Vol 15, No 4 (2010)

The authors analyze the results of treatment in 124 patients with renal cancer who have undergone 127 kidney resections. Follow-ups lasted 1 to 97 months (mean 14.6 months). Early postoperative complications were recorded in 27 (21.3%) cases. Mortality was 0.8%. A recurrent tumor was found at the site of kidney resection in 3 (2.4%) patients with renal cancer T1aN0M0, grade 2-3, at 14 to 23 months, among them there was one (0.8%) patient after horseshoe kidney resection. Open renal resection has demonstrated good oncological and functional results and is the operation of choice for patients with renal cancer, but it requires a preoperative careful diagnosis comprising contrast 3D computed tomography and/ or magnetic resonance imaging, as well as angiography in order to define the anatomic relationships between the renal structures and a tumor.

The paper analyzes worldwide experience in using saving operations in patients with bilateral borderline ovarian tumors, the goals of which are to remove a tumor-altered ovarian portion and to preserve visually unchanged ovarian tissue. It comparatively characterizes the rates of recurrences, survival, and fertility after applying this approach. The authors' results of such interventions in 17 patients are given. The findings suggest that saving organ-sparing operations may be performed in patients with bilateral lesions and borderline tumors of the single ovary to maintain reproductive function; however, there is a high risk for recurrent tumors in these situations. Further accumulation of material is needed to obtain objective results and to study the molecular biological characteristics of borderline tumors that may provide a substantial aid in defining the prognosis of the disease and treatment policy in this category of patients.

The paper presents the results of treatment in 77 patients with parotid malignancies. It considers the functionally sparing treatment preserving the facial nerve trunk and branches at surgery and the possibilities of neutron therapy in the combination and radiation treatment of this pathology. The findings suggest that functionally sparing operations may be made, without worsening the long-term results. There is evidence that incorporation of neutron therapy into the radiation component of the treatment deteriorates its long-term results.

The authors analyze the results of palliative treatment in 51 patients with prostate cancer (PC) who received various regimens of hormone therapy. The follow-up time was 15.5 months. A control group consisted of 25 patients with generalized (n = 14) and locally advanced (n = 11) PC. Of them, 14 patients took luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonists in a continuous regimen and 11 patients underwent bilateral orchiectomy after sensitivity evaluation via presumptive therapy with LHRH agonists within 2 months. In a study group, 14 patients received a LHRH agonist (zoladex) as a subcutaneous injection at a 28-day interval for 3 months. Then the therapy was discontinued and the oncomarker was monitored every month. The therapy was individually resumed if there was a considerable rise in prostate-specific antigen (PSA) or there were clinical symptoms. Twelve patients had monotherapy with bicalutamide (casodex) 150 mg after an initial course of LHRH agonists (3 months). When the minimal PSA level was achieved, the drug was discontinued. When the PSA level was increased by more than 4 ng/ml, bicalutamide was given in a dose of 150 mg. The study has demonstrated that intermittent hormone therapy considerably and significantly improves the quality of life in patients with PC versus those with continuous androgenic deprivation (a control group).

The paper presents data on the incidence of malignant brain gliomas (MBG) at the populational level in the Volgograd Region in 2001-2006. The quantitative and qualitative parameters of morbidity are analyzed by gender and age in detail. The higher incidence of MBG in the Volgograd Region is due to its rise in the able-bodied male contingents and in the female population in the age group older than the able-bodied age. Further study of the organization of specialized care to patients to MBG is possible only when information available in the population-based cancer registers of the subjects of the Russian Federation as a constituent of the State Cancer register is collected and analyzed.

Brain malignancies are diseases with a poor prognosis. Despite the use of currently available techniques, such as microsurgical removal, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, survival in these patients remains low due to continued tumor growth. A search is under way for treatment options that can prolong a relapse-free period and survival in these patients. The paper analyzes the data available in the literature on a new treatment technique for this group of patients, namely, photodynamic therapy.

In recent years there has been an increasing interest in endocrine tumors (ET) of the gastrointestinal tract is due to a rise in their morbidity rates and to the disputable and unsolved aspects of their terminology, clinical and morphological classification, and prognostic factors, which largely hampers the development of common approaches to evaluating these neoplasms and that of reasonable variants of their treatment. There is a need for further studies of the morphogenesis and clinical morphology of ET of the gastrointestinal tract, by applying the currently morphological and genetic methods.