuclei and prominent nucleoli. Immunohistochemistry confirmed the diagnosis of RCC. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Colon rarely infiltrated by metastasis from RCC and so far, around 25 of such cases have been reported in the literature. Most common metastatic type of RCC to gastrointestinal tract is clear cell type. In our patient, the type of the metastatic RCC to colon was RCC with rhabdoid features. RCC with rhabdoid features is rare (3-5% of all RCC), but it is highly aggressive with higher chance of metastasis, extra renal invasion and poorer prognosis. CONCLUSION: RCC should be considered as one of the differential diagnosis of colorectal cancers. Appropriate immunohistochemical workup would then reveal the correct diagnosis.

A rare ovarian hilus cell tumour accompanying bilateral serous cystadenomas: report of a case.

BACKGROUND: Hilus cell tumours is considered an uncommon branch of androgen producing neoplasms that accounts for < 5% of all ovarian tumours. They are mostly benign and have characteristic gross and microscopic features. Here we present the first case of a hilus cell tumour in association with bilateral serous cystadenomas. CASE PRESENTATION: A 65-year-old lady with no symptoms of virilization, presented with postmenopausal dysfunctional uterine bleeding and radiological investigations revealing bilateral ovarian cysts that required a total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. Gross and microscopic evaluation confirmed the diagnosis of hilus cell tumour associated with bilateral serous cystadenomas. CONCLUSIONS: This was the first case of hilus cell tumour in association with bilateral serous cystadenomas of the ovaries. Although, majority of hilus cell tumours that have been reported in the literature were benign, further studies are required to determine the behavior of the disease.

Acute motor-sensory axonal polyneuropathy variant of Guillain-Barre syndrome complicating the recovery phase of coronavirus disease 2019 infection: a case report.

INTRODUCTION: The novel coronavirus, since its first identification in China, in December 2019, has shown remarkable heterogeneity in its clinical behavior. It has affected humans on every continent. Clinically, it has affected every organ system. The outcome has also been variable, with most of the older patients showing grave outcomes as compared with the younger individuals. Here we present a rare and severe variant of Guillain-Barre syndrome that complicated the disease in recovery phase. CASE PRESENTATION: A 60-year-old Afghan man, who had been recovering from symptoms related to novel coronavirus associated disease, presented with sudden onset of progressive muscle weakness and oxygen desaturation. Electrophysiological workup confirmed the diagnosis of Guillain-Barre syndrome, and early institution of intravenous immunoglobulin resulted in complete resolution. CONCLUSION: Guillain-Barre syndrome has recently been reported in many patients diagnosed with novel coronavirus associated disease. While clinical suspicion is mandatory to guide towards an effective diagnostic workup, early diagnosis of this complication and timely institution of therapeutic interventions are indispensable and lifesaving.

Philadelphia chromosome positive chronic myeloid leukemia with 5q deletion at diagnosis.

BACKGROUND: Although, molecular genetic analyses became more and more important to guide therapy decisions in leukemia, banding cytogenetic analysis has retained its vital role in diagnosis and monitoring of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), by quick and easy enabling identification of pathognomonic Philadelphia chromosome (Ph). CASE PRESENTATION: A 45 year old female presented with characteristic hematological features of CML in chronic phase; cytogenetic studies revealed the presence of the typical Ph and a deletion of almost entire long arm of a chromosome 5. CONCLUSION: 5q deletions have rarely been reported in CML. Those seen yet were either associated with tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy or detected post allogeneic stem cell transplantation. To our knowledge, this is the first case of Ph positive CML accompanied by a 5q deletion.

Complex cytogenetic abnormalities in chronic myeloid leukemia resulting in early progression to blast crisis: a case report.

INTRODUCTION: BCR-ABL1, resulting from t(9;22), is the oncogenic driver of chronic myeloid leukemia and the therapeutic target of the disease. Molecular studies have been the gold standard modality for patient assessment since the advent of tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy. In spite of that, there are cytogenetic abnormalities that can render the disease unresponsive to conventional therapy, thus making cytogenetics an important component of patient management guidelines. CASE PRESENTATION: We present a case of a Tajik, Afghan patient with chronic myeloid leukemia with del(6)(q23.3q27), t(9;22)(q34;q11.2), monosomy 11, monosomy 12, and marker chromosome who, despite having typical clinical and hematological disease with initial response to therapy, progressed to blast crisis very early and thus required special interventions. CONCLUSION: Cytogenetic monitoring is an important pillar in the management of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia that cannot be ignored. It should therefore be a part of patient management not only during diagnosis but also during management. We present an unusual cytogenetic abnormality in a patient with chronic myeloid leukemia that resulted in early disease progression.