Kinya Furukawa

Tokyo Medical University | TMU · Department of Thoracic Surgery

While lung cancer is the predominant neoplasm causing hemoptysis, rare benign neoplasms can also be associated with hemoptysis. A 60-year-old woman presented with cough and hemoptysis. Chest computed tomography revealed an oval-shaped, well-circumscribed solitary mass (10 cm in size) in the right lower lobe, which had grown rapidly over the past ye...

We reviewed the advances in photodynamic therapy (PDT) for lung cancer and the clinical results in Japan. In March 1980, PDT was first applied bronchoscopically for central-type early-stage lung cancer (ESLC) at Tokyo Medical University using an argon dye laser combined with a tumor-specific photosensitizer, hematoporphyrin derivative, the profimer...

Background. When a fungus ball-like nodule is found inside a cavitary lesion, simple pulmonary aspergilloma is one of the most important differential diagnoses to consider. Case. A 58-year-old man who was suffering from cough, dyspnea, and bloody sputum that had persisted for more than one month was referred to our hospital. Chest CT showed a 4.5 c...

A 71-year-old man was diagnosed as having right primary lung squamous cell carcinoma, clinical stage IIIA, but he refused treatment. However, the right upper lobe nodule and lymph node (LN) #4R showed gradual shrinking without treatment. Four years after the diagnosis, a new nodule was detected in the left lung field. We considered that this new no...

The oxysterol 27-hydroxycholesterol (27HC) promotes the proliferation of breast cancer cells as a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM), but it is mostly produced by alveolar macrophages in vivo. The present study evaluated hypothesis that 27HC may also promote the proliferation of lung cancer cells. In the tumor and nontumor regions of lung...

Castleman’s disease with calcification of the chest wall is very rare, and there have been few reports of such cases to date. A 57-year-old woman was referred to our hospital for a tumor with calcification on her left lateral chest wall, which was detected on chest computed tomography. Findings of her chest magnetic resonance imaging suggested schw...

Background/aim: Real-world data on the clinical outcomes of first-line osimertinib treatment for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations is lacking. This study aimed to reveal the treatment outcomes and prognostic factors of osimertinib as first-line therapy in clinical practice settings. Patients...

A 51-year-old man who noticed discomfort in the pharynx was found to have a tracheal tumor on physical examination. He was diagnosed as having adenoid cystic carcinoma by a transbronchial biopsy and underwent tracheal segmental resection via a collar incision. He was additionally treated with radiation therapy owing to a positive surgical margin, a...

Empyema necessitans is a rare empyema complication characterized by an extension of empyema out of the pleural space into the subcutaneous tissues of the chest wall. We herein report a case of empyema necessitans that presented as a subcutaneous chest wall abscess caused by Porphyromonas gingivalis (P. gingivalis), an important anaerobic periodonta...

Background: Real-world data on the clinical outcomes of first-line osimertinib treatment for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations is lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the treatment outcomes and the prognostic factors of osimertinib as first-line therapy in clinical practice settings. Methods:...

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations are the most significant genomic drivers of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and determine the efficacy of EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR-TKI) therapy. PCR methods are used clinically for the detection of EGFR mutations. The Scorpion Amplification Refractory Mutation System (Scorpion-ARMS) a...

A 51-year-old man was found to have multiple polypoid tracheal and bilateral main bronchial tumors during postoperative follow-up of atypical carcinoid. He underwent transtracheal biopsy, and was diagnosed as having central airway metastases of the atypical carcinoid. He underwent chemotherapy, but the effects were unfavorable. Owing to the risk of...

The present study aimed to evaluate clinical outcomes in patients with surgically resected non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-rearranged mutations. A matched-pair analysis in completely resected ALK-rearranged NSLC patients and those with neither ALK nor epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations diagnos...

Background/aim: To describe real clinical outcomes in patients with non-small cell lung cancer who have uncommon epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations. Materials and methods: We performed a retrospective chart review from 15 medical institutes that cover a population of three million people from April 2008 to March 2019. Results: T...

Energy metabolism in cancer cells is reprogrammed to meet the energy demands for cell proliferation under strict environments. In addition to the specifically activated metabolism of cancer, including the Warburg effect and glutaminolysis, most amino acids (AAs) are utilized for gluconeogenesis. Significant increases in AAs and energy metabolites i...

