Bone metastases in vulvar cancer: a rare metastatic pattern.

Bone metastases from a vulvar carcinoma are exceptionally rare with only five reported cases in the literature. We report on a patient who was initially treated with radical vulvectomy and bilateral inguinal lymphadenectomy for a vulvar cancer (pT2, pN2 (6/37), M0; G2). Due to a positive nodal status, adjuvant radiation of the vulva and the pelvis was performed additionally. The patient presented 4 months after initial therapy with severe pain in the right humeral shaft due to a pathologic fracture based on an osteoclastic metastasis. During osteosynthetic stabilization histologic and immunohistochemical stain gave evidence of a metastasis of the known vulvar carcinoma. Bone scan showed enhancements in both humeral heads as well as the right distal femur, whereas plain radiographs confirmed further metastases in all suspected areas. In conclusion, bone metastases should be considered in the differential diagnoses of unclear osseous pain in women with a history of vulvar cancer. Immunohistochemical examinations might be important to depict the epithelial character of the tissue and allude to the metastatic nature of such rare lesions. The atypical location should alert the physician to suspect distant metastasis, rather than locoregional disease.

LeukoScan for imaging infection in different clinical settings: a retrospective evaluation and extended review of the literature.

PURPOSE: The aim of the current study was to determine the overall diagnostic accuracy of Tc-99m-labeled antigranulocyte monoclonal antibody Fab' fragments (LeukoScan) for the routine detection of bone and soft tissue infections in a retrospective evaluation. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 138 patients (63 men, 75 women; mean age, 58.29 +/- 25.38 years) with fever of unknown origin and possible endocarditis (n = 59), infection of arthroplastic joints (n = 20), arthritis (n = 16), peripheral (n = 15) and central bone infections (n = 14), soft tissue infection (n = 6), appendicitis (n = 4), pericarditis (n = 2), or vascular graft infection (n = 2) underwent imaging after injection of 555 to 925 MBq (15 to 25 mCi) Tc-99m-labeled antigranulocyte monoclonal antibody Fab' fragments (LeukoScan). RESULTS: True-positive results were found in 63 of 81 lesions. The overall sensitivity and specificity were 76% and 84%, respectively. In arthritis, seven of seven foci could be detected, whereas false-negative results were found in infections of the femoral bone in three of nine lesions and in periprosthetic infections of long bones in three of eight lesions. Good results were found in five of six soft-tissue infections, in four of six patients with endocarditis, in three of four atypical cases of appendicitis, in two of two infected vascular grafts, and in one of one patient with pericarditis. Subacute and chronic infections of the spine always showed photopenic areas in eight of eight patients. If photopenic lesions were included as diagnostic criteria, the sensitivity and specificity were 88% and 67%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Tc-99m-labeled antigranulocyte monoclonal antibody Fab' fragments can be used for imaging acute infections of peripheral bones and soft tissues. False-negative results are likely in patients with chronic infections. Sensitivity can be increased while decreasing specificity by including photopenic lesions in the spine as diagnostic criteria for localizing disease.

Sodium iodide symporter-based strategies for diagnosis and treatment of thyroidal and nonthyroidal malignancies.

The recent cloning and molecular characterization of the sodium iodide-symporter (NIS) has inspired novel approaches to the diagnosis and treatment of thyroidal and nonthyroidal malignancies. This article briefly reviews the physiologic regulation of NIS expression by cytokines, the expression in benign and malignant thyroidal diseases, and the expression in extrathyroidal tissues. Current concepts for NIS-based cancer therapy in thyroidal and extrathyroidal tumors are presented. The recent discovery of NIS expression in a majority of breast cancers as well as its promising application for prostate cancer imply potential applications in diagnostic imaging and radioiodine anticancer therapy for these highly common and lethal malignancies.