indocyanine green-based fluorescence imaging in visceral and hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery:State of the art and future directions

In recent years, the use of fluorescence-guided surgery(FGS) to treat benign and malignant visceral, hepatobiliary and pancreatic neoplasms has significantly increased. FGS relies on the fluorescence signal emitted by injected substances(fluorophores) after being illuminated by ad hoc laser sources to help guide the surgical procedure and provide the surgeon with real-time visualization of the fluorescent structures of interest that would be otherwise invisible. This review surveys and discusses the most common and emerging clinical applications of indocyanine green(ICG)-based fluorescence in visceral, hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgery. The analysis, findings, and discussion presented here rely on the authors' significant experience with this technique in their medical institutions, an up-to-date review of the most relevant articles published on this topic between 2014 and 2018, and lengthy discussions with key opinion leaders in the field during recent conferences and congresses. For each application, the benefits and limitations of this technique, as well as applicable future directions, are described. The imaging of fluorescence emitted by ICG is a simple, fast,relatively inexpensive, and harmless tool with numerous different applications in surgery for both neoplasms and benign pathologies of the visceral and hepatobiliary systems. The ever-increasing availability of visual systems that can utilize this tool will transform some of these applications into the standard of care in the near future. Further studies are needed to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each application of ICG-based fluorescence imaging in abdominal surgery.

Multimodal treatment of gastric cancer in the west: Where are we going?

The incidence of gastric cancer(GC) is decreasing worldwide,especially for intestinal histotype of the distal third of the stomach.On the contrary,proximal location and diffuse Lauren histotype have been reported to be generally stable over time.In the west,no clear improvement in long-term results was observed in clinical and population-based studies.Results of treatment in these neoplasms are strictly dependent on tumor stage.Adequate surgery and extended lymphadenectomy are associated with good long-term outcome in early-stage cancer; however,results are still unsatisfactory for advanced stages(Ⅲ and Ⅳ),for which additional treatments could provide a survival benefit.This implies a tailored approach to GC.The aim of this review was to summarize the main multimodal treatment options in advanced resectable GC.Perioperative or postoperative treatments,including chemotherapy,chemoradiotherapy,targeted therapies,and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy have been reviewed,and the main ongoing and completed trials have been analyzed.An original tailored multimodal approach to non-cardia GC has been also proposed.

Follow-up after gastrectomy for cancer:results of an international web round table

Oncological follow-up after radical gastrectomy for cancer still represents a discrepancy in the field,with many retrospective series demonstrating that early diagnosis of recurrence does not result in an improvement in patient survival;yet,many centers with high quality of care still provide routine patient follow-up after surgery by clinical and instrumental controls.This was the topic for a web round table entitled"Rationale and limits of oncological follow-up after gastrectomy for cancer"that was launched one year before the 10th International Gastric Cancer Congress.Authors having specific expertise were invited to comment on their previous publications to provide the subject for an open debate.During a three-month-long discussion,32 authors from 12 countries participated,and 2299people visited the dedicated web page.Substantial differences emerged between the participants:authors from Japan,South Korea,Italy,Brazil,Germany and France currently engage in instrumental follow-up,whereas authors from Eastern Europe,Peru and India do not,and British and American surgeons practice it in a rather limited manner or in the context of experimental studies.Although endoscopy is still considered useful by most authors,all the authors recognized that computed tomography scanning is the method of choice to detect recurrence;however,many limit follow-up to clinical and biochemical examinations,and acknowledge the lack of improved survival with early detection.

Recurrence in node-negative advanced gastric cancer:Novel findings from an in-depth pathological analysis of prognostic factors from a multicentric series

AIM To analyze the clinicopathological characteristics of patients with both node-negative gastric carcinoma and diagnosis of recurrence during follow-up. METHODS We enrolled 41 patients treated with curative gastrectomy for p T2-4 a N0 gastric carcinoma between 1992 and 2010,who developed recurrence(Group 1). We retrospectively selected this group from the prospectively collected database of 4 centers belonging to the Italian Research Group for Gastric Cancer,and compared them with 437 p T2-4 a N0 patients without recurrence(Group 2). We analyzed lymphatic embolization,microvascular infiltration,perineural infiltration,and immunohistochemical determination of p53,Ki67,and HER2 in Group 1 and in a subgroup of Group 2(Group 2 bis) of 41 cases matched with Group 1 according to demographic and pathological characteristics. RESULTS T4 a stage and diffuse histotype were associated with recurrence in the group of p N0 patients. In-depth pathological analysis of two homogenous groups of p N0 patients,with and without recurrence during longterm follow-up(groups 1 and 2 bis),revealed two striking patterns: lymphatic embolization and perineural infiltration(two parameters that pathologists can easily report),and p53 and Ki67,represent significant factors for recurrence.CONCLUSION The reported pathological features should be considered predictive factors for recurrence and could be useful to stratify node-negative gastric cancer patients for adjuvant treatment and tailored follow-up.

