• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.1 no.3
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• pp.155-160
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• 2001

Purpose: Submucosal gastric carcinomas metastasize to lymph nodes more often than the intramucosal gastric carcinomas. The objectives of this study are to clarify the characteristics of submucosal gastric carcinomas, especially in reference to the status of lymph node metastasis, and to explore the possibility of a minimally invasive operation. Materials and Methods: The clinicopathologic features of 88 patients with submucosal gastric carcinoma, all of whom were treated with a $D_{2}+\alpha$ gastrectomy between January 1994 and December 1999, were examined retrospectively with respect to the status of lymph nodes. The size, depth of submucosal invasion, histologic differentiation, location,and macroscopic finding of the tumor were investigated in association with the presence or the absence of lymph node metastasis. Results: Among the 88 patients, 15 ($17.05\%$) had lymph node metastasis, and the status of metastasis was significantly correlated with tumor size and depth of submucosal invasion. The frequency of metastasis was $0\%$ (0/7) of up to 1.0 cm and $18.5\%$ (15/81) over 1.0 cm in size (p=0.034) and $6.1\%$ (2/33) of up to 1.0mm and $23.6\%$ (13/55) over 1.0 mm in depth of submucosal invasion (p=0.042). Conclusion: The tumor size and depth of submucosal invasion are useful indicators of lymph node metastasis in submucosal gastric carcinoma. A minimally invasive operation can be applied for submucosal gastric carcinoma up to 1.0 cm in size Further studies are needed to limited surgery for depth of submucosal invasion.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.14-18
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• 2010

Objectives : We evaluated the use of FDG PET/CT for the identification of cervical nodal metastases of SCC of the oral cavity and oropharynx with histological correlation. Material and Methods : We reviewed 46 medical records, from January 2004 to July 2007, of patients who underwent FDG PET/CT and CT/MRI for SCC of the oral cavity and oropharynx before surgery. We recorded the lymph node metastases according to the neck level affected and the system used for the imaging-based nodal classification. Results : The FDG PET/CT had a sensitivity of 75.6% and a specificity of 96.7% ; it had a higher sensitivity than the CT/MRI for identification of cervical metastases on the side of the neck(26/28 vs. 20/28, p=0.031) and at each of the cervical levels(34/45 vs. 26/45, p=0.008). There was a significant difference in the $SUV_{max}$ between the benign and malignant cervical lymph nodes($3.31{\pm}3.23$ vs. $4.22{\pm}2.57$, p=0.028). The receiver-operating-characteristic (ROC) curve analysis for differentiating the benign from the malignant cervical lymph nodes, showed that the area under the curve(AUC) of the FDG PET/CT was 0.775. The cut-off value for the $SUV_{max}$ was 2.23 based on the ROC curve. There was a significant correlation between the $SUV_{max}$ and the size of the cervical lymph nodes(Spearman r=0.353, p=0.048). Conclusion : FDG PET/CT images were more accurate than the CT/MRI images. In addition, the $SUV_{max}$ cut-off values were important for evaluating cervical the cervical nodes in the patients with SCC of the oral cavity and oropharynx.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.63-69
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• 1969

Various methods for the isolation of salmonellae were compared by examining mesenteric lymph nodes and faeces of 395 pigs at slaughter. The conclusions were as follows. (i) Tetrathionate broth was significantly superior to selenite broth for the examination of mesenteric lymph nodes. (ii) There was no significant difference between tetrathionate broth and selenite broth for the examination of faeces. The use of both tetrathionate broth and selenite broth as enrichment media for faeces produced far better results than the use of any single enrichment medium. (iii) Brilliant green agar was significantly superior to SS agar for the examination of mesenteric lymph nodes. (iv) There was no significant difference between brilliant green agar and SS agar when faeces were examined. The use of both media produced far better results than the use of either singly. (v) Brilliant green MacConkey broth was much inferior to tetrathionate broth as an enrichment broth. Direct culture of faeces on brilliant green MacConkey agar yielded less isolates than prior enrichment in tetrathionate or selenite broth. (vi) The optimum incubation period of enrichment was 24 hours for faeces and 48 hours for mesenteric lymph nodes when either tetrathionate broth or selenite broth was used as enrichment media.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.747-751
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• 2015

