Computed tomography-based radiomics combined with machine learning allows differentiation between primary intestinal lymphoma and Crohn's disease

BACKGROUND Due to similar clinical manifestations and imaging signs,differential diagnosis of primary intestinal lymphoma(PIL)and Crohn's disease(CD)is a challenge in clinical practice.AIM To investigate the ability of radiomics combined with machine learning methods to differentiate PIL from CD.METHODS We collected contrast-enhanced computed tomography(CECT)and clinical data from 120 patients form center 1.A total of 944 features were extracted singlephase images of CECT scans.Using the last absolute shrinkage and selection operator model,the best predictive radiographic features and clinical indications were screened.Data from 54 patients were collected at center 2 as an external validation set to verify the robustness of the model.The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve,accuracy,sensitivity and specificity were used for evaluation.RESULTS A total of five machine learning models were built to distinguish PIL from CD.Based on the results from the test group,most models performed well with a large area under the curve(AUC)(>0.850)and high accuracy(>0.900).The combined clinical and radiomics model(AUC=1.000,accuracy=1.000)was the best model among all models.CONCLUSION Based on machine learning,a model combining clinical data with radiologic features was constructed that can effectively differentiate PIL from CD.

Monomorphic epitheliotropic intestinal T-cell lymphoma with bone marrow involved: A case report

BACKGROUND Monomorphic epithelial intestinal T-cell lymphoma(MEITL)is a rare type of peripheral T-cell lymphoma.The clinical manifestations are diarrhea,abdominal pain,perforation and an abdominal mass.CASE SUMMARY We present a 52-year-old female patient who was diagnosed with MEITL.Further disease progression was observed after multiline chemotherapy.Eventually,the patient died of a severe infection.CONCLUSION MEITL is a rare intestinal primary T-cell lymphoma with aggressive behavior,a high risk of severe life-threatening complications,and a poor prognosis.

A case of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma forming multiple lymphomatous polyposis in the small intestine

A 50-year old woman suffering from diabetes had a CT scan that revealed a diffuse thickening of small intestinal wall and swollen paraaortic lymph nodes. An esophago gastroduodenoscopy (EGD) confirmed multiple polypoid lesions in the duodenum and small intestine, and conventional histological testing revealed non-specific inflammatory changes. Further examinations including the immunohistochemical profiles of the biopsied specimens led us to diagnose the lesion as a marginal zone B-cell lymphoma of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue type, forming multiple lymphomatous polyposis sequentially spreading from duodenal bulb to terminal ileum. According to Lugano’s classification, its staging was clinically diagnosed as stage Ⅱ. Two courses of a standard CHOP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin hydrochloride, vincristine sulfate, and predonisolone) regimen with rituximab reduced the lesion and the patient had a almost complete response. A 5-year follow- up EGD and histological examinations detected no recurrence of the disease.

Intestinal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma presenting as a pancreatic head space-occupying lesion:A case report

BACKGROUND Intestinal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma(NKTCL)is a rare and aggressive non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma,and its occurrence is closely related to Epstein-Barr virus infection.In addition,the clinical symptoms of NKTCL are not obvious,and the specific pathogenesis is still uncertain.While NKTCL may occur in any segment of the intestinal tract,its distinct location in the periampullary region,which leads clinicians to consider mimics of a pancreatic head mass,should also be addressed.Therefore,there remain huge challenges in the diagnosis and treatment of intestinal NKTCL.CASE SUMMARY In this case,we introduce a male who presented to the clinic with edema of both lower limbs,accompanied by diarrhea,and abdominal pain.Endoscopic ultrasound(EUS)showed well-defined homogeneous hypoechoic lesions with abundant blood flow signals and compression signs in the head of the pancreas.Under the guidance of EUS-fine needle biopsy(FNB)with 19 gauge or 22 gauge needles,combined with multicolor flow cytometry immunophenotyping(MFCI)helped us diagnose NKTCL.During treatments,the patient was prescribed the steroid(dexamethasone),methotrexate,ifosfamide,L-asparaginase,and etoposide chemotherapy regimen.Unfortunately,he died of leukopenia and severe septic shock in a local hospital.CONCLUSION Clinicians should enhance their understanding of NKTCL.Some key factors,including EUS characteristics,the right choice of FNB needle,and combination with MFCI,are crucial for improving the diagnostic rate and reducing the misdiagnosis rate.

