No abstract

Autologous fat transfer (AFT) enhances the cosmetic results of breast reconstruction and corrects breast conserving operation sequelae. The question of its oncological safety remains, as in-vitro experiences have shown that adipocytes can stimulate cancer cell proliferation. This study analysed the records of patients who had AFT after breast cancer from 2004-2009. The primary end-point was cancer recurrence. The secondary end-points were AFT complications and post-AFT mammogram modifications. Sixty-four patients (100 AFT) were included. The mean follow-up for AFT was 46.44 months (SD = 21.4). Two breast cancer recurrences were recorded (3.1%). Among 55 mammograms analysed, only one patient presented radiological abnormalities. One complication of AFT (donor-site infection) was recorded. This series is in favour of the oncological safety of AFT after breast cancer. An accurate evaluation of the recurrence risk, before performing AFT, is an essential prerequisite and must lead one to postpone or avoid this procedure in high-risk patients.

Rationale: Most cancer patients require a totally-implanted Central Venous Catheter (CVC) for their treatment. We develop and validate a French-language questionnaire dubbed QASICC (Questionnaire for Acceptance of and Satisfaction with Implanted Central Venous Catheter) assessing patient satisfaction with and acceptance of their CVC. Method: The construction and first validation of the questionnaire was made using validated methodology consisting in four phases. Phase 1 aimed at collecting a comprehensive list of relevant items. Phase 2 consisted in converting items into questions followed by a first item selection procedure. Phase 3 tested the acceptance of the provisional module to a small number of patients. Phase 4 involved a first validation on patients to determine its psychometric characteristics. Results: Responses to the questionnaire were collected from 215 patients. The final tool included 27 questions assessing seven dimensions: pain, contribution to the comfort of the treatment, esthetics and privacy, impact on professional activities, social and sports, impact on daily activities, local discomfort and overall satisfaction. Conclusions: This first statistical validation seems very promising and allows us to confirm the structure and the psychometric properties of the tool. Further validation studies are required on standard and specific populations in order to confirm these first results.

A rare anatomic variant of the right vertebral artery is reported as an incidental finding in a 78-year-old female patient. The vessel originated from the aortic arch distal to the origin of the left subclavian artery and presented an unusual retroesophageal course, thus was named "vertebral arteria lusoria". As multi-detector row computed tomography examination is now widely used, this anatomical variant should be considered in any patient undergoing esophageal surgery. Misdiagnosis of such an aberrant vertebral artery may cause life-threatening issues.

No abstract