Laparoscopic management for spontaneous jejunal perforation caused by nonspecific ulcer: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Nonspecific small bowel ulcers are rare and there have been limited reports. We applied laparoscopic surgery successfully for the perforation caused by this disease of jejunum. PRESENTATION OF CASE: A 70-year-old man visited to our hospital with complaint of abdominal pain and fever. He was diagnosed abdominal peritonitis with findings of intraperitoneal gas and fluid. Emergency laparoscopic surgery was performed. A perforation 5mm in diameter was recognized in jejunum opposite side of mesentery. Partial resection of jejunum with end-to-end anastomosis and peritoneal lavage were performed. Pathologically, an ulcer was recognized around the blowout perforation without specific inflammation. He was discharged uneventfully 12days after surgery. CONCLUSION: Laparoscopic surgery has diagnostic and therapeutic advantages because of its lower invasion with a good operation view, and in case of the small bowel, it is easy to shift extra-corporeal maneuver.

Laparoscopic surgery for colon cancer with intestinal malrotation in adults: Two case reports and review of literatures in Japan.

INTRODUCTION: Intestinal malrotation is a congenital anomaly, and its occurrence in adults is rare. Colon cancer with intestinal malrotation is far more rare. We herein report two cases of colon cancer with intestinal malrotation treated with laparoscopic surgery and reviewed the literatures in Japan. PRESENTATION OF CASES: Case 1 involved a 78-year-old man. Abdominal enhanced computed tomography (CT) showed that the tumor was located in the sigmoid colon. Intraoperatively, the cecum and ascending colon were located along the midline and the small intestine occupied the right side of the abdomen. The tumor was located in the cecum, and the patient was diagnosed with cecal cancer with intestinal malrotation. We performed laparoscopy-assisted ileocecal resection. Case 2 involved a 81-year-old man. Colonoscopy revealed a laterally spreading tumor in the cecum. Intraoperatively, the position of the small intestine and the ascending colon was similar to case 1, and Ladd's band was found in front of the duodenum. Thus, we diagnosed the patient with a laterally spreading cecal tumor with intestinal malrotation and performed laparoscopy-assisted ileocecal resection. DISCUSSION: A review of the literature revealed 49 cases of colon cancer with intestinal malrotation and laparoscopic surgery performed at 30.6%. If laparoscopic mesenteric excision for colon cancer with intestinal malrotation is unsafe because of the abnormalities of the artery, mesenteric excision should be performed outside the body. CONCLUSION: If the intestinal malrotation is diagnosed preoperatively, 3D-CT angiography should be used to reveal the vascular anatomic anomalies for safe performance of laparoscopic surgery.

Efficacy and safety of thromboembolism prophylaxis with fondaparinux in Japanese colorectal cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery: A phase II study.

PURPOSE: We aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of fondaparinux (FPNX) for patients undergoing laparoscopic colorectal surgery (LAC). METHODS: Patients scheduled for LAC received once-daily subcutaneous injections of FPNX 1.5-2.5 mg for 4-8 days. The primary endpoint was the incidence of bleeding events. The secondary endpoint was the incidence of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). RESULTS: Among 128 patients evaluable for efficacy, 119 patients were administered FPNX. Nine patients were excluded owing to intraoperative events, including conversion to open surgery among others. Thirteen patients discontinued treatment owing to anastomotic bleeding (n = 5), anastomotic leakage (n = 3), bleeding at drain insertion site (n = 2), subcutaneous bleeding (n = 1), drug-induced rash (n = 1), and sepsis (n = 1). Among the FPNX discontinuations, there were eight cases of bleeding (6.7%), and two cases of major bleeding (1.7%). In multivariate analysis, operative time >300 min was identified as a risk factor for bleeding events (p = 0.001) secondary to FPNX. The incidence rate of DVT was 2.5% (3/119 cases); these patients were asymptomatic. CONCLUSION: There were no cases of PE. It is necessary to establish strict criteria for VTE prophylaxis with FPNX after LAC for Japanese patients considering the incidence of bleeding events.

