Triple-Regimen of Vemurafenib, Irinotecan, and Cetuximab for the Treatment of BRAFV600E-Mutant CRC: A Case Report and Review

Mutation of the BRAF proto-oncogene is found in approximately 10% of colorectal cancers (CRC), with much of the mutation conferred by a V600E mutation. Unlike other CRC subtypes, BRAF-mutant CRC have had relatively limited response to conventional therapies and overall poor survival. We present the case of a 75-year-old man with severe nonischemic cardiomyopathy on a LifeVest who was found to have a transverse colonic mass with widespread hepatic metastatic disease and was subsequently found to have BRAFV600E-mutant CRC (MSI High/dMMR). After a failed therapy with FOLFOX and pembrolizumab, the patient was started on a regimen of vemurafenib, irinotecan, and cetuximab (VIC) based on the SWOG 1406 trial which had shown improved progression-free survival and response rate for the treatment of BRAFV600E-mutant metastatic CRC. After 40 cycles of VIC, the patient attained complete response and is in remission off chemotherapy with significant improvement. This case highlights the effectiveness of the triple-regimen of vemurafenib, irinotecan, and cetuximab as a treatment option for BRAFV600E-mutant CRC, which is a treatment regimen based on the SWOG 1406 trial, and also demonstrates the synergistic role of BRAFV600E inhibitors and EGFR inhibitors in the treatment of BRAFV600E-mutant CRC.

The role of unenhanced phase of the liver in the scanning protocol of metastatic breast cancer: implications for sensitivity, response evaluation and size measurement

Background To analyse if performing unenhanced CT of the liver aids in the evaluation of metastatic lesions, response assessment or alter the size of the lesions, compared with portal phase alone, in patients with hepatic metastases from breast carcinoma. Patients and methods One-hundred and fifty-three CT scans of 36 women were included. Scans consisted of unenhanced, arterial and portal delayed phases of the liver. Two readers sorted which phase was best for visualization of metastases, evaluated the number of lesions detected in each phase, selected the best phase for assessment of response in two consecutive scans, and measured one target lesion in all the phases. χ2 was used to compare differences among phases and paired t test for measurement differences. Results Unenhanced, arterial and portal phases were considered better phases by readers 1/2 in 68/67%, 27/28% and 69/70%, and some lesions were missed in 2%, 11% and 7%, respectively. Sensitivity was significantly better for unenhanced and portal phases compared to arterial phase. Comparison between consecutive scans was considered better in unenhanced (80/79%), followed by portal (70/69%) and arterial phases (31/31%). Maximum diameter of target lesions was 15% greater in unenhanced phase (p < 0.001). Conclusions Portal and unenhanced phases of the liver allow better detection and delineation of metastatic hepatic lesions from breast carcinoma. In most cases, unenhanced CT is the best phase to assess response and provides the largest diameter. Therefore, we recommend the use of unenhanced CT in the evaluation of patients with breast carcinoma and suspected or known hepatic metastatic disease.

Diagnostic and procedural intraoperative ultrasound: technique, tips and tricks for optimizing results

Intraoperative ultrasound (IOUS) is a valuable adjunctive tool that can provide real-time diagnostic information in surgery that has the potential to alter patient management and decrease complications. Lesion localization, characterization and staging can be performed, as well as surveying for additional lesions and metastatic disease. IOUS is commonly used in the liver for hepatic metastatic disease and hepatocellular carcinoma, in the pancreas for neuroendocrine tumors, and in the kidney for renal cell carcinoma. IOUS allows real-time evaluation of vascular patency and perfusion in organ transplantation and allows for early intervention for anastomotic complications. It can also be used to guide intraoperative procedures such as biopsy, fiducial placement, radiation, or ablation. A variety of adjuncts including microbubble contrast and elastography may provide additional information at IOUS. It is important for the radiologist to be familiar with the available equipment, common clinical indications, technique, relevant anatomy and intraoperative imaging appearance to optimize performance of this valuable imaging modality.

