1/4. Unusual postirradiation sarcoma of chest wall.This paper reports a sarcoma of the chest wall following postoperative radiation therapy for breast carcinoma. A total of 9346 rads was delivered at a 2-cm tissue depth from two treatment courses separated by a five-year interval. The sarcoma appeared 16 years following the initial radiation course. The existence of two mesenchymal elements in the lesion led to the final diagnosis of malignant mesenchymoma. Criteria for evaluating a possible radiation-induced malignancy are discussed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = radiation-induced (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/4. Irradiation-induced pericarditis.Three patients with pericarditis following therapeutic irradiation for malignant tumors were studied at autopsy. In one subject, death occurred five days after the last dose of radiation. The pericardial involvement was characterized by fibrinous exudation. This was more marked in degree over the right side of the heart than the left and corresponded with the field of irradiation. In the remaining two patients, two and four courses of radiation had been applied, the interval between the last dose and death being seven weeks in one patiet and 1 1/2 years in the other. The lesions were those of organizing pericarditis.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 4keywords = radiation-induced (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/4. Modified technique for radical transmediastinal forequarter amputation and chest wall resection.Forequarter or interscapulothoracic amputation is a major surgical procedure indicated primarily in the treatment of malignant lesions involving the bony and soft tissue parieties of the upper part of the arm, shoulder, and scapula. It is also indicated in extensive trauma with irreparable damage to the shoulder area and as a palliative measure in intractable pain caused by incurable tumors of the shoulder girdle. Several operative techniques have been described: the classical Berger approach, an anterior pectoral approach, and posterior retroscapular approaches. A radical transthoracic approach has been described in cases in which the tumor had spread through the chest wall. The two main goals of these approaches have been early ligation of the subclavian vessels and immediate exploration for operability. This report details our experience with a modified technique for radical forequarter amputation and chest wall resection in which a transmediastinal approach is employed. This approach was used in two patients: One had a radiation-induced fibrosarcoma of the left axilla and adjacent chest wall following a radical mastectomy 19 years earlier, and the other patient had a recurrent rhabdomyosarcoma of the right axilla with invasion of the chest wall. This technique avoids time-consuming and individual excision of ribs and minimizes the amount of blood loss by early ligation of the internal mammary vessels. Safe and excellent exposure and division of the subclavian vessels and early exploration for mediastinal and intrathoracic involvement are made possible. Details of the procedure with illustrations are described.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = radiation-induced (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/4. radiation-induced malignant mesenchymoma of the chest wall following treatment for breast cancer.21 years after radiotherapy for breast cancer, a 63-year-old woman developed a malignant mesenchymoma of the chest wall. The total irradiation dose was 132 Gy. The first clinical symptom of this second malignancy was a slight irregular calcification around the implanted silicon protheses observed in a conventional chest X-ray. radiation-induced sarcoma is a very rare complication of radiotherapy. In cases of chest wall calcification after radiation therapy further investigation should be carried out, because some patients with radiation-induced sarcoma could be saved, if an early diagnosis is reached.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = radiation-induced (Clic here for more details about this article) |