A first reported case of metastatic anorectal amelanotic melanoma with a marked response to anti-PD-1 antibody nivolumab: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Anorectal amelanotic melanoma (AAMM) is a rare disease with poor prognosis. A standard treatment strategy for AAMM has not been established. PRESENTATION OF CASE: We report a case of successful treatment of AAMM with nivolumab. A 67-year-old man was referred for colonoscopy which revealed type I tumor in the rectum. AAMM was diagnosed with immunostaining histopathological biopsy findings. Enhanced computed tomography (ECT) revealed the rectal tumor without distant organ metastasis. We performed laparoscopy-assisted abdominoperineal resection. ECT at three months after surgery revealed liver metastases and right ischial bone metastasis. Although we had started dacarbazine monotherapy, black spots that were suspicious of skin metastases had appeared on systemic skin. Therefore, we started nivolumab therapy. ECT at 3 months after initiation of nivolumab showed shrinkage of liver metastasis. We have continued strict follow-up every 2 months and checked no oncologic progression at 17 months after initiation of nivolumab. DISCUSSION: The anti-PD-1 antibody have improved prognosis of malignant melanoma. However, there are no reports of nivolumab for treatment of AAMM. CONCLUSIONS: Our patient is the first reported case of AAMM treated with nivolumab. We consider that nivolumab will be effective for non-cutaneous malignant melanoma.

Outcomes of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy in Japanese locally advanced rectal carcinoma patients.

BACKGROUND: We investigated the efficacy and prognosis of neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (NACRT) for Japanese locally advanced rectal carcinoma patients. METHODS: Fifty-seven patients diagnosed with cT3-4 or any cT/cN+ disease using enhanced computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging from 2002 to 2014 were enrolled. The male/female ratio was 42/15, and the median age was 67 years. Ra/Rb/Rb-P/P was expressed by 6/35/14/2 patients. Histological tumor types were tub1/tub2/por/muc in 22/30/4/1 patients. For NACRT, radiotherapy doses were 40-50.4 Gy chemotherapy consisted of 5'-DFUR, capecitabine, or S1. RESULTS: All 57 patients received curative surgical treatment. The anal preservation rate was 65.0%. The ypStage of 0/I/II/IIIa/IIIb was 7/10/25/11/4 cases. The histological antitumor effect (HATE) was ≥grade (G) 2 and G3 in 31 (54.4%) and 7 (12.3%) cases, respectively. Postoperative complications occurred in 17 patients and exceeded GIII (Clavien-Dindo classification) in four patients. Recurrence was observed in 19 patients; the primary local recurrence rate was 5.3%. The 3-year relapse-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) rates were 64.8 and 95.5%, respectively; the 5-year RFS and OS rates were 60.2 and 61.0%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, ypN+ was a high-risk factor for distant organ recurrence. As predictive factors regarding the efficacy of NACRT, a neutrophil concentration <70% and a neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio <3.0 in peripheral blood prior to treatment indicated that NACRT would be significantly more effective. CONCLUSIONS: NACRT was effective in reducing local recurrence but did not suppress distant organ recurrence in Japanese locally advanced rectal carcinoma patients. A further investigation of an extension of the NACRT regimen is required.

Short- and long-term outcomes of laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer in the elderly: A prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and validity of laparoscopic colorectal surgery for elderly patients. We compared the short and long-term postoperative outcomes of laparoscopic colorectal surgery in patients aged ≥75 years (elderly patients; EP) and <75 years (relatively younger patients; RP). METHODS: Clinicopathological data and short- and long-term outcomes after laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer were compared between the EP (n = 53) and RP groups (n = 155). RESULTS: In the EP group, patients with American Society of Anesthesiologists score II (p = 0.047) and medical comorbidity rate (EP vs RP: 83.0% vs 56.8%, p < 0.001), especially for cardiovascular disease (64.2% vs 37.5%, p < 0.001) and diabetes mellitus (20.8% vs 9.7%, p = 0.044), were significantly higher than those in the RP group. Regarding the clinical characteristics, the ratio of right colectomy (50.9% vs 25.3%, p < 0.001) and pathological tumor grade T4 (18.9% vs 7.7%, p = 0.044) were significantly higher in the EP group. There was no significant difference in the variation of pathological stage between the two groups. In the postoperative course, there were no significant differences regarding short-term postoperative outcomes between the EP and RP groups, including that for timing of oral diet tolerance (3.9 days vs 3.5 days, p = 0.073), first flatus (2.3 days vs 2.0 days, p = 0.636), first bowel movement (3.3 days vs 3.7 days, p = 0.153), ambulation after surgery (1.7 days vs 1.5 days, p = 0.081), postoperative hospital stay (10.5 days vs 10.8 days, p = 0.469), and incidence of postoperative complications (20.8% vs 15.5%, p = 0.385), respectively. Regarding the long-term outcomes, there were no significant differences in recurrence-free survival (RFS) (5-year RFS, 74.0% vs 85.2%, p = 0.091) and overall survival (OS) (5-year OS, 81.8% vs 90.1%, p = 0.112) between the two groups. CONCLUSION: Laparoscopic colorectal surgery in elderly patients was safe and well-tolerated in comparison with the relatively younger patients.

