Supplementary Methods, Table 1, Figures 1-4 from Activated MET Is a Molecular Prognosticator and Potential Therapeutic Target for Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Tumors
Abstract BACKGROUND: Adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is a rare endocrine malignancy with poor prognosis. The aim of this study was to characterize patients diagnosed with ACC at a single center between 2014-2019. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed data regarding demographics, tumor characteristics and functionality, treatment and survival. RESULTS: The study cohort included 27 subjects (56% females), followed for 27±10.6 months. The mean age at diagnosis was 49.4±9 years. Co-morbidities at presentation included hypertension (63%), diabetes mellitus (22%) and dyslipidemia (26%). 74.1% of tumors were functioning – of which 85% were cortisol-secreting and 15% androgen-secreting. Aldosterone was secreted additionally in 15%. ENSAT stage at diagnosis was stage 1 in 15%, stage 2 in 35%, stage 3 in 12% and stage 4 in 38%. Eighty-nine % of patients underwent surgery. Treatment with mitotane was initiated in 82% of patients, reaching a mean maximal dose of 3.3 ±0.4 grams/day. Chemotherapy and/or radiation were given in 37% and 22%, respectively. Several patients (14.8%) had a second primary cancer, diagnosed before ACC in 75%. Progression was observed in 48% of patients, with a progression-free survival of 8.3±6.6 months. Thirty-five % of patients died during follow up, time to death was 12.8±0.4 months. Twenty two % of patients survived over 30 months after diagnosis. KI67 above 20% or stage above 2 negatively affected survival. CONCLUSIONS: ACC remains a rare disease with a poor prognosis. However, it is a heterogeneous disease, with some patients achieving survival of over 30 months after diagnosis. Further characterization of this population may improve our understanding of the biology and treatment of this rare disease.
Abdominal tumors invading the inferior vena cava (IVC) present significant challenges to surgeons and oncologists.To describe a surgical approach and patient outcomes.The authors conducted a retrospective analysis of surgically resected tumors with IVC involvement by direct tumor encasement or intravascular tumor growth. Patients were classified according to level of IVC involvement, presence of intravascular tumor thrombus, and presence of hepatic parenchymal involvement.Study patients presented with leiomyosarcomas (n=5), renal cell carcinoma (n=7), hepatocellular carcinoma (n=1), cholangiocarcinoma (n=2), Wilms tumor (n=1), neuroblastoma (n=1), endometrial leiomyomatosis (n=1), adrenocortical carcinoma (n=1), and paraganglioma (n=1). The surgeries were conducted between 2010 and 2019. Extension of tumor thrombus above the hepatic veins required a venovenous bypass (n=3) or a full cardiac bypass (n=1). Hepatic parenchymal involvement required total hepatic vascular isolation with in situ hepatic perfusion and cooling (n=3). Circular resection of IVC was performed in five cases. Six patients had early postoperative complications, and the 90-day mortality rate was 10%. Twelve patients were alive, and six were disease-free after a mean follow-up of 1.6 years.Surgical resection of abdominal tumors with IVC involvement can be performed in selected patients with acceptable morbidity and mortality. Careful patient selection, and multidisciplinary involvement in preoperative planning are key for optimal outcome.
Abstract Background[ 18 F]-Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET/CT) may sometimes be suboptimal for imaging gastric adenocarcinoma. The recently introduced [ 68 Ga]Ga-FAPI-04 (FAPI) PET/CT targets tumor stroma and has shown considerable potential in evaluating the extent of disease in a variety of tumors.MethodsWe performed a head-to-head prospective comparison of FAPI and FDG PET/CT in the same group of 13 patients with gastric adenocarcinoma who presented for either initial staging (n = 10) or restaging (n = 3) of disease. Lesion detection and maximum standardized uptake value (SUV max ) were compared between the two types of radiotracers.ResultsAll ten primary gastric tumors were FAPI-positive (100% detection rate), whereas only five were also FDG-positive (50%). SUV max was not significantly different, but the tumor-to-background ratio was higher for FAPI (mean, median, and range of 4.5, 3.2, and 0.8-9.7 for FDG and 12.9, 11.9, and 2.2-23.9 for FAPI, P = 0.007). The level of detection of regional lymph node involvement was comparable. FAPI showed a superior detection rate for peritoneal carcinomatosis (100% vs. none). Two patients with widespread peritoneal carcinomatosis underwent a follow-up FAPI scan after chemotherapy: one showed partial remission and the other showed progressive disease.ConclusionsThe findings of this study suggest that FAPI PET/CT outperforms FDG PET/CT in detecting both primary gastric adenocarcinoma and peritoneal carcinomatosis from gastric cancer. FAPI PET/CT also shows promise for monitoring response to treatment in patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis from gastric cancer, however, larger trials are needed to validate these findings.
