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Aim. To increase the effectiveness of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced gastric cancer by correcting nutritional deficiency. Materials and methods. Of 200 patients with locally advanced gastric cancer (mean age 57.2 years (46.168.3), 100 patients received neoadjuvant chemotherapy with nutritional support from 2018 to 2020. One hundred patients received neoadjuvant chemotherapy without nutritional support from 2013 to 2018 (historical control). The incidence of nutritional deficiency before treatment in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy + nutritional support group was 54%, and in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy only group it was 47%. Nutritional status was assessed using anthropometry, questionnaires (NRS-2002, MUST, GLIM), dynamometry, blood tests, bioimpedance. Complications according to NCI CTCAE v5.0; оbjective response rate according to RECIST 1.1; pathomorphological regression according to the JGCA classification (2017); 2-year event-free survival were assessed. Results. The frequency of nutritional deficiency before the start of treatment in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy + nutritional support group was 54%, in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy only group 47%. After the completion of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in the group neoadjuvant chemotherapy + nutritional support the frequency of nutritional deficiency was 1%, in the group neoadjuvant chemotherapy only without nutritional support 62%. In patients with nutritional deficiency in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy + nutritional support group, partial regression was registered in 51.9% of cases, in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy only group it was 27.6% (p0.05). There were no differences in the frequency of pathological response. 2-year event-free survival in patients without nutritional deficiency in the group neoadjuvant chemotherapy + nutritional support was 100%, in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy only group it was 68.5% (p0.001); in patients with nutritional deficiency 72,5 and 60.6% respectively (p0.05). Conclusion. Nutritional deficiency is an important predictive and prognostic marker of the efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in the treatment of locally advanced gastric cancer. Comprehensive diagnosis of nutritional status and nutritional support can improve the results of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced gastric cancer.

Оbjective. To assess the sensitivity of CT pneumogastrography in determining the T-stage and yT-stage. Materials and methods. This is a prospective, single-center study that included 267 patients with a histologically diagnosed stomach cancer who received treatment at the N.N. Petrov National Medical Research Center of Oncology from 2015 to 2018. 162 (60.7%) patients underwent preoperative chemotherapy. All patients underwent surgery: 22 in the volume of proximal subtotal gastrectomy, 95 in the volume of distal subtotal resection, 123 in the volume of gastrectomy, and 27 in the volume of endoscopic dissection. All patients underwent staging computed tomography at the preoperative stage according to a single protocol - CT pneumogastrography on a 64-slice X-ray computed tomography. The sensitivity of the method in assessing the depth of invasion was calculated separately for patients without preoperative chemotherapy (T-stage) and for patients who underwent preoperative chemotherapy (уT-stage) by comparison with pathological data. Results. The sensitivity indicators of CT pneumogastrography for patients without preoperative chemotherapy were: for T1a – 80.6%, T1b – 72.7%, T2 – 80.0%, T3 – 88.0%, T4a – 83.3%, T4b –100%. The sensitivity indicators of CT pneumogastrography for patients receiving preoperative chemotherapy were: for уT2 – 65.2%, уT3 – 83.5%, уT4a – 83.9%, уT4b – 75.0%. It is difficult to restore locally advanced gastric cancer with a depth of invasion cT2 – cT4b in the category yT0, yT1a, and yT1b after preoperative chemotherapy due to the persisting pathological tissue with impaired differentiation of all layers of the stomach wall, which is pathomorphologically a large fibrous tissue. Сonclusion. CT-pneumogastrography demonstrates high diagnostic indicators in determining the T-stage and yT-stage of gastric cancer.