Potential model for differential diagnosis between Crohn's disease and primary intestinal lymphoma

AIM To evaluate the usefulness of different parameters to differentiate Crohn's disease(CD) from primary intestinal lymphoma(PIL).METHODS The medical records of 85 patients with CD and 56 patients with PIL were reviewed retrospectively. Demographic, clinical, laboratory, endoscopic, and computed tomographic enterography(CTE) parameters were collected. The univariate value of each parameter was analyzed. A differentiation model was established by pooling all the valuable parameters. Diagnostic efficacy was analyzed, and a receiver operating characteristic(ROC) curve was plotted.RESULTS The demographic and clinical parameters that showed significant values for differentiating CD from PIL included age of onset, symptom duration, presence of diarrhea, abdominal mass, and perianal lesions(P < 0.05). Elevated lactate dehydrogenase and serum β2-microglobulin levels suggested a PIL diagnosis(P < 0.05). The endoscopic parameters that showed significant values for differentiating CD from PIL included multiple-site lesions, longitudinal ulcer, irregular ulcer,and intraluminal proliferative mass(P < 0.05). The CTE parameters that were useful in the identification of the two conditions included involvement of ≤ 3 segments, circular thickening of the bowel wall, wall thickness > 8 mm, aneurysmal dilation, stricture with proximal dilation, "comb sign", mass showing the "sandwich sign", and intussusceptions(P < 0.05). The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of the differentiation model were 91.8%, 96.4%, 93.6%, 97.5%, and 88.5%, respectively. The cutoff value was 0.5. The area under the ROC curve was 0.989.CONCLUSION The differentiation model that integrated the various parameters together may yield a high diagnostic efficacy in the differential diagnosis between CD and PIL.

Intestinal T-cell lymphomas:A retrospective analysis of 68 cases in China

AIM: To investigate the clinical features, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of intestinal T-cell lymphomas (ITCL) by retrospective analysis.

Comparative study of intestinal tuberculosis and primary small intestinal lymphoma

AIM: To characterize the clinical, radiological, endoscopic and pathological features of intestinal tuberculosis (ITB) and primary small intestinal lymphoma (PSIL).

Monomorphic epitheliotropic intestinal T-cell lymphoma presenting as melena with long-term survival: A case report and review of literature

BACKGROUND Monomorphic epitheliotropic intestinal T-cell lymphoma(MEITL)is a rare primary intestinal T-cell lymphoma,previously known as enteropathy-associated T-cell lymphoma type II.MEITL is an aggressive T-cell lymphoma with a poor prognosis and high mortality rate.The known major complications of MEITL are intestinal perforation and obstruction.Here,we present a case of MEITL that was diagnosed following upper gastrointestinal bleeding from an ulcerative duodenal lesion,with recurrence-free survival for 5 years.CASE SUMMARY A 68-year-old female was admitted to our hospital with melena and mild anemia.An urgent esophagogastroduodenoscopy(EGD)revealed bleeding from an ulcerative lesion in the transverse part of the duodenum,for which hemostatic treatment was performed.MEITL was diagnosed following repeated biopsies of the lesion,and cyclophosphamide,doxorubicin,vincristine,and prednisone(CHOP)chemotherapy was administered.She achieved complete remission after eight full cycles of CHOP therapy.At the last follow-up examination,EGD revealed a scarred ulcer and 18Fluorodeoxyglucose(18FDG)positron emission tomography/computed tomography showed no abnormal FDG accumulation.The patient has been in complete remission for 68 mo after initial diagnosis.CONCLUSION To rule out MEITL,it is important to carefully perform histological examination when bleeding from a duodenal ulcer is observed.

