Abnormal shadow on chest radiograph: a supra – or infradiaphragmatic finding?

Incidental findings on chest X-ray of oncological patients need further evaluation in contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT). We report two cases of abnormal shadows, detected on radiograph, in patients with breast cancer: the first one projected under the left hemidiaphragm and the second one obscuring the right hemidiaphragm. Both patients were asymptomatic, subjected to a surgery and to a CT. The first scan revealed a 15 mm diameter nodule in left lung with smooth margins and central calcifications. Whereas, the second exam showed a subcapsular, ring, calcified lesion in the liver. In both cases, CT was essential for staging and therapeutic choice.

Surgical resection of a rapidly growing pulmonary spindle cell carcinoma by robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery: a case report

Background Pulmonary spindle cell carcinoma (PSCC) is an extremely rare tumor that is highly malignant and fast-growing. As chemotherapy and radiation therapy are ineffective, early surgical resection is effective for PSCC. Case presentation A 70-year-old woman with rheumatoid arthritis was referred to our hospital with an abnormal shadow. Chest computed tomography revealed a 33-mm-wide lobular mass in the right upper lobe. She was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer by bronchoscopic smear cytology. Although staging evaluation indicated stage IIIB (T3N2M0) disease, she required continued administration of immunosuppressants and prednisolone for rheumatoid arthritis. Therefore, robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (RATS) right upper lobectomy followed by lymph node dissection was performed without preoperative chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Pathological findings revealed PSCC. Conclusions We report a very rare case of pulmonary spindle cell carcinoma, successfully resected with RATS.

Collateral pulmonary vein after catheter ablation therapy for atrial fibrillation

A patient with previous catheter ablation therapy for atrial fibrillation was examined for an abnormal shadow on a chest radiograph. ECG-gated multidetector CT clearly showed the left upper pulmonary vein connected with the left inferior pulmonary vein. We hypothesize an intrapulmonary venous connection as a collateral.

Unusual giant multilocular mesothelial cyst of mediastinum

Background Intrathoracic mesothelial cysts are congenital lesions induced by the abnormal development of the pericardial coelom. There have been a few reports of giant mesothelial cyst of the superior mediastinum, but the preferred treatment remains a controversial topic. We herein report a rare case of successful removal of giant mesothelial cyst that was incidentally detected during a medical checkup. Case presentation A 53-year-old man with a feeling of mild chest tightness was referred to our hospital for the evaluation of an abnormal shadow of the mediastinum on chest X-ray. Computed tomography showed a multilocular, homogenous, large cyst in the superior mediastinum measuring 18 cm in size without contrast enhancement and with spotty calcification, and magnetic resonance imaging showed a low intensity on T1-weighted images and high intensity on T2-weighted images. Therefore, a cystic thymoma, thymic cyst, lymphangioma, cystic teratoma or pericardial cyst was suspected as the preoperative diagnosis. Despite mild symptoms, the patient underwent total thymectomy under median sternotomy for an appropriate diagnosis and treatment. The pathological diagnosis was giant multilocular mesothelial cyst. Conclusions Intrathoracic mesothelial cyst is a benign cyst and generally asymptomatic, but can sometimes induce critical chest clinical symptoms if untreated, depending on its size. In our case, complete surgical resection and a detailed pathological evaluation was effective for making the appropriate diagnosis and delivering treatment. In addition, an immunohistological evaluation is effective for diagnosing mesothelial cysts when it is difficult to distinguish the cyst from other cystic lesions.

P63-Negative Pulmonary NUT Carcinoma Arising in the Elderly: A Case Report.

Background: We herein describe a rare case of primary pulmonary NUT carcinoma with unusual clinical and pathological presentations. NUT carcinoma of the lung occurs near the hilum in younger adults with severe symptoms and is positive for p63. This is the first case to show negativity for p63 and is the oldest among previously reported cases of pulmonary NUT carcinoma. Case presentation: An 82-year-old man was referred for an incidental finding of an abnormal shadow at the peripheral apex of the right lung on computed tomography for a regular follow-up examination of renal cancer. Microscopically, small cell carcinoma was initially suspected; however, immunohistochemistry was not typical. NUT carcinoma with BRD4-NUT fusion was ultimately diagnosed using a NUT monoclonal antibody, fluorescence in situ hybridization, and RNA-seq. p63 protein expression was not detected. Conclusions: NUT carcinoma is rare, but lethal, and, thus, must not be overlooked. The present case suggests the importance of NUT immunohistochemistry in cases of small round cell tumors without clear lineage-specific differentiation, regardless of age, clinical symptoms, the tumor location, or p63 expression.

