Importance of early diagnosis of pancreaticobiliary maljunction without biliary dilatation

AIM:To clarify the strategy for early diagnosis of pancreaticobiliary maljunction(PBM) without biliary dilatation and to pathologically examine gallbladder before cancer develops.METHODS:The anatomy of the union of the pancreatic and bile ducts was assessed by using endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography(ERCP).Patients with a long common channel in which communication between the pancreatic and bile ducts was maintained even during sphincter contraction were diagnosed as having PBM.Of these,patients in which the maximal diameter of the bile duct was less than 10 mm were diagnosed with PBM without biliary dilatation.The process of diagnosing 54 patients with PBM without biliary dilatation was retrospectively investigated.Histopathological analysis of resected gallbladder specimens from 8 patients with PBM without biliary dilatation or cancer was conducted.RESULTS:Thirty-six PBM patients without biliary dilatation were diagnosed with gallbladder cancer after showing clinical symptoms such as abdominal or back pain(n = 16) or jaundice(n = 12).Radical surgery for gallbladder cancer was only possible in 11 patients(31%) and only 4 patients(11%) survived for 5 years.Eight patients were suspected as having PBM without biliary dilatation from the finding of gallbladder wall thickening on ultrasound and the diagnosis was confirmed by ERCP and/or magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography(MRCP).The median age of these 8 patients was younger by a decade than PBM patients with gallbladder cancer.All 8 patients underwent prophylactic cholecystectomy and bile duct cancer has not occurred.Wall thickness and mucosal height of the 8 resected gallbladders were significantly greater than controls,and hyperplastic changes,hypertrophic muscular layer,subserosal fibrosis,and adenomyomatosis were detected in 7(88%),5(63%),7(88%) and 5(63%) patients,respectively.Ki-67 labeling index was high and K-ras mutation was detected in 3 of 6 patients.CONCLUSION:To detect PBM without biliary dilatation before onset of gallbladder cancer,we should perform MRCP for individuals showing increased gallbladder wall thickness on ultrasound.

Antithrombin reduces reperfusion-induced hepatic metastasis of colon cancer cells

AIM： To examine whether antithrombin （AT） could prevent hepatic ischemia/reperfusion （I/R）-induced hepatic metastasis by inhibiting tumor necrosis factor （TNF）-α-induced expression of E-selectin in rats. METHODS： Hepatic I/R was induced in rats and mice by clamping the left branches of the portal vein and the hepatic artery. Cancer cells were injected intrasplenically. The number of metastatic nodules was counted on day 7 after I/R. TNF-α and E-selectin mRNA in hepatic tissue, serum fibrinogen degradation products and hepatic tissue levels of 6-keto-PGF1α, a stable metabolite of PGI2, were measured. RESULTS： AT inhibited increases in hepatic metastasis of tumor cells and hepatic tissue mRNA levels of TNF-α and E-selectin in animals subjected to hepatic I/R. Argatroban, a thrombin inhibitor, did not suppress any of these changes. Both AT and argatroban inhibited I/R-induced coagulation abnormalities. I/R-induced increases of hepatic tissue levels of 6-keto-PGF1α were significantly enhanced by AT. Pretreatment with indomethacin completely reversed the effects of AT. Administration of OP-2507, a stable PGI2 analog, showed effects similar to those of AT in this model. Hepatic metastasis in congenital AT-deficient mice subjected to hepatic I/R was significantly increased compared to that observed in wild-type mice. Administration of AT significantly reduced the number of hepatic metastases in congenital AT-deficient mice. CONCLUSION： AT might reduce I/R-induced hepatic metastasis of colon cancer cells by inhibiting TNF-α-induced expression of E-selectin through an increase in the endothelial production of PGI2. These findings also raise the possibility that AT might prevent hepatic metastasis of tumor cells if administered during the resection of liver tumors.

Diagnosis and clinical implications of pancreatobiliary reflux

The sphincter of Oddi is located at the distal end of the pancreatic and bile ducts and regulates the outflow of bile and pancreatic juice. A common channel can be so long that the junction of the pancreatic and bile ducts is located outside of the duodenal wall, as occurs in pancreaticobiliary maljunction （PBM）; in such cases, sphincter action does not functionally affect the junction. As the hydropressure within the pancreatic duct is usually greater than in the bile duct, pancreatic juice frequently refluxes into the biliary duct （pancreatobiliary reflux） in PBM, resulting in carcinogenetic conditions in the biliary tract. Pancreatobiliary reflux can be diagnosed from elevated amylase level in the bile, secretinstimulated dynamic magnetic resonance cholangiop ancreatography, and pancreatography via the minor duodenal papilla. Recently, it has become obvious that pancreatobiliary reflux can occur in individuals without PBM. Pancreatobiliary reflux might be related to biliary carcinogenesis even in some individuals without PBM. Since few systemic studies exist with respect to clinical relevance and implications of the pancreatobiliary reflux in individuals with normal pancreaticobiliary junction, further prospective clinical studies including appropriate management should be performed.

Sclerosing cholangitis associated with autoimmune pancreatitis differs from primary sclerosing cholangitis

AIM:To clarify the characteristic features of biliary le-sions in patients with autoimmune pancreatitis(AIP) and compare them with those of primary sclerosing cholangitis(PSC) .METHODS:The clinicopathological characteristics of 34 patients with sclerosing cholangitis(SC) associated with AIP were compared with those of 4 patients with PSC.RESULTS:SC with AIP occurred predominantly in el-derly men.Obstructive jaundice was the most frequent initial symptom in SC with AIP.Only SC patients with AIP had elevated serum IgG4 levels,and sclerosing diseases were more frequent in these patients.SC pa-tients with AIP responded well to steroid therapy.Seg-mental stenosis of the lower bile duct was observed only in SC patients with AIP,but a beaded and pruned-tree appearance was detected only in PSC patients.Dense infi ltration of IgG4-positive plasma cells was de-tected in the bile duct wall and the periportal area,as well as in the pancreas,of SC patients with AIP.CONCLUSION:SC with AIP is distinctly different from PSC.The two diseases can be discriminated based on cholangiopancreatographic findings and serum IgG4 levels.

Recurrent renal cell carcinoma leading to a misdiagnosis of polycystic liver disease: A case report

BACKGROUND Polycystic liver disease(PCLD) with a large cystic volume deteriorates the quality of life of patients through substantial effects on the adjacent organs,recurrent cyst infections, cyst rupture, and hemorrhage. Surgical or radiological intervention is usually needed to alleviate these symptoms. We report a rare case of the cystic metastasis of renal cell carcinoma(RCC), which was misdiagnosed as PCLD, as a result of the clinical and radiological similarity between these disorders.CASE SUMMARY A 74-year-old female who had undergone nephrectomy for papillary-type RCC(PRCC) was suffering from abdominal pain and the recurrent intracystic hemorrhage of multiple cysts in the liver. Imaging studies and aspiration cytology of the cysts showed no evidence of malignancy. With a diagnosis of autosomal dominant polycystic liver disease, the patient received hepatectomy for the purpose of mass reduction and infectious cyst removal. Surgery was performed without complications, and the patient was discharged on postoperative day 14. Postoperatively, the pathology revealed a diagnosis of recurrent PRCC with cystic formation.CONCLUSION This case demonstrates the importance of excluding the cystic metastasis of a cancer when liver cysts are observed.