Case Studies

A 46-year-old man sought consultation for an abnormal prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level of 9 ng/mL and one prior negative biopsy. Five months ago, while traveling, he had presented to an urgent care facility with a 24-hour history of fever, chills, nausea, and vomiting.

Tumor lysis syndrome (TLS) is a potentially life-threatening metabolic disorder characterized by an elevated uric acid level, elevated serum potassium and phosphorus levels, and a decreased calcium level.

Many cancer patients experience cachexia. In collaboration with an interdisciplinary team including dietitians, oncology nurses are well positioned to implement proactive, multimodality interventions that improve clinical outcomes and quality of life for these patients.

Cutaneous paraneoplastic syndromes may precede, be concurrent with, or follow the diagnosis of an underlying malignancy. Treatment of the malignancy is often associated with improvement in or resolution of the mucosal and cutaneous disease; however, this is not the case with paraneoplastic pemphigus (PNP).

Management of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in the primary and relapsed setting requires the coordinated efforts of head and neck surgeons, radiation oncology, and medical oncology in order to maximize clinical care. Multidisciplinary efforts must be strengthened and new research performed to improve the otherwise poor prognosis for patients with locally recurrent HNSCC.

Second Opinion series: The patient is a 43-year-old man who was initially evaluated at an outside institution for unexplained anemia and who was found to have a large right kidney mass.
• Malignant Angiomyolipoma: a Rare Entity With Unusual Biology
• An Approach to the Management of Rare Tumors

Invasive aspergillosis is a major cause of life-threatening infection in immunocompromised patients. Nurses are well positioned to identify, educate, and monitor patients at high risk.

A 57-year-old patient presents for evaluation of right nipple discomfort. The patient has family history of a mother and sister with premenopausal breast cancer.

Hypersensitivity/infusion reactions can be caused by monoclonal antibodies and chemotherapeutic agents. Immediate interventions are often required. Patients who are about to begin treatment with a monoclonal antibody need a full physical assessment prior to initiating treatment.

A 40-year-old premenopausal woman with a new diagnosis of invasive lobular carcinoma occurring in a background of lobular carcinoma in situ presents to a multidisciplinary second opinion clinic. Herein, we describe the appropriate management of both noninvasive and invasive lobular carcinoma and provide a literature-based review of this controversial topic.
• Pleomorphic LCIS: A Divergent Entity With Emerging Significance
• The Impact of Lobular Histology on Breast Cancer Treatment

In spite of modern treatment modalities, resectable pancreatic cancer continues to have a high rate of recurrence and mortality.
• The War on Pancreatic Cancer: Are We Gaining Ground?
• Pancreatic Adeno-carcinoma: New Approaches to a Challenging Malignancy

Here we present the case of a 3-year-old girl with generalized lymphadenopathy and fever, in whom the cause of the symptoms was initially thought to be infectious. Ultimately, however, anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) was diagnosed. Using this case as a backdrop, we discuss the wide range of systemic illnesses that the differential diagnosis of generalized lymphadenopathy encompasses.

Here we present the first case of a radiation-resistant solitary plasmacytoma of the bladder that was successfully treated with lenalidomide and dexamethasone with successful clinical remission.
• Rare Bladder Tumors: Caveat Emptor
• Solitary Extramedullary and Bone Plasmacytomas versus Multiple Myeloma with Extramedullary Manifestation

A 36-year-old male with a history of cryptorchidism of the right side, treated with orchidopexy at the age of 4, presented with bilateral testicular swelling. Investigations included laboratory workup, ultrasound of both testes, as well as CT-scan of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis. Initial treatment was bilateral orchiectomy.
• The Approach to the Patient With Synchronous Bilateral Germ Cell Tumors

Mrs. S. is a 37-year-old Caucasian female who sought care at her home institution overseas during a period of several months for complaints of esophageal reflux, constipation, early satiety, increasing abdominal girth, and fatigue.