Calcifying pseudoneoplasms of the neuraxis (CAPNONs) are clinically rare, nonneoplastic, noninflammatory-calcified lesions of the central nervous system. Resection of a lesion usually indicates good prognosis without recurrence. However, we experienced a unique case of CAPNON that repeatedly recurred after resection. A 52-year-old woman with recurrence of an undiagnosed brain tumor, which was resected 12 years ago, was admitted to our institution. Three calcifying lesions along with perifocal edema were detected in the frontal interhemispheric fissure. We performed the second surgery for total removal of the lesions. The patient was diagnosed with CAPNON on the basis of the clinical features of the lesions and medical examination results. However, 14 months after the second surgery, recurrence occurred, and the patient has been followed up conservatively thereafter. CAPNONs may indicate healing process associated with an unidentified agent. Maximum resection, including an unidentified agent, is necessary to prevent recurrence.

The maternal mortality rate in Japan was 3.5 per 100 000 live births in 2017, similar to that reported in other developed countries. To reduce the number of maternal deaths, a Japanese nationwide registration and analysis system was implemented in 2010. Between January 2010 and April 2018, 367 maternal deaths were reported. Among them, by reviewing 80 autopsy records, the direct obstetric causes of death were identified in 52 women. The major causes of deaths were amniotic fluid embolism and acute pulmonary thromboembolism. The other 26 maternal deaths were associated with indirect obstetric causes including invasive Group A Streptococcus infection, aortic dissection, cerebral stroke and cardiomyopathies. This review highlights the importance of autopsy in maternal deaths. On analyzing 42 autopsy specimens obtained from registered cases of maternal death during 2012–2015, the 36% of causes of death by autopsy were discordant with the clinical diagnosis. Moreover, of the 38% of non‐autopsied maternal death, the cause of death could not be clarified from the clinical chart. We emphasized that detailed autopsies are necessary to clarify the precise pathologic evidence related to pregnancy and delivery, especially causes of unexpected death such as amniotic fluid embolism.

Objectives: To improve the diagnostic accuracy of bile smear cytology, we assessed two cell-yielding procedures. Study Design: One hundred and forty-one patients with biliary stricture underwent endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and conventional brush sampling. The cytologist cut the brush head off the support wire, centrifuged it directly in tissue culture medium for 1 min at 3,000 rpm, centrifuged the medium again and then smeared the cell pellet onto slides. The remaining sheath tube was then cut into 12-cm segments, which were centrifuged in a centrifuge tube for 1 min at 3,000 rpm, collected and submitted for cytospin preparation. Results: The final histopathological diagnoses based on surgery, biopsy or clinical progression were evaluated for sensitivity, specificity and accuracy. Using conventional smears alone, the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy in patients with biliary stricture were 66.1, 80.7 and 68.8%, respectively. For conventional smears, brush washing and sheath tube contents together, the sensitivity improved to 73.9%, specificity to 100% and accuracy to 78.7%. In the patients with bile duct carcinoma, the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy were 87.3, 100 and 90.7%, respectively. Conclusion: Superior diagnostic accuracy was achieved when conventional smear procedures were combined with the two new procedures.

Background: Myeloid sarcoma (MS) is a solid tumor consisting of myeloid blasts or immature myeloid cells, which are unusual outside the bone marrow.Case presentation: We present a rare case of isolated myeloid sarcoma of the small bowel in a 54-year-old man who was admitted to our hospital with repeated symptoms of intestinal obstruction. A small bowel series via an ileus tube revealed severe jejunal obstruction. Computed tomography revealed that the obstruction was likely caused by a jejunal tumor. The patient underwent laparoscopy-assisted partial resection of the jejunum with lymphadenectomy. Histopathological examination of the surgical specimen confirmed that MS had been responsible for the obstruction.Conclusions: Patients with MS require systemic chemotherapy, as do patients with acute myeloid leukemia. Hence, an early, accurate diagnosis is imperative for treating this malignancy. It is also important to list MS in the differential diagnosis of a small bowel tumor, even in nonleukemic patients.

Background: We report a new risk stratification of invasive stage papillary thyroid carcinomas (PTCs) by combining invasive status, using extrathyroid invasion (Ex) status, and tumor growth speed using the Ki-67 labeling index (LI). Methods: We examined tumor recurrence in 167 patients with PTC who were surgically treated at the Kindai University Nara Hospital between 2010 and 2022. The patients were classified according to the degree of invasion [negative (Ex0) or positive (Ex1, Ex2, and Ex3)] and tumor growth speed expressed with Ki-67 LI, as low (5%). This study confirmed previous findings that the disease-free survival (DFS) rate in PTCs significantly differed between patients with a high and low Ki-67 index. Results: When combining Ex status (negative or positive) and Ki-67 proliferation status (low or high), the DFS rate of invasion in the negative, low Ki-67 LI group was only 1.1%, while that of invasion in the positive, high Ki-67 LI was 44.1%. This study reports for the first time that recurrence risks can be stratified accurately when combining carcinoma’s essential two features of extrathyroid invasion status and tumor growth speed. Conclusions: We believe the evidence for low tumor recurrence risk may contribute to use of more conservative treatment options for invasive-stage PTCs and help alleviate patient anxiety about tumor recurrence and death.