Introduction. A multimodal approach to the treatment of locally advanced gastric cancer with the addition of systemic or local treatment methods, such as chemotherapy and radiation therapy, reduces the risk of cancer recurrence, thus improving survival of patients. Advances in anticancer therapy dictate the need to develop systems for assessing tumor response to new treatment modalities.Material and Methods. The study included 162 patients with locally advanced gastric cancer who received treatment at the N.N. Petrov National Medical Research Center of Oncology from 2015 to 2018. All patients underwent subtotal gastric resection or gastrectomy with lymph node dissection and previously received neoadjuvant polychemotherapy. Patients were in the age range 30 to 80 years old. The tumor pathomorphological response to chemotherapy was assessed in all patients using a pathomorphological response rate system according to the classification of the Japanese Gastric Cancer Association (JGCA, 3rd English edition). All patients underwent computed tomography with pneumogastrography before neoadjuvant chemotherapy and immediately before surgery. For each of 162 patients, 96 qualitative and quantitative biomarkers of tumor and paragastric lymph node imaging were analyzed.Results. The accuracy of determining the tumor response rate using computed tomography with pneumogastrography was 82.6 % for TRG-0/1, 90 % for TRG-1/2, and 88 % for TRG-2/3. Discussion. The tumor pathomorphological response to treatment is a predictor of long-term results; however, it can be assessed only after analyzing the surgical specimen, and this marker cannot be used in inoperable cases and for correction of palliative chemotherapy. The study of imaging biomarkers based on quantitative and qualitative data reflecting the histopathological features of the tumor and lymph nodes can help determine the tumor regression grade and optimize treatment.Conclusion. The proposed algorithm for assessing the response grade of locally advanced gastric cancer to chemotherapy using imaging biomarkers is a promising prognostic marker and requires further study.

The successes of neoadjuvant therapy for locally advanced rectal cancer, which can sometimes achieve significant tumor regression, suggests that the performance of total mesorectumectomy in certain categories of such patients may be excessive. The rapid development of minimally invasive surgical technologies designed to limit the trauma due to the intervention, reduce the risk of postoperative complications, improve the quality of life and increase the proportion of sphincter-preserving operations, initiated several studies investigating the results of local excision of irradiated tumors of rectal cancer. This review article considers the published results of such studies, the problems, and prospects of this surgical strategy. The search of scientific literature was carried out using the PubMed database.

Background: Schwannoma is an extremely rare non-epithelial tumor of the pancreas. Less than 50 cases of pancreatic schwannoma have been described in the literature over the past thirty years and only few cases report has described its findings on Fine-Needle Aspiration (FNA). Preoperative diagnosis of pancreatic schwannoma can be particularly challenging. Pancreatic schwannomas may mimic other, more common pancreatic lesions, such as cystic neoplasms, solid neoplasms, neuroendocrine tumors. Cytomorphological verification of the diagnosis is difficult due to the similarity of Schwannomas with other non-epithelial tumors from spindle cells. Therefore, pancreatic schwannomas have a very high rate of misdiagnosis. Objective: demonstration preoperative diagnosis and treatment of a rare pancreatic tumor. Materials and methods: Here we present a case of preoperative cytomorphological diagnosis of pancreatic schwannoma in a 58-year-old man. During magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography and endosonography (EUS), the patient was diagnosed the tumor in the head of the pancreas with a diameter of up to 7 cm. For morphological verification of the process, a fine needle aspiration puncture of the formation was performed under EUS control. Diagnosis of pancreatic schwannoma was established by cytomorphological examination of cell block material using immunocytochemical method. Conclusion: the analysis of the result of cytomorphological diagnosis of pancreatic schwannoma is presented.

Purpose: to assess current data on the effect of different approaches to preoperative bowel preparation before elective colorectal surgery on short-term treatment outcomes.Material and Methods. Online system PubMed of U.S. National Library of Medicine was used to find articles with key words “mechanical bowel preparation”, “surgical site infection”, “oral antibiotics”. A total of 226 articles were reviewed. 31 articles were selected for final review. Furthermore, ClinicalTrials.gov site was used to find actual and recruiting trials.Results. Mechanical bowel preparation (MBP) used to be a standard procedure for a long time. Nowadays, routine use of MBP seems to be debatable. Alternative approaches, e.g. absolutely no preparation or the use of MBP in combination with oral antibiotics, are considered. Data on performing different kinds of bowel preparation is reviewed in this article.Conclusion. Optimal approach of preoperative bowel preparation is still questionable. Combination of mechanical bowel preparation and oral antibiotics seems to be a preferable method. However, there is not enough evidence to exclude anothertechniques. It’s required to conduct additional randomized controlled trials.

