Long-term outcomes after endoscopic removal of malignant colorectal polyps: Results from a 10-year cohort

BACKGROUND

Choosing an optimal post-polypectomy management strategy of malignant colorectal polyps is challenging, and evidence regarding a surveillance-only strategy is limited.

AIM

To evaluate long-term outcomes after endoscopic removal of malignant colorectal polyps.

METHODS

A single-center retrospective cohort study was conducted to evaluate outcomes after endoscopic removal of malignant colorectal polyps between 2010 and 2020. Residual disease rate and nodal metastases after secondary surgery and local and distant recurrence rate for those with at least 1 year of follow-up were investigated. Event rates for categorical variables and means for continuous variables with 95% confidence intervals were calculated, and Fisher's exact test and Mann-Whitney test were performed. Potential risk factors of adverse outcomes were determined with univariate and multivariate logistic regression models.

RESULTS

In total, 135 lesions (mean size: 22.1 mm; location: 42% rectal) from 129 patients (mean age: 67.7 years; 56% male) were enrolled. The proportion of pedunculated and non-pedunculated lesions was similar, with en bloc resection in 82% and 47% of lesions, respectively. Tumor differentiation, distance from resection margins, depth of submucosal invasion, lymphovascular invasion, and budding were reported at 89.6%, 45.2%, 58.5%, 31.9%, and 25.2%, respectively. Residual tumor was found in 10 patients, and nodal metastasis was found in 4 of 41 patients who underwent secondary surgical resection. Univariate analysis identified piecemeal resection as a risk factor for residual malignancy (odds ratio: 1.74; P = 0.042). At least 1 year of follow-up was available for 117 lesions from 111 patients (mean follow-up period: 5.59 years). Overall, 54%, 30%, 30%, 11%, and 16% of patients presented at the 1-year, 3-year, 5-year, 7-year, and 9-10-year surveillance examinations. Adverse outcomes occurred in 9.0% (local recurrence and dissemination in 4 patients and 9 patients, respectively), with no difference between patients undergoing secondary surgery and surveillance only.

CONCLUSION

Reporting of histological features and adherence to surveillance colonoscopy needs improvement. Long-term adverse outcome rates might be higher than previously reported, irrespective of whether secondary surgery was performed.

[Analysis of efficacy and safety of colonoscopic screening program at the University of Szeged and the Bács-Kiskun County Teaching Hospital between 2019 and 2022]

Bevezetés: Magyarországon 2019-ben indult az 50–70 éves populáció körében a kétlépcsős vastagbélszűrő program, melynek célja a colorectalis carcinoma kialakulásának megelőzése. Célkitűzés: Kutatásunk célja volt a Szegedi Tudományegyetemen és a Bács-Kiskun Vármegyei Oktatókórházban a szűrőprogram keretein belül végzett kolonoszkópiák minőségi mutatóinak és kimeneteli indikátorainak, valamint a betegbiztonságnak a vizsgálata a magyar szakmai ajánlás tükrében. Módszerek: Intervencióval nem járó, obszervációs kohorszvizsgálatunkban az adatgyűjtés során felhasználtuk a Nemzeti Népegészségügyi és Gyógyszerészeti Központ által működtetett regiszter prospektív adatait, melyeket retrospektíven kiegészítettünk az egészségügyi nyilvántartási rendszer segítségével. Eredmények: Összesen 1739 szűrő kolonoszkópiára (átlagéletkor 62,36 ± 5,86 év, férfiarány 56,81%) került sor 97,07%-os coecumintubációs arány mellett. A béltisztaság az esetek 90,28%-ában megfelelő volt, ezen belül az esetek 63,31%-ában kiváló. Az eszközvisszahúzási időről 1397 komplett kolonoszkópia esetén volt adat, mely 96,35%-ban meghaladta az irányelv által javasolt 6 percet, átlagos hossza 9,51 ± 5,76 perc volt. Szedációt a páciensek 40,37%-a igényelt, melynek során 92,02%-ban midazolámot alkalmaztak. A kolonoszkópiák 62,51%-ában találtak neoplasztikus és 27,03%-ában csak nem neoplasztikus laesiót. Összesen 2879 polipot találtak 1064 páciensnél (polipfelismerési arány 61,18%), melyek közül a legrelevánsabbnak a mérete az esetek 39,38%-ában meghaladta az 1 cm-t, és 72,97%-a a bal colonfélben helyezkedett el. A páciensek 98,97%-a az index- és komplettáló kolonoszkópiák során polipmentessé vált. Adenoma 871 esetben igazolódott, ez 50,09%-os adenomafelismerési arányt jelent. Colorectalis carcinomát 80 páciensnél (4,60%) fedeztek fel. Szövődmény 10 főnél (0,58%) lépett fel, beavatkozással összefüggő halálozás nem következett be. Tisztázó gasztroszkópia a negatív eredményű kolonoszkópiák 24,08%-ában történt, ezek során 1 főnél nyelőcső-laphámcarcinoma igazolódott. Az utánkövetési időszakban 114 páciensnél (6,56%) történt ismételt kolonoszkópia, melynek során intervallum colorectalis carcinomát 1 esetben (0,06%) találtak. Következtetés: A kutatás során vizsgált két centrumban végzett szűrő kolonoszkópiák megfeleltek a magyar irányelvben meghatározott minőségi és kimeneteli mutatóknak, valamint betegbiztonsági szempontoknak. Ugyanakkor a regiszterbe történő adatbevitel és a negatív kolonoszkópiákat követő tisztázó gasztroszkópiák aránya korrekcióra szorul. Orv Hetil. 2024; 165(6): 221–231.

