Internal medicine
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IgG4-related membranous nephropathy (MN) is often refractory to glucocorticoid (GC) therapy, and treatment remains unclear. We herein report a 67-year-old Japanese man with IgG4-related MN and tubulointerstitial nephritis. A post-gastroscopy antibody test revealed Helicobacter pylori infection. ⋯ However, remission proved challenging to achieve, with persistent proteinuria present at 1.0-2.0 g/gCr. We performed multitarget therapy for refractory IgG4-related MN, achieving proteinuria remission (<0.3 g/gCr). Multitarget therapy with low-dose GCs can resolve refractory IgG4-related MN through remission induction of proteinuria and minimize the risks associated with GC therapy.
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An 80-year-old woman with rheumatoid arthritis during treatment with etanercept, a tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitor, showed swelling of the salivary glands and retroperitoneal fibrosis, which was diagnosed as IgG4-related disease. Although some reports have shown the efficacy of TNF inhibitors for IgG4-related disease or retroperitoneal fibrosis, TNF inhibitors sometimes cause paradoxical reactions like psoriasis, and the mechanisms are considered to involve the upregulation of plasmacytoid dendritic cells and IFN-α, which is also common in patients with IgG4-related disease. This is a case report of IgG4-related retroperitoneal fibrosis with the possibility of a rare paradoxical reaction by a TNF inhibitor.
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A 58-year-old man with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection presented with a week-long history of gross hematuria, nephrotic proteinuria, and acute kidney injury. The patient was non-adherent with combination antiretroviral therapy. ⋯ This case highlights the fact that HIV patients are at an increased risk of developing HIVICK, especially in the setting of non-adherence. A greater understanding of HIVICK among HIV patients should promote additional investigation into its etiology and viable treatments.
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Case Reports
Complete Circumferential Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection for Esophageal Cancer Leaving an Island of Normal Mucosa.
Esophageal stricture caused by complete circumferential endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) of extensive esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is a major concern and can result in a low quality of life. Normal mucosa may remain within a complete circumferential lesion of ESCC in some cases. We herein report a case of ESCC in which a complete circumferential lesion was treated with ESD while leaving an island of normal mucosa within it. This case demonstrates that preserving areas of normal mucosa within lesions during complete circumferential ESD is not technically difficult and may be an effective measure for preventing esophageal stricture.
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Amplification of the mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET) gene plays an important role in anticancer drug resistance to anaplastic lymphoma kinase-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (ALK-TKIs) in echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like 4-anaplastic lymphoma kinase (EML4-ALK)-rearranged lung cancer cells. We encountered an ALK-rearranged lung cancer patient who developed MET amplification after alectinib treatment and showed an effective response to fifth-line crizotinib. ⋯ Switching to the MET inhibitor crizotinib improved liver metastases. Crizotinib may be effective in ALK-positive patients with MET amplification.