Introduction: Concept of sentinel lymph node biopsy has been discussed during several last decades, because this idea seems perspective in terms of modern minimally invasive and organ-preserving era. However, this method has several limitations including complicated anatomy of gastric lymph nodes distribution and presence of skip-metastases. Materials and methods: 66 Patients with early gastric cancer, intermediate risk of lymph node metastases and technical possibility of ESD were included into our investigation. Patients were assigned to either ESD with sentinel lymph node biopsy (54 patients), or underwent distal gastrectomy or total gastrectomy with D1+/D2 lymphadenectomy (12 patients) by chance. Results: 56 (84,6%) Patients had at least one sentinel lymph node. 11 (16,7%) Patients with T1a-T1b had metastases in regional lymph nodes, 9 of them in sentinel lymph nodes (2 false-negative result). So, we calculated sensitivity of 84,6%. In one case, the metastasis was located outside the sentinel lymphatic basin, and in the other case, metastasis was detected in a patient with unlit lymph nodes. Conclusion: Today sentinel lymph node biopsy thechnique is considered as a well investigated and widly used method. The concept itself is promising for organ-preserving gastric cancer surgery.

Importance: The incidence of early-onset colorectal cancer (younger than 50 years) is rising globally, the reasons for which are unclear. It appears to represent a unique disease process with different clinical, pathological, and molecular characteristics compared with late-onset colorectal cancer. Data on oncological outcomes are limited, and sensitivity to conventional neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapy regimens appear to be unknown. The purpose of this review is to summarize the available literature on early-onset colorectal cancer.Observations: Within the next decade, it is estimated that 1 in 10 colon cancers and 1 in 4 rectal cancers will be diagnosed in adults younger than 50 years. Potential risk factors include a Westernized diet, obesity, antibiotic usage, and alterations in the gut microbiome. Although genetic predisposition plays a role, most cases are sporadic. The full spectrum of germline and somatic sequence variations implicated remains unknown. Younger patients typically present with descending colonic or rectal cancer, advanced disease stage, and unfavorable histopathological features. Despite being more likely to receive neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapy, patients with early-onset disease demonstrate comparable oncological outcomes with their older counterparts.Conclusions and Relevance: The clinicopathological features, underlying molecular profiles, and drivers of early-onset colorectal cancer differ from those of late-onset disease. Standardized, age-specific preventive, screening, diagnostic, and therapeutic strategies are required to optimize outcomes.

Background. Extralevator abdominoperineal excision is associated with a high incidence of perineal wound complications. There is no uniform standard for choosing the method for pelvic floor reconstruction after extralevator abdominoperineal excision.The purpose of the study was to compare the results of extralevator abdominoperineal excisions of the rectum using various methods of perineal wound closure.Materials and Methods. Between 2014 and 2018, 120 patients underwent extralevator abdominoperineal excisions of the rectum using various options for closure of the pelvic floor. The patients were divided into 3 groups. Group I patients (n=64) underwent simple plasty of the peritoneal wound. Group II patients (n=43) underwent myoplasty using the gluteus maximus muscle. Group III patients (n=13) underwent myoplasty using the rectus abdominis muscle. The incidence of perineal wound complications in the early postoperative period was assessed.Results. The total number of perineal wound complications in Group I, II and III was 33 (51.5 %), 13 (30.2 %), and 6 (46.1 %), respectively. Grade IIIA-IIIB complications according to the Clavien-Dindo classification were observed in 25 % of Group I patients, in 18.6 % of Group II patients and in 7.7 % of Group II patients. Postoperative perineal wound complications occurred more often in Group I patients after simple plasty than in Group II and III patients after myoplasty (51.5 % versus 30.2 %). However, perineal wound complications were observed more often in Group III than in Group II (46.1 % versus 30.2 %, respectively). No significant differences in the frequency of complications between 3 groups were found.Conclusion. Using various options for closure of the pelvic floor after extralevator abdominoperineal excisions of the rectum, there was a tendency to reduction in the incidence of grade IIIA-IIIB perineal wound complications.

