Diagnosing clean margins through Raman spectroscopy in human and animal mammary tumour surgery: a short review.

Breast cancer frequency in human and other mammal female populations has worryingly increased lately. The acute necessity for taxonomy of the aetiological factors along with seeking for new diagnostic tools and therapy procedures aimed at reducing mortality have yielded in an intense research effort worldwide. Surgery is a regular method to counteract extensive development of breast cancer and prevent metastases provided that negative surgical margins are achieved. This highly technical challenge requires fast, extremely sensitive and selective discrimination between malignant and benign tissues even down to molecular level. The particular advantages of Raman spectroscopy, such as high chemical specificity, and the ability to measure raw samples and optical responses in the visible or near-infrared spectral range, have recently recommended it as a means with elevated potential in precise diagnostic in oncology surgery. This review spans mainly the latter 10 years of exceptional efforts of scientists implementing Raman spectroscopy as a nearly real-time diagnostic tool for clean margins assessment in mastectomy and lumpectomy. Although greatly contributing to medical discoveries for the wealth of humanity, animals as patients have benefitted less from advances in surgery diagnostic using Raman spectroscopy. This work also dedicates a few lines to applications of surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy in veterinary oncological surgery.

Rifaximin modulates 5-fluorouracil-induced gastrointestinal mucositis in rats.

OBJECTIVE: This study assessed the protective potential of rifaximin in 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) induced intestinal mucositis in the Wistar rats'. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-nine Wistar rats were divided into 4 interventional groups of 6 animals (A, B, C and F) and one control group (M) of 5 animals. Groups A, B and C received for three days consecutively rifaximin orally: 50 mg/kg (group A), 100 mg/kg (group B) and 200 mg/kg (group C). In the fourth day, 500 mg/kg of 5-FU was administered intraperitoneally to the groups A, B, C and F. A semi-quantitative histological assessment for duodenum, jejunum and colon were obtained by rating 11 histological characteristics of mucositis from 0 (normal) to 3 (severe). Semi-quantitative grades were a measure for TLR4 immunopositive cells. Statistical comparisons used - U Test, with a Bonferroni correction for alpha (p ≤ 0.016). RESULTS: In the group F the most affected areas were the jejunum (median histological score 25) and the duodenum (median histological score 22). The assessment of duodenum histological lesions depicted significant difference between F and B groups (U = 1.5, p = 0.007) and between F and C groups (U = 0, p = 0.003). Graded microscopic degenerative lesions on jejunum were significantly different between F and C groups (U = 0, p = 0.004). Graded TLR4 immunopositive cells in the jejunum surface epithelium was significantly different between groups F and C (U = 2.5, p = 0.006). In the colonic mucosa, significantly differences were noted on microscopic degenerative lesions between F and A groups (U = 0, p = 0.004) and between F and C groups (U = 0, p = 0.004). CONCLUSIONS: Pretreatment with 200 mg/kg of rifaximin for 3 consecutive days proved efficient in preventing intestinal mucosal degenerative lesions induced by 5-FU.

Colorectal cancer with liver metastases -- is there a chance for cure?

Combined treatment with chemotherapy and surgery is the currently accepted standard for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer which can be rendered to resectability and a very efficient way to increase survival of patients with hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer. Cooperation between surgeons and oncologists is mandatory to insure these patients' best chance for survival. Patients with resectable disease must follow adjuvant chemotherapy, while patients with initially unresectable marginally resectable disease after downsizing with the help of chemotherapy must be given the chance of surgical reevaluation for having the metastatic disease resected,and then follow adjuvant chemotherapy. An impressive amount of new surgical techniques warrants the success of hepatic resection in metastatic disease while a whole constellation of novel chemotherapeutical and even more effective targeted agents assure better response rates, surgical resection rates and overall survival in these patients.

[New generation chemotherapy in the treatment of operated gastric cancer--an alternative to traditional chemotherapy]. / Chimioterapia de generatie noua in cancerul gastric operat--o alternativa la chimioterapia clasica.

Gastric cancer remains one of the most difficult tumour type despite his relative reduction of his global incidence, it remains on of the most deadly cancer. The latest advances in therapy of the gastric cancer ameliorate the results in terms of survival. In our prospective, non-randomized study, we enrolled 40 patients with gastric adenocarcinoma stage IB to IV (M0) who were surgically treated, treated with chemoradioterapy, but with chemotherapy modified by ECX (epirubicine, cisplatine, xeloda) which is now considered standard in metastatic setting. We report the toxicities and possible predictive factors to toxicity. The ECX regimen seems to be a reliable alternative to the traditional regimen with convenient toxicity and therapeutic index.