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A 78-year-old male visited the referring hospital because of asymptomatic gross hematuria. The patient was diagnosed with bladder cancer, clinical stage T3aN2M0, after multiple tumors were found in the bladder by cystoscopy and bilateral obturator lymph node metastases were found by contrast-enhanced thoracoabdominal-pelvic computed tomography. After neoadjuvant chemotherapy, the patient underwent robot-assisted radical cystectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection, followed by bilateral ureterocutaneostomy for urinary diversion. Postoperatively, the drainage volume from the pelvic drain ranged from 1,000 to 3,000 ml/day. We suspected lymphatic leakage based on the results of biochemical tests of the drainage fluid. Lymphangiography was conducted to confirm the diagnosis of lymphatic leakage, and lymphatic embolization was performed simultaneously. The patient underwent lymphangiography four times, but the lymphatic leakage persisted. Surgical treatment was considered, and lymphangioscintigraphy was conducted to search for areas of lymphatic leakage that could not be delineated by lymphangiography. Ascites decreased significantly after lymphangioscintigraphy.

Microglia are the only immune cells in the central nervous system. It has been shown that microglia actively regulate the number of neurons by participating in the cell death of neural stem cells during development and maturation. In addition, recent optical techniques have enabled in vivo imaging, which has revealed the function of microglia on synapses. Microglia regularly monitor synaptic activity and remove synapses that show abnormal activity in the event of brain infarction or other disorders. During development, microglia contribute to the formation of immature synapses by contacting dendrites during early synapse formation, and they are also involved in the de-synaptic process by selectively removing weakly active synapses through the use of classical complement cascade signaling. Furthermore, these abnormalities are known to contribute to the development of autism during development and to the development of Alzheimer's disease during maturation. In addition to this, microglia also contribute to plastic changes in synapses during the learning process in maturation. Furthermore, by modifying synaptic activity, microglia are known to be involved in changes in the activity of neuronal circuits. In addition to these synaptic functions, microglia are also known to be involved in the permeability of the blood-brain barrier. In this chapter, these functions will be summarized and discussed.

A 40-year-old Japanese female was referred to our institution with a high serum lactate dehydrogenase level. Computed tomography (CT) showed a large right adrenal tumor, 14 cm in size without distant metastases. The patient was clinically diagnosed with T2N0M0 adrenocortical carcinoma and underwent right adrenalectomy. The pathological diagnosis was adrenocortical carcinoma with negative surgical margin. The patient was administered mitotane for 2 years as adjuvant therapy. Subsequently, CT revealed asynchronous multiple metastases, including liver, lung, left kidney, and right acetabulum. The patient received 15 courses of EDP (a combination of etoposide, doxorubicin, and cisplatin) plus mitotane therapy, and had stable disease without new lesions.

A 34-year-old woman underwent total hysterectomy for management of uterine leiomyoma. At the same time, a paraurethral tumor (2 cm in size) was diagnosed based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). However, the patient was not treated for the tumor considering its small size. Eight years later, the patient was referred to our institution with a chief complaint of urethral bleeding. Computed tomography revealed a paraurethral mass at the same location, which was 13 cm in size. A percutaneous needle biopsy was performed and the tumor was diagnosed as leiomyoma. Tumor extirpation was performed and immunohistochemical analysis of the specimen demonstrated positive estrogen and progesterone receptors. Recurrence was not observed on MRI taken 6 months after the surgery. Paraurethral leiomyoma is rare, but relatively common in young women.

The pathophysiology of mental disorders remains unknown. This causes many gaps in pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment of mental disorders. To close these gaps, a new perspective, which is not bound by the existing diagnostic classifications or pathological hypotheses for mental disorders, is required. Recently, it has been reported that glial cells play active roles in normal brain function and circuit formation, and their disruption results in the onset of mental disorders. Here, we discuss mental disorders from the perspective of glial cell-related pathophysiology, along with our current efforts and research.

We report the case of a 61-year-old man who was incidentally diagnosed with a left pelvic ectopic kidney with renal tumor. Computed tomography showed a hypervascular tumor at the posterior surface of the ectopic kidney with five arterial and two venous supply vessels. On preoperative examination, this patient had respiratory dysfunction. For these reasons, an open radical nephrectomy was performed. Histological examination revealed a clear cell renal cell carcinoma, pT1aN0M0, G1, and a Fuhrman nuclear grading system grade of G2. No evidence of disease was observed 15 months after surgery.

