Entero-cutaneous fistula resulting from a locally invasive large bowel carcinoma is a difficult surgical challenge. En-bloc resection of the involved organs and the entero-cutaneous fistula tract with a healthy tissue margin will result in a composite abdominal wall defect that requires closure. Reconstructive surgical options include primary closure, components separation and the use of local, regional or free flaps with or without prosthetic mesh. We report a case of an abdominal enterocutaneous fistula secondary to a locally invasive sigmoid carcinoma, which was reconstructed with a pedicled antero-lateral thigh perforator (ALT) flap. To our knowledge, this is the first case of a malignant entero-cutaneous fistula, which was reconstructed with an ALT flap.
Authors present a case of bilharziosis incidentally diagnosed in a patient undergoing TURB for suspected bladder cancer. The patient, who in 2005 had gone to Malaysia, had been suffering from recurrent hemorrhagic cystitis since 2007, which were treated with antibiotic therapy. In November 2009 he presented to our observation for persistent hematuria, underwent ultrasound examination, fibroscopy and TURB diagnostics for suspicious lesions. The histopathology diagnosis found granulomatous lesions with typical parasites eggs due to schistosomiasis eggs. As a consequence of that, the patient underwent medical therapy. The pathologist's role becomes nullifying not only for the diagnosis of parasitic infections but also for the exclusion or evidence of urothelial squamous neoplasia. The low incidence of this rare parasitic disease in European tourists and the presence of immigrants in our country require to spread the knowledge of these parasites and the most simple tests for early detection.