1/221. Microvascular reconstruction of the skull base: indications and procedures.PURPOSE: The aim of the current study was to review the use of free tissue transfer for reconstruction of the skull base and for coverage of intracranial contents. patients AND methods: From 1990 until 1996, revascularized flaps were transferred to the skull and the skull base in 11 patients in whom intracranial/extracranial resection of tumors of the skull base was performed in cooperation with the Department of neurosurgery. The defects resulted from removal of squamous cell carcinomas (n = 4), basal cell carcinomas (n = 4), malignant melanoma, malignant schwannoma, and malignant meningioma. Defect repair was accomplished by revascularized transfer of latissimus dorsi muscle flaps in seven cases and rectus abdominis flaps and forearm flaps in two cases each. In five patients with extensive intracranial tumor spread, reconstruction was performed for palliative reasons. RESULTS: A safe soft tissue closure of the intracranial and intradural space was achieved in all patients, whereas the contour of the facial skull and the neurocranium was satisfactorily restored at the same time. By using the entire length of the grafted muscle, the vascular pedicle could be positioned next to the external carotid artery and conveniently connected to the cervical vessels. The mean survival time of the patients with palliative treatment was 8.4 months, with an average duration of hospital stay of 24.5 days. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the increased surgical effort of revascularized tissue transfer, microvascular reconstruction of large skull base defects appears to be justified, even as a palliative measure.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/221. radium-induced malignant tumors of the mastoid and paranasal sinuses.In the records of 5,058 persons with therapeutic or occupational exposure to radium, 21 patients with carcinoma of the mastoid and 11 with malignant tumors of the paranasal sinuses were identified. Tumor induction times were 21-50 years for mastoid tumors (median, 33) and 19-52 years for paranasal sinus tumors (median, 34). Dosimetric data are given for the patients whose body burdens of radium have been measured. We found a high proportion of mucoepidermoid carcinoma, comprising 38% of the mastoid and 36% of the paranasal sinus tumors. Three patients had antecedent bone sarcoma at 20, 11, and 5 years, respectively, and a bone sarcoma was discovered at autopsy in a fourth patient. Radiographic changes in the mastoid and paranasal sinuses were similar to those seen in nonradium malignant tumors. More than 800 known persons exposed to radium before 1930 and another group of unknown size who received radium water or injections of radium from physicians are still alive and at risk of developing malignant tumors of the mastoid and paranasal sinuses.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/221. Intracranial extension of an eccrine porocarcinoma. Case report and review of the literature.eccrine porocarcinoma is a rare malignant tumor of the true sweat gland. It commonly presents in the lower extremities with lymphatic metastasis. The authors describe the clinical presentation, radiographic evidence, operative discoveries, and pathological findings in a patient with an eccrine porocarcinoma involving the soft tissue of the occiput, which had eroded through the cranium. A review of the literature failed to reveal any other such case. The discussion includes the epidemiology, pathogenesis, treatment, and outcome of eccrine porocarcinomas. The six reported cases of scalp eccrine tumors are reviewed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 3.5keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/221. temporal bone tumours in patients irradiated for nasopharyngeal neoplasm.radiation-associated tumours are rare complications of radiotherapy. This study seeks to highlight and discuss the clinically challenging problem of radiation-associated tumours (rats) in the temporal bones of seven patients previously irradiated for nasopharyngeal neoplasm. Seven patients (six males and one female) with radiation-associated temporal bone tumours are presented (five squamous cell carcinomas, one osteogenic sarcoma and one chondrosarcoma). The initial nasopharyngeal disease for which radiotherapy was indicated was nasopharyngeal carcinoma (six patients) and nasopharyngeal lymphoma (one patient). The latency period between radiotherapy and presentation of temporal bone tumours ranged from five years to 30 years with a mean of 12.9 years. All the patients underwent surgical tumour resection. Three patients had post-operative radiotherapy and one patient underwent pre- and post-operative chemotherapy. Two patients died from the disease within three months of treatment with one patient surviving 36 months at the time of writing. One patient died from an unrelated medical condition three months after surgery. With refinement in radiotherapy techniques and the resultant increase in patient survival, there may be more patients with radiation-associated tumours in the future. It remains imperative for clinicians to be vigilant when patients previously irradiated for nasopharyngeal carcinoma present with otological symptoms as the key to the successful management of this condition lies in the early detection and expedient treatment of this difficult disease.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.5keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/221. Squamous cell carcinoma arising in an intradiploic epidermoid cyst.A 71-year-old woman presented with the symptoms of a posterior cranial fossa mass. CT and MRI revealed a lytic lesion in the occipital bone and a tumour infiltrating the dura mater, venous sinuses and cerebellum. Histopathology demonstrated a moderately differentiated squamous cell carcinoma arising from a primarily intradiploic epidermoid cyst. Despite surgery and radiotherapy, the tumour progressed and the patient died 1 year later.