[A Patient with Primary Intraventricular Gliosarcoma and Long-term Survival - a Case Report]. / Pacientka s primárním intraventrikulárním gliosarkomem s dlouhodobým prezíváním - kazuistika.

BACKGROUND: Gliosarcoma is a rare, malignant CNS tumor with a very poor prognosis. Gliosarcoma is a variant of glioblastoma multiforme, which is characterized by the presence of both glial and mesenchymal components. The treatment strategy for gliosarcomas has not yet been determined clearly. CASE PRESENTATION: This case report presents a 23-year-old female patient who complained of increasing headaches, nausea and vomiting, and slight motor weakness in her left arm. An MRI scan of the brain showed a tumor filling the anterior part of the right lateral ventricle and extending into the right frontal lobe. Tumor extirpation was performed. Histology revealed gliosarcoma. Subsequently, the patient received concomitant chemoradiotherapy with temozolomide in the Stupp regimen. Following the fourth cycle of maintenance temozolomide chemotherapy, at eight months after diagnosis, an MRI scan detected progression of the tumor residue. The patient underwent another surgery and then received 10 cycles of second-line chemotherapy in the ICE (ifosfamide, carboplatin, and etoposide) regimen. She completed oncological therapy with minimal toxicity and follow-up MRI scans showed virtually no residual tumor. Another follow-up MRI scan, performed 28 months after diagnosis, demonstrated progression of the tumor residue again. A third tumor resection was performed 29 months after initial diagnosis. Histology again confirmed gliosarcoma. An early postoperative MRI scan showed subtotal resection with a tumor residue in eloquent areas and also suspected implantation metastasis in the spinal canal at the C2 level. From the neurological perspective, the patient was fully self-sufficient, and had only a very mild motor deficit in her left arm. Currently, at 31 months after initial diagnosis, the patient is in a stable condition and fully self-sufficient. CONCLUSION: Our case report shows that long-term survival can be achieved in a gliosarcoma patient exhibiting all the unfavorable features in clinical-pathological terms. The minimal recommended treatment is maximal resection followed by adjuvant radiotherapy. Our patient also underwent chemoradiotherapy with temozolomide in the Stupp regimen. Recurrence at eight months after diagnosis was managed by a repeat operation and high-dose combination chemotherapy, which kept the disease in remission for 20 months after the initial relapse. The lack of unequivocal rules for chemotherapy provides an opportunity to test less common treatment regimens.Key words: gliosarcoma - surgery - chemotherapy - radiotherapy - survivalThis study was supported in part by the grant No. NT13581-4/2012(86-91) of the Internal Grant Agency of the Czech Ministry of Health.The authors declare they have no potential conflicts of interest concerning drugs, products, or services used in the study.The Editorial Board declares that the manuscript met the ICMJE recommendation for biomedical papers.Submitted: 26. 3. 2016Accepted: 27. 4. 2016.

Glioblastoma multiforme in patients with history of extracranial cancer: Case series.

OBJECTIVES: Significant progress in treatment strategies improves the expectations of patients with extracranial cancers. Metastases are the primary consideration in patients with cancer history. In the case of neurologic disorders, the patient should undergo brain MRI. A rationale is presented for surgery, whole-brain or stereotactic radiotherapy, or chemotherapy. Recently, we have encountered misdiagnosed primary malignant brain tumours in patients with oncologic history who had been admitted for surgery for brain metastases. The aim of our study is to evaluate the incidence of concurrent cancers, to assess the relationship between previous cancer staging and primary brain tumour evaluation as well as to determine treatment efficiency. METHODS: From January 2007 to December 2011, we prospectively followed up patients with concurrent history of both extracranial cancer and subsequent glioblastoma multiforme. Information was collected on the clinical condition, imaging, history of extracranial cancer, previous and present surgical and oncologic procedures, and GBM histologic, cytogenetic, and molecular genetic investigations. RESULTS: Five patients were recruited: three females and two males. The average patient age at the time of GBM diagnosis was 65.6 years. Three patients had a history of breast carcinoma, one of renal carcinoma and one of colorectal carcinoma. Following the diagnosis of carcinoma, three patients received chemotherapy and radiotherapy, one patient had radiotherapy alone, and one had no adjuvant therapy. In all the cases, surgery revealed primary GBM, with a standard occurrence of genetic abnormalities (Table 1). The average time from the diagnosis of extracranial cancer to that of GBM was 4 years. Four patients underwent chemoradiotherapy and one had palliative radiotherapy. Two patients completed oncotherapy and their OS was 27 months and 19 months, respectively. One patient had post-surgical progression of hemiparesis. One patient had pulmonary embolism during oncotherapy and one had paraplegia caused by a pathological fracture of vertebras T5 due to breast carcinoma metastases. The OS was 11.8 months (range 3-27 months). All the patients succumbed to GBM progression.

[Merkel cell skin carcinoma]. / Kozní karcinom z Merkelových bunek.

Merkel cell carcinoma is a rare tumour of the skin. It affects predominantly elderly Caucasian males on sun-exposed areas of the skin. Distinctively more frequent and at significantly lower age, its incidence is higher in immunocompromised patients. In these patients we often observe the highly aggressive course of Merkel cell carcinoma and a fatal outcome. The incidence of Merkel cell carcinoma has been rising in recent years and is more dramatic than the increased incidence of cutaneous melanoma. More than one-third of Merkel cell carcinoma patients will die from this cancer, making it twice as lethal as melanoma. The malignant transformation of Merkel cells is currently thought to be related to an infection with Merkel cell polyomavirus. In the early stage the discreet clinical picture may be contrary to extensive microscopic invasion and this seemingly benign appearance can delay diagnosis or increase the risk of insufficient tumour excision. The diagnosis is definitely confirmed by histological evaluation and immunohistochemical tests. A typical feature is the tendency of Merkel cell carcinoma to frequent local recurrence and early metastasizing into regional lymph nodes with subsequent tumour generalization. The mainstay of therapy is radical excision of the tumour and adjuvant radiotherapy targeted at the site of primary incidence and local draining lymph nodes. The efficacy of different chemotherapy protocols in Merkel cell carcinoma is limited and the median survival rate is measured in months. In the future, prophylaxis with vaccination against Merkel cell polyomavirus will hopefully be possible in high-risk patients, as well as therapeutic usage of antisense oligonucleotides or microRNAs, eventually complete Merkel cell carcinoma elimination by affecting the tumour suppressor gene Atonal homolog 1 expression. The staging of the tumour at time of diagnosis is the most important prognostic factor. In this respect, the importance of preventative skin inspection in high-risk immunocompromised patients must be stressed and suitable therapy must be indicated in suspected lesions.