Impact of metastatic lymph node ratio in node-positive colorectal cancer

Colorectal cancer(CRC) is one of the most common malignant diseases in the world.Presently,the most widely used staging system for CRC is the tumor nodes metastasis classification system,which classifies patients into prognostic groups according to the depth of the primary tumor,presence of regional lymph node(LN) metastases,and evidence of distant metastatic spread.The number of LNs with confirmed metastasis is related to the severity of the disease,but this number depends on the number of LNs retrieved,which varies depending on patient age,tumor grade,surgical extent,and tumor site.Numerous studies and a recent structured review have demonstrated associated improvements in the survival of CRC patients with increasing numbers of LNs retrieved for examination.Hence,the impact of lymph node ratio(LNR),defined as the number of metastatic LNs divided by the number of LNs retrieved,has been investigated in various malignancies,including CRC.In this editorial,we review the literature demonstrating the clinicopathological significance of LNR in CRC pati-ents.Some reports have indicated the advantage of considering the LNR compared to the number of LNs retrieved and/or LN status.When the LNR is taken into consideration for survival analysis,the number of LNs retrieved and/or the LN status is not always found to be a prognostic factor.The cut-off points for LNRs were proposed in numerous studies.However,optimal thresholds for LNRs have not yet received consensus.It is still unclear whether the LNR has more prognostic validity than N stage.For all these reasons,the potential advantages of LNRs in the staging system should be investigated in large prospective data sets.

Successful embolization assisted by covered stents for a pseudoaneurysm following pancreatic surgery

Delayed intra-abdominal hemorrhage after pancreatic surgery is a potentially lethal complication.Transarterial coil embolization and/or the placing of an endovascular stent are minimally invasive and effective procedures.An artery that is extensively eroded and rendered friable due to operative skeletonization or postoperative inflammation sometimes contributes to delayed intra-abdominal hemorrhage or rebleeding after coil embolization.This report presents a case of successful management of postoperative hemorrhage in a-74-year-old Japanese male.He experienced bleeding from a pseudoaneurysm of the brittle hepatic artery following total pancreatectomy.Initially the pseudoaneurysm was successfully treated with covered coronary stent-grafts,but rebleeding occurred 1 mo later due to the brittleness of the artery.Rebleeding was definitively managed by the complete packing of the stent by coil embolization.He remains stable at 18 mo following the f inal embolization.A stent graft can be used for protecting a brittle artery to avoid injury by coil embolization.

Efficacy of subcutaneous penrose drains for surgical site infections in colorectal surgery

AIM: To investigate whether a subcutaneous penrose drain would decrease the superficial surgical site infection (s-SSI) rate in elective colorectal surgery. METHODS: This is a comparative study of the historical control type. Intervention consisted of the use of penrose drain in elective open colorectal surgical wounds. The outcome was an incidence of s-SSI. The patients were risk stratified according to the depth of subcutaneous tissue.RESULTS: There were 131 patients (40 patients with high s-SSI risk) in the prior period (from July 2008 to June 2009, when no penrose drains were inserted) and 151 patients (75 patients with high s-SSI risk) in the latter period (from June 2010 to November 2011, when penrose drains were inserted). The overall s-SSI rate was 6.1% and 5.3% during the two periods (P = 0.770), and the s-SSI rate in the high s-SSI risk group was 15.0% and 8.0% (P = 0.242).CONCLUSION: Although penrose drain was not observed to significantly reduce s-SSI, there tended to be a reduced risk of s-SSI in the high s-SSI risk group.