A case of trichilemmal carcinoma with distant metastases in a kidney transplantation patient

Transplant recipients receiving immunosuppressants are at a high risk of cancer, especially skin cancer. Trichilemmal carcinoma is comparatively rare compared with other skin cancers. We report here a first case of trichilemmal carcinoma arising in a kidney transplant recipient. A 63-year-old man who had undergone a living donor renal transplantation at the age of 50 years presented with a 15 × 10 mm lesion on his forehead. The pathological diagnosis after resection was trichilemmal carcinoma. Distant metastases involving the lymph nodes, lung, and liver occurred, and the patient died. Given that trichilemmal carcinoma generally has an indolent clinical course and a low metastatic potential, the present case of trichilemmal carcinoma with an aggressive course resulting in distant metastases is rare.

Solvothermal synthesis of superhydrophobic hollow carbon nanoparticles from a fluorinated alcohol

A new and simple method of synthesizing fluorinated carbon at the gram scale is presented by reacting a fluorinated alcohol with sodium at elevated temperatures in a sealed Teflon reactor. The resulting carbon nanoparticles are around 100 nm in diameter, and display a hollow shell morphology, with a significant amount of fluorine doped into the carbon. The nanoparticles disperse easily in ethanol, and are thermally stable up to 400 °C and 450 °C under air and nitrogen, respectively. The nanoparticle dispersion was printed onto various substrates (paper, cloth, silicon), inducing superhydrophobicity.

Bone metabolism induced by denture insertion in positron emission tomography

18F-fluoride positron emission tomography (PET) can identify subtle functional variation prior to the major structural change detectable by X-ray. This study aims to investigate the mechanobiological bone reaction around the abutment tooth and in the residual ridge, induced by insertion of removable partial denture (RPD) within two different groups of patients: patients without denture experience (Group 1) and patients with denture experience before (Group 2), using 18F-fluoride PET imaging technique. 18F-fluoride PET/computerised tomography (CT) scan was performed to examine the bone metabolic change in mandible before and after the RPD treatment. Region of interests (ROIs) were placed in alveolar bone around abutment tooth and in residual bone beneath the RPD. Standardised uptake value (SUV), reflecting the accumulation of 18F-fluoride, was measured for each ROI. In all subjects of Group 1, SUVs after insertion were higher than before in both alveolar bone and residual bone, while there was less significant change in SUV in subjects of Group 2. This study demonstrated using longitudinal 18F-fluoride PET scans to effectively examine the bone metabolic change in mandible induced by occlusal loading after RPD insertion. Using this technique, within the six subjects in this study, it was shown that bone metabolism around abutment tooth and residual ridge increased after RPD insertion in case of first-time denture user, while there was no big change in the patient with experience of denture before. This study revealed the effectiveness of applying PET to evaluate bone metabolic activity as mechanobiological reaction.

Randomized phase III trial of treatment duration for oral uracil and tegafur plus leucovorin as adjuvant chemotherapy for patients with stage IIB/III colon cancer: final results of JFMC33-0502

While adjuvant chemotherapy is preferable for colon cancer, treatment duration is controversial. This phase III trial is investigated optimal duration of adjuvant chemotherapy for Stage IIB/III colon cancer. Eighteen-month treatment with UFT/LV did not improve DFS compared with 6-month UFT/LV treatment. This study suggests that 6 months treatment duration is enough for Stage IIB/III colon cancer.

Background

While adjuvant chemotherapy is preferable for high-risk colon cancer, treatment duration is controversial. Oral uracil and tegafur (UFT)/leucovorin (LV) is widely used as a standard adjuvant chemotherapy for colon cancer in Japan. We conducted a phase III trial to investigate the optimal duration of adjuvant chemotherapy for stage IIB/III colon cancer.

Patients and methods

Patients with curatively resected stage IIB/III colon cancer were eligible for enrollment in this trial. Patients were registered within 6 weeks after surgery and were randomly assigned to receive UFT/LV for 28 of 35 days for 6 months in the control group or for 5 consecutive days per week for 18 months in the study group. The primary end point was the disease-free survival (DFS), and the secondary end points were overall survival (OS) and safety.

Result

A total of 1071 patients were registered from 233 centers. A statistically significant difference in DFS was not observed between the study group and the control group; the 5-year DFS was 69% in the study group and 69% in the control group. The 5-year OS was 85% in the study group and 85% in the control group.

Conclusion

Eighteen-month treatment with UFT/LV did not improve DFS or OS compared with 6-month UFT/LV treatment in patients with stage IIB/III colon cancer. The important finding from this study is that not 18 months but 6 months of treatment is enough for postoperative UFT/LV for stage IIB/III colon cancer.

Clinical trial number

UMIN-CTR C000000245.

Dielectric property measurement of ocular tissues up to 110 GHz using 1 mm coaxial sensor

Measurement of the dielectric properties of ocular tissues up to 110 GHz was performed by the coaxial probe method. A coaxial sensor was fabricated to allow the measurement of small amounts of biological tissues. Four-standard calibration was applied in the dielectric property measurement to obtain more accurate data than that obtained with conventional three-standard calibration, especially at high frequencies. Novel data of the dielectric properties of several ocular tissues are presented and compared with data from the de facto database.

Cataract survey in the local area using photographic documentation

An epidemiological survey of cataract was performed in a limited local population. 1,020 individuals over 40 years of age were examined. The crystalline lens findings were documented by both Scheimpflug and retroillumination photography. Cataractous changes were classified into three groups according to early senile changes, incipient cataractous changes and only prominent cataractous changes. Forms of opacification were classified as cortical, subcapsular, nuclear, mixed type and others. The percent prevalence of cataracts including early senile changes was 33.9% in the 40-year-old population, 62.8% in the 50, 76.2% in the 60, 84.0% in the 70 and 100% for those in their 80s. Prominent cataractous opacification was 1.6% in the 40-year-old population, 3.1% for those in their 50s, 19.0% in their 60s, 28.6% in their 70s and 57.1% in their 80s, respectively. Until age 60, the type of opacification was mainly cortical alone; however, after age 70, cortical opacity accompanied by nuclear and/or capsular opacities increased. The pure nuclear type increased in individuals over 70.