A woman in her 60s was admitted to our hospital because of sudden-onset right hemiparesis, paresthesia, and neck pain. At first, a head CT scan was performed to rule out stroke, which did not detect any abnormalities. Subsequently, a neck CT scan was performed, which revealed a mild high-density structure compressing the dural sac within the cervical spinal canal. She was suspected to have a spinal hematoma. A MRI scan revealed a spindle-shaped structure with a heterogeneous high signal on T2-weighted and a mild high signal on T1-weighted sagittal images, which led to the diagnosis of a spontaneous spinal epidural hematoma. The patient was treated with conservative therapy upon which her symptoms improved. She was discharged seven days after admission. Spontaneous cervical spinal epidural hematoma often causes neck pain followed by unilateral spinal cord compression symptoms(such as hemiparesis and paresthesia)and can be misdiagnosed as a stroke. In cases of hemiparesis with sudden-onset neck pain, cervical lesions should be considered in the differential diagnoses in addition to stroke.

From May 2006 to March 2018, a total of 30 patients with multiple ground glass opacities( GGO) lessor equal to 2.0 cm underwent percutaneous preoperative computed tomography (CT)-guided Lipiodolmarking and subsequent video-assisted thoracic surgery( VATS). There were 22 patients with 2 GGOs,6 patients with 3 GGOs, 1 patient with 4 GGOs, and 1 patient with 5 GGOs. Of the 71 CT-guided Lipiodolmarking procedures were successfully completed. All 71 Lipiodol spots were detected with C-armshapedfluoroscopy and completely resected. Pneumothorax was the most common complication andoccurred in 22 (73.3%) of 30 cases. There were severe complications in two (6.7%) cases of pneumothoraxrequiring chest tube placement and three( 10.0%) cases of bloody sputum. Of 30 cases multipleGGOs revealed 24 synchronous lung cancer (19 patients with double lung cancer, 3 patients with triplelung cancer, 1 patient with quadruple lung cancer, and 1 patient with quintuple lung cancer). PreoperativeCT-guided lipiodol marking and VATS resection is a safe and reliable method for synchronous multiplelung cancer showing GGO.

A 70-year-old man visited a private hospital with the chief complaint of right lower limb pain. Fluorodeoxyglucose-emission tomography (FDG-PET) showed abnormal uptake in the pubic bone, right femur, and ascending colon. The patient was referred to our hospital for further evaluation. The following tumor marker levels were found : prostate-specific antigen (PSA) 20.57 ng/ml, carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) 108.5 ng/ml, carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) 1,002.1 U/ml. An open pubic bone biopsy was performed. The pathological diagnosis was metastatic adenocarcinoma from prostate cancer. Prostate and ascending colon cancers were clinically diagnosed as T2bN0M1b and T2N0M0, respectively. Laparoscopic colectomy was performed. Androgen deprivation therapy started immediately and the serum PSA level was maintained at <0.2 ng/ml during the follow-up period. However, the CEA and CA19-9 were higher than the normal level 2 years after the surgery. In addition, the FDG-PET revealed abnormal uptake in the pubic bone. Thus, a pubic bone biopsy was performed again. The histological diagnosis was metastatic adenocarcinoma from the ascending colon cancer. Although the patient received combination chemotherapy, he died of colon cancer.

A 68-year-old man was diagnosed with prostate cancer (initial serum prostate specific antigen [PSA] 389 ng/ml, stage cT4N1M1c, Gleason score 5+4), and androgen deprivation therapy was initiated. Despite the low serum PSA level, he developed postrenal acute kidney failure 4 years later, with progression of prostate cancer and liver and lung metastases. Serum levels of neuron-specific enolase and pro-gastrinreleasing peptide (tumor markers) were elevated. He underwent re-biopsy of the prostate, and histopathological examination revealed small cell carcinoma. He was initially treated with carboplatin and etoposide therapy. Liver metastases showed partial remission, and serum tumor marker levels were temporarily reduced. However, disease progression was observed after 4 chemotherapy cycles, and he was then treated with an 8-cycle course of amrubicin. Metastases showed shrinkage, and serum tumor marker levels were reduced after 2 chemotherapy cycles. Tumor enlargement recurred after 8 cycles, and the patient is being treated with palliative therapy. Amrubicin therapy may be effective in the treatment of small cell carcinoma of the prostate.

Ten years ago, a seventy-year-old female underwent extirpation of a left retroperitoneal tumor that was 58×36 mm in size. The pathological diagnosis was malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST) at that time. The patients visited our hospital with the chief complaint of back pain at ten years after surgery. Computer tomography (CT) showed recurrent tumors at the pancreas and the left kidney. Fine-needle aspiration biopsy was performed because of the possibility of pancreatic tumor. The pathological diagnosis was the recurrence of MPNST. The patient underwent extirpation of the recurrent tumors along with the pancreatic body and tail, transverse colon, spleen and left kidney. The definitive diagnosis was dedifferentiated liposarcoma with murine double minute 2 (MDM2) gene amplification and positive of p16Ink4 (p16). The previously resected tumor also revealed MDM2 gene amplification and positive of p16. Based on these results, our diagnosis in this case was recurrence of dedifferentiated liposarcoma. At 6 months after surgery, the patient had no local recurrence or distant metastases.