Malignant Spinal Cord Compression Syndrome as an Initial Presentation of Testicular Cancer

Malignant spinal cord compression syndrome (MSCCS) occurs in 2.5 to 5% of all oncological patients. In 20% of the cases, it is the initial manifestation. This syndrome is a rare event among germ cell tumors (GCT), occurring in only 1.7% of the patients. We present the case of a 24-year-old man who arrived at the emergency department with dysesthesia and paraparesis as well as urinary incontinence. Imaging studies showed an infiltrative lesion in the left testicle, pulmonary and hepatic metastatic disease, and a large retroperitoneal ganglionar conglomerate that infiltrated the spinal cord through the intervertebral foramina of the vertebra level T11 with displacement of the L1 vertebral body. A postoperative biopsy showed a pure embryonal carcinoma. In the initial approach of a young man who presents spinal cord compression, the presence of MSCCS associated with GCT should be considered as a possible cause. A high level of suspicion is required to achieve a timely diagnosis, to grant the patient the best possible outcome.

Role of FDG PET/CT scan in preoperative pancreatic cancer staging.

511 Background: Guidelines do not recommend routine FDG PET/CT (PET) as preoperative staging for pancreatic cancer, although many single center series have demonstrated that PET can lead to changes in management in a sizable minority of patients. We performed a retrospective analysis of patients undergoing PET for potentially resectable pancreatic adenocarcinoma at our institution to help define the utility of PET in this setting. Methods: We reviewed patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma diagnosed at our center from June 2010 to May 2017 and included patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma felt to be potentially resectable following standard staging studies [computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)] who also underwent preoperative PET. Data collected and analyzed included: demographics, pre-PET staging, CA19-9 levels, PET results and surgical outcomes. Results: Forty eight patients with pancreatic adenocarcinoma felt to be surgically resectable underwent PET. PET changed management in 4/48 (8.3%) of these patients. In all 4 of these patients, hepatic metastatic disease was detected on PET and planned surgery was canceled; metastatic disease was confirmed by biopsy in 1 of these patients. 1/48 (2.1%) of patients had a false positive PET scan, where a focus of suspected metastatic disease on PET was biopsied and found to be benign, allowing the patient to proceed to surgery. 3/48 (6.3%) of patients had a false negative PET; 2 patients had hepatic metastatic disease and one had peritoneal disease discovered during surgery. Mean time from negative PET to surgery in these 3 patients was 31 days (range 21-45). Degree of CA19-9 elevation and primary tumor FDG avidity did not correlate with detection of metastatic disease on PET. Conclusions: PET changed management in a smaller number of patients in this cohort than in many previously reported series with a nearly equal number of patients with false negative PET results proceeding to unnecessary surgery. These results are consistent with the currently uncertain role of PET in preoperative staging for pancreatic cancer and further work must be undertaken to optimize presurgical staging in this population.

Distant Liver Metastases as a Major Factor Influencing Survival in Patients with Colorectal Cancer

Aim: To assess the effect of the factor ‘hepatic metastatic disease’ on long-term outcomes in patients with colorectal cancer. Materials and methods: We analysed retrospectively 200 randomly selected patients. Forty-two of them were excluded from the study for different reasons so the study contingent was 158 patients over a period of 23 years. All were diagnosed and treated in the Lozenetz University Hospital, in the Department of General Surgery. 125 of the patients were diagnosed with colorectal cancer without distant metastases and 33 of the patients had liver metastases as a result of colorectal carcinoma. The statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 19 IMB, with a level of significance of P < 0.05 at which the null hypothesis is rejected. We also used descriptive analysis, Kaplan-Meier estimator, Log-Rank Test and Life-Table statistics models. Results: The median survival for patients without metastases was 160 months, and the median was 102 months. The median survival for patients with liver metastases was 28 months and the median was 21 months. One-year survival for patients without metastases was 92% versus 69% in patients with liver metastases. Conclusion: Average, annual and median survivals are influenced statistically significantly by the presence of liver metastases compared to overall survival and that of patients without metastatic colorectal cancer. Liver metastatic disease is a proven factor affecting long-term prognosis and survival in patients with colorectal cancer.