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INTRODUCTION: Gastric schwannomas are rare mesenchymal tumours that arise from the nerve plexus of the gut wall. They present with non-specific symptoms and are often detected incidentally. Pre-operative investigation is not pathognomonic and many are therefore diagnosed as gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs). Operative resection is usually curative as they are almost always benign, underpinning the importance of differentiating them from GISTs. METHODS: Three cases of gastric schwannomas were identified over a seven-year period. The clinical details and management were reviewed retrospectively. RESULTS: There were two women and one man with a mean age of 62 years (range: 51-69 years). Two patients presented with bleeding and one with abdominal pain. The mean tumour size was 5.2 cm (range: 2-10 cm) and the tumours were resected completely following total or wedge gastrectomies. Histology in all cases showed spindle cells with a cuff of lymphoid tissue. Immunohistochemistry confirmed positive S100 staining and negative CD117 and DOG-1 staining in all cases. CONCLUSIONS: We report our experience with these unusual primary stromal tumours of the gut and their presentations, pre-operative investigations, operative findings and pathological findings are discussed. Operative resection in all cases has been considered curative, which is supported by previous series confirming the excellent prognosis of gastric schwannomas.

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INTRODUCTION: Laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication is the most common surgical procedure performed for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GORD). It is however associated with a number of mechanical complications with as many as one in three patients experiencing troublesome dysphagia or gas bloat. Partial fundoplication, either posterior or anterior, has been advocated in an attempt to reduce these problems. Our aim was to prospectively evaluate laparoscopic posterior partial (Toupet) fundoplication as the primary surgical treatment for GORD. METHOD: Outcomes following Toupet fundoplication performed between October 2002 and October 2007 were recorded prospectively. All patients underwent a 270 degrees posterior partial fundoplication with routine crural repair. All procedures were performed by a single surgeon. Pre-operative investigations included endoscopy, pH studies/manometry and contrast studies. DeMeester acidity scores, percentage reflux time and oesophageal motility were recorded. Pre- and post-operative DeMeester symptom scores (0-9, DSS) and Visick grading were used to assess the outcomes of surgery. RESULTS: 101 Patients were studied. Ages ranged from 17 to 69 years. The median pre-operative DSS of 5 fell to a median of 0 post-operatively. Scores decreased following surgery in all cases. 91 (91%) patients were discharged on the 2nd post-operative day or sooner. 5 (4.9%) patients had prolonged dysphagia (>3 months), and 8 (7.9%) had mild prolonged gas bloat. A single patient had a recurrence of reflux at 2 years and required re-do laparoscopic surgery. There were no conversions to open surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic Toupet fundoplication provides excellent relief of GORD symptoms with a low incidence of post-operative mechanical complications. We would recommend it as the operation of choice for GORD.

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Vascular endothelial growth factor C (VEGF-C) has angiogenic and lymphangiogenic properties and is associated with the development of lymphatic metastases in a number of epithelial malignancies. The aim of this study was to determine VEGF-C protein expression in a series of breast carcinomas and correlate this with axillary lymph node (LN) metastases, the presence of lympho-vascular invasion (LVI), bone marrow micro-metastases (BMM) and other clinico-pathological data including oestrogen receptor (ER) and c-erbB2 status. VEGF-C expression was determined by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in 51 tumours. ER and c-erbB2 were also assessed by IHC. Bone marrow analysis was performed using a combination of immunomagnetic separation and immunocytochemistry. Overall, 30/51 (59%) of the tumours were positive for VEGF-C. There was no significant correlation between VEGF-C expression and LN status, LVI, BMM, tumour size, grade or ER status. However, there was an association between c-erbB2 and VEGF-C expression (P=0.013). The correlation between VEGF-C and c-erbB2 suggests a functional relationship and may, in part, explain the aggressive phenotype associated with c-erbB2-positive tumours.