Background/aim: To describe real clinical outcomes when using systemic therapy to treat non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients who have anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) fusion gene mutation. Patients and methods: We performed a retrospective chart review from April 2008 to March 2019 sourced from 16 medical institutes that cover a populatio...

Background/aim: To describe real clinical outcomes when using afatinib therapy to treat non-small cell lung cancer patients who have an acquired EGFR T790M mutation. Materials and methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted from January 2013 to November 2017 sourced from 15 medical institutes that cover a population of three million peop...

Aim: To describe the prevalence and determinants of acquired epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) T790M gene mutation in a clinical practice setting. Materials and methods: We performed a retrospective chart review study between January 2013 and November 2017 across multiple institutes, covering a population of 3 million people. Results: We...

Background Lung cancer rarely metastasizes to the breast, and breast metastasis of pulmonary pleomorphic carcinoma has not been previously reported. Case presentationThe patient was a 66-year-old woman who became aware of a mass in the right breast and visited a physician. She was referred to our department for close examination, upon which she was...

Obesity is a major risk factor for the development of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS), which manifest as intermittent hypercapnia and sustained plus intermittent hypercapnia, respectively. In this study, we investigated whether CO2 affects adipocyte differentiation (adipogenesis) and maturation (hypertrophy)...

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of S-1 monotherapy, S-1-containing combined chemotherapy and S-1 containing chemoradiotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), a population-based observational study was performed. The efficacy and safety of the chemotherapies were evaluated at 13 institutes in a prefecture of Japan between April 2011 and...

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of erlotinib, one of the epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs), in patients undergoing dose reduction and in those with a low body surface area (BSA). The association between dose reduction, low BSA and efficacy, including response rate, disease control rate...

Cigarette smoking not only promotes lung carcinogenesis, but it has also been demonstrated to promote the progression of lung cancer. Despite nicotine being a major component of cigarette smoke, it is not carcinogenic when acting alone. Instead, it is believed to function as a tumor promoter. Due to the fatal consequences of lung cancer being prima...

The incidence and mortality of lung cancer have increased worldwide over the last decades, with an observed increased incidence particularly among elderly populations. It has not yet been determined whether erlotinib therapy exhibits the same efficacy and safety in elderly and younger patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The aim of thi...

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of erlotinib for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), we performed a population-based observational study. The study involved 307 patients treated with erlotinib at 14 sites (17 departments) in Ibaraki (Japan) between December 2007 and December 2010. The tumor response and disease control rates were 11.1 and 46.3%...

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of bevacizumab-containing chemotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), we performed a population-based observational study. The efficacy and safety of bevacizumab-containing chemotherapy for NSCLC patients were evaluated at 14 sites (17 hospital departments) in a prefecture of Japan between December 2009...

There is no standard treatment and there are no clearly defined guidelines for the treatment of postoperative recurrent non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). We performed a retrospective population-based study to assess the benefits of treatment with gefitinib in patients with a postoperative recurrence of NSCLC in general clinical practice. This ret...

Unlabelled: We report a case of a response to long-term treatment with vinorelbine and zoledronate in a patient with lymph node and multiple bone metastases after lung cancer surgery. Case: The patient was a 70-year-old male initially examined by a local physician for an abnormal shadow that had been detected on a chest X-ray during a screening...

Background. Interventional therapeutic bronchoscopy can provide immediate and gratifying palliation, leading to improvement of the quality of life in those patients. Many patients with central airway obstruction caused by malignant tumors are surgical candidates on the basis of either physiologic or oncologic criteria. Methods. We retrospectively e...

Background. Although sputum cytology is the only way to detect early hilar lung cancer in lung cancer screening, there are also various problems. Therefore, the subcommittees concerning sputum cytology was established in each the Japan Lung Cancer Society and the Japanese Society of Clinical Cytology, and in a joint effort with the Japan Society fo...

Background. Although sputum cytology is the only way to detect early hilar lung cancer in lung cancer screening, there are also various problems. Therefore, the subcommittees concerning sputum cytology was established in each the Japan Lung Cancer Society and the Japanese Society of Clinical Cytology, and in a joint effort with the Japan Society fo...

and Objective Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has come to be considered as the first choice of treatment for central type early stage lung cancer (CELC). Recent advances in the ability to diagnose CELC, and in photosensitizers, as well as sophisticated clinical management, may improve the therapeutic outcome and expand the indications of PDT. We made th...

