Approach to early-onset colorectal cancer:Clinicopathological,familial,molecular and immunohistochemical characteristics

AIM:To characterize clinicopathological and familial features of early-onset colorectal cancer(CRC) and compare features of tumors with and without microsatellite instability(MSI).METHODS:Forty-five patients with CRC aged 45 or younger were included in the study.Clinical information,a three-generation family history,and tumor samples were obtained.MSI status was analyzed and mismatch repair genes were examined in the MSI families.Tumors were included in a tissue microarray and an immunohistochemical study was carried out with a panel of selected antibodies.RESULTS:Early onset CRC is characterized by advanced stage at diagnosis,right colon location,low-grade of differentiation,mucin production,and presence of polyps.Hereditary forms represent at least 21% of cases.Eighty-one percent of patients who died during followup showed a lack of expression of cyclin E,which could be a marker of poor prognosis.β-catenin expression was normal in a high percentage of tumors.CONCLUSION:Early-onset CRC has an important familial component,with a high proportion of tumors showing microsatellite stable.Cyclin E might be a poor prognosis factor.

Decreased levels of plasma adiponectin associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer

AIM:To investigate the association between adiponectin levels and risk of colorectal adenoma and cancer (early and advanced).METHODS: A cross-sectional study in a cohort of hospital-based patients was conducted between January 2004 and March 2006 at Yamagata University Hospital. Male subjects, who had colorectal tumors detected by endoscopic examination, were enrolled according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. Based on the T factor of the TNM system, intraepithelial carcinoma and submucosally invasive carcinoma were def ined as early cancer, and invasion into the muscularis propria or deeper was defined as advanced cancer. The plasma levels of glucose, insulin, total cholesterol, triglyceride, high sensitivity C-reactive protein, insulin like growth factor (IGF)-1, IGF binding protein-3, adiponectin, leptin, and resistin were measured. Each factor level was designated low or high, and the risk of adenoma or cancer was estimated by univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis.RESULTS: We enrolled 124 male subjects (47 with adenoma, 34 with early cancer, 17 with advanced cancer, and 26 without tumors as controls). In patients with adenoma, high triglyceride and low adiponectin were associated with a significant increase in the odds ratio (OR) by univariate analysis. Only a low adiponectin level was related to increased adenoma risk, with an adjusted OR for low level (<11 μg/mL) to high (≥11 μg/mL) of 5.762 (95% confidence interval (CI):1.683-19.739, P=0.005). In the patients with early cancer, high body mass index, high triglyceride, and low adiponectin were associated with a significant increase in OR in univariate analysis. Imultivariate analysis, only low adiponectin was significantly associated with early cancer, with an adjusted OR of 4.495 (95% CI:1.090-18.528, P=0.038). However, in patients with advanced cancer, low adiponectin was not recognized as a significant risk factor for advanced cancer.CONCLUSION: A decreased level of adiponectin is strongly associated with an increased risk of colorectal adenoma and early cancer. These data call for further investigation, including a controlled prospective study.

Non-exposed endoscopic wall-inversion surgery with one-step nucleic acid amplification for early gastrointestinal tumors:Personal experience and literature review

BACKGROUND Laparoscopic and endoscopic cooperative surgery is a safe,organ-sparing surgery that achieves full-thickness resection with adequate margins.Recent studies have demonstrated the safety and efficacy of these procedures.However,these techniques are limited by the exposure of the tumor and mucosa to the peritoneal cavity,which could lead to viable cancer cell seeding and the spillage of gastric juice or enteric liquids into the peritoneal cavity.Non-exposed endoscopic wallinversion surgery(NEWS)is highly accurate in determining the resection margins to prevent intraperitoneal contamination because the tumor is inverted into the visceral lumen instead of the peritoneal cavity.Accurate intraoperative assessment of the nodal status could allow stratification of the extent of resection.One-step nucleic acid amplification(OSNA)can provide a rapid method of evaluating nodal tissue,whilst nearinfrared laparoscopy together with indocyanine green can identify relevant nodal tissue intraoperatively.AIM To determine the safety and feasibility of NEWS in early gastric and colon cancers and of adding rapid intraoperative lymph node(LN)assessment with OSNA.METHODS The patient-based experiential portion of our investigations was conducted at the General and Oncological Surgery Unit of the St.Giuseppe Moscati Hospital(Avellino,Italy).Patients with early-stage gastric or colon cancer(diagnosed via endoscopy,endoscopic ultrasound,and computed tomography)were included.All lesions were treated by NEWS procedure with intraoperative OSNA assay between January 2022 and October 2022.LNs were examined intraoperatively with OSNA and postoperatively with conventional histology.We analyzed patient demographics,lesion features,histopathological diagnoses,R0 resection(negative margins)status,adverse events,and follow-up results.Data were collected prospectively and analyzed retrospectively.RESULTS A total of 10 patients(5 males and 5 females)with an average age of 70.4±4.5 years(range:62-78 years)were enrolled in this study.Five patients were diagnosed with gastric cancer.The remaining 5 patients were diagnosed with early-stage colon cancer.The mean tumor diameter was 23.8±11.6 mm(range:15-36 mm).The NEWS procedure was successful in all cases.The mean procedure time was 111.5±10.7 min(range:80-145 min).The OSNA assay revealed no LN metastases in any patients.Histologically complete resection(R0)was achieved in 9 patients(90.0%).There was no recurrence during the follow-up period.CONCLUSION NEWS combined with sentinel LN biopsy and OSNA assay is an effective and safe technique for the removal of selected early gastric and colon cancers in which it is not possible to adopt conventional endoscopic resection techniques.This procedure allows clinicians to acquire additional information on the LN status intraoperatively.

