Journal of gastroenterology
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A pilot study of imatinib mesylate (STI571) on gastrointestinal stromal tumors in Japanese patients.
Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is the most common type of nonepithelial tumor in the gastrointestinal tract. The gastrointestinal stromal tumor is defined immunohistologically as a c-Kit-positive tumor. For those GISTs that are malignant, the only effective treatment modality has been surgical. Early clinical reports have shown that imatinib mesylate (STI571) produces substantial anticancer activity in patients with metastatic or unresectable GIST. ⋯ This study demonstrates that STI571 might be an active agent against malignant GIST in Japanese patients with manageable toxicities. Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is the most common type of nonepithelial tumor in the gastrointestinal tract. The gastrointestinal stromal tumor is defined immunohistologically as a c-Kit-positive tumor. For those GISTs that are malignant, the only effective treatment modality has been surgical. Early clinical reports have shown that imatinib mesylate (STI571) produces substantial anticancer activity in patients with metastatic or unresectable GIST.
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Review Case Reports
Mucinous cystadenoma of the pancreas 17 years after excision of gallbladder because of a choledochal cyst.
A 56-year-old woman who had undergone excision of the gallbladder because of a choledochal cyst had a tumorous lesion of the pancreas identified by upper abdominal ultrasonography, but an operation was not carried out, because there was no apparent increase in the cystic mass and no elevation of serum tumor markers. In October 2001, she was admitted to our hospital to check for malignancy because of elevated levels of the tumor marker Dupan-2. Abdominal enhanced computed tomography and upper abdominal ultrasonography revealed a large multilocular cystic mass in the body to tail of the pancreas. ⋯ The mucinous cystadenoma was detected 17 years after the operation for the choledochal cyst. To the best of our knowledge, no documented case reports of mucinous cystadenoma of the pancreas associated with a choledocal cyst have been reported to date. We present here the first case report of pancreatic mucinous cystadenoma occurring in the body to tail of the pancreas, associated with a choledocal cyst.
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Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a complex disease associated with significant complications and a high rate of mortality. Although several mechanisms are put forward, oxidative stress seems the most important early event in the pathophysiology of AP. Therefore, we evaluated the beneficial effects of N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a strong antioxidant, in experimental AP. ⋯ NAC treatment had beneficial effects in sodium taurocholate-induced AP in rats. It reduced pancreatic tissue necrosis and lipid peroxidation. In our study, the mechanism underlying the beneficial effects of NAC seemed to be its antioxidant activity, either by increasing hepatic GPx activity, or by a direct scavenging effect on free radicals, thus enhancing the production of and/or inhibiting the degradation of nitric oxide.
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The somatostatin analogue octreotide was effective in controlling systemic effects related to multiple liver metastases from a gastrinoma. A 61-year-old man underwent distal gastrectomy for gastrinoma in the duodenum, because a curative resection was not feasible due to metastases found in paraaortic lymph nodes during operation. ⋯ Although chemotherapy with dimethyltrizenoimidazole carboxamide was not effective, subcutaneous administration of octreotide was effective in controlling the growth of the liver metastases and in stabilizing serum gastrin. The patient now receives subcutaneous injections of octreotide, at 200 microg a day, twice a week, as an outpatient.