2006 - UZ Leuven

histopathologic diagnostic process. We performedimmunohistochemistry for GPC3 on 16 low-grade dysplastic nodules,33 high-grade dysplastic nodules, 13 focal nodular hyperplasia-likenodules, and 59 HCCs with a diameter less or equal to 3 cm presentin the cirrhotic liver of 66 patients. Both resected lesions and lesionsbiopsied by needle were included and nonlesional cirrhoticparenchyma was also stained. In a subset of cases (23 samples ofcirrhosis, 4 low-grade dysplastic nodules, 5 high-grade dysplasticnodules, 2 focal nodular hyperplasia-like nodules, and 18 HCCs), realtime reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction for GPC3 wasperformed. GPC3 expression was, both on immunohistochemistry andby real time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, muchhigher in small HCCs than in cirrhosis and other types of small focallesions, indicating that the transition from premalignant lesions tosmall HCC is associated with a sharp increase of GPC3 expression ina majority of cases. The sensitivity and specificity of a positive GPC3-staining for the diagnosis of HCC in small focal lesions was 0.77 and0.96, respectively, in resected cases, and 0.83 and 1, respectively, forneedle biopsies. Because the result of the staining was easilyinterpretable, immunohistochemistry for GPC3 is valuable ancillarytool in the histopathologic diagnosis of small focal lesions in cirrhosis.PIRENNE J., HOFFMAN I., MISEREZ M., COOSEMANS W., AERTS R.,MONBALIU D., FERDINANDE P., HIELE M., VAN ASSCHE G.,RUTGEERTS P., JANSSENS J., TACK J., VLASSELAERS D., DESMET L.,NEVENS F., VEEREMAN G., FEVERY J., LOMBAERTS R.: Selectioncriteria and outcome of patients referred to intestinal transplantation:an European center experience. Transplantation Proceedings, 2006.38(6): 1671-1672.Until 1998, intestinal transplantation (SBT) had not been performed inour region of Flanders, Belgium. Potential SBT activity was not knownand selection criteria had not been validated. A multidisciplinary SBTprogram was launched in 1998. We analyzed requests for SBT andoutcomes in these patients whether with or without SBT. Listing forSBT was only considered for patients with irreversible short bowelsyndrome who had developed life-threatening complications of totalparenteral nutrition, but whose general condition was still thoughtcompatible with surgery and immunosuppression. During the studyperiod 1998 to 2004, one third of the requests for SBT (10/31) weredeemed suitable. SBT in this group was lifesaving (100% survival)when performed in time. Mortality in this group without SBT was high(67%). Two thirds of the patients (21/31) did not fulfill the SBTinclusion criteria, either because they were "too moribund" to toleratetransplantation or because they were "too well". This preliminary study18