Prognostic value of lateral lymph node metastasis for advanced low rectal cancer

AIM： To evaluate the risk factors for lateral lymph node metastasis in patients with advanced low rectal cancer, in order to make the effective selection of patients who could benefit from lateral lymph node dissection, as well as the relationship of lateral lymph node metastasis with local recurrence and survival of patients with advanced low rectal cancer. METHODS： A total of 96 consecutive patients who underwent curative surgery with lateral pelvic lymphadenectomy for advanced lower rectal cancer were retrospectively analyzed. The relation of lateral lymph node metastasis with clinicopathologic characteristics, local recurrence and survival of patients was identified. RESULTS： Lateral lymph node metastasis was observed in 14.6% （14/96） of patients with advanced low rectal cancer. Lateral lymph node metastasis was detected in 10 （25.0%） of 40 patients with tumor diameter ≥ 5 cm and in 4 （7.1%） of 56 patients with tumor diameter 〈 5 cm. The difference between the significant （X^2 = 5.973, P = two groups was statistically 0.015）. Lateral lymph node metastasis was more frequent in patients with 4/4 diameter of tumor infiltration （7 of 10 cases, 70.0%）, compared with patients with 3/4, 2/4 and 1/4 diameter of tumor infiltration （3 of 25 cases, 12.0%; 3 of 45 cases, 6.7%; 1 of 16 cases, 6.3%） （X^2 = 27.944, P = 0.0001）. The lateral lymph node metastasis rate was 30.0% （9 of 30 cases）, 9.1% （4 of 44 cases） and 4.5% （1 of 22cases） for poorly, moderately and well-differentiated carcinoma, respectively. The difference between the three groups was statistically significant （X^2 = 8.569, P = 0.014）. Local recurrence was 18.8% （18 of 96 cases）, 64.3% （9 of 14 cases）, and 11.0% （9 of 82 cases） in patients with advanced low rectal cancer, in those with and without lateral lymph node metastasis, respectively. The difference between the two groups was statistically significant （X^2 = 22.308, P = 0.0001）. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed significant improvements in median survival （80.9 ± 2.1 m, 95% CI： 76.7-85.1 m vs 38 ± 6.7 m, 95% CI： 24.8-51.2 m） of patients without lateral lymph node metastasis compared with those with lateral lymph node metastasis （log-rank, P = 0.0001）. CONCLUSION： Tumor diameter, infiltration and differentiation are significant risk factors for lateral lymph node metastasis. Lateral pelvic lymphadenectomy should be performed following surgery for patients with tumor diameter ≥ 5 cm. Lateral lymph node metastasis is an important predictor for local recurrence and survival in patients with advanced low rectal cancer.

The potential of carcinoembryonic antigen,p53,Ki-67 and glutathion Stransferase-π as clinico-histopathological markers for colorectal cancer

Objective： Colorectal cancer is one of the major contributors to cancer death worldwide. Lack of reliable colorectal cancer markers has hampered the management of these cancer patients. Our main purpose was to study the correlation between histopathological variables of colorectal adenocarcinomas and identify histopathological markers that are of prognostic value in patients with colorectal cancer. Methods： In the present study, we examined the expression of carcinoembryonic antigen （CEA）, p53, Ki-67 and glutathion Stransferase （GST） -n by using immunohistochemical staining methods in 126 colorectal carcinoma patients and evaluated the lymph node metastasis status in these patients by histopathological examination. Results： The positive rates of CEA, p53, Ki-67 and GST-π expression in the colorectal cancer tissue specimens examined were 95.23%, 55.56%, 53.38% and 82.30%, respectively. Expression of p53 and Ki-67 was significantly correlated with the Dukes stages of the tumor, with higher levels of these proteins in Dukes＇ C and D tumors than those in Dukes＇ A and B tumors. Furthermore, the expression of p53, GST-π and Ki-67 correlated with prognosis of patients with colorectal cancer. Additionally, the expression of p53 in colorectal cancer was closely related to the expression of Ki-67 and the expression of GST-π was directly correlated with that of p53. Conclusion： The expression of CEA, p53, Ki-67 and GST-π was correlated with various clinical features of patients with colorectal cancer. The combined use of these histopathological markers appeared to be a promising tool in predicting the prognosis of patients with this type of cancer.

Amelanotic Malignant Melanoma Mimicking Hemangioma of the Hand: One Case Report and Literature Review

Introduction Malignant melanoma （MM） is one of the most deadly cancerst. Although the disease accounts for only about 4% of skin cancer related cases, it is responsible for about 79% of skin cancer deaths. Early diagnosis of MM is, therefore, essential for appropriate treatment decision and, in turn, may give patients the best chance for prolonged survival. About 6% to 8% of malignant melanomas lack typical pigmentation and tend to be managed as benign lesions, making accurate early diagnosis difficultt61. Though subungual MM is rare,