Complete regression of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma after right portal vein ligation. Case report.

INTRODUCTION: Spontaneous tumor regression is an extremely rare phenomenon in the oncology field. PRESENTATION OF CASE: We present the case of a 72-years-old male patient presenting with a bulky hepatic tumor mass located in segment V and extending into segments IVb and VI with MRI features of atypical cholangiocarcinoma with a liver metastasis in segment III. In first surgical step, excision of the metastasis, and ligation of the right portal vein was done. A new MRI examination performed 5 weeks later shows significant tumor regression, and 2 weeks later, during the second surgery, the tumor was not found. Under these conditions we performed a limited segment V liver resection, in the area indicated by the radiologist as the site of the tumor. No viable malignant cells existed in the tumor specimen, and a third MRI examination didn't identify any residual tumor. DISCUSSION: From our literature study this is the only case of complete tumor regression of an intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma following portal vein ligation. We believe the portal vein ligation resulted in a marked regression/deficiency in the tumor blood supply. CONCLUSION: Serial MRI examinations demonstrated the regression of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma after portal vein ligation. Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma should be included in the tumors that could extremely rarely spontaneously regress.

Atypical posterior circulation strokes: a case-based review of rare anatomical variations involved.

The circle of Willis is a very important vascular mechanism of protecting against cerebral ischemia, especially when circulation within the main arteries irrigating the brain is somehow impeded. As result of congenital malformation arising early in embryonic development, the fetal-type posterior circle of Willis remains as such during the rest of one's life. Consequently, the posterior cerebral artery (PCA) becomes a branch of the internal carotid artery (ICA), rather than of the basilar artery (BA). Furthermore, the rest of collateral circulation, between the anterior and the posterior regions of the brain, is also negatively affected (e.g., leptomeningeal vessels). The anatomical variant represented by the artery of Percheron (AOP) has its origin on one of the PCAs, supplying singlehandedly both paramedian areas of the thalamus (right and left) and posterior regions of the midbrain. In the present study, we report a case of bilateral thalamic infarction with midbrain involvement, where the correct diagnosis was made retrospectively using computed tomography (CT) scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and three-dimensional time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography (3D TOF MRA).

Trigeminal Meningioma in a Patient with Tardive Dyskinesia as Only Symptom.

Most meningiomas are benign, encapsulated tumors (95% of the cases), generally undergoing a limited number of genetic aberrations. We present the case of a 74-year-old patient with no significant pathological history, who is admitted to the neurology ward for orofacial dyskinesias accompanied by hypoesthesia in the left hemiface, a symptomatology that had started insidiously about two months before and worsened progressively over the past 3 weeks. A cerebral MRI was performed which revealed a small mass with discrete T2 hyperintensity and T1 iso-signal compared to the gray matter located in the left pontine cistern, with a large, well-defined base at the level of the cerebral tentorium. The diagnosis of trigeminal meningioma was established and the treatment was started, after hearing the opinion of a neurosurgeon.