Chemotherapy is one of most significant therapeutic approaches to cancer. Immune system functional state is considered a major prognostic and predictive impact on the success of chemotherapy and it has an important role on patients' psychoemotional state and quality of life. In Chinese medicine, chemotherapy is understood as “toxic cold” that may induce a progressive hypofunctional state of immune system, thus compromising the fast recovery of immunity during chemotherapy. In this study, we performed a standardized acupuncture and moxibustion protocol to enhance immunity in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and to assess if the improvement of immunity status correlates with a better psychoemotional state and quality of life.

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BackgroundNeurosyphilis became a rare disease after the introduction of antibiotics. The resurgence of syphilis in association with human immunodeficiency virus infection in the past decades increased the incidence of this tertiary form of the disease. However, in immunocompetent patients neurosyphilis remains uncommon and accurate diagnosis is challenging as the clinical presentation is unspecific and the validity of supportive laboratory tests is unclear.Case reportWe describe the case of a 60-year-old man who presented with a 6-month clinical picture of depression-like symptoms and recent sudden unilateral blindness. Medical history uncovered a primary syphilitic event 20 years before. The investigation led to the diagnosis of neurosyphilis with optical involvement in a patient who did not present with any signs of secondary syphilis. Treatment with penicillin G and topical steroids resulted in significant clinical improvement and resolution of the visual loss.ConclusionIn the well-established natural history of syphilis, primary syphilis is almost always followed by manifestation of the secondary form, which in turn precedes a period of latency. This case emphasizes the need for a high index of suspicion of neurosyphilis in an immunocompetent patient with nonspecific neuropsychiatric manifestations and an atypical course of syphilis infection.

We report the case of a 56-year-old white man who presented at the Emergency Department for evaluation of dark-red urine. Rapid development of acute renal failure and haemolytic anaemia initially elicited the hypothesis of a haemolytic-uremic syndrome. A previous exposure to a gas mixture containing arsenic and copper was later recognized as the probable aetiology while other differential diagnoses were excluded. Chelating treatment was promptly initiated before laboratorial confirmation of arsenic and copper poisoning. Renal and haematological recovery was gradually observed and the patient survived with no sequelae.