Biomedical subjects

S M Liberski

Publications and source records attributed to S M Liberski.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1996

Survival of patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer through a television-advertised screening program.

OBJECTIVES: Although controversial, fecal occult blood testing (FOBT) is advocated to reduce mortality due to colorectal cancer. Our aim was to determine whether a television-advertised screening program for colorectal cancer using fecal occult blood tests improved survival of patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of the stage and survival of patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer in our 1986 and 1987 screening programs was conducted. The 5-yr survival rate of patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer was determined in our screened population and compared with national survival data from the National Cancer Institute Surveillance, Epidemiology, End Results (SEER) program. RESULTS: In our screening programs, 75,633 FOBT were distributed and returned for analysis. Test slides were positive in 3.3%. Follow-up was available in 121 of 131 patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer. In our screened population, significantly more colorectal cancers were identified in a localized stage compared with the national average (76 vs 37%). Consequently, the percentage of our patients with regional and distant disease was decreased compared with SEER data. The overall 5-yr survival rate of patients with colorectal cancer who participated in our screening program was significantly higher than the national survival rate (75 vs 59%). Survival of patients older than 75 yr of age with colorectal cancer in our screening program was not improved. CONCLUSIONS: Television-advertised screening for colorectal cancer using FOBT was effective in recruiting a large number of participants. Patients diagnosed with colorectal cancer in our program tended to have early stage disease with improved 5-yr survival. The results of this study support FOBT as an effective means to reduce the mortality of colorectal cancer.

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PubMed1990

Ischemic gastroparesis: resolution after revascularization.

Patients with chronic nausea and vomiting frequently present challenging diagnostic and therapeutic problems. In such patients, gastroparesis of unknown cause, or "idiopathic" gastroparesis, may be the only objective finding. Two middle-aged women with nausea, vomiting, and weight loss of 10 and 26 kg over 6 and 18 months, respectively, were evaluated. Routine laboratory and barium study results were normal. Solid-phase gastric emptying studies showed severe gastroparesis in both patients. Upper endoscopies excluded gastric outlet obstruction. Gastric dysrhythmias (4-cpm and 1-cpm patterns) were recorded using cutaneous electrodes. An abdominal bruit was ascultated in one patient. Abdominal arteriograms in both patients showed total occlusion of all three major mesenteric vessels with collaterals supplied via hemorrhoidal arteries. Bypass grafting procedures of the celiac and superior mesenteric arteries in one patient and of the celiac artery in the other patient were performed. Six months after mesenteric artery revascularization, upper gastrointestinal symptoms had resolved and original weights were regained. Furthermore, normal 3-cpm gastric myoelectrical activity and normal gastric emptying of solids were restored in both patients. In these patients, chronic mesenteric ischemia resulted in a novel and reversible cause of gastroparesis, gastric dysrhythmias, and accompanying symptoms.

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PubMedDate not supplied

The watermelon stomach: long-term outcome in patients treated with Nd:YAG laser therapy.

Watermelon stomach is an unusual cause of gastrointestinal bleeding and iron deficiency anemia. Its etiology is unknown, but it has been reported to be associated with a variety of diseases, including autoimmune disorders and cirrhosis. We report on the long-term outcome of 15 patients (13 women, 2 men) treated with neodymium-yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Nd:YAG) laser therapy. The mean age of patients at presentation was 71.6 years (range, 59 to 85 years). Fourteen patients were transfusion-dependent, requiring an average of 9.6 units of blood in the 12 months preceding diagnosis and treatment. Associated diseases included scleroderma (3 patients), mixed connective tissue disease (1 patient), history of cancer (3 patients), cryptogenic cirrhosis (3 patients), and chronic renal failure (3 patients). In 7 of 9 patients who had an antinuclear antibody test, an elevated titer greater than 1:160 in a speckled pattern was noted. Nd:YAG laser coagulation therapy was administered to all patients without complications and was successful in reducing bleeding in every case. Five patients died during the course of follow-up without signs of recurrent gastrointestinal bleeding. The remaining 10 patients have had both endoscopic and hematologic improvement during a mean follow-up period of 4.4 years from the time of initial diagnosis (range, 2 to 8 years). The 10 survivors are no longer transfusion-dependent and have stable hematocrits.

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