Development and validation of an online calculator to predict the pathological nature of colorectal tumors

BACKGROUND No single endoscopic feature can reliably predict the pathological nature of colorectal tumors(CRTs).AIM To establish and validate a simple online calculator to predict the pathological nature of CRTs based on white-light endoscopy.METHODS This was a single-center study.During the identification stage,530 consecutive patients with CRTs were enrolled from January 2015 to December 2021 as the derivation group.Logistic regression analysis was performed.A novel online calculator to predict the pathological nature of CRTs based on white-light images was established and verified internally.During the validation stage,two series of 110 images obtained using white-light endoscopy were distributed to 10 endoscopists[five highly experienced endoscopists and five less experienced endoscopists(LEEs)]for external validation before and after systematic training.RESULTS A total of 750 patients were included,with an average age of 63.6±10.4 years.Early colorectal cancer(ECRC)was detected in 351(46.8%)patients.Tumor size,left semicolon site,rectal site,acanthosis,depression and an uneven surface were independent risk factors for ECRC.The C-index of the ECRC calculator prediction model was 0.906(P=0.225,Hosmer-Lemeshow test).For the LEEs,significant improvement was made in the sensitivity,specificity and accuracy(57.6%vs 75.5%;72.3%vs 82.4%;64.2%vs 80.2%;P<0.05),respectively,after training with the ECRC online calculator prediction model.CONCLUSION A novel online calculator including tumor size,location,acanthosis,depression,and uneven surface can accurately predict the pathological nature of ECRC.

Endoscopic full-thickness resection using an over-the-scope device:A prospective study

BACKGROUND Endoscopic submucosal dissection to treat mucosal and submucosal lesions sometimes results in low rates of microscopically margin-negative(R0)resection.Endoscopic full-thickness resection(EFTR)has a high R0 resection rate and allows for the definitive diagnosis and treatment of selected mucosal and submucosal lesions that are not suitable for conventional resection techniques.AIM To evaluate the efficacy and safety of EFTR using an over-the-scope clip(OTSC).METHODS This prospective,single-center,non-randomized clinical trial was conducted at the endoscopy center of Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University.The study included patients aged 18-70 years who had gastric or colorectal submucosal tumors(SMTs)(≤20 mm in diameter)originating from the muscularis propria based on endoscopic ultrasound(EUS)and patients who had early-stage gastric or colorectal cancer(≤20 mm in diameter)based on EUS and computed tomography.All lesions were treated by EFTR combined with an OTSC for wound closure between November 2014 and October 2016.We analyzed patient demographics,lesion features,histopathological diagnoses,R0 resection(negative margins)status,adverse events,and follow-up results.RESULTS A total of 68 patients(17 men and 51 women)with an average age of 52.0±10.5 years(32-71 years)were enrolled in this study,which included 66 gastric or colorectal SMTs and 2 early-stage colorectal cancers.The mean tumor diameter was 12.6±4.3 mm.The EFTR procedure was successful in all cases.The mean EFTR procedure time was 39.6±38.0 min.The mean OTSC defect closure time was 5.0±3.8 min,and the success rate of closure for defects was 100%.Histologically complete resection(R0)was achieved in 67(98.5%)patients.Procedure-related adverse events were observed in 11(16.2%)patients.The average post-procedure length of follow-up was 48.2±15.7 mo.There was no recurrence during follow-up.CONCLUSION EFTR combined with an OTSC is an effective and safe technique for the removal of select subepithelial and epithelial lesions that are not amenable to conventional endoscopic resection techniques.