• Annals of Surgical Treatment and Research
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• v.95 no.5
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• pp.286-296
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• 2018

Purpose: Sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy (SLNB) is widely accepted for staging of melanoma patients. It has been shown that clinico-pathological features such as Breslow thickness, ulceration, age, and sex are better predictors of relapse and survival than SLN status alone. The aims of this study were to evaluate the long-term (10-year) prognostic impact of SLNB and to determine predictive factors associated with SLN metastasis, relapse, and melanoma specific mortality (MSM). Methods: This was a prospective observational study on 289 consecutive patients with primary cutaneous melanoma who underwent SLNB from January 2000 to December 2007, and followed until January 2014, at an Italian academic hospital. Results: SLN was positive in 64 patients (22.1%). The median follow-up was 116 months (79-147 months). Tenyear disease-free survival and melanoma specific survival were poor in patients with positive SLN (58.7% and 66.4%, respectively). Only the increasing Breslow thickness resulted independently associated to an increased risk of SLN metastasis. Cox regression analysis showed that a Breslow thickness >2 mm was an independent predictor of relapse, and male sex and Breslow thickness >2 mm was a predictor of MSM. At 10 years, SLN metastasis was not significantly associated to either relapse or MSM. Conclusion: After the fifth year of follow-up, SLN metastasis is not an independent predictive factor of relapse or mortality which are mainly influenced by the characteristics of the primary tumor and of the patient. Patients with a Breslow thickness >2 mm regardless of the SLN status should be considered at high risk for 10-year relapse and mortality.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.79-82
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• 2010

Purpose: Carcinosarcomas are rare neoplasms in which both malignant epithelial and mesenchymal elements are identified. We have found only twenty one cases of primary cutaneous carcinosarcoma in the English language literature. Therefore it has been difficult to diagnosis because its unclear etiology and low frequency. Methods: A 31-year-old young man with a protruding mass on his ankle dorsum was examined. The tumor was $7{\times}6{\times}3\;cm$ sized and arose from a burn scar. The mass was wide excised and applied split thickness skin graft. Characteristic pathologic finding was a mixture of squamous cell carcinoma and malignant fibrous histiocytoma. Results: Three months after the operation, the patient died of multiple metastasis to the liver, lung and finally of sepsis despite adjuvant chemotherapy and adjuvant radiotherapy. Conclusion: If a metastatic cutaneous carcinosarcoma is diagnosed, wide excision is required. There should be more aggressive management to minimize the risk of recurrence. Further research into the etiology and pathophysiology of the disease and a more careful differential diagnosis may allow improvement in treatment.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.203-208
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• 2023

A 13-year-old neutered male mixed-breed dog presented with generalized lymphadenopathy and erythematous cutaneous lesions in the ear pinnae. Fine-needle aspiration cytology of the lymph nodes revealed small to intermediate lymphocytes with a "hand mirror" configuration as the predominant cell type. Histopathological analysis of the lymph node showed an infiltrate of CD3-positive small lymphocytes compressing the follicles against the capsule owing to neoplastic cell expansion. Flow cytometric analysis revealed a homogeneous population of CD3+/CD4-/CD5+/CD8-/CD21+/CD34-/CD45- cells in both the peripheral blood and aspirated lymph nodes, which supports the diagnosis of T-zone lymphoma. Laboratory tests revealed lymphocytosis (14,144 cells/µL) in the peripheral blood. However, contrary to expectations, the bone marrow examination revealed no evidence of lymphocytic infiltration. T-zone lymphoma is an indolent lymphoma with a long survival period, and knowledge of its characteristics may affect disease staging and prognosis evaluation. Therefore, peripheral blood count as a sole screening tool for bone marrow metastasis should be used with caution.

• Clinical Endoscopy
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.507-515
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• 2022

Background/Aims: Metastases of malignant melanoma (MM) are rare and associated with poor prognosis. The objective of this study was to analyze the clinical and endoscopic characteristics of gastric metastases of MM by systematically reviewing cases and case series involving patients diagnosed using upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. Methods: The PubMed and LILACS databases were searched. Reports containing individual patient data were included. Outcomes such as clinical data, endoscopic findings, treatments, and survival were analyzed. Results: A total of 88 studies with individual data from 113 patients with gastric metastases of MM were included. The primary sites of MM were the skin (62%), eyes (10%), and mucous membranes (6%). Most patients (56%) had multiple metastases in the stomach, located predominantly in the gastric body (approximately 80%). The overall survival rate at 2 years was 4%. There was a significant reduction in the survival of patients with multiple gastric metastases compared to that of patients with single metastasis (hazard ratio, 0.459; 95% confidence interval, 0.235-0.895; p=0.022). Conclusions: Gastric metastases of MM have a poor prognosis, especially in patients with multiple implants in the stomach. Additional studies are needed to verify whether ocular and mucosal melanomas are associated with a higher risk of gastric metastases than that of cutaneous melanomas.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.37-43
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• 2017