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 2.5keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/221. Malar metastasis from rectal carcinoma: a case report.Facial metastasis from colorectal carcinoma is extremely rare. Only two cases have been reported in the literature. This is the first reported case of malar metastasis from colon carcinoma. The patient was a 64-year-old, white woman who underwent a low anterior resection for a nearly obstructive carcinoma at 20 cm. Her chest X-ray revealed lung metastases. Postoperatively she was treated with fluorouracil and leucovorin. Twenty months later, she presented with left facial edema, which progressively increased in size. CT scan and magnetic resonance imaging with gadolinium showed a large soft tissue mass centered about the left anterior zygomatic arch. The platysma muscle was displaced laterally, and the masseter muscle was involved. There was extension into the masticator space and bony involvement of the zygomatic arch. True-cut biopsy of the left cheek revealed metastatic adenocarcinoma. histology was similar to that of the primary rectal adenocarcinoma. Metastasis to the malar region is extremely rare. It is a grave prognostic sign, as it is associated with advanced terminal disease. Because of the widespread metastases, only palliative treatment can be provided.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 4.5keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/221. Carcinoma of the ear: a case report of a possible association with chlorinated disinfectants.In this report we present a case of squamous cell carcinoma developing in a mastoid cavity after prolonged exposure to the chemical disinfectant, Eusol. The efficacy and safety of Eusol and other chloric acid (hypochlorous acid) derivatives in clinical use is debated.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/221. Aggressive basal cell carcinoma of the temporal region in a patient with Gorlin-Goltz syndrome.Gorlin-Goltz syndrome is an autosomal dominant disorder with variable penetration characterized primarily by five major findings: multiple basal cell carcinomas presenting at a young age, pits on the palms and soles, skeletal abnormalities, jaw cysts, and ectopic calcification of the falx cerebri and other structures. When the basal cell carcinomas are located in the head and neck there is a high risk of invasion of deep structures if early and radical treatment is not performed. The authors present a 59-year-old man affected by basal cell carcinoma in the context of Gorlin-Goltz syndrome. Although patients with this syndrome can present aggressive basal cell carcinomas, it is unusual to find them involving the craniofacial bones. In this patient the basal cell carcinoma involved the middle ear, the intrapetrous aspect of the facial nerve, and the dura mater. The reconstruction of a wide three-dimensional defect, in which the brain was exposed, was achieved with local flaps and a free musculocutaneous rectus abdominis flap. Factors affecting reconstruction in the lateral cranial base are discussed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 4.5keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/221. Sinonasal teratocarcinosarcoma: ultrastructural and immunohistochemical evidence of neuroectodermal origin.The authors report a case of sinonasal teratocarcinosarcoma in a 37-year-old man, which was located in the anterior skull base and extended to the right nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses. The tumor was surgically resected twice, but it could not be removed completely. Microscopically, it was mainly composed of primitive cell nests within a moderately cellular stroma. The components of squamous cell epithelia with focal teratoid appearance and adenocarcinomatous differentiation were observed. There were many rhabdomyoblasts scattered in the nests and stroma. Ultrastructurally, the primitive cells had many neural processes with parallel microtubules, resembling olfactory neuroblastoma. Rhabdomyoblasts showed various degrees of skeletal muscle differentiation. Some of the stromal spindle cells had actin filaments with dense patches and dense core granules. Immunohistochemically, the primitive cells were positive for epithelial markers, neuron-specific enolase, synaptophysin, and myogenic regulatory proteins. The rhabdomyoblasts showed immunoreactivity for myoid markers, cytokeratin, epithelial membrane antigen, and synaptophysin. Most of the stromal spindle cells were positive for smooth muscle actin, neuron-specific enolase and synaptophysin. The immunohistochemical and ultrastructural findings suggest that primitive cells had the most primitive phenotype of placodes, and support the possibility that sinonasal teratocarcinosarcoma is essentially a neuroectodermal tumor with divergent differentiation.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/221. Cranial reconstruction for metastatic breast cancer.All women with advanced breast cancer who are medically stable despite their disease are candidates for tumor extirpation and reconstruction. Advanced breast cancer today is incurable, and many prognostic factors can be used to try to predict a clinical course and response to therapy; however, no guidelines are available. Our case report most likely represents a metastasis to the calvarium with intracranial extension, reported to occur in about 3 percent of primary breast cancer patients. As demonstrated here, tumor ablation with immediate, one-stage reconstruction of large scalp defects is possible without the need for free tissue transfer or a delay in adjuvant therapy. Local tissue rearrangement has been employed for coverage of defects up to 50 percent of the cranium. The resulting donor defects can be closed with split-thickness skin grafts over pericranium. Serial tissue expansion and rearrangement can be used secondarily to replace skin grafts with hair-bearing scalp. Bony defects can be managed with either autogenous or alloplastic materials. Split-calvarial bone grafts can be harvested from the same operative field and cover small to medium-sized defects. Other sources of autogenous grafts include split ribs and iliac bone. metals, calcium ceramics, and polymers such as methylmethacrylate can be used to cover intracranial contents and restore calvarial contour when defects are large or when autogenous material is not available. Palliation from tumor burden, prevention of pathologic fracture and oncologic emergencies, controlling pain, and enhancing quality of life are the goals of the oncologic and reconstructive surgeons in cases of advanced breast cancer. These goals are becoming even more important as new forms and combinations of chemotherapy, radiation, and gene therapy are extending the life expectancy of women with breast carcinoma.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = carcinoma (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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