Skin and Connective Tissue Diseases Commons^™

Spare Parts Surgery For Oncologic Reconstruction To Preserve Local Advancement Flap For Decubitus Ulcer Reconstruction: A Case Report, Emily Zurbuchen, Nathan Foje, Sean Figy

Graduate Medical Education Research Journal

A 58-year-old male presented to our institution with synchronous large left thigh sarcoma and sacral decubitus ulcer requiring oncologic resection and reconstruction. Due to extensive tumor involvement, use of local flap for reconstruction was not feasible. Therefore, a spare parts free fillet flap from the disarticulated lower leg was utilized for reconstruction following oncologic resection. The benefits of this spare parts approach include no donor site morbidity, sufficient tissue padding for later use of prosthesis, and preservation of other flaps for future reconstruction of his sacral decubitus ulcer.

End-Of-Life Healthcare Use Of Medicare Patients With Melanoma Based On Patient Characteristics And Year Of Death, Rebecca N. Hutchinson, F. Lee Lucas, Kathleen Fairfield

Journal of Maine Medical Center

Background: Many cancer patients receive overly-intensive care at end-of-life (EOL), despite recognition that this is a marker of poor quality. There is limited knowledge about care received by patients dying with melanoma.

Objective: We characterized healthcare utilization during EOL and patient characteristics associated with variations in care. We also described how utilization changed over time.

Methods: We used the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare database to identify 9099 melanoma patients aged 65+ at diagnosis between 2000 and 2009, who died by 12/31/2010. We included patients enrolled in Medicare part A and B six-months prior to diagnosis and not in managed …