We previously reported that anticholinergic (AC) drug use increases with age in the elderly Japanese population. In this analysis, we investigated attribution for each AC drug type to total AC burden using different elderly age groups. Prescription records (from 09/23/2015 to 12/31/2016) for outpatients using any AC were extracted from pharmacy claims (primary source) and hospital-based databases. AC burden (number of AC drugs and AC score) and AC type were assessed using the Anticholinergic Cognitive Burden (ACB) scale, Anticholinergic Drug Scale (ADS), Anticholinergic Risk Scale (ARS), and Beers criteria. Age was categorized using three subgroups (65-74, 75-84, and ≥85 years). Overall, 125426, 140634, 35628, and 23149 of the pharmacy outpatients received ≥1 AC drug from the ACB scale, ADS, ARS, or Beers criteria, respectively. The number of AC drugs increased with age for the ACB scale and ADS groups; but decreased for the ARS and Beers criteria. Antihypertensives provided the biggest contribution to AC score using the ACB scale and ADS, and antihistamines for the ARS. Proportional attribution to AC score typically increased with age for antihypertensives (ADS highest proportion: 34.6% for ≥85 years) and cardiac agents, but decreased for antihistamines (ARS lowest proportion: 15.3% for ≥85 years), corticosteroids, and antiepileptics. Similar findings were typically observed for the hospital database. In conclusion, antihypertensives were the principal type of AC drugs using the ACB scale and ADS and their attribution to AC score increased with age. Antihistamines were the principal drug type for the ARS.

Second transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TUR-Bt) is a standard treatment for high grade T1 initial, non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. In our hospital from October 2008 to April 2017, 2nd TUR-Bt was performed in 51 cases of initial T1 bladder cancer. The risk factors of residual tumors on 2nd TUR-Bt and the clinical outcome were examined retrospectively. Twenty two of the 51 cases (43.1%) had residual tumors on 2nd TUR-Bt, and upstaging was not admitted. To determine the risk factor for residual tumors in 2nd TUR-Bt, we examined gender, tumor morphology (papillary/non-papillary, pedunculated/ nonpedunculated), number of tumors (single/frequent), and tumor size (≧20 mm/＜20 mm), but none of these were significant risk factors for tumor residue. The recurrence free survival (RFS) of the 51 cases was 86.0% after 1 year, and 77.0% after 3 years. There tended to be a higher RFS in the pedunculated tumor group, pT0 group on 2nd TUR-Bt, intravesical BCG therapy group, but no statistically significant difference was observed. The progression free survival (PFS) was 90.6% after 3 years, and 87.3% after 5 years. These values were similar to those reported previously.

A 47-year-old man with acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic-related changes relapsed after an allogenic bone marrow transplant and received a cord blood transplant as salvage therapy. The patient developed febrile neutropenia that was resistant to broad-spectrum antibiotics and multiple, painful, nodular skin lesions on his trunk and extremities before engraftment. A skin biopsy and blood culture found mold, and the subsequent microscopic examination, mass spectrometry, and DNA sequencing of the fungal colonies identified Fusarium solani. The patient's fever and skin lesions began to improve with the administration of liposomal amphotericin B at 5 mg/kg/day. Neutrophilic engraftment occurred on day 19. Stage 3 acute skin graft-versus-host disease was cured by the application of topical steroid. Unexpectedly, a change from liposomal amphotericin B to voriconazole on day 38 exacerbated the Fusarium infection. The Fusarium infection was finally cured by the administration of liposomal amphotericin B for a total of 19 weeks. Neutrophilic engraftment, an immediate definitive diagnosis, the sufficient and long-term administration of appropriate antifungal medication, and avoidance of the systemic administration of steroids might have contributed to the successful outcome of this patient.

The 2014 International Society of Urological Pathology (ISUP) has proposed a new grade group (GG) classification for Gleason scores (GS). The usefulness of the new GG classification was investigated with 518 prostate cancer patients who underwent androgen deprivation therapy. According to the new GG classification, Stages B‒D and the new GG classification relapse-free rate for each stage were calculated using the Kaplan‒Meier method. The new GG classification revealed a significant difference for the relapse-free rate only between some groups. Analysis using the Cox proportional hazards model indicated that the risk of relapse was higher in GGs 4 and 5 than in GG 1. The usefulness about the relapse-free rate in androgen deprivation therapy of the 2014 ISUP new grade group classification a waits future examination.