Background: Stage III colon cancer patients demonstrate diverse clinical outcomes. The aim of this study was to develop a prognostic model in order to better predict their survival. Materials and Methods: From 2004 to 2010, 548 patients were retrospectively analyzed, among whom 328 were defined as the study group and the remaining 220 served as a validation group. Clinico-pathologic features, including age, gender, histological grade, T stage, number of positive lymph nodes, number of harvest lymph nodes, pretreatment carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels and pretreatment neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR), were collected. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were used to detect prognostic factors and multivariate analysis was applied to identify independent examples on which to develop a prognostic model. Finally, the model was further validated with the validation group. Results: Histological grade (p=0.002), T stage (p=0.011), number of positive lymph nodes (p=0.003), number of harvested lymph nodes (p=0.020), CEA (p=0.005), and NLR (p<0.001) were found as prognostic factors while histological grade [RR(relative risk):0.632, 95%CI (Confidence interval) 0.405~0.985, p=0.043], CEA (RR:0.644, 95%CI:0.431~0.964, p=0.033) and NLR (RR:0.384, 95%CI:0.255~0.580, p<0.001) levels were independent. The prognostic model based on these three factors was able to classify patients into high risk, intermediate and low risk groups (p<0.001), both in study and validation groups. Conclusions: Histological grade, pretreatment CEA and NLR levels are independent prognostic factors in stage III colon cancer patients. A prognostic model based on these factors merits attention in future clinical practice.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.281-285
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• 2001

This study was performed to investigate the gross anatomical features and microscopical structures of the hemal nodes and the hemolymph nodes in the sheep. The hemal nodes and hemolymph nodes were observed mainly in periphery of the thoracic and abdominal aortae of the animals. The size of hemal nodes was generally smaller than that of the hemolymph nodes, and the shape of the both organs was spherical or ovoid. The color of the hemal nodes was red, while that of the hemolymph nodes was grary with red bands. The hemal nodes were surrounded by a relatively thick connective tissue capsule and there were extensive subcapsular sinuses distended by a great number of erythrocytes. Although a few number of lymphatic nodules and small areas of diffuse lymphatic tissues were observed in the parenchyma, no typical cortex and medulla were defined in the hemal node. Small numbers of blood vessels were found at the connective tissue capsule but lymph vessel was not observed microscopically in this organ. The hemolymph nodes were covered by a relatively thick connective tissue capsule and there was a hilus in each node. The parenchyma was divided into cortex and medulla. The cortex was composed of a few numbers of lymphatic nodules and some diffuse lymphatic tissues. The medulla comprised medullary sinuses and cords. Afferent and efferent lymph vessels were observed at the periphery of the capsule adn the hilus, respectively. The subcapsular and medullary sinuses were not extensive but filled with small numbers of erythrocytes. The stroma of hemal node and hemolymph node was composed of reticular cells and fibers, and the capsule and trabecula consisted of collagenous fibers with smooth muscle fibers.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.2657-2662
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• 2013

Background: Intraoperative sentinel lymph node biopsy has now become the standard of care for patients with clinically node negative breast cancer for diagnosis and also in order to determine the need for immediate axillary clearance. Several large scale studies confirmed the diagnostic reliability of this method. However, micrometastases are frequently missed on frozen sections. Recent studies showed that both disease free interval and overall survival are significantly affected by the presence of micrometastatic disease. The aim of this study was to determine the sensitivity and specificity of intraoperative frozen section analysis of sentinel lymph nodes (SLNs) for the detection of breast cancer micrometastasis and to evaluate the status of non-sentinel lymph nodes (non-SLNs) in those patients subjected to further axillary sampling. Materials and Methods: We performed a retrospective study on 154 patients who underwent SLN biopsy from January 2008 till October 2011. The SLNs were sectioned at 2 mm intervals and submitted entirely for frozen sections. Three levels of each section submitted are examined and the results were compared with further levels on paraffin sections. Results: Overall 40% of patients (62/154) were found to be SLN positive on final (paraffin section) histology, out of which 44 demonstrated macrometastases (>2mm) and 18 micrometastases (<2mm). The overall sensitivity and specificity of frozen section analysis of SLN for the detection of macrometastasis was found to be 100% while those for micrometastasis were 33.3% and 100%, respectively. Moreover 20% of patients who had micrometastases in SLN had positive non-SLNs on final histology. Conclusions: Frozen section analysis of SLNs lacks sufficient accuracy to rule out micrometastasis by current protocols. Therefore these need to be revised in order to pick up micrometastasis which appears to have clinical significance. We suggest that this can be achieved by examining more step sections of blocks.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.196-200
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• 2005

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the incidence and predictive factors of contralateral occult lymph node metastasis in oral cavity squamous cell carcinomas to form a rational basis for elective contralateral neck management. Materials and Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of 66 N0-2 oral cavity cancer patients undergoing elective neck dissection for contralateral clinically negative necks from 1991 to 2003. Results: Clinically negative but pathologically positive contralateral lymph nodes occurred in 11%(7 of 66) . Of the 11 cases with a clinically ipsilateral node positive neck, contralateral occult lymph node metastases developed in 36%(4 of 10, in contrast with 5%(3/55) in the cases with clinically ipsilateral node negative necks(p<0.05). Based on the clinical staging of the tumor, 8%(3 of 37) of the cases showed lymph node metastases in T2 tumors, 25%(2 of 8) in T3, and 18%(2 of 11) in T4. None of the T1 tumors(10 cases) had pathologically positive lymph nodes. The rate of contralateral occult neck metastasis was significantly higher in advanced stage cases and those crossing the midline, compared to early stage or unilateral lesions(p<0.05). Patients with no evidence of contralateral nodal cancer had significantly improved disease-specific survival over patients with any pathologically positive nodes(5-year disease-specific survival rate was 79% vs. 43%, p<0.05). Conclusion: The risk of contralateral occult neck involvement in the oral cavity squamous cell carcinomas above the T3 stage or those crossing the midline with unilateral metastases was high. Therefore, we advocate an elective contralateral neck treatment with surgery or radiotherapy in oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma patients with ipsilateral node metastases or tumors that are greater than stage T3 or crossing the midline.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.71 no.3
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• pp.180-187
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• 2011