Approximately 30% of lung cancer patients will develop central airway obstruction (CAO). Interventional therapeutic bronchoscopy including airway stenting (AS) providing immediate and effective palliation is therefore essential to improve quality of life (QoL). However, no report has demonstrated the survival benefit of AS. We retrospectively revie...

To our knowledge there is no in-depth report on the benefits of airway stenting, which focuses specifically on patients with inoperable advanced lung cancer causing severe central airway obstruction. We evaluated the role of airway stenting as one aspect of the multidisciplinary management of advanced lung cancer. We performed airway stenting in 40...

Introduction: Prognoses of patients with untreatable remnant liver recurrence after hepatectomy are very poor in primary liver cancers. All treatments are ineffective and palliative therapy should finally be considered for these patients. Here, hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy by cisplatin (CDDP) and 5-fiuorouracil (5-FU) (FPIC therapy) again...

The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter protein, BCRP (breast cancer resistance protein)/ABCG2 pumps out some types of photosensitizers used in photodynamic therapy (PDT) and causes resistance to the antitumor effect of PDT. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between the expression of BCRP and the efficacy of PDT using...

We present 3 cases of extracranial head and neck schwannomas exhibiting fluid-fluid levels. In the described cases, CT and MR imaging showed predominantly cystic components, intermixed with cellular components. Histopathologic examinations of excised specimens revealed hemosiderin deposition, reflecting intratumoral hemorrhages, which was presumabl...

Background. Pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (PAP) is a rare disease, and there have been few reports of PAP associated with lung cancer. We encountered a patient with lung cancer who had been diagnosed PAP many years age. Case. An abnormal shadow was found in the chest roentgenogram of a 66 year-old man, who visited to our hospital. His chest X-ray...

Survival data for non-small cell lung cancer is typically reported from clinical trials that include patients fit enough to meet treatment criteria. The denominator of all patients from which the gefitinib-treated population is derived has rarely been reported and the impact of gefitinib on population-based outcomes is difficult to measure. We have...

Basaloid squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus (BSCCE) is a distinct variant of esophageal cancer. This study investigated histopathological variations of BSCCE. Thirty-eight surgical and two endoscopically resected specimens of BSCCE were examined. Histological features were classified into five components: solid nest (SN), microcyst and/or tra...

Preoperative chemotherapy is a promising strategy in patients with early-stage resectable non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC); optimal chemotherapy remains unclear. Clinical (c-) stage IB/II NSCLC patients were randomised to receive either two cycles of docetaxel (D)-cisplatin (P) combination chemotherapy (D 60 mg m(-2) and P 80 mg m(-2) on day 1) e...

The expression of eIF-4E, survivin and VEGF was immunohistochemistry investigated in 85 surgically resected non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs), and the results of expression status were correlated with patient clinical data. Using Kaplan-Meier survival curves, for the survivin negative and eIF-4E negative staining had a significantly better survi...

Objective. Gefitinib is one of the tyrosine kinase inhibitors and a molecular targeting agent which is effective for non-small cell lung cancer patients. Although 20 or more types of EGFR mutations have been reported, the deletion of Exon l9 and the point mutation of Exon21 are said to account for 80-90% of all mutation cases. We tried to determine...

Airway stenting can be a valuable therapeutic option for symptomatic airway stenosis, but its role in the palliation of advanced thyroid cancers invading the upper airway is unclear. This study examined the hypothesis that durable and replaceable silicone stents would give better results than self-expanding metallic stents. A retrospective analysis...

We present 4 cases of carcinoma ex pleomorphic adenoma of the parotid gland. In 3 of the 4 cases, diffusion-weighted and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) mapping images clearly revealed carcinoma as a hypercellular area with low ADC values and pleomorphic adenoma as a hypocellular area with high ADC values. Diffusion-weighted images demonstrate...

Postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy (PAC) based on platinum is frequently performed for patients with pathological stage II and III non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, patients with complete resection who received platinum-based chemotherapy had only 5 to 20% better 5-year survival than those with surgical resection alone. Previously, we r...

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) using Photofrin induces cell death, inflammatory reactions, immunological responses and damage to the microvasculature. In this study, we evaluated the apoptotic response caused by PDT and examined the biological features of centrally located early lung cancers, which were treated by Photofrin®-PDT. We showed by DNA miroa...

