The safety and feasibility of laparoscopic gastrectomy for gastric cancer in very elderly patients: short-and long-term outcomes.

PURPOSE: It remains unclear whether laparoscopic gastrectomy (LG) for gastric cancer is a suitable treatment for very elderly (VE) patients. We aimed to assess the safety and feasibility of LG for gastric cancer in VE patients. METHODS: We reviewed 226 consecutive patients who underwent LG between January 2010 and December 2016. We compared VE patients (age ≥ 80, n = 38) with non-elderly patients (age ≤ 79, n = 188). RESULTS: An ASA-PS score ≥ 2 was more common in VE group (86.8 vs. 48.9%; P < 0.01). There were no significant differences in the operating time, blood loss, postoperative hospital stay, or postoperative morbidity between the groups. The 3-year survival rate and 3-year disease-specific survival rate were lower in the VE group (53.7 vs. 85.6%; P < 0.0001, 78.5 vs. 92.4%; P = 0.0116). A univariate analysis showed that PS scores ≥ 2, Charlson comorbidity index ≥ 4, and pN stage were independent predictors of decreased overall survival rates in the VE group. A multivariate analysis showed total gastrectomy, a Charlson comorbidity index ≥ 4, and the pN stage to be independent predictors in the VE group. CONCLUSION: LG for gastric cancer is, thus, considered to be safe for patients aged 80 years or older. Total gastrectomy, a Charlson comorbidity index ≥ 4, and the pN stage were independent risk factors for a poor prognosis in these patients.

Pancreatic-type Acinar Cell Carcinoma of the Stomach Included in Multiple Primary Carcinomas.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Pancreatic-type acinar cell carcinoma (ACC) in the stomach is extraordinarily rare. We pathologically examined two cases with multiple primary carcinomas, including gastric tumors. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Gastric cancer specimens were examined by immunostaining and electron microscopy. RESULTS: Both cases had cancer cells with acinar patterns, resembling pancreatic ACC. The cancer cells in the first case were positive for exocrine markers, including chymotrypsin, lipase and alpha-1 antichymotrypsin (ACT), as well as neuroendocrine markers, including chromogranin A and synaptophysin. The cancer cells in the second case were positive for chymotrypsin and alpha-1 ACT, while being slightly positive for chromogranin A and synaptophysin. Ultrastructurally, cancer cells contained zymogen granules in both cases. The final diagnosis was pancreatic mixed acinar-neuroendocrine carcinoma and pure pancreatic ACC, respectively. CONCLUSION: We confirmed two cases with gastric pancreatic-type ACC included in multiple primary carcinomas. This type of double cancer has not been reported previously.

[A Case of Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Esophagus with Achalasia -- Conversion from Chemoradiotherapy to Surgery].

The patient was a 67-year-old woman with achalasia and squamous cell carcinoma(SCC)of the esophagus. She presented with a difficulty in swallowing. The cancer was on the surface of the esophagus. The patient initially received systemic chemotherapy with 5-FU and cisplatin, and radiation therapy. The difficulty in swallowing persisted due to insufficiency of radiation treatment caused by achalasia. Therefore, we shifted the treatment plan from chemoradiotherapy to surgery. Endoscopic examination performed before surgery showed that there was no obvious cancer in the esophagus. We resected the esophagus routinely. On the specimen, no cancer cells were detected upon macroscopic and microscopic examinations; metastasis was not detected in the lymph node. Achalasia is a recognized risk factor for esophageal SCC. In the treatment of superficial SCC, no difference of therapeutic effect was observed between surgery and chemoradiation. However, for the treatment of certain cases of SCC with achalasia, including the treatment of achalasia itself, surgery can be the preferred option of treatment.

[Clinical Response of Metastatic Colon Cancer to Chemotherapy with S-1 and Oxaliplatin - A Case Report].

Chemotherapy with S-1 and oxaliplatin is a new treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer. We present the first case of S-1, oxaliplatin, and bevacizumab therapy in our hospital. The patient was a 69-year-old woman with ascending colon cancer and multiple lung and liver metastases. She tended to suffer from constipation; stenoses at the cecum and colon cancer were detected by colon fiberscopy. Following surgical resection of the primary tumor, the patient received systemic chemotherapy with S-1, oxaliplatin, and bevacizumab. Following chemotherapy, CT showed no cancer in the lung and cancer reduction in the liver or dissemination. The patient had diarrhea and no appetite at first, so we reduced the oxaliplatin dose by 80%. After reduction of the oxaliplatin dose, we could treat the patient with S-1 and oxaliplatin continuously with no toxicity. S-1 and oxaliplatin chemotherapy is cost-effective, and has less toxicity than other chemotherapies, if proper measures are taken. It seemed to have a non-inferior response rate and disease control compared to other chemotherapies, such as FOLFOX. Thus, this chemotherapy is a valid choice for metastatic colorectal cancer.

[Clinicopathological features of young patients with triple negative breast cancer].

This study investigated triple negative diagnoses that occurred in 27 (11%) out of 243 cases of breast cancer analyzed for the presence of estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor( PgR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER 2). In 5 of the triple negative cases of breast cancer, the patients were young, under 35 years of age (average age of 29). In 22 of the cases, the women were 35 years or older (average age of 66). The cancer quickly reoccurred in 4 of the 5 cases of triple negative breast cancer in young women despite various chemotherapy treatments, and in 3 of those cases the women died within 14 months following surgery. Even in statistical analysis, triple negative breast cancer in young women has a significantly poorer prognosis for both disease-free survival rate and overall survival rate, compared with triple negative breast cancer in women 35 and older, and young women without triple negative breast cancer. When basal-like phenotype was defined as being positive for epidermal growth factor (EGFR) and/or cytokeratin (CK)5/6, among the triple negative breast cancer cases of women 35 years and older, the rate for basal-like phenotype, which is said to have a poor prognosis, was 67% (14 out of 21 cases) while in young women with triple negative breast cancer, all cases (5 out of 5) were basal-like phenotype. This suggests that the biological degree of malignancy is extremely high for young women with triple negative breast cancer.