Background: In mediastinal lymph node sampling in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) it is important to determine the appropriate treatment as well as to predict an outcome. Endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) is a recently developed, accurate, safe technique in patients with NSCLC for sampling mediastinal lymph nodes. We sought to determine the usefulness of EBUS-TBNA in mediastinal staging with NSCLC considered to be operable. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of 142 patients who underwent EBUS-TBNA for mediastinal staging in the Asan Medical Center, Korea from July 2008 to July 2010. If patients were in an operable state, they underwent subsequent surgical staging. Diagnoses based on biopsy results were compared with those based on surgical results. Results: We performed EBUS-TBNA in 184 mediastinal lymph nodes in 142 NSCLC patients. Almost all of the EBUS-TBNA samples were from the lower paratracheal (112, 60.9%) and subcarinal (57, 31.0%) lymph nodes. In 142 patients, 51 patients (35.9%) were confirmed with malignant invasion of the mediastinal lymph node by EBUS-TBNA and 91 (64.1%) patients were not confirmed. Among the 91 patients, 64 patients (70.3%) underwent surgical staging. 3 patients (4.7%) who were misdiagnosed by the EBUS-TBNA were confirmed by surgery. After Diagnostic sensitivity of EBUS-TBNA, the prediction of mediastinal metastatsis was 94.4% and specificity was 100%. The procedures were performed safely and no serious complications were observed. Conclusion: We demonstrated the high diagnostic value of EBUS-TBNA for mediastinal staging.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.11
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• pp.4677-4681
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• 2014

Background: This study aimed to characterize the histopathological pattern of lymph node pathology among Saudi patients and to highlight the age and gender variations of these lesions as base line data. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the data from lymph node biopsy specimens received at the Department of Pathology, King Fahad Hospital, Madinah, Saudi Arabia from January 2006 to December 2013. Results: Of the 289 lymph node biopsy specimens received, 154 (53.3%) were from males and 135 (46.7%) from females giving a male: female ratio of 1.14:1. Age of the patients ranged from 2.5 to 96 years with a mean age 33.9 years. The commonest lymph node group affected was the cervical (30.4%) followed by axillary (9.7%) and inguinal (8.7%). Malignant lymphoma [71 Hodgkin's disease (HD), 57 non Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL)] 128 (44.3%), reactive hyperplasia 68 (23.5%), and tuberculosis 41 (14.2%) were the common causes of lymph node enlargement. While HD, reactive hyperplasia and tuberculosis were commonest in young adult patients (10-29 years old) and rare above the age of 50 years; NHL was the predominant cause of lymph node enlargement above 50 years. Conclusions: Lymph node biopsy plays an important role in establishing the cause of lymphadenopathy. Among the biopsied nodes, lymphomas were the most common (44.3%) followed by non-specific reactive hyperplasia (23.5%) and tuberculous lymphadenitis (14.2%).

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.707-712
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• 2015

Background: To evaluate use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and a logistic model including risk factors for lymph node metastasis for improved diagnosis. Materials and Methods: The subjects were 176 patients with rectal cancer who underwent preoperative MRI. The longest lymph node diameter was measured and a cut-off value for positive lymph node metastasis was established based on a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. A logistic model was constructed based on MRI findings and risk factors for lymph node metastasis extracted from logistic-regression analysis. The diagnostic capabilities of MRI alone and those of the logistic model were compared using the area under the curve (AUC) of the ROC curve. Results: The cut-off value was a diameter of 5.47 mm. Diagnosis using MRI had an accuracy of 65.9%, sensitivity 73.5%, specificity 61.3%, positive predictive value (PPV) 62.9%, and negative predictive value (NPV) 72.2% [AUC: 0.6739 (95%CI: 0.6016-0.7388)]. Age (<59) (p=0.0163), pT (T3+T4) (p=0.0001), and BMI (<23.5) (p=0.0003) were extracted as independent risk factors for lymph node metastasis. Diagnosis using MRI with the logistic model had an accuracy of 75.0%, sensitivity 72.3%, specificity 77.4%, PPV 74.1%, and NPV 75.8% [AUC: 0.7853 (95%CI: 0.7098-0.8454)], showing a significantly improved diagnostic capacity using the logistic model (p=0.0002). Conclusions: A logistic model including risk factors for lymph node metastasis can improve the accuracy of MRI diagnosis of rectal cancer.