[A Case of Adenosquamous Carcinoma of the Ascending Colon].

We report a case of adenosquamous carcinoma of the colon. A 70-year-old woman underwent a colonoscopic examination because of a positive fecal occult blood test. Colonoscopy demonstrated a type 2 tumor of the ascending colon, and a biopsy specimen showed poorly-moderately differentiated tubular adenocarcinoma. We performed a right hemicolectomy with D2 lymphadenectomy. The histopathology of the tumor demonstrated adenosquamous adenocarcinoma. Primary adenosquamous carcinoma of the colon is relatively rare and has a poor prognosis. Therefore, adenosquamous carcinoma of the colon may require strict follow-up.

Low-grade mucinous neoplasia in a cecal diverticulum: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Low-grade mucinous neoplasia is an uncommon benign tumor that develops in the appendix. The development of mucocele disease has never been reported in a colonic diverticulum. We present a case developing low-grade mucinous neoplasia in a cecal diverticulum. PRESENTATION OF CASE: A tumor in the ileocecal region was found during a medical examination of a 66-year-old woman. Three months later, the tumor was still present and the patient developed abdominal pain. Laparoscopic ileocecal resection with D2 lymph node dissection was performed. Histopathological examination revealed a low-grade mucinous neoplasm in a cecal diverticulum. DISCUSSION: Colonic mucoceles reportedly originate from the appendix. There are no previous reports of mucocele disease in a colonic diverticulum worldwide. This report reviews and discusses the management of the appendiceal mucoceles. CONCLUSION: The incidence of colonic diverticula has recently begun to increase in Japan. The possibility of a mucocele within a colonic diverticulum should be considered in patients with submucosal colonic tumors.

Comparison of a flexible-tip laparoscope with a rigid straight laparoscope for single-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

This study assessed whether a flexible-tip laparoscope improves operative outcomes including operative length while performing single-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy (SILC) compared with the use of a conventional straight laparoscope. The flexible-tip laparoscope decreased the operative time compared with the straight laparoscope. Although SILC has potential benefits, surgeons experience problems for in-line viewing through a laparoscope and from contact of instruments with the laparoscope, resulting in longer operative times and the need for additional ports. The aim of this study was to determine whether a flexible-tip laparoscope improves operative outcomes, including operative length and the rate of insertion of additional ports, while performing SILC compared with the use of a conventional rigid straight laparoscope. We reviewed data on patients for whom we performed SILC at the Department of Surgery, Kansai Medical University, for the period from November 1, 2009, to February 28, 2013. The information was assessed with respect to patient characteristics, types of laparoscope used, operative data as well as postoperative outcomes. Operating time for SILC using the flexible-tip laparoscope was significantly shorter than with the straight laparoscope (81.5 ± 23.2 vs 94.4 ± 21.1 minutes) as a result of a better view of the operating field without contact with working instruments. Although a trend was shown toward a reduced rate of the need for extra ports in the flexible-tip laparoscope group, the difference did not reach statistical significance. Using the flexible-tip laparoscope solved the problem of in-line viewing and decreased the operative time for SILC.

Laparoscopic reduced port surgery for schwannoma of the sigmoid colon: a case report.

A 74-year-old woman who developed schwannoma of the sigmoid colon was referred to our hospital for colonography to determine the cause of her stool occult blood. Colonoscopy revealed a submucosal tumor, which measured 3 cm in diameter, in the sigmoid colon. Endoscopic ultrasonography revealed a low echoic, homogeneous and demarcated submucosal tumor that continued into the fourth layer of the colonic wall. Gastrointestinal stromal, myogenic or neurogenic tumor was suspected, and thus, laparoscopic sigmoidectomy was carried out. We used two ports during the operation, a SILS Port in the umbilical region and a 12-mm port in the right lower abdominal wall, and performed sigmoidectomy with D2 lymph node dissection. Histological findings revealed spindle-like tumor cells with multiform nuclei. The tumor was diagnosed by immunostaining as benign schwannoma of the sigmoid colon. The conventional surgical treatment for schwannoma of the digestive tract is partial resection, but if preoperative diagnosis is unknown, radical resection with lymphadenectomy is acceptable for submucosal tumors in the digestive tract. In this case, laparoscopic reduced port surgery using only one or two ports may be more feasible and beneficial with regard to cosmesis and reduced postoperative pain than conventional laparoscopic colectomy.