Franco Lumachi

University of Padova | UNIPD · Department of Surgery, Oncology and Gastroenterology DISCOG

Background/aim: Pleural effusion (PE) has a heterogeneous aetiology, and differential diagnosis between benign and malignant disease may require invasive procedures in up to 60% of cases. The sensitivity of pleural cytology is limited, and several strategies have been tested to reduce the need of invasive diagnostic approaches. The aim of this stu...

Background/aim: The purposes of this study were to evaluate the usefulness of chest computed tomographic (CT) scan plus pleural fluid cytology (PFC) together in patients with malignant pleural effusion (PE), and to compare the results of these diagnostic tools in patients with malignant PE due to non-small-cell lung cancer and pulmonary metastases...

Background/aim: We performed a case-control study to evaluate whether bone mineral density (BMD) can be considered a potential predictive factor for luminal-type breast cancer (BC), that could be useful in constructing a predictive risk model. Materials and methods: The medical records of 297 postmenopausal women with luminal-type node-negative...

Objective: Long-term physical inactivity can cause the atrophy of skeletal muscle. The aim of this study is to explore the underlying mechanisms of physical inactivity-induced atrophy of skeletal muscle. Materials and methods: 14 Sprague- Dawley (SD) male rats were divided into 2 groups including normal control (NC) and hindlimb suspension (HS)...

Aim: Laparoscopic pancreatic surgery is a minimally invasive technique that has been widely applied only in the past decade. The purpose of this study was to evaluate its safety and assess whether laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy (LDP) is cost-effective compared with open distal pancreatectomy (ODP). Methods: The medical records of patients treat...

Aim: The aim of this study was to analyze the influence of comorbidities and to compare the short-term results of elective surgical resection of stage I-II colon adenocarcinoma in elderly (≥65 years) versus younger patients. Patients and methods: Two groups of sex-matched younger and older patients were compared: Group A: N=36, median age 58 (ra...

Objective: In patients with a history of lymphoma, each lymphadenopathy should be carefully evaluated. The aims of this study were to evaluate (i) the usefulness of high-resolution ultrasonography (US), US-guided fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) and flow cytometry phenotyping (FCP) together in the diagnosis of recurrent lymphoma, and (ii) wh...

Objectives: Pleural effusion recognizes heterogeneous etiology and pathogenesis and requires invasive diagnostic procedures. Usually, after pleural fluid analysis, 30-50% of patients with malignant pleural effusion exhibit negative pleural cytology, and the sensitivity of image-guided pleural needle-aspiration biopsy ranges between 60% and 70%. Wi...

Background: The skeleton is the most common site of metastasis for breast cancer and the periodic measurement of circulating bone turnover markers (BTMs) can be useful. The aim of this study was to prospectively evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of a panel of BTMs in the early detection of bone metastases (BMs). Methods: We reviewed the medical r...

For decades, adjuvant hormonal therapy has become the standard treatment of patients with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer. Currently, the drugs available are GnRH agonists, selective estrogen receptor modulators, and aromatase inhibitors. The use of GnRH agonists represents a potentially reversible treatment that can restore ovarian functi...

Calcium’s importance in health and disease is clear when listing its multiple roles in the body, which include building strong bones and teeth, vascular calcification, muscle function, hormonal regulation and maintaining a normal heartbeat. This book will examine these roles and will also cover areas such as chemical analysis, sources of calcium ba...

Liver and pulmonary metastases (PMs) are relatively common in patients with colorectal cancer. The majority of metastases are suitable for surgical resection, and the effectiveness of metastasectomy is usually assessed based on overall survival (OS). Metastasectomy provides a mean 5-year OS rate of approximately 50%, but the results are better in p...

Triple-negative breast cancer represents approximately 10-20% of all breast cancers and is associated with worse prognosis than other subtypes, with a higher risk of recurrence and death than other breast cancer types. This cancer is considered a heterogeneous disease comprising a spectrum of cancers with distinct activated biological pathways, var...

The prognosis of breast cancer is strongly influenced by the stage of the disease; therefore, it is essential that breast cancer lesions be diagnosed at the earliest stages. There is an urgent need to identify different biomarkers with a high accuracy for the early detection of this cancer to facilitate clinical management of the disease. A wide nu...

The approach to the axilla is an evolving paradigm, and recognition of the complexity of breast cancer (BC) biology is changing treatment options. The sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) technique is based on the excision and histological examination of the axillary lymph nodes(s), which is assumed to be the first one draining from the primary tumor....

Breast cancer is common in the elderly, as more than 50% of these tumors are diagnosed in patients aged 65 years or older. Elderly women may also delay reporting or underreport to their physician suspicious symptoms and lesions, so that breast cancer is more likely to be diagnosed at a more advanced stage, with putatively inferior outcomes. Adjuvan...

Proteomics allows for better understanding of the function and regulation of cancer cells mediated by intra- and extracellular signaling networks. Integrating such information with clinicopathological characteristics of the tumor may lead to either detection of disease biomarkers useful to differentiate high-from low-risk patients, or to identifica...

WOS: 000361863000458

Adult sporadic Burkitt lymphoma is a rare and highly aggressive malignancy, accounting for approximately 1-2% of adult lymphomas in Western countries, and exclusively intra-oral localization is very uncommon. We describe a rare case of a moderately painful sporadic Burkitt lymphoma localized in the posterior third of the left mandibular bone, initi...