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BACKGROUND: In the surgical management of gastric carcinoma, regional lymphatic spread is of prognostic importance. The fifth edition of the Union Internacional Contra la Cancrum classification has been shown to be reproducible, practical and of significant prognostic use. The tumour node metastasis (TNM) system requires at least 15 lymph nodes to be acquired and examined for staging to be accurate. This has raised concern over the consistency with which the requisite numbers of nodes would be acquired. This study was performed to assess how consistently surgically managed cases of gastric cancer in the West Midlands fulfilled this requirement to allow accurate staging. METHODS: Data from the West Midlands Cancer Intelligence Unit on all cases of gastric cancer registered from 1998 to 1999 were obtained and the number of lymph nodes documented for each surgically managed case was assessed. RESULTS: Overall, only 31.0 per cent of surgically resected cases could be assessed accurately according to the TNM system. The proportion staged accurately varied widely across hospitals from 10.9 to 76.0 per cent. CONCLUSION: These results reflect the need for improved N staging across the region to aid the appropriate multimodal treatment of patients.

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Raised plasma VEGF is found in some cancers but levels of its receptor soluble Flt-1 (sFlt-1) are unreported. Hypothesising increased levels to be present in haematological cancers, we measured both by ELISA in 22 patients with haematological cancer, 22 with breast cancer, and in age- and sex-matched controls. VEGF was raised in both patients groups compared to controls (P < 0.01) but was higher in haematological cancer compared to breast cancer (P = 0.0238). There was no difference in levels of sFlt-1. Our data point to changes in levels of plasma VEGF, but not sFlt-1, in haematological cancer that may have pathophysiological consequences.

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Abnormal platelet activation and an increased risk of thrombosis are frequent findings in cancer. As soluble adhesion molecule P-selectin is being increasingly recognized as reflecting increased platelet activation, we hypothesized raised levels in patients with cancer, obtaining plasma from 24 patients with a cross-section of haematological cancers, 41 with breast cancer, and from an equal number of healthy controls for each patient group. Levels of soluble P-selectin were compared with those of von Willebrand factor (vWf), plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) activity and fibrinogen (markers of endothelial integrity, fibrinolysis and coagulation, respectively). We found raised soluble P-selectin, fibrinogen and vWf in both patient groups compared with their controls (P < 0.01). vWf and soluble P-selectin were higher in the haematological cancers than in breast cancer patients (by 30 and 74%, respectively; both P < 0.01). There was no significant difference in levels of PAI-1 between any group. There were no differences in soluble P-selectin or vWf when the data from the women with breast cancer were classified according to tumour size, lymph node involvement or presence of vascular invasion. We conclude that the platelet marker soluble P-selectin is raised in both haematological and breast cancer, and is higher in the former, but is unrelated to the type or stage of breast cancer.

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Invasive lobular breast carcinoma accounts for approximately 15% of all breast cancers and is difficult to detect using conventional breast imaging techniques. We report a comparison between clinical, ultrasound scan (USS), mammographic and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of 22 patients with invasive lobular breast carcinomas. Actual tumour size was ascertained by histopathology. MRI detected 21 of the 22 invasive lobular cancers whilst mammography and USS detected 16 and 20 respectively. 19 tumours were clinically palpable. MRI was more accurate at assessing tumour size than USS and clinical examination, both of which underestimated tumour size.

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Cell surface adhesion molecule expression is likely to be important in inflammation, atherosclerosis and cancer, and soluble forms of many of these molecules are present in plasma. We measured levels of the soluble form of platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 (sPECAM) by ELISA in the serum of 77 patients with frank atherosclerosis, 69 patients with inflammatory connective tissue disease, and 39 patients with cancer. Each group of patients was controlled by an equal number of age- and sex-matched healthy subjects. There was no difference between sPECAM in patients with atherosclerosis and their matched controls or between patients with connective tissue disease and their controls. However, sPECAM levels were lower (16.6 +/- 5.0 ng/ml, mean +/- SD) in patients with cancer than in their controls (21.1 +/- 4.4 ng/ml, P < 0.001). No differences were found in sPECAM levels between the major subgroups of each type of disease, or as a result of factors such as age, sex or smoking in the controls. In contrast to levels of many other soluble adhesion molecules, levels of sPECAM are not altered in inflammatory or atherosclerotic vascular disease and therefore appear to have little relevance in these conditions. However, there may be significant differences in sPECAM levels in patients with low levels in cancer. Additional investigations are therefore justified.

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