In this era of precision medicine, monitoring patients requires not only real time but also longitudinal sequence of samples at various time points. Based on this background, we focused on conditioned circumstances on fixation and storage for re-utilization of CTCs.

In Hitachi Medical Area, a large-scale lung cancer screening program using low-dose CT has been underway in two medical facilities since its introduction in 1998 and 2001. A total of 61,914 tests were performed among 25,385 participants until 2006. Two hundred and ten lung cancer patients had been identified on CT screening. The estimated 5-year survival rate for all patients was 90%. Among residents in Hitachi City, nearly 40% of inhabitants aged 50-69 years were estimated to have participated in the screening from 1998 through 2009. Cancer mortality data were obtained from a regional cancer registry and the standardized mortality ratio (SMR) of lung cancer was calculated for each 5-year period during 1995-2009. For residents aged 50-79 years, SMR was nearly unity between 1995 and 2004; however, there was a significant decrease during 2005-2009, with SMR (95% confidence interval) being 0.76 (0.67-0.86). These results suggest that the wide implementation of CT screening may reduce lung cancer mortality in the community, 4-8 years after introduction. It is desirable to continue to focus on future developments, including original research in Japan.

RNAs lacking protein-coding ability are called "noncoding RNAs" (ncRNAs). ncRNAs include microRNA (19-24 nucleotides in length) and long ncRNA (lncRNA). MicroRNA binds to the 3'-untranslated regions of target mRNAs and regulates target genes at a posttranscriptional level. In hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the roles of microRNAs in hepatocarcinogenesis and microRNAs that can determine the nature of HCC have been reported. Because microRNA is stable in the bloodstream or formalin-fixed specimens, it can be used as a tumor marker. MicroRNAs as therapeutic targets for HCC are being intensively investigated. A phase I clinical study using miR-34 is currently in progress. On the other hand, the investigation of lncRNAs has only recently begun. Because lncRNAs are also involved in hepatocarcinogenesis and can determine the nature of cancers, many researchers are now working on these RNAs.

Recent advances in the field of RNA research have shown that microRNAs (MiRNAs) are among noncoding RNAs that function in posttranscriptional regulation of target gene expression via base-pairing with complementary sequences in mRNAs to induce mRNA degradation and translational inhibition. Together with several causes of colorectal cancer (CRC) initiation and progression which are regulated by both genetic and epigenetic modifications, aberrant expression of oncogenic and tumor suppressor MiRNAs in cancer cells was found to be up- or downregulated by targeted mRNAs specific to tumor promoter or inhibitor genes. In particular, the study of MiRNAs as CRC biomarkers utilizes expression profiling methods from tissue samples along with newly introduced noninvasive samples of feces and body fluids, since MiRNAs are known to be extremely stable under several conditions. Additionally, MiRNAs could be employed to predict chemo- and radiotherapy responses and be manipulated in order to alleviate CRC characteristics. This article introduces progress in the utilization of MiRNAs as noninvasive biomarkers for cancer detection, estimation of recurrence and prognosis, and prediction of chemotherapeutic agent response in CRC. It also discusses the obstacles that have limited the routine use of MiRNA biomarkers in the clinical setting.

We herein report a case involving a 70-year-old man who was diagnosed with early gastric cancer that occurred after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) using the right gastroepiploic artery (RGEA) for effort-induced angina. He was successfully treated by laparoscopic surgery. Preoperative cardiac three-dimensional computed tomography and coronary angiography showed an occlusion of the RGEA graft, which could lead to ligation of the RGEA to dissect the lymph nodes along the RGEA. The laparoscopic approach helps to identify and avoid injury to the RGEA graft because of its enlarged and precise viewing field compared with laparotomy followed by retractor placement. Laparoscopic surgery is a useful method in such cases to reduce perioperative complications risk.

Case 1: A male patient in his 60's who had rectal cancer and liver metastases underwent Hartmann's operation in January 2009. In April 2009, he received chemotherapy with modified FOLFOX6 plus bevacizumab as second-line treatment. Thirteen days later, he complained of abdominal pain and visited the emergency department. Computed tomography(CT)revealed gastrointestinal tract perforation. He underwent emergency surgery. However, dirty brownish ascites was observed, and the perforation point of the gastrointestinal tract could not be found. We suspected perforation of the colon and created an artificial anus in the terminal ileum. After the surgery, his condition improved. Case 2: A male patient in his 60's who had rectal cancer underwent Miles' operation in March 2005. In February 2010, CT revealed local recurrence in the presacral region. After radiotherapy, he received chemotherapy with CapeOX plus bevacizumab. During the course of the chemotherapy, he was admitted for upper abdominal pain and fever. He was diagnosed with a perforation of the transverse colon and underwent emergency surgery. After the surgery, drainage was needed for peritonitis, for about 1 month. At 93 days after the surgery, he was discharged. Gastrointestinal tract perforation is one of the most serious adverse events associated with bevacizumab. To avoid death caused by serious adverse events, medical staff and patient orientation or education on the possible serious adverse event is very important.