Two types of lung cancer with situs inversus totalis: a case report and review of the literature

Situs inversus totalis (SIT) is a rare congenital anatomical variation. However, patients with SIT combined with cancer are rare and these patients with two types of lung cancer have not been reported. We report here a case of combined lung adenocarcinoma and solitary fibrous tumor of the pleura with SIT and discuss its clinicopathological features and outcomes. A 68-year-old asymptomatic woman was referred to the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University because of an abnormal shadow on chest radiography. Computed tomography showed SIT and an irregularly shaped nodule (measuring 38 × 27 mm in diameter) in the pleural area of the left lower lobe and a 5-mm nodule in the dorsal segment of the lower lobe of the left lung. Surgery was then performed. For such patients, we should eliminate anxiety in patients, perform regular reexaminations, focus on the individual features of these patients, and avoid misdiagnosis because of habitual thinking. At the same time, the lymph nodes should be completely removed and different parts of the tumor with different properties should be treated differently according to the situation.

Comparing Medical Term Usage Patterns of Professionals and Search Engine and Community Question Answering Service Users in Japan: Log Analysis

Background Despite increasing opportunities for acquiring health information online, discussion of the specific words used in searches has been limited. Objective The aim of this study was to clarify the medical information gap between medical professionals and the general public in Japan through health information–seeking activities on the internet. Methods Search and posting data were analyzed from one of the most popular domestic search engines in Japan (Yahoo! JAPAN Search) and the most popular Japanese community question answering service (Yahoo! Chiebukuro). We compared the frequency of 100 clinical words appearing in the clinical case reports of medical professionals (clinical frequency) with their frequency in Yahoo! JAPAN Search (search frequency) logs and questions posted to Yahoo! Chiebukuro (question frequency). The Spearman correlation coefficient was used to quantify association patterns among the three information sources. Additionally, user information (gender and age) in the search frequency associated with each registered user was extracted. Results Significant correlations were observed between clinical and search frequencies (r=0.29, P=.003), clinical and question frequencies (r=0.34, P=.001), and search and question frequencies (r=0.57, P<.001). Low-frequency words in clinical frequency (eg, “hypothyroidism,” “ulcerative colitis”) highly ranked in search frequency. Similarly, “pain,” “slight fever,” and “numbness” were highly ranked only in question frequency. The weighted average of ages was 34.5 (SD 2.7) years, and the weighted average of gender (man –1, woman +1) was 0.1 (SD 0.1) in search frequency. Some words were specifically extracted from the search frequency of certain age groups, including “abdominal pain” (10-20 years), “plasma cells” and “inflammatory findings” (20-30 years), “DM” (diabetes mellitus; 30-40 years), “abnormal shadow” and “inflammatory findings” (40-50 years), “hypertension” and “abnormal shadow” (50-60 years), and “lung cancer” and “gastric cancer” (60-70 years). Conclusions Search and question frequencies showed similar tendencies, whereas search and clinical frequencies showed discrepancy. Low-clinical frequency words related to diseases such as “hypothyroidism” and “ulcerative colitis” had high search frequencies, whereas those related to symptoms such as “pain,” “slight fever,” and “numbness” had high question frequencies. Moreover, high search frequency words included designated intractable diseases such as “ulcerative colitis,” which has an incidence of less than 0.1% in the Japanese population. Therefore, it is generally worthwhile to pay attention not only to major diseases but also to minor diseases that users frequently seek information on, and more words will need to be analyzed in the future. Some characteristic words for certain age groups were observed (eg, 20-40 years: “cancer”; 40-60 years: diagnoses and diseases identified in health examinations; 60-70 years: diseases with late adulthood onset and “death”). Overall, this analysis demonstrates that medical professionals as information providers should be aware of clinical frequency, and medical information gaps between professionals and the general public should be bridged.

Pathological examination of CT findings of tumor infiltration to the periarterial plexus in pancreatic cancer.

644 Background: The radiographic diagnosis of tumor infiltration into the periarterial plexus in pancreatic cancer is important because it is related to the classification, however, it is difficult to distinguish the abnormal shadow along the artery caused by inflammation or cancer infiltration. The aim of this study is to investigate CT values of the abnormal shadow along artery could distinguish between inflammation and tumor invasion. Methods: Study 1: Of 26 patients who underwent DP-CAR between 2009 and 2018, we analyzed 19 patients who had dynamic CT and obtained sagittal slice taken 120 seconds after injection with less than 2.5 mm slice thickness. At first, we measured CT values at upper and lower point of CeA and CHA each sagittal slice using CT. Next, we evaluated tumor invasion at the upper and lower plexus of CeA and CHA in each section of the pathological specimen, and evaluated the relationship between the tumor invasion and the CT value. Study 2: Using these 19 patients and 40 patients who underwent DP for PDAC between 2010 and 2014, we analyzed the relation between CT value and long-term states. Results: Study 1: CT value was totally measured at the 606 points using 19 patients who underwent DP-CAR. At the 490 points, we did not observe cancer infiltration and fibrosis. At the 70 points, we observed fibrosis without cancer cells. At the 46 points, we observed cancer infiltration. CT value was significantly higher in the tumor infiltration group than that in the without cancer infiltration and fibrosis group (P < 0.01). Study 2: The best cut-off of CT value of the presence of cancer infiltration was 44.9 HU using ROC curve (AUC = 0.861). The median survival time of patients who had the points of CT value > 44.9 HU around arteries was significantly shorter than that of patients who did not have the points of CT value > 44.9 HU (2.17 vs. 4.55 years, p = 0.03). Conclusions: The CT value around the arteries was significantly higher in the points of pathological tumor infiltration than that in the points of fibrosis without cancer cells. The best cut-off CT value of the presence of cancer infiltration around arteries was 44.9 HU, and the presence of the point of CT value > 44.9 HU around arteries was associated with poor survival.

