Background: Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) represents about 10-20% of all invasive breast cancers and is associated with a poor prognosis. The nectin cell adhesion protein 4 (Nectin-4) is a junction protein involved in the formation and maintenance of cell junctions. Nectin-4 has previously shown to be expressed in about 60% of TNBC as well as in TNBC metastases, but to be absent in normal breast tissue, which makes it a potential specific target for TNBC therapy. Previous studies have shown an association of Nectin-4 protein expression with worse prognosis in TNBC in a small patient cohort. The aim of our study was to explore the role of Nectin-4 in TNBC and confirm its impact on survival in a larger TNBC patient cohort. Material and Methods: We performed immunohistochemical staining for Nectin-4 on a tissue microarray encompassing 148 TNBC cases with detailed clinical annotation and outcomes data. Results: A high expression of Nectin-4 was present in 86 (58%) of the 148 TNBC cases. In multivariate survival analysis, high expression of Nectin-4 was associated with a significantly better overall survival when compared with low expression of Nectin-4 (p < 0.001). Nectin-4-high expression was also significantly associated with a lower tumor stage (p = 0.025) and pN0 lymph node stage (p = 0.034). Conclusion: Our results confirm that expression of Nectin-4 serves as a potential prognostic marker in TNBC and is associated with a significantly better overall survival. In addition, Nectin-4 represents a potential target in TNBC, and its role in molecular defined breast cancer subtype should be investigated in larger patient cohorts.

There is presently a lack of organization and standardized reporting schema for arteriovenous graft (AVG) infections. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the various types of treatment modalities for access site infections through an analysis of current publications on AVG. Key proposals are made to support standardization in a data-driven manner to make infection reporting more uniform and thereby facilitate more meaningful comparisons between various dialysis modalities and AVG technologies.

Summary: The use of vascular ultrasound, especially with the increasing prevalence of percutaneous arteriovenous fistulas, has taken a central role as a diagnostic and therapeutic imaging procedure in vascular access creation. The current review article stresses the importance of vascular ultrasound in arteriovenous fistula, from planning to creation to maintenance. It summarises and gives practical guidance regarding sonographic criteria for vascular access procedure planning, the application of vascular ultrasound intraoperatively and during follow-up. Ultrasound education and training modalities to meet high standards of patient care in hemodialysis are presented.

Intravenous leiomyomatosis (IVL) is a rare smooth muscle tumor, usually found in women with tumors of the reproductive organs, such as uterus myomatosous. Surgically, this case belies the call for sternotomy and two-stage surgery in caval IVL extending to the right atrium: we suggest one-stage median laparotomy as a minimal procedure with maximal benefit. We present the case of a 60-year-old postmenopausal woman with suspected intravenous leiomyomatosis of the right internal iliac vein. The patient had undergone hysterectomy and bilateral adnexectomy for uterus myomatosous in September 2015, where an IVL limited to the veins of the uterus and the right adnex had been diagnosed. No further medical treatment had been implemented. IVL of the inferior vena cava was diagnosed when a CT scan of the abdomen was performed due to an infected abdominal seroma in June 2016. Although histologically benign, we found this case of IVL to be clinically aggressive because of its expansion to the heart. This may lead to thromboembolic complications (e.g. pulmonary embolism) or signs of right sided cardiac failure. The patient was asymptomatic, but because of the extension of the intracaval thrombus to the heart, we decided to operate and performed thrombectomy via a median laparotomy. The patient left the hospital shortly after on newly started oral anticoagulation. For caval IVL without intracardiac attachment, the extraction via laparotomy without sternotomy is the treatment of choice. It calls for an interdisciplinary approach and careful surgical planning. There is no inherent need for sternotomy in IVL extending to the right atrium. A one-year follow-up with sonographic control is advised. Medium term oral anticoagulation should be considered. This work has been reported in line with the SCARE criteria Agha et al. (2016). The SCARE Statement: Consensus-based surgical case report guidelines. Agha RA, Fowler AJ, Saeta A, Barai I, Rajmohan S, Orgill DP; SCARE Group. Int J Surg. 2016 Oct;34:180-186 [1].