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound imaging for intestinal lymphoma

BACKGROUND Intestinal lymphoma is a rare tumor.Contrast-enhanced ultrasound(CEUS)findings of intestinal lymphoma have not been reported previously,and the relationship between CEUS and clinicopathological features and prognostic factors is still unknown.AIM To describe the B-mode US and CEUS features of intestinal lymphoma and investigate the correlation of CEUS and histopathological features.METHODS This was a single-center retrospective study.Eighteen patients with histologically confirmed intestinal lymphoma underwent B-mode US and CEUS examinations between October 2016 and November 2019.We summarized the features of Bmode US and CUES imaging of intestinal lymphoma and compared the frequency of tumor necrosis in intestinal lymphomas with reference to different pathological subtypes(aggressive or indolent)and clinical stage(early or advanced).The time–intensity curve parameters of CEUS were also compared between patients with normal and elevated serum lactate dehydrogenase.RESULTS In B-mode imaging,four patterns were observed in intestinal lymphoma:Mass type(12/18,66.7%),infiltration type(1/18,5.6%),mesentery type(4/18,22.2%)and mixed type(1/18,5.6%).All cases were hypoechoic and no cystic areas were detected.On CEUS,most cases(17/18,94.4%)showed arterial hyperechoic enhancement.All cases showed arterial enhancement followed by venous wash out.A relatively high rate of tumor necrosis(11/18,61.1%)was observed in this study.Tumor necrosis on CEUS was more frequent in aggressive subtypes(10/13,76.9%)than in indolent subtypes(1/5,20.0%)(P=0.047).There were no correlations between tumor necrosis and lesion size and Ann Arbor stage.There was no significant difference in time–intensity curve parameters between normal and elevated lactate dehydrogenase groups.CONCLUSION B-mode US and CEUS findings of intestinal lymphoma are characteristic.We observed a high rate of tumor necrosis,which appeared more frequently in aggressive pathological subtypes of intestinal lymphoma.

Laparoscopic resection of synchronous gastric cancer and primary small intestinal lymphoma: A case report

Synchronous gastric cancer and primary small intestinal lymphoma are extremely rare. A 49-year-old woman was referred to our hospital with a history of upper abdominal pain for two weeks and was diagnosed with synchronous cancer. During hospitalization, the patient underwent laparoscopic distal gastrectomy + resection of bilateral ovaries + partial resection of both small intestine and descending colon. Pathological examination revealed a synchronous cancer consisting of early gastric cancer with poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma located in mucosa, with lymph node metastasis (3+/29) (T1N1M0, stage IB); and diffuse large B cell lymphoma of small intestine involving descending colon and bilateral ovaries, with lymph node metastasis (2+/5) (Ann Arbor IIE). The patient recovered well, without any obvious complications and was discharged on post-operative day 7. The patient received six cycles of chemotherapy after operation. She has been doing well with no evidence of recurrence for 13 mo.

Surgical management of monomorphic epitheliotropic intestinal Tcell lymphoma followed by chemotherapy and stem-cell transplant:A case report and review of the literature

BACKGROUND Monomorphic epitheliotropic intestinal T-cell lymphoma(MEITL)is a rare and rapidly progressive intestinal T-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma associated with a very poor prognosis and a median survival of 7 mo.Advances in the identification of MEITL over the last two decades have led to its recognition as a separate entity.MEITL patients,predominantly male,typically present with vague and nonspecific symptoms and diagnosis is predominantly confirmed at laparotomy.Currently,there are no standardized treatment protocols,and the optimal therapy remains unclear.CASE SUMMARY We report a case of MEITL that was initially considered to be gastrointestinal stromal tumor(GIST)and Imatinib was administered for one cycle.The 62-yearold man presented with abdominal pain,abdominal distension,and weight loss of 20 pounds.Within 2 wk,the size of the mass considerably increased on computed tomography scans.The patient underwent surgery followed by chemotherapy with CHOP(cyclophosphamide,doxorubicin,vincristine,and prednisone)and stem-cell transplant.A correct diagnosis of MEITL was established based on postoperative pathology.Immunophenotypically,the neoplastic cells fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for MEITL as they were CD3+,CD4+,CD8+,CD56+,and TIA-1+.CONCLUSION Given that MEITL has no predisposing factor and presents with vague symptoms with rapid progression,the concomitant presence of abdominal symptoms and B symptoms(weight loss,fever,and night sweats)with hypoalbuminemia,anemia,low lymphocytic count and endoscopic findings of diffuse infiltrating type lesions should alert physicians to this rare disease,especially when it comes to Asian patients.Immediate laparotomy should then be carried out followed by chemotherapy and stem-cell transplant.