Incidence and treatment of mediastinal leakage after esophagectomy:Insights from the multicenter study on mediastinal leaks

BACKGROUND Mediastinal leakage(ML) is one of the most feared complications of esophagectomy. A standard strategy for its diagnosis and treatment has beendifficult to establish because of the great variability in their incidence and mortality rates reported in the existing series.AIM To assess the incidence, predictive factors, treatment, and associated mortality rate of mediastinal leakage using the standardized definition of mediastinal leaks recently proposed by the Esophagectomy Complications Consensus Group(ECCG).METHODS Seven Italian surgical centers(five high-volume, two low-volume) affiliated with the Italian Society for the Study of Esophageal Diseases designed and implemented a retrospective study including all esophagectomies(n = 501) with intrathoracic esophagogastric anastomosis performed from 2014 to 2017.Anastomotic MLs were defined according to the classification recently proposed by the ECCG.RESULTS Fifty-nine cases of ML were recorded, yielding an overall incidence of 11.8%(95%CI: 9.1%-14.9%). The surgical approach significantly influenced the occurrence of ML: the proportion of leakage was 10.5% and 9% after open and hybrid esophagectomy(HE), respectively, and doubled(20%) after totally minimally invasive esophagectomy(TMIE)(P = 0.016). No other predictive factors were found. The 30-and 90-d overall mortality rates were 1.4% and 3.2%,respectively; the 30-and 90-d leak-related mortality rates were 5.1% and 10.2%,respectively; the 90-d mortality rates for TMIE and HE were 5.9% and 1.8%,respectively. Endoscopy was the first-line treatment in 49% of ML cases, with the need for retreatment in 17.2% of cases. Surgery was needed in 44.1% of ML cases.Endoscopic treatment had the lowest mortality rate(6.9%). Removal of the gastric tube with stoma formation was necessary in 8(13.6%) cases.CONCLUSION The incidence of ML after esophagectomy was high mainly in the TMIE group.However, the general and specific(leak-related) mortality rates were low. Early treatment(surgical or endoscopic) of severe leaks is mandatory to limit related mortality.

Increased risk of second malignancy in pancreatic intraductal papillary mucinous tumors: Review of the literature

AIM: To analyze the available evidence about the risk of extrapancreatic malignancies and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma associated to pancreatic intraductal papillary mucinous tumors(IPMNs).METHODS: A systematic search of literature was undertaken using MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane and Web-of-Science libraries. No limitations for year of publication were considered; preference was given to English papers. All references in selected articles were further screened for additional publications. Both clinical series and Literature reviews were selected. For all eligible studies, a standard data extraction form was filled in and the following data were extracted: study design, number of patients, prevalence of pancreatic cancer and extrapancreatic malignancies in IPMN patients and control groups, if available.RESULTS: A total of 805 abstracts were selected and read; 25 articles were considered pertinent and 17 were chosen for the present systematic review. Eleven monocentric series, 1 multicentric series, 1 casecontrol study, 1 population-based study and 3 case report were included. A total of 2881 patients were globally analyzed as study group, and the incidence of pancreatic cancer and/or extrapancreatic malignancies ranged from 5% to 52%, with a mean of 28.71%.When a control group was analyzed(6 papers), the same incidence was as low as 9.4%.CONCLUSION: The available Literature is unanimous in claiming IPMNs to be strongly associated with pancreatic and extrapancreatic malignancies. The consequences in IPMNs management are herein discussed.

Pancreatic transection from blunt trauma associated with vascular and biliary lesions: A case report

Major injuries of the pancreas may result in considerable morbidity and mortality when associated with vascular and visceral injuries. In such cases, a right diagnosis and a prompt surgical intervention are necessary to give a chance to the patient. We herein describe a case of blunt abdominal trauma in a 29-year- old man whose pancreatic rupture was associated with hepatic artery, splenic vein and extrahepatic bile duct damage. Immediate surgery was performed after computer tomograghy (CT), the haemorrhagic lesions dictat the emergency transfer to the operating room. Spleno-pancreatic resection was done with reconstruction of the hepatic artery, ligation of the splenic vein and a Roux-en-Y bilio-jejunal diversion. The early post-operative course was complicated by stenosis of the arterial reconstruction, which was treated by endovascular angioplasty followed by percutaneous drainage of symptomatic pseudocyst, rest and antibiotics. Finally, the patient was discharged and was alive without clinical problems at the time when we wrote this case report. The present case underlines the clinical relevance of vascular and visceral injuries associated with pancreatic trauma and the problems arising in the diagnostic evaluation and the surgical strategy of complex multiple visceral and vascular lesions in blunt abdominal trauma.

Dysplasia in perforated intestinal pneumatosis complicating a previous jejuno-ileal bypass:A cautionary note

We present the case of an elderly woman who developed a bowel perforation related to pneumatosis intestinalis, 33 years after a jejuno-ileal bypass for severe obesity. Final histological examination revealed the presence of dysplasia in the resected specimen. On the basis of our case and a review of the literature, we discuss the etiopathogenesis, the clinical aspects and the treatment of this rare condition.