We provided home end-of-life care to a child with a brain tumor. As cases of children with malignancies who receive such care have rarely been described in Japan, we report our experience with this patient.

Cyclophosphamide and vincristine are known to be the chemotherapeutic agents most frequently associated with hyponatremia. Here, we report the case of a 69-year-old man with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma who developed severe hyponatremia during chemotherapy. The Japanese man was diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and underwent chemotherapy treatment with THP-COP (cyclophosphamide, pirarubicin, vincristine, and prednisolone). In the first course of chemotherapy, he developed hyponatremia (nadir 109 mEq/L) and his urinary N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase (NAG) level had increased. After the second courses of chemotherapy with rituximab, pirarubicin, and prednisolone, without cyclophosphamide and vincristine, he had developed light hyponatremia (nadir 130 mEq/L). However, after the third and fourth courses of chemotherapy with rituximab, pirarubicin, prednisolone, and cyclophosphamide, he had developed a medium level of hyponatremia (nadir 124-125 mEq/L) and his NAG level had increased further. The possible mechanism of this phenomenon is due to renal tubular damage by cyclophosphamide. We conclude that extra caution is necessary if a patient develops severe hyponatremia following chemotherapeutic treatment with cyclophosphamide and vincristine.

A patient in his 70s was diagnosed with rectal cancer (pT3, pN1, cM0, and pStage IIIa) for which he underwent low anterior resection of the rectum and received adjuvant therapy with UFT/LV. Multiple liver, lung, and para-aortic lymph node metastases were detected after 6 months, and the patient then received a total of 24 courses of FOLFOX4 plus bevacizumab instead of UFT/LV. The liver and para-aortic lymph node metastases showed a complete response (CR), and the lung metastases markedly diminished. Therefore, the patient completed the FOLFOX4 plus bevacizumab chemotherapy regimen. After 2 years, a recurrence of the initial liver metastases was detected. A CR on radiological imaging does not correspond to a pathological CR. Therefore, a careful follow-upis required even when a CR on radiological imaging is achieved.

A 63-year-old man who complained of hematochezia underwent colonoscopy, and a type 2 tumor was detected at the Rs portion. The tumor was initially diagnosed as a poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma by biopsy. Laparoscopy-assisted anterior resection with regional lymphadenectomy was performed, and pathological examination showed the tumor was a neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC) with muscular invasion and lymph node metastasis. The Ki-67 index of the tumor was more than 70%. This patient underwent adjuvant chemotherapy with capecitabine for 6 months and is now alive without recurrence, more than 40 months after surgery. Although the prognosis of NEC is generally poor, capecitabine might be effective as an adjuvant chemotherapy regimen after curative resection.

A 64-year-old man was admitted because of dyspnea. He was diagnosed with rectal cancer with lymphangiosis carcinomatosa and metastases in the liver and lymph nodes. The patient was treated with cetuximab and modified FOLFOX6 (mFOLFOX6). After treatment, the primary rectal cancer and metastases were considered to have achieved a partial response (PR) and the lymphangiosis carcinomatosa remarkably improved. However, anaphylactic shock occurred in the 6 courses of treatment, 5 minutes after the infusion of oxaliplatin, and the patient was treated.

A 70-year-old man, who had undergone S-1/oxaliplatin/bevacizumab combination chemotherapy for LNs metastasis of signet-ring cell carcinoma of the sigmoid colon, complained of back pain and lumbago.He was diagnosed with disseminated carcinomatosis of the bone marrow and disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). He was treated with systemic chemotherapy consisting of CPT-11/panitumumab. After 2 courses of the treatment, the DIC resolved and the back pain and lumbago improved.

Trastuzumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody against human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), has been proven to result in a survival benefit for the treatment of patients with HER2-positive advanced gastric cancer (AGC). However, data are lacking for the treatment of those with disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) and diffuse bone marrow carcinomatosis. A 77-year-old woman presented with back pain and fatigue since 2 months. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy showed a scirrhous lesion in the gastric corpus, which was biopsied and identified as signet-ring cell carcinoma with HER2 overexpression on immunohistochemistry. Laboratory testing, bone scintigraphy, and bone marrow biopsy were conducted, and she was diagnosed with HER2-positive AGC with DIC and diffuse bone marrow carcinomatosis. She underwent chemotherapy with the following regimen: oral administration of 80 mg/m2 S-1 for 2 weeks and 6 mg/kg trastuzumab infusion on day 6 every 3 weeks, which significantly improved the DIC. She was discharged from the hospital 73 days after admission and survived for 438 days after diagnosis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case report in which HER2-positive AGC complicated by DIC with diffuse bone marrow carcinomatosis was successfully treated with combined chemotherapy consisting of S-1 plus trastuzumab.