Primary intestinal extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma, nasal type: A case report

BACKGROUND Primary intestinal extranodal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma,nasal type(PIENKTCL)is a rare non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma(NHL)subtype,and its prognosis is extremely poor.Clinical characteristics of the disease are not obvious and easily misdiagnosed.In this case report,we describe a patient with PI-ENKTCL who presented with intermittent hematochezia.The advantages of positron emission tomography/computed tomography(PET-CT)as a useful diagnostic tool and the role of surgery as an important therapy are highlighted.CASE SUMMARY A 45-year-old man,hospitalized due to intermittent hematochezia,underwent gastroscopy,colonoscopy,biopsy and CT,but no cause was found.Hence,we carried out a multidisciplinary team(MDT)discussion on the causes and treatment of this patient,and it was decided to perform PET-CT imaging with a MDT discussion of the results.PET-CT demonstrated a diagnosis of lymphoma and it was decided to surgically resect the lesion,and a R0 resection was successfully performed.Postoperative pathology showed negative resection margins,and examination of the lesion confirmed the diagnosis of PI-ENKTCL.After surgery,the patient underwent a follow-up period of 6 mo and received 6 cycles of gemcitabine,oxaliplatin and L-asparaginase.No recurrence or metastasis occurred.CONCLUSION PI-ENKTCL is rare,and MDT discussion is required during diagnosis.PET-CT can be performed for imaging diagnosis.Treatment is based on surgical resection,and the best treatment regimen is determined according to postoperative pathological results to improve prognosis and to extend survival in patients.

Diagnostic classification of endosonography for differentiating colorectal ulcerative diseases: A new statistical method

AIM To establish a classification method for differential diagnosis of colorectal ulcerative diseases, especially Crohn's disease(CD), primary intestinal lymphoma(PIL) and intestinal tuberculosis(ITB).METHODS We searched the in-patient medical record database for confirmed cases of CD, PIL and ITB from 2008 to 2015 at our center, collected data on endoscopic ultrasound(EUS) from randomly-chosen patients who formed the training set, conducted univariate logistic regression analysis to summarize EUS features of CD, PIL and ITB, and created a diagnostic classification method. All cases found to have colorectal ulcers using EUS were obtained from the endoscopy database and formed the test set. We then removed the cases which were easily diagnosed, and the remaining cases formed the perplexing test set. We re-diagnosed the cases in the three sets using the classification method, determined EUS diagnostic accuracies, and adjusted the classification accordingly. Finally, the re-diagnosing and accuracy-calculating steps were repeated.RESULTS In total, 272 CD, 60 PIL and 39 ITB cases were diagnosed from 2008 to 2015 based on the in-patient database, and 200 CD, 30 PIL and 20 ITB cases were randomly chosen to form the training set. The EUS features were summarized as follows: CD: Thickened submucosa with a slightly high echo level and visible layer; PIL: Absent layer and diffuse hypoechoic mass; and ITB: Thickened mucosa with a high or slightly high echo level and visible layer. The test set consisted of 77 CD, 30 PIL, 23 ITB and 140 cases of other diseases obtained from the endoscopy database. Seventy-four cases were excluded to form the perplexing test set. After adjustment of the classification, EUS diagnostic accuracies for CD, PIL and ITB were 83.6%(209/250), 97.2%(243/250) and 85.6%(214/250) in the training set, were 89.3%(241/270), 97.8%(264/270) and 84.1%(227/270) in the test set, and were 86.7%(170/196), 98.0%(192/196) and 85.2%(167/196) in the perplexing set, respectively.CONCLUSION The EUS features of CD, PIL and ITB are different. The diagnostic classification method is reliable in the differential diagnosis of colorectal ulcerative diseases.

