Argon plasma coagulation in the treatment of Barrett's high-grade dysplasia and in situ adenocarcinoma.

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS: Endoscopic therapy of high-grade dysplasia (HGD) and superficial adenocarcinoma associated with Barrett's esophagus (BE), using Nd:YAG laser, KTP laser, or photodynamic therapy (PDT), has been reported to be effective in a curative role. Argon plasma coagulation (APC) appears to be effective in the eradication of nondysplastic Barrett's mucosa, but no results are available in the management of early neoplasms complicating BE. We report our initial experience in the application of APC in this indication. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Ten patients (mean age 74.2) with histologically proven HGD (n = 7) or in situ adenocarcinoma (n = 3) associated with BE (mean length 6 cm) and unfit for surgery were treated using APC and high-dose omeprazole (40 mg daily) until squamous re-epithelialization or complete eradication of the initially apparent lesions. Endoscopic follow-up was maintained at every 3 months. RESULTS: Complete eradication of HGD and in situ adenocarcinoma was achieved after a mean number of 3.3+/-1.5 APC sessions in 8/10 patients (80%). The eight patients with complete clearance of the neoplastic areas did not show any evidence of local recurrence during a median follow-up of 24 months (range 12-36 months). One patient with initial HGD had persistence of HGD 30 months after initial diagnosis, and one patient progressed to invasive adenocarcinoma after failure of APC and PDT. CONCLUSIONS: APC is safe and effective in the management of HGD and in situ adenocarcinoma associated with BE, and might represent an interesting alternative in selected patients who are not candidates for surgery.

Tratamiento del dolor en pancreatitis crónica calcificante con endoscopía y ondas de choque extracorpóreas. A propósito de un caso / Treatment of pain in chronic calcification pancreatitis with endoscopy and extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy. Presentation of a case

Abdominal pain is the most frequent symptom of chronic pancreatitis and may, on occasions, lead to great treatment problems. The case of a 56-years-old patient with idiopathic chronic pancreatitis calcifying who showed intracanalicular lithiasis is reported. Treatment with endoscopy and extracorporal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) was successful. (Au)

Tratamiento del dolor en pancreatitis crónica calcificante con endoscopía y ondas de choque extracorpóreas. A propósito de un caso / Treatment of pain in chronic calcification pancreatitis with endoscopy and extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy. Presentation of a case

Abdominal pain is the most frequent symptom of chronic pancreatitis and may, on occasions, lead to great treatment problems. The case of a 56-years-old patient with idiopathic chronic pancreatitis calcifying who showed intracanalicular lithiasis is reported. Treatment with endoscopy and extracorporal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) was successful.

[Treatment of pain in chronic calcifying pancreatitis with endoscopy and extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy. A case report]. / Tratamiento del dolor en pancreatitis crónica calcificante con endoscopía y ondas de choque extracorpóreas. A propósito de un caso.

Abdominal pain is the most frequent symptom of chronic pancreatitis and may, on occasions, lead to great treatment problems. The case of a 56-years-old patient with idiopathic chronic pancreatitis calcifying who showed intracanalicular lithiasis is reported. Treatment with endoscopy and extracorporal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) was successful.

Tratamiento del dolor en pancreatitis crónica calcificante con endoscopía y ondas de choque extracorpóreas. A propósito de un caso. / [Treatment of pain in chronic calcifying pancreatitis with endoscopy and extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy. A case report]

Abdominal pain is the most frequent symptom of chronic pancreatitis and may, on occasions, lead to great treatment problems. The case of a 56-years-old patient with idiopathic chronic pancreatitis calcifying who showed intracanalicular lithiasis is reported. Treatment with endoscopy and extracorporal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) was successful.

Treatment with terlipressin as a bridge to liver transplantation in a patient with hepatorenal syndrome.

Hepatorenal syndrome is a rapidly lethal complication of cirrhosis. The present case provides further evidence of the efficacy of terlipressin in this context even with concomitant treatment with propranolol. A 56 year old male with HBV related cirrhosis developed renal failure characteristic of hepatorenal syndrome. He was also taking propranolol for primary prophylaxis of variceal bleeding. Terlipressin 6 mg/day was administered during haemodialysis and after 1 week plasma creatinine dropped from 6.2 to 2.8 mg%. Daily urinary volume, plasma sodium and natriuresis dramatically increased during the treatment. Discontinuation of the treatment led to a rapid relapse of renal failure (plasma creatinine from 1.8 to 2.2 mg%) and the drug was readministered until a successful liver transplantation could be performed 1 month after the beginning of the treatment. The patient has now a near normal renal function 3 months after transplantation.

Nature of the T lymphocytes in lymphocyte predominance Hodgkin's disease.

Little is known about the function of the T lymphocytes in lymphocyte predominance Hodgkin's disease. We report here the case of a 37-year-old man with a diffuse LPHD, featuring a similar increase in T lymphocytes in both the peripheral blood and the tumor, thus allowing for their characterization by functional assays. These cells were CD4+CD45RO+ and produced high amounts of IL-2 and IFN-gamma, consistent with a TH1-type profile. This subset of T helper cells is involved in cellular immunity and could reflect a cytotoxic reaction directed against the neoplastic cells.

[Non surgical treatment of pancreatic cancers]. / Traitement non chirurgical des cancers du pancréas.

Pancreatic cancer is a disease difficult to treat. Diagnosis is late, cancer remaining clinically unapparent even if locally advanced or metastatic. Few patients can be submitted to curative surgery. Even if resection is possible, 5-year survival varies from 0% to 18% according to series. Some data suggest that chemotherapy with or without radiotherapy could influence disease free survival but a benefit on overall survival has not been demonstrated. For locally advanced disease, the results of a trial published in 1968, showed that a combination of radiotherapy and 5-Fluorouracil (5FU) improved median survival as compared to radiotherapy alone (5.5 versus 10 months). Since then, no progress has been achieved. At the present time, survival of patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer cannot be improved. Very recently, a new agent, gemcitabine, has been compared to 5FU. Criteria for activity were based on clinical improvement analgesia consumption, performance status and weight gain. Twenty-four percent of the patients treated with gemcitabine had a clinical benefit as compared to 5% for those treated with 5FU. Other studies comparing chemotherapy to best supportive care show a significant decrease of depression and anxiety as well as an improvement in quality of life for patients being treated.