Colorectal cancer:new developments after the 2013 ECCO/ESMO congress

In 2013,at the congress of the European CanCer Organization and the European Society for Medical Oncology,colorectal cancer was the subject of various oral presentations and posters.In this article,we have selected the most innovative studies that are likely to change our daily practice.

Primary Anorectal Melanomas Interest of Targeting C-KIT in Two Cases from a Series of 11 Patients

Background: The anorectal location of melanomas is extremely rare (1% - 3% of all melanomas), and the prognosis remains poor because of the aggressiveness and the high metastatic potential of those tumors. The discovery that the KIT oncogene may be aberrantly activated in a subset of patients with anorectal melanoma creates a realm of possibility for the development of targeted molecular therapy. Aim: to show the epidemiologic, clinico-radiological, histological features and treatment management especially in patients with over-expression of C-KIT treated by Imatinib. Methods: It is a retrospective study conducted in the department of medical oncology at Hassan II University Hospital between January 2007 and January 2012, including all patients with histologically proven melanoma of the anorectal area. Results: 11 cases were collected, with slight female predominance. Nine patients were metastatic at the moment of diagnosis, and only two with local stage, but evolution was marked by local and distant recurrence less than 12 months after abdo-minoperineal resection. First line of chemotherapy was based mainly on paclitaxel, carboplatine and dacarbazine. Response was modest with only 3 partial responses, 4 patients with disease stability, and 4 patients with disease progression. Two patients, with over expression of C-KIT, received Imatinib as second line of treatment with significant improvement of symptoms and radiological response reaching 50%. Seven patients died with a median survival of 11 months from diagnosis to the date of death. Conclusion: Primary anorectal melanomas are very rare, with high aggressiveness and poor prognosis. Treatment management is still a big challenge given to the modest efficacy of conventional chemotherapy. Better understanding of carcinogenesis and signaling pathways will allow development of new targeted therapies.

Primary Melanoma of the Vagina Treated by Imatinib: Case Report

Melanoma of the vagina is a rare lesion. It results from the malignant transformation of ectopic melanocytes occurring in post-menopause. The CKIT is expressed in 36% of cases in addition to melanoma markers. Prognosis is poor especially for inoperable and disseminated forms despite systemic therapy. Treatment with Imatinib is an option in cases of metastatic mucosal melanoma with CKIT mutation or amplification. We report the case of post-menopausal women, treated at Hassan II University Hospital, diagnosed with metastatic melanoma of the vagina, that didn’t respond to first line of chemotherapy, and received Imatinib as second line of treatment, with good clinical response and durable stability at radiological assessment.

Intracardiac Metastasis from Epitheloid Sarcoma:Rare Localization and Difficult Management

The involvement of the heart in metastatic cancer is a very rare clinical diagnosis with poor prognosis given to the major risk of cardiac failure. They are frequently asymptomatic or symptoms, when present, may be attributed to other causes. The most common, among the latter, are intrathoracic cancers, lymphomas, leukemias, melanoma, and rarely sarcomas. The echocardiography is the gold standard for diagnosis, but scanner and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be helpful for determination of exact location and composition of lesions. Cardiac metastases occur generally in advanced stage in poly-metastatic patients. Treatment is often in a palliative strategy but should be discussed in multidisciplinary approach for each case. We report a case of cardiac metastasis occurring in a 47 years old woman, treated for epitheloid sarcoma of the buttock. The aim of this work is to show the rarity of the heart location, describing the epidemiological, clinical, radiological, and prognostic features of these metastases and finally discussing the therapeutic strategy.