The SUVmax of (18)F-FDG-PET reflects WHO classification of thymic epithelial tumors. High SUVmax predicts lower recurrence-free survival of the tumors.

Purpose: Several small studies have reported that acute exacerbation (AE) of idiopathic interstitial pneumonia (IIP) can occur after lung resection for patients with non-small cell lung cancer, though the incidence rate is unclear. Methods: We examined our institutional data and performed a search of the MEDLINE database for publications regarding AE of IIP following surgery for lung cancer. Studies reporting the incidence rates of IIP and AE were included. Results: Eleven studies including our institutional data were determined to be eligible. Seven studies designated the incidence of IIP. Of 4749 patients (from 7 studies) who underwent lung resection for NSCLC, 277 had IIP, for an incidence rate of 5.8% (range 1.1%-11.7%). Eleven studies designated the incidence of AE from IIP patient, 67 (15.8%) of 424 IIP patients (from 11 studies) developed AE after surgery, of whom 38 (56.7%) died during the postoperative course. Conclusion: Coexistent IIP in patients with lung cancer increases the risk of lung cancer surgery. Furthermore, AE of IIP may be a major cause of operation-related death.

These data may explain that post-operative adjuvant chemotherapy with UFT was associated with improved survival in stage I patients with adenocarcinoma, but less with squamous cell carcinoma.

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BackgroundThymic carcinoma (TC) is a rare type of malignant neoplasm that develops in the anterior mediastinum and associated with poor prognosis. Type B3 thymoma (B3) occasionally demonstrates malignant tumor characteristics, especially in the advanced stage. We investigated the expressions of tumor-related genes in resected TC and B3 specimens.MethodsTC and B3 specimens resected from 1999 through 2012 were investigated. Tumor segments were collected from the specimens by micro-dissection to extract mRNA, then RT-PCR was performed according to Dannenberg’s tumor profile method for semi-quantitation of tumor-related gene mRNA. To compare with other types of cancer, data from lung cancer (LC) cases in our database were also examined.ResultsThe gene expression levels of thymidylate synthase were significantly higher in TC and B3 as compared to LC specimens (p < 0.02), while no difference were observed between TC and B3 tumors. The ratio of folypolyglutamyl synthase (FPGS) to gamma-glutamyl hydrolase (GGH) mRNA was significantly lower in TC than in B3 (p < 0.05), with lower FPGS/GGH in those tumors related to overall survival. Also, the gene expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was significantly higher in TC as compared to B3 (p = 0.04), with higher VEGF gene expression in TC and B3 specimens related to overall survival of affected patients. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) expression was significantly higher in B3 as compared to both TC and LC specimens (p < 0.01). However, there were no EGFR gene mutations detected in any of the specimens.ConclusionsThese results indicate that elevated expressions of the tumor-related genes FPGS/GGH and VEGF are correlated with malignancy of TC and B3 tumors. Additional examinations will be necessary to investigate their chemosensitivity.