Glial cells originate the Greek word'glue'had traditionally been only thought as supporting cells for neurons. Because glial cells are electrically non-excitable, neuroscience researchers have focused on elucidation of excitable cell properties, neuron. Recent advanced optical methods lead us to observe glial structure, motility and their function in normal physiological conditions. These approaches let us to know that they are not just the supporting cells for neuron but could receive signal from neurons through receptors for neurotransmitters and to regulate neuronal functions, thus modulating behavior phenotype. Such studies also suggest that glial cells are highly dynamic and actively maintain brain homeostasis. Here, we review physiological function of glial cells through a new perspective clarified by innovations of imaging technology including two-photon microscope.

Accumulated evidence shows that neural information processing takes place in superficial layers of the brain called the gray matter. Synapses, which connect different neurons reside in the gray matter and are considered the major components of information processing and plasticity. On the other hand, myelinated axons lie beneath the gray matter. These bundles of cables connect neurons in the different brain regions to form functional neural circuits. Myelinated axons were of little of interest to neuroscientists and have long been ignored in the formation of functional neuronal circuits. Recent evidence shows that myelin formed by oligodendrocytes shows plastic changes depending on neuronal activity. In this issue, we discuss the plastic changes of myelin and its functional role in learning and training.

We have evaluated our new Norovirus rapid detection kit "QuickNavi™-Norovirus2" (Denka Seiken Co., Ltd.). The kit is based on Immunochromatographic method using colored latex particles. In addition to simple preparations giving quick (15 min) results, our newly developed kit enables specimen collection directly from rectum and can also be used with neonatal stool samples, both of which cannot be used with the current version of the kit, "QuickNavi™-Norovirus." Clinical study (stool samples, n=172) shows sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of the test compared to RT-PCR are 92.0%, 98.3%, and 94.2%, respectively. The result also showed good correlation with QuickNavi™-Norovirus. In this study, the new Norovirus rapid detection kit has shown sufficient sensitivity and specificity. Their performance, simple preparation enabling rectal swab samples, and quick results can be useful for day to day clinical practice when diagnosing Norovirus infection.

We report a 67-year-old man of lymphocytic hypophysitis complicated by hypertrophic cranial pachcymeningitis. The hypophysitis presenting with central diabetes insipidus caused isolated adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) deficiency after three years and two months since the onset of his illness. Moreover he suffered from left cavernous sinus syndrome after four years. Brain gadolinium (Gd) enhanced MRI, which was obtained in 2001, showed only enhancement of the pituitary stalk. However, brain Gd enhanced MRI, performed four years later, showed not only a remarkable thickening and enhancement of the pituitary stalk but also abnormal enhancement of the lesion in the left cavernous sinus. In addition, it showed diffuse thickening and enhancement of the dura mater. This clinical course suggested that chronic inflammation of the pituitary had spread to the dura mater, a clinical condition differing from parasellar chronic inflammatory disease (PSCID). In addition, because diffuse thickening and enhancement of the dura mater was present, it was likely that lymphocytic hypophysitis was complicated by hypertrophic cranial pachcymeningitis due to autoimmune reactions. We should carefully observe cases of lymphocytic hypophysitis and assess change over time in the dura mater of the whole brain by Gd enhanced MRI.

We report a patient having transient blindness due to severe stenosis of the internal carotid artery (ICA) with persistent primitive hypoglossal artery (PPHA). This 73 year-old man was admitted because of the transient visual impairment. At first, he had bilateral blindness for a several minutes and after that the right amaurosis continued for an hour. MRI showed an old lacunar infarction of the right caudate nucleus. Carotid duplex ultrasonography and conventional angiography demonstrated severe stenosis of the origin of the right ICA, and PPHA was arising from the right ICA at the level of 2nd cervical spine. The left ICA was normal. Because of the aplasia of the right vertebral artery and hypoplasia of the left vertebral artery, almost all blood flow of the basilar artery was supplied from the right ICA via PPHA. We considered that transient ischemia of both the bilateral posterior cerebral arteries and the right ocular artery occurred due to stenosis of the right ICA which branching PPHA. When ischemic neurological symptoms of multiple vascular territories occurr at the same time, we often think that ischemic mechanism was cardiogenic embolism. But we should recognize that stenosis of the ICA with PPHA cause the complex neurological deficits.