Objective. Somatic EGFR mutations correlate with hypersensitivity to gefitinib. However, there is a subset of cancer patients with EGFR mutations that do not respond well to gefitinib treatment. We examined breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP) expression and sensitivity to gefitinib. Materials and Methods. We studied 48 surgically resected non-s...

Conventional CT or MRI has low accuracy in assessing chest wall invasion in patients with peripheral lung cancer. For preoperative evaluation of chest wall invasion by peripheral lung cancer, respiratory dynamic (RD) MRI was carried out in 98 patients in whom conventional CT scan showed that the tumour was abutting the pleural surface, but there wa...

Although postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy (PAC) with uracil-tegafur significantly improves the prognosis of patients with stage I lung adenocarcinoma, subset analysis has revealed that only 11.5% of patients with stage IB derive actual benefit from such therapy. Therefore, it is extremely important to identify patients for whom adjuvant chemothe...

NPe6 is a novel second-generation photosensitizer used for photodynamic therapy (PDT). PDT using NPe6 and diode laser (664 nm) induces cell death, inflammatory reactions, immunological responses and damage to the microvasculature. In this study, we evaluated the influence of the immunological responses and of enhanced angiogenesis on the anti-tumor...

NPe6 is a novel second-generation photosensitizer used for photodynamic therapy (PDT). PDT using NPe6 and diode laser (664 nm) induces cell death, inflammatory reactions, immunological responses and damage to the microvasculature. In this study, we evaluated the influence of the immunological responses and of enhanced angiogenesis on the anti-tumor...

Tumor progression is a multistep process involving the progressive transformation of normal human cells into highly malignant derivatives. Tumor cells not only acquired capabilities that overcome growth-inhibitory signals and host immune responses, but also develop growth-stimulating signals. Importantly, the ability of cells to evade apoptosis is...

Pleomorphic adenoma is the most common parotid gland neoplasm and occasionally arises from the deep lobe of the parotid gland with extension into the parapharyngeal space. However, ossification of pleomorphic adenoma is rare, although chondroid and myxochondroid tissue formation is frequently seen histologically. We report an unusual case of ossify...

We had previously developed the possibility of use of a photodynamic diagnosis (PDD) system using a tumor-selective photosensitizer and laser irradiation for the early detection and photodynamic therapy (PDT) for centrally located early lung cancers. Recently, we established the autofluorescence diagnosis system integrated into a videoendoscope (SA...

Development of acquired resistance to gefitinib after an initial good response is common. Recently, it was reported that this acquired resistance is related to a secondary mutation associated with a substitution of threonine by methionine at codon 790 (T790M) of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene. In this report, we present a "never s...

During off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), mitral regurgitation (MR) has been experienced in relation to the procedures. The study aim was to evaluate the mitral valve configuration, with particular focus on annular behavior, during off-pump CABG, using cardiac endoscopy and digital 3-D ultrasound sonomicrometry. Following implantation...

Recently, with an increasing uses of the high-resolution CT scan, the effectiveness of detecting tiny tumors in the peripheral lung, such as early stage lung carcinoma, small metastases, or atypical adenomatous hyperplasia, has increased. Video-assisted thoracic surgery is usually employed for many of these cases. However, we considered that a more...

ATX-s10-Na(II) is a novel second-generation photo-sensitizer for photodynamic therapy (PDT). PDT using ATX-s10 and diode laser (670 nm) induces an apoptotic response, inflammatory reaction, immune reaction and damage to the microvasculature. In particular, the vascular shut-down effect plays an important role in the anti-tumor activity of ATX-s10-P...

Background. Bronchial artery embolization(BAE) is widely perfomed when hemoptysis is not controlled during bronchofiberscopic treatment. In most cases of sudden massive hemoptysis, it is difficult to perform BAE immediately. Recently, we encountered a case of lung cancer in whom we controlled bleeding with an endobronchial Watanabe spigot (EWS) whi...

PURPOSE To clarify the clinical aspects of penetrating thoracic injury. Eighteen patients with penetrating thoracic injury treated from 1987 to 2005 were evaluated. There were 13 men and 5 women. The age distribution was 8 to 69 years, with an average of 36.7 years. There were 14 patients with stab wound and 4 with impalement injury. Five patients...