Comparing Medical Term Usage Patterns of Professionals and Search Engine and Community Question Answering Service Users in Japan: Log Analysis (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Despite increasing opportunities for acquiring health information online, discussion of the specific words used in searches has been limited. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to clarify the medical information gap between medical professionals and the general public in Japan through health information–seeking activities on the internet. METHODS Search and posting data were analyzed from one of the most popular domestic search engines in Japan (Yahoo! JAPAN Search) and the most popular Japanese community question answering service (Yahoo! Chiebukuro). We compared the frequency of 100 clinical words appearing in the clinical case reports of medical professionals (clinical frequency) with their frequency in Yahoo! JAPAN Search (search frequency) logs and questions posted to Yahoo! Chiebukuro (question frequency). The Spearman correlation coefficient was used to quantify association patterns among the three information sources. Additionally, user information (gender and age) in the search frequency associated with each registered user was extracted. RESULTS Significant correlations were observed between clinical and search frequencies (<i>r</i>=0.29, <i>P</i>=.003), clinical and question frequencies (<i>r</i>=0.34, <i>P</i>=.001), and search and question frequencies (<i>r</i>=0.57, <i>P</i>&lt;.001). Low-frequency words in clinical frequency (eg, “hypothyroidism,” “ulcerative colitis”) highly ranked in search frequency. Similarly, “pain,” “slight fever,” and “numbness” were highly ranked only in question frequency. The weighted average of ages was 34.5 (SD 2.7) years, and the weighted average of gender (man –1, woman +1) was 0.1 (SD 0.1) in search frequency. Some words were specifically extracted from the search frequency of certain age groups, including “abdominal pain” (10-20 years), “plasma cells” and “inflammatory findings” (20-30 years), “DM” (diabetes mellitus; 30-40 years), “abnormal shadow” and “inflammatory findings” (40-50 years), “hypertension” and “abnormal shadow” (50-60 years), and “lung cancer” and “gastric cancer” (60-70 years). CONCLUSIONS Search and question frequencies showed similar tendencies, whereas search and clinical frequencies showed discrepancy. Low-clinical frequency words related to diseases such as “hypothyroidism” and “ulcerative colitis” had high search frequencies, whereas those related to symptoms such as “pain,” “slight fever,” and “numbness” had high question frequencies. Moreover, high search frequency words included designated intractable diseases such as “ulcerative colitis,” which has an incidence of less than 0.1% in the Japanese population. Therefore, it is generally worthwhile to pay attention not only to major diseases but also to minor diseases that users frequently seek information on, and more words will need to be analyzed in the future. Some characteristic words for certain age groups were observed (eg, 20-40 years: “cancer”; 40-60 years: diagnoses and diseases identified in health examinations; 60-70 years: diseases with late adulthood onset and “death”). Overall, this analysis demonstrates that medical professionals as information providers should be aware of clinical frequency, and medical information gaps between professionals and the general public should be bridged.

Type B3 thymoma with marked neuroendocrine differentiation: Report of a case

Thymomas are tumors originating from the thymus epithelial cells and are the most common tumors of the anterior mediastinum. They have been classified into types A, AB, B1, B2, and B3 by the World Health Organization. Type B3 thymoma is composed of epithelial cell sheets with mild to moderate atypia and scant lymphocytes. An association between thymic carcinoma and neuroendocrine differentiation has been observed by some authors. However, cases of type B3 thymoma with neuroendocrine differentiation are very rarely discussed in the literature. A 68-year-old woman was referred to our hospital with an abnormal shadow on a chest roentgenogram. Chest computed tomography showed that the lesion was located in the anterior mediastinum. She underwent surgery, and the tumor was diagnosed as a type B3 thymoma with neuroendocrine differentiation. An extremely rare case of a type B3 thymoma showing neuroendocrine differentiation is presented herein.