A Case of Wild-type Cardiac Transthyretin Amyloidosis Diagnosed by Non-invasive Methods.

INTRODUCTION: Transthyretin amyloid cardiomyopathy was considered a rare pathology. However, recent studies show a significant prevalence in patients with degenerative aortic stenosis and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. CASE PRESENTATION: An 85-year-old woman presented with a four-month history of pain in the rib cage with a history of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of the oral cavity, essential thrombocytosis and dyslipidemia. She had no significant family history. A transthoracic echocardiogram showed degenerative aortic stenosis and normal systolic function with preserved left ventricular ejection fraction of 70%. Bone-avid tracer cardiac scintigraphy with technetium-99m-labeled hydroxymethylene diphosphonate with SPECT-CT documented grade two myocardial uptake according to the Perugini scale. MRI evidenced late patchy enhancement in the myocardium associated with diffuse subendocardial enhancement. Laboratory tests showed the absence of mutation in the transthyretin (TTR) gene, serum and urine immunofixation electrophoresis (IFE) negative for monoclonal protein and serum-free light chain (sFLC) assay with a normal kappa/lambda (K/L) ratio. All these findings were compatible with a non-invasive diagnosis of wild-type cardiac amyloidosis. CONCLUSION: The accepted criteria for the definitive non-invasive diagnosis of amyloid cardiomyopathy are based on myocardial uptake by scintigraphy (with SPECT), serum and urine immunofixation electrophoresis, serum-free light chain assay and suggestive findings on echocardiography and/or MRI. Genetic testing should differentiate between ATTRv (v for variant) and ATTRwt (wt for wild type) forms.

Ganglios linfáticos axilares hipermetabólicos en PET-FDG posvacunación contra COVID-19, en pacientes con cánce / Hypermetabolic axillary lymph nodes in PET-FDG post-vaccination against COVID-19, in cancer patients

Al igual que las células malignas, las células inflamatorias pueden captar intensamente 18F-fluorodesoxiglucosa (FDG). La reacción inflamatoria ganglionar axilar se ha descrito en forma creciente y globalmente luego de la vacunación contra COVID-19 con las vacunas de Pfizer, Moderna y AstraZeneca, en pacientes con cáncer. Se presentan dos casos con diagnóstico de cáncer de ovario y mama, respectivamente, con antecedente de vacunación reciente contra COVID-19, en quienes el estudio de PET/TC muestra ganglios linfáticos axilares hipermetabólicos con FDG. A continuación, se describen los hallazgos clave para interpretar el realce aumentado de los ganglios linfáticos axilares en pacientes con cáncer que han sido vacunados contra este virus.

Like malignant cells, inflammatory cells can intensely take upF18-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG). The axillary lymph node inflammatory reaction has been increasingly and globally described after vaccination against COVID-19 with the Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines, in cancer patients. We present two cases with a diagnosis of ovarian and breast cancer respectively, with a history of recent vaccination against COVID-19, in whom the PET/CT study present hypermetabolic axillary lymph nodes with FDG. Key findings for interpreting increased axillary lymph node uptake in cancer patients who have been vaccinated against this virus are described below