The challenges of urgent radical sigmoid colorectal cancer resection in a COVID-19 patient: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic presents a unique global health challenge further complicating surgical management of COVID-19 positive patients due to a lack of published literature. CASE: Within we discuss a 48-year-old Chinese man, presenting with acute gastrointestinal obstruction due to sigmoid colonic mass. The patient was screened and tested positive for COVID 19 due to his employment in Wuhan, China at the COVID-19 pandemic epicenter. The patient was subsequently taken for open sigmoid colonic resection, however the case presented multiple challenges due to the patient's COVID-19 positive status. DISCUSSION: The challenges of surgical management of COVID-19 positive patients exist are four-fold. First the unknown efficacy of pre-surgical risk stratification in COVID-19 positive patients, second the risk of aerosolized COVID-19 transmission during intubation for surgery, third the risk of fecal COVID-19 transmission to surgical staff during large bowel resection, and fourth the post-operative challenges of caring for COVID-19 positive patients. CONCLUSION: Further research is needed into these topics, as well as the medical management of COVID-19 surgical patients.

EGFR T790M-Positive Lung Adenocarcinoma Metastases to the Pituitary Gland Causing Adrenal Insufficiency: A Case Report.

A 64-year-old man, with history of micropapillary thyroid cancer and epidermal growth factor receptor-positive lung adenocarcinoma with no evidence of active disease for 3 years after chemotherapy and radiation on erlotinib, presented with fatigue, nausea, lack of appetite, and xeroderma. A screening magnetic resonance image of the patient's head demonstrated a new bilateral pituitary mass. Initial evaluation revealed low morning cortisol, and the patient was diagnosed with adrenal insufficiency. His symptoms rapidly improved with maintenance glucocorticoids. Soon thereafter, the patient developed an acute visual deficit secondary to enlargement of the pituitary mass, and biopsy revealed EGFR T790M positive metastatic lung adenocarcinoma. Hence, we present a rare case of metastatic lung adenocarcinoma to the pituitary causing secondary adrenal insufficiency.

Pegloticase Induced Hemolytic Anemia in a Patient With G6PD Deficiency.

Gout is a metabolic disorder of purine metabolism that results in crystallization of uric acid in the form of monosodium urate crystals, affects 8.3 million Americans and is the most common cause of inflammatory arthritis in adults. Urate lowering therapy is the mainstay of treatment for chronic gout. Initial treatments of choice in gout include allopurinol, a purine analog which inhibits xanthine oxidase and decreases the production of uric acid as well as probenecid which increases the urinary excretion of uric acid. However, 3% of patients will fail these treatments. In 2010, pegloticase, a recombinant urate oxidase conjugated to polyethylene glycol, was approved for these patients. Pegloticase has been shown to rapidly normalize plasma uric acid values, resolve tophi and improve quality of life in these patients. Hereby we present a case of a 50-year-old African male admitted to the hospital with symptomatic anemia 1 week after pegloticase infusion. He was found to have glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency, predisposing him to hemolytic anemia. Hereby we discuss his clinical course, and suggest glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency screening prior to pegloticase infusion.