Approximately 80% of breast cancers (BC) are estrogen receptor (ER)-positive and thus endocrine therapy (ET) should be considered complementary to surgery in the majority of patients. The advantages of oophorectomy, adrenalectomy and hypophysectomy in women with advanced BC have been demonstrated many years ago, and currently ET consist of (1) ovar...

Inguinal hernia (IH) repair can be obtained with both open and laparoscopic techniques, which are usually performed using a transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) or a totally extraperitoneal (TEP) approach. The aim of the study was to evaluate whether the results of laparoscopic TEP IH repair in the elderly (≥65 years old) are different with respect...

The lung is a common site of metastases, whose prevalence varies as a function of the primary tumor site, which is usually colorectal cancer (CRC), breast carcinoma, or genitourinary cancers, such as ovary, urinary bladder and renal cell carcinomas. The aim of the present study was to analyze whether the site of primitive tumor affects overall surv...

BACKGROUND: The Fas (APO-1; CD95) antigen is a type I cell surface glycoprotein that transduces an apoptotic signal after interaction with its natural ligand. The Fas/Fas ligand (FasL) system is a key regulatory apoptotic pathway. Membrane-bound Fas is a cell-surface receptor that transduces apoptosis after interaction with membrane-bound or FasL,...

Purpose: The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effectiveness of nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine (NAB-P/GEM) regimen in an unselected population of patients with advanced inoperable or metastatic pancreatic cancer (PC), and to identify the prognostic factors influencing overall survival (OS). Experimental design: Patients with age < 8...

Primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) is the main cause of hypercalcemia and the most common parathyroid glands disease. The diagnosis is easy in patients with hypercalcemia and elevated PTH serum level. Minimally invasive parathyroidectomy (PTx) represents the treatment of choice for symptomatic patients, leading to several advantages, including immed...

The molecular mechanism underlying the development of colorectal cancer (CRC) is not yet fully-understood, but there is evidence that inflammation plays a key role. Several circulating tumor and inflammatory markers can be useful for studying patients with CRC. It has been suggested that high serum levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) are associated...

Circular stapled transanal hemorrhoidopexy (STH) was first introduced by A. Longo for the correction of internal mucosal prolapse and obstructed defecation and in 1998, was proposed as alternative to conventional excisional hemorrhoidectomy. More recently, stapled transanal rectal resection (STARR) has gradually gained popularity, as the Longo proc...

Cholangiocarcinoma is a malignant tumor of the liver arising from the bile duct epithelium, accounting for 10-25% of all primary hepatic cancers. The clinical presentation of this tumor is not specific and the diagnosis of early cholangiocarcinoma is difficult, especially in patients with other biliary diseases. Measurement of serum carbohydrate an...

Presented at the 9th International Conference of Anticancer Research, Sthonia (Greece), October 6-10, 2014.

Aim: Axillary node dissection (ALND) is still required in patients with breast cancer (BC), but unfortunately it can cause some complications, such as increased amount of drainage and seroma formation, which subsequently worsen their quality-of-life (QoL). The aim of this study was to evaluate whether the use of a harmonic dissection device (HDD),...

Background: Axillary node dissection (ALND) is still required in patients with breast cancer (BC) but unfortunately, it can cause some complications, such as increased amount of drainage and seroma formation, which subsequently worsen their quality-of-life (QoL). The aim of this study was to evaluate whether the use of a harmonic dissection device...

The present study evaluates the accuracy of computed tomographic (CT) scan and positron emission tomography with (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG-PET)/CT for the quantification of peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) in patients undergoing cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC). Data were retrospectively collected...

Endovascular repair (EVAR) represents a useful and validated alternative to conventional surgery in selected patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) because it is associated with a significantly lower long-term AAA-related mortality. Data regarding a series of 91 patients (88 men, 3 women, median age 71 years, range 65-82 years) is reported....

Gefitinib is highly active in patients with advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harboring activating mutation of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene. The feasibility and the degree of response to treatment with gefitinib in patients with chronic renal failure (CRF) undergoing hemodialysis has not yet been fully de...

The parathyroid glands (PTs) chief cells are the most importantcalcium-sensing cells in the body, able to produce and store parathyroidhormone (PTH), which is modulated by the binding of Ca2+ to calciumsensingreceptors (CaSRs). Under physiological conditions, serum Ca2+and PTH serum levels are inversely related, according to a negative feedbackmech...

In the sentinel node era, axillary dissection (ALND) for breast cancer (BC) is required much less frequently than in the past. However, complications, such as prolonged drainage output and seroma formation, are still observed. Harmonic dissection devices (HDDs) are widely used in laparoscopic and minimally invasive surgery to reduce collateral dama...

The early diagnosis of non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) is difficult, and 30-40% of patients with NSCLC develop bone metastases (BMs) during the course of their disease. Because the delayed demonstration of skeletal involvement may seriously affect survival, there is a need for early diagnosis of BMs. Unfortunately, the sensitivity of common s...

Age and reduced bone mineral density (BMD) represent major risk factors for vertebral fracture risk, especially in pos-tmenopausal women, and measurement of BMD is currently considered of value in estimating bone mineralization. BMD correlates with demographics and anthropometric parameters, as well as with several markers of bone metabolism and ca...

Osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) is a rare but serious lesion of the jaw characterized by exposed necrotic bone and is related to several drugs usually used for treating patients with advanced malignancies. Common therapies inducing ONJ are nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates (BPs), the human monoclonal antibody to the receptor activator of nuclear f...