Background: Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer. Of the 4 million skin lesions excised annually worldwide, approximately 2 million are considered cancerous. In this study, we aimed to describe a regional experience with skin cancers treated by a single senior surgeon and to provide a treatment algorithm. Methods: The medical records of 176 patients with head and neck non-melanocytic skin cancer (NMSC) who were treated by a single surgeon at our institution between January 2010 and May 2016 were retrospectively reviewed, and their data (age, sex, pathological type, tumor location/size, treatment modality) were analyzed. Patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) who were classified as a high-risk group for nodal metastasis underwent sentinel node mapping according to the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines. Results: Among the patients with NMSC who were treated during this period, basal cell carcinoma (BCC; n=102, 57.9%) was the most common pathological type, followed by cSCC (n=66, 37.5%). Most lesions were treated by complete excision, with tumor-free surgical margins determined via frozen section pathology. Thirty-one patients with high-metastasis-risk cSCC underwent sentinel node mapping, and 17 (54.8%) exhibited radiologically positive sentinel nodes. Although these nodes were pathologically negative for metastasis, 2 patients (6.5%) later developed lymph node metastases. Conclusion: In our experience, BCC treatment should comprise wide excision with tumor-free surgical margins and proper reconstruction. In contrast, patients with cSCC should undergo lymphoscintigraphy, as nodal metastases are a possibility. Proper diagnosis and treatment could reduce the undesirably high morbidity and mortality rates.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.507-511
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• 2009

Purpose: Adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is a rare malignant epithelial neoplasm derived from the salivary glands. In some cases, ACC may arise in other primary sites, such as skin. We report a case of adenoid cystic carcinoma arising the scalp skin of 69 - year - old woman. Methods: A 69 - year - old woman presented with a tender scalp nodule. A local wide excision was performed. Histopathologic examination was revealed the adenoid cystic carcinoma with basaloid cells in a cribriform pattern. The resection margins were free of tumor. Two years later a tumor recurred in the scarred area. The lesion was removed surgically and the histopathological diagnosis of adenoid cystic carcinoma was again established. After two years, tumor recurred again and diatant metastasis of the lung was diagnosed. A surgical wide excision was done and the close regular follow - up for recurrence was done. Two years later, third recurrence of the scalp was observed. We also performed the wide local excision with tumor free margin. Results: We experience the recurrent adenoid cystic carcinoma of the scalp with pulmonary metastasis. We have performed the wide local excision for three times. The patient has been followed up for 10 years with regular work - up for recurrence and metastasis Conclusion: primary cutaneous adenoid cystic carcinoma is a rare skin neoplasm with a high potential for recurrence after local excision. The standard treatment of ACC is wide local excision with tumor - free margins established by permanent section.

• Development and Reproduction
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.93-104
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• 2021

Cutaneous melanoma is a fatal disease for patients with distant metastasis. Metformin is the most widely used anti-diabetic drug, and proved to suppress cell proliferation and metastasis in diverse cancers including melanoma. We previously reported that MEK inhibitor trametinib increases the expression of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) regulators and melanoma cell motility, which are suppressed by addition of metformin in A375 melanoma cells. To confirm our findings further, we first evaluated the effect of metformin in combination with another MEK inhibitor binimetinib on cell viability in G361 melanoma cells. We then investigated whether binimetinib affects the expression of EMT regulators and cell motility. We finally monitored the effect of metformin on binimetinib-induced cell migration. Cell viability assay showed that combination index (CI) value at ED₅₀ is 0.80, suggesting synergy for the combination of metformin with binimetinib. Our results also revealed that binimetinib increased the expression of EMT regulators such as integrin αV, fibronectin and slug, which correlate well with the enhanced cell migration in wound healing assay. Metformin, on the contrary, suppressed the expression of sparc, integrin αV, fibronectin and N-cadherin with the reduced cell motility. The combination treatment showed that metformin counteracts the binimetinib-induced increase of cell motility. Overall, these results suggest that metformin with binimetinib might be useful as a potential therapeutic adjuvant against cell survival and metastatic activity in melanoma patients.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.401-404
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• 2019

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a relatively rare and aggressive cutaneous neuroendocrine malignancy. It is characterized by high rates of recurrence and metastasis, both to regional lymph nodes and to distant locations. Its characteristic clinical manifestation is a single, painless, hard, erythematous nodule on a sun-exposed area, particularly in older men. Surgical management of both the primary site and the sentinel lymph node is the standard of care. In this article, we describe the diagnosis and treatment of a case of MCC in the left cheek.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.205-209
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• 2018

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is an uncommon neuroendocrine cutaneous tumor with poor prognosis. It has the high rate of recurrence, mortality, regional nodal involvement, and distant metastases. It is difficult to diagnose MCC because of its non-specific clinical findings. It usually occurs on sun-exposed areas of the skin, mostly at head and neck. There is a difference in the incidence and prognosis according to site in the head and neck. However, there is no consented site-specific diagnosis, treatment or follow-up protocol for MCC at the head and neck. We herein report a case of MCC arising in the right earlobe of an otherwise healthy young man who has been diagnosed early, thereby successfully treated. With our closed follow-up, there was no tumor recurrence or complication at 33 months after diagnosis.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.169-171
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• 2019

Subcutanous hemangiosarcoma is rare malignant condition in dogs. An eleven-year-old neutered male Maltese was presented with multicentric cutaneous hemorrhagic nodules followed by lethargy. The patient showed regenerative anemia and thrombocytopenia with skyrocketing D-dimer, indicating that he had disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) on progress. Fine needle aspiration, histopathology, X-ray, and computed tomographic scanning ultimately diagnosed this patient as subcutaneous hemangiosarcoma with disseminated metastasis to the body. Unfortunately, the dog died due to side effects of anti-thrombotic therapy for DIC. This case report described a rare subcutaneous hemangiosarcoma in a Maltese dog.