Currently, combination therapy, including preoperative irradiation of the tumor and areas of regional lymphatic drainage, has become the standard for the treatment of patients with locally advanced rectal cancer. Methods for evaluating neoadjuvant therapy response are increasingly being introduced into the practice of specialized medical centers. However, the prognostic value of tumor regression grade remains unclear. The results of numerous studies presented in modern literature are contradictory, and their comparative analysis is extremely difficult because of the abundance of post-radiation regression classifications used. This review article reflects the current views on the role and ways of assessing the therapeutic pathomorphosis of rectal cancer after radiotherapy/chemoradiotherapy.

Background. In the last decades laparoscopic technologies have been actively implemented for rectal cancer surgery, however randomized control trials have not demonstrated overt advantages of laparoscopic technique comparing to open surgery. The improvement of quality of life is expected to be one of advantages of laparoscopic approach. Objective: a prospective study of the dependence of the quality of life on the type of operative access (open or laparoscopic) in patients with rectal cancer after low anterior resection of the rectum. Materials and methods. There were 30 patients in the study: 20 of them were operated laparoscopically and 10 were underwent open surgery. The current versions of the general questionnaire EORTC QLQ-C30 and the special module for patients with colorectal cancer EORTC QLQ-CR29 were used in the study, that were filled on the day before the surgery and also on days 3, 7 and 60 after the surgery. Results. In the first 7 days after laparoscopic operations patients had less frequent dysuric dysfunctions (p = 0.047), less pain syndrome (p = 0.0005) and flatulence (p = 0.007) comparing to open operations. At 60 days after surgery patients that were operated laparoscopically were satisfied by their appearance more often (p = 0.047) than patients after open surgery, more rarely had anxiety (p = 0.007) and discomfort in the area of postoperative wounds (p = 0.079). Conclusion. It has been proven that laparoscopic surgery of rectal cancer evidently improves quality of life in postoperative period.

The concept of biopsy of sentinel lymph node as the first lymph node in the pathway of lymphogenous tumor spread has been actively discussed over the past decades and has already taken its rightful place in breast and melanoma surgery. The goal of this method is to exclude vain lymphadenectomy in patients without solid tumor metastases in regional lymph nodes. In the era of minimally invasive and organ-saving operations interventions it seems obvious an idea to introduce a biopsy of sentinel lymph node in surgery of early gastric cancer. Meanwhile the complexity of lymphatic system of the stomach and the presence of so-called skip metastases are factors limiting the introduction of a biopsy of sentinel lymph node in stomach cancer. This article presents a systematic analysis of biopsy technology of signaling lymph node as well as its safety and oncological adequacy. Based on literature data it seems to us that the special value of biopsy of sentinel lymph nodes in the future will be in the selection of personalized surgical tactics for stomach cancer.