Risk Factors and Interpretation of Inconclusive Endoscopic Ultrasound-Guided Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology in the Diagnosis of Solid Pancreatic Lesions

BACKGROUND

The inconclusive cytological findings of endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) remain a major clinical challenge and often lead to treatment delays.

METHODS

Patients who had undergone EUS-FNA sampling for solid pancreas lesions between 2014 and 2021 were retrospectively enrolled. The "atypical" and "non-diagnostic" categories of the Papanicolaou Society of Cytopathology System were considered inconclusive and the "negative for malignancy" category of malignancy was suspected clinically. We determined the frequency and predictors of inconclusive cytological finding.

RESULTS

A total of 473 first EUS-FNA samples were included, of which 108 cases (22.83%) were inconclusive. Significant increases in the odds of inconclusive cytological findings were observed for lesions with a benign final diagnosis (OR 11.20; 95% CI 6.56-19.54, p < 0.001) as well as with the use of 25 G FNA needles (OR 2.12; 95% CI 1.09-4.01, p = 0.023) compared to 22 G needles. Furthermore, the use of a single EUS-FNA technique compared to the combined use of slow-pull and standard suction techniques (OR 1.70; 95% CI 1.06-2.70, p = 0.027) and less than three punctures per procedure led to an elevation in the risk of inconclusive cytology (OR 2.49; 95% CI 1.49-4.14, p < 0.001). Risk reduction in inconclusive cytology findings was observed in lesions between 2-4 cm (OR 0.40; 95% CI 0.23-0.68, p = 0.001) and >4 cm (OR 0.16; 95% CI 0.08-0.31, p < 0.001) compared to lesions ≤2 cm.

CONCLUSIONS

The more than two punctures per EUS-FNA sampling with larger-diameter needle (19 G or 22 G) using the slow-pull and standard suction techniques in combination may decrease the probability of inconclusive cytological findings.

[Endoscopic ultrasound in the lower gastrointestinal tract]

Endoscopic ultrasound is a minimally invasive modality that combines endoscopy with ultrasound, providing a possibility to visualize the wall of the gastrointestinal tract and adjacent tissues and organs. Since the development of the modality in the 1980s, advancements in endoscopic ultrasound technology have led to increasingly broadening indications: besides diagnostic indications, therapeutic indications have also expanded greatly. According to recent guidelines regarding rectal cancer staging, rectal ultrasonography is mainly considered to be a secondary imaging modality compared to magnetic resonance imaging. With the use of forward-viewing echoendoscopes and ultrasound miniprobes that can be inserted through the working channel of the endoscope, endoscopic ultrasound technology can be expanded to proximal, colonic areas as well. Rectal ultrasonography can also play an important role in the differential diagnosis of subepithelial lesions, in the detection of rectal varices, in the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel diseases as well as perianal complications. Diagnostic accuracy can further be improved with the addition of ultrasound-guided sampling in certain cases. Currently, therapeutic indications are more like promising possibilities, than part of everyday clinical practice, but this might change in the near future. The purpose of this review is to summarize the current indications of rectal ultrasound in the clinical practice, including diagnostic and therapeutic ones as well. Orv Hetil. 2023; 164(30): 1176-1186.

GFP transgenic animals in biomedical research: a review of potential disadvantages

Green Fluorescent protein (GFP) transgenic animals are accepted tools for studying various physiological processes, including organ development and cell migration. However, several in vivo studies claimed that GFP may impair transgenic animals' health. Glomerulosclerosis was observed in transgenic mice and rabbits with ubiquitous reporter protein expression. Heart-specific GFP expression evoked dilated cardiomyopathy and altered cardiac function in transgenic mouse and zebrafish lines, respectively. Moreover, growth retardation and increased axon swelling were observed in GFP and yellow fluorescent protein (YFP) transgenic mice, respectively. This review will focus on the potential drawbacks of the applications of GFP transgenic animals in biomedical research.

Monitoring of Venus transgenic cell migration during pregnancy in non-transgenic rabbits

Cell transfer between mother and fetus were demonstrated previously in several species which possess haemochorial placenta (e.g. in humans, mice, rats, etc.). Here we report the assessment of fetal and maternal microchimerism in non-transgenic (non-TG) New Zealand white rabbits which were pregnant with transgenic (TG) fetuses and in non-TG newborns of TG does. The TG construct, including the Venus fluorophore cDNA driven by a ubiquitous cytomegalovirus enhancer, chicken ß-actin promoter (CAGGS), was previously integrated into the rabbit genome by Sleeping Beauty transposon system. Three different methods [fluorescence microscopy, flow cytometry and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (QPCR)] were employed to search for TG cells and gene products in blood and other tissues of non-TG rabbits. Venus positive peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were not detected in the blood of non-TG littermates or non-TG does by flow cytometry. Tissue samples (liver, kidney, skeletal and heart muscle) also proved to be Venus negative examined with fluorescence microscopy, while histology sections and PBMCs of TG rabbits showed robust Venus protein expression. In case of genomic DNA (gDNA) sourced from tissue samples of non-TG rabbits, CAGGS promoter-specific fragments could not be amplified by QPCR. Our data showed the lack of detectable cell transfer between TG and non-TG rabbits during gestation.