Refractory celiac disease and sprue-like intestinal disease

Celiac disease is a gluten-dependent small intestinal mucosal disorder that causes malabsorption, often with diarrhea and weight loss. Diagnosis is based on detection of typical biopsy changes in the proximal small bowel, followed by evidence for an unequivocal response to a gluten-free diet. Refractoriness in celiac disease may be due to poor diet compliance, sometimes intentional, or consumption of ubiquitious sources of gluten. Alternatively, the original diagnosis may not be correct (eg., duodenal Crohn's disease), or a second cause for symptoms may be present (eg., collagenous colitis, functional bowel disorder). In some with recurrent symptoms, a complication may be present (eg., collagenous sprue, small bowel carcinoma, lymphoma). In some, a response to a gluten-free diet can not be unequivocally defined, and more precise historical terms have been used including "sprue-like intestinal disease" or "unclassified sprue". Although a "wastebasket diagnosis", these likely represent a heterogeneous group, and some, but not all, may develop lymphoma. Precise definition will be critical in the future as an array of new treatments, including biological agents, may emerge.

Features of intestinal T-cell lymphomas in Chinese population without evidence of celiac disease and their close association with Epstein-Barr virus infection

Background Intestinal T-cell lymphoma （ITCL） is a heterogeneous lymphoid neoplastic group with variable clinical and pathological features. ITCL in oriental countries is different from enteropathy-type intestinal T-cell lymphoma （ETCL） in relation to celiac disease and Epstein-Barr virus （EBV）. The objective of this study was to investigate the clinicopathological features, immunophenotype, expression of cytotoxic molecule （TIA-1）, T-cell receptor （TCR）-γ gene rearrangement, and Epstein-Barr virus （EBV） latent infection in primary ITCL without celiac disease in Chinese. Methods The clinical data of 42 patients were analyzed, and the patients were followed up. Compared with human reactive lymphoid tissues, in situ hybridization for EBER1/2, polymerase chain reaction for TCR-~/gene rearrangement, and immunohistochemical staining for immunophenotypes, TIA-1 and EBV latent membrane proteins （LMP-1） were investigated. Survival curves of different clinicopathological features, immunophenotypes, expression of LMPI , TCR-γ/gene rearrangement and therapy were analyzed. Results Three fourths of the patients suffered from ITCL in China were men with a peak age incidence in the 4th decade. Common presenting features included fever and hemotochezia. The prognosis was poor with a median survival of 3.0 months. The lesions were mostly localized in the ileocecum and colon. About 38/42 （90. 5% ） patients demonstrated pleomorphic medium-sized on large seen. All 42 patients with ITCL revealed CD45RO cells. Histological features of celiac disease were rarely positive. Neoplastic cells partially expressed T-cell differentiated antigens （CD3ε, CD4, CD8） and NK cell associated antigen （CD56）. The positive frequency of CD3e, CIM, CD8 and CD56 was 28/42 （66.7%） 7/42 （16.7%）, 10/42 （23.8%） and 12/42 （28.6%） respectively. Thirty-nine cells （92. 9% ） expressed TIA-1, but none expressed CD20 and CD68. More than half of the patients （64. 3% , 64.3% and 59.5% ） revealed TCR-γ primers respectively. EBER1/2 was detected in 41 （97.6%） of LMP-1 was 38. 1% （16/42）. gene rearrangement by three different TCR-γ the 42 patients. The expression frequency ofConclusions Primary ITCL without celiac disease in Chinese is a special highly EBV-associated clinicopathological entity. There are few similarities in patients with celiac disease in western countries. A small proportion of primary ITCLs in Chinese and extranodal NK/T-eell lymphoma of nasal type belong to the same speetrum.