The article presents the world experience of cytoreductive surgery for ovarian cancer (OC) according to literature data and also estimates the thirteen-year experience of the Oncogynecology Department of the N.N. Petrov National Medical Research Center of Oncology in the treatment of OC patients. Materials and methods: In order to analyze the results of treatment for thirteen years it is proposed a comparative evaluation of results of primary and interval cytoreductive operations in 213 patients with OC. For this purpose all patients depending on the start of treatment were divided into two groups: a group of patients with an advanced OC where treatment started with neoadjuvant chemotherapy and a group of patients with an advanced OC where primary cytoreductive surgery was performed at the start of treatment. In these groups the long-term results of treatment were studied: platinum-free interval and life expectancy. Results: When studying the effect of a number of neoadjuvant chemotherapy courses on long-term results of treatment it was established that the best results for platinum-free interval were obtained in a 3-course group of neoadjuvant chemotherapy - platinum-free interval was 9.6 months compared to 6.9 and 4.7 months in groups of 4 and> 5 courses although the differences in the groups did not reach statistically significant rates (p = 0.337). The increase in a number of postoperative chemotherapy courses in our study also statistically was unreliable and had a negative effect on survival: patients from the neoadjuvant chemotherapy group with> 3 courses of postoperative chemotherapy had 9.6 months versus 11.7 months in patients with 3 courses p = 0.787); life expectancy was 35.6 months compared to 30.9 months respectively (p = 0.968). The same tendency was also observed in patients from the primary cytoreduction group: in the group of patients with> 3 courses of postoperative chemotherapy platinum-free interval was 10.2 months compared to 16.3 months in patients with 3 courses (p = 0.312); life expectancy was 54.4 months compared with 48.7 months respectively (p = 0.435). The Kaplan-Meier survival estimation revealed a statistically significant improvement in life expectancy index for patients from the primary cytore-duction group (median survival time 53.7 months, 95 % CI 41.9-73.6 months) compared to patients in the neoadjuvant chemotherapy group (median life expectancy 33.0 months, 95 % CI 20.6-42.0 months, p

Extralevator abdominal-perineal extirpation of the rectum causes a vast perineal wound, which requires to be closed. The article considers different approaches to perineal wound repair including primary closure, mesh reconstruction and muscular flap reconstruction.

The aim of this study was to define safety and oncological adequacy of radical laparoscopic interventions in gastric cancer (GC) in the conditions of a specialized oncology center. Materials and methods. The study included 193 (108 men and 85 women) with a histologically verified gastric adenocarcinoma of varying degrees of differentiation or cricoid-cell carcinoma with stage T1b-T4a cN0-N1 according to the UICC / TNM classification (7th edition). The study was prospective. The main group (laparoscopic interventions) included 81 patients: 54 underwent distal subtotal resections of the stomach (DSRS) and 27 underwent gastrectomies (GE); 101 patients (66 DSRSs and 35 GEs) contained the control group (open interventions). Separate group of 11 patients were with a conversion access. Results. The average duration of the laparoscopic DSRS was 209.6 ± 50.4 minutes, the open DSRS - 168.9 ± 44.1 minutes (p 0,05), while in laparoscopic and open GE it was 25,1 ± 6, 4 and 26.8 ± 5.3, respectively (p> 0.05). In all cases of laparoscopic interventions R0 resection was performed. In the structure of postoperative complications the specific gravity of severe complications (IIIb - V degree according to the classification of Clavien-Dindo) in the subgroup of laparoscopic DSRS was 5.6%, in the subgroup of open DSRS - 6% (p> 0.05), and in subgroups of laparoscopic and open GE - 11.1% and 8.6%, respectively (p> 0.05). Postoperative lethality in the group of laparoscopic interventions was 1.2%, in the open surgery group - 2.9% (p> 0.05). The analysis of training curves in the performance of laparoscopic interventions demonstrated that the experience of 30 laparoscopic DSRSs and 15 laparoscopic GEs did not allow promoting an access to the plateau but it demonstrated the trend in reducing the duration of operations when accumulating experience. Conclusions. Radical laparoscopic operations for stomach cancer are safe and oncologically adequate. The absence of long-term results of treatment dictates the necessity of continuing the study.

Results of numerous retrospective studies have confirmed that the degree of cytoreduction and the size of the residual tumor after the primary surgery are the most important factors affecting overall life expectancy as well as the time to progression in patients with ovarian cancer (OC). The article presents the immediate results of the first 16 extensive cytoreductive surgeries in advanced OC performed at the Oncogynecology Department of the N.N. Petrov National Medical Research Center of Oncology.