We described a case of thymic carcinoma that responded remarkably to combined chemotherapy with etoposide (ETP), ifosfamide (IFO) and nedaplatin. A 68-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of hoarseness and dysphasia. Chest computed tomographic (CT) scans showed an anterior mediastinal tumor. Using CT-guided needle biopsy, the diagnosis was squamous cell type of thymic carcinoma. We gave her modified VIP therapy with ETP, IFO and nedaplatin. The tumor contraction response was evident after 3 courses of treatment. This case suggested that nedaplatin may be one of the promising agents for thymic carcinoma chemotherapy.

We report a 53-year-old male patient with late onset mitochondrial myopathy, encephalopathy, lactic acidosis and stroke-like episodes(MELAS) with hallucination and delusion. The patient manifested various neurological symptoms including perceptive deafness, muscle weakness of limbs with loss of consciousness, sensory abnormalities in hands, feet and a face, abnormal sense of taste, tremor, palsy of upward eye movement and weak deep tendon reflexes prior to the psychotic episode. He was diagnosed as MELAS, because of high serum lactic acid and pyruvic acid, and the point mutation in the mitochondrial DNA 3243. SPECT imaging showed decreased perfusion in occipital cortex and thalamus. These SPECT changes improved after disappearing visual hallucination. Hallucination might be caused by delirium due to stroke-like episode. Dysfunction in the occipital cortex and thalamus might be involved with this perfusion change.

Purpose: We evaluated the outcome of radiation therapy for maxillary sinus carcinoma treated in our institution., Materials and Methods: From 1984 to 2001, 48 patients with maxillary sinus carcinoma were irradiated with or without chemotherapy and surgery. Patients ranged from 20-89 years of age (median, 68 years) and included 29 men and 19 women. The clinical T factors for these patients, according to the UICC classification (1997), were T2(n = 2), T3(n = 13), and T4(n = 29). Lymph node involvement was observed in 13 patients. The follow-upperiod ranged from 2.5 to 150 months (median, 25 months). The total radiotherapy dose ranged from 40 Gy to 72.8 Gy. Forty-three patients underwent surgery. Intra-arterial chemotherapy was delivered in 39 patients, and systemic chemotherapy was delivered in 7 patients. Fourteen patients were classified as "unresected" (radiation therapy with or without antrostomy), and 34 patients as "resected" (partial, total, or extended total maxillectomy with pre- or postoperativeirradiation)., Results: The 5-year overall survival rate(OS), cause-specific survival rate(CSS), and local control rate(LC) of all patients were 52%, 64%, and 75%, respectively. There was no significant difference between the "uaresected" and "resected" groups in OS, CSS, or LC. Local recurrence was observed in 12 patients. In the "resected" group, for local control, it was important to reduce viable tumor before maxillectomy. Preoperative > or = 60 Gy irradiation was considered to be effective to reduce tumor viability., Conclusion: There was no significant difference between the "unresected" and "resected" groups in OS, CSS, or LC. In the "resected" group, preoperative irradiation > or = 60 Gy was considered to be effective for local control. In radical treatment of maxillary sinus carcinoma, maxillectomy is not always necessary. Concurrent chemoradiation therapy with or without antrostomy is a reasonable treatment strategy.

Two hundred and thirteen clinical strains of coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated in Japan between 1980 and 1997 were analyzed for glycopeptide susceptibility by determining MIC using both Mueller-Hinton agar (MHA) and Brain Heart Infusion agar (BHIA) plates. Of 37 Staphylococcus epidermidis strains isolated between 1980 and 1981, all were susceptible to vancomycin and teicoplanin on both MHA and BHIA. However, of 122 isolates of Staphylococcus epidermidis isolated between 1994 and 1997, 1 (0.8%) was intermediate to vancomycin on MHA and 39 (32%) were intermediate on BHIA, while 3 (2.5%) and 27 (22.1%) were intermediate or resistant to teicoplanin on MHA and BHIA, respectively. It was demonstrated that the susceptibilities of the strains in 1990s to vancomycin and teicoplanin were significantly decreased compared with those in 1980s. Population analysis was performed with six strains each of Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus haemolyticus (three with vancomycin MIC > or = 8 micrograms/ml and three with vancomycin MIC < or = 4 micrograms/ml using BHIA). The population curves of the Staphylococcus epidermidis strains showed a homogeneous pattern of susceptibility. Whereas, those for two Staphylococcus haemolyticus strains (vancomycin MIC = 8 micrograms/ml using BHIA) showed a typical heterogeneous pattern. Vancomycin-resistant mutants (MIC > or = 32 micrograms/ml) were obtained with a high frequency of 10(-4)-(-5) from the strains by one-step selection with 16 micrograms/ml of vancomycin.