Reply to the Comment on: Abdominal Emergencies in Cancer Patients

Abstract

Thank you very much for this extremely valuable and insightful comment 1 on our recent paper 2 Abdominal emergencies in cancer patients encompass a wide spectrum of oncologic conditions caused directly by malignancies, paraneoplastic syndromes, reactions to the chemotherapy, or often represent the first clinical manifestation of an unknown malignancy. 3,4 Not rarely, clinical symptoms are the tip of an iceberg. Nevertheless, the clinical scenario is very variable and, as pointed out by the authors, requires a careful attention by a team of specialists of the emergency team since these patents are often old, fragile, and vulnerable. Actually, treatment includes a wide spectrum of options, ranging from nonoperative management, miniinvasive techniques to open-surgery depending on the emergency status of these patients, life expectancy and individual patient's preference via involvement of the patient and family.However, the starting point of any clinical discussion is the correct imaging diagnosis and the impact of imaging in the timely management process. This may be very challenging, especially in the emergency setting where the radiologist is asked not only to provide the correct diagnosis but, as a member of the emergency team, to discuss and suggest the appropriate management approach in the timely manner. The spirit of our paper follows this direction, that is, to offer an overview of all the most common emergency conditions emphatizing the pivotal role of the radiologist in the emergency setting providing rapid and accurate diagnoses, helping to ensure that patients receive the right care at the right time, reducing the risk of complications and improving patient outcomes.