• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제16권15호
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• pp.6705-6709
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• 2015

Background: Venous thromboembolisms (VTEs) constitute a group of diseases including deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). They regarded as the second leading cause of death in cancer patients and several studies have confirmed that VTEs have a negative impact on survival and recurrent rate in both ovarian and endometrial cancer cases. The incidence of VTEs differs worldwide and depends on several risk factors including race, underlying disease, lifestyle, body weight, BMI and genetic risk factors. There is heterogeneity of DVT rates between Asian and Western countries. This study was conducted in order to evaluate the character and incidence of VTEs in gynecologic oncology patients in King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital over a 10 year period. Materials and Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed with VTEs defined as objective diagnosis of acute DVT or PE with typical symptoms and signs. Diagnoses were approved byan internist and/or confirmed with imaging studies. Data from both outpatient and inpatient sessions of the affected cases from January 2004 to December 2013 were extracted. General characteristics of the patients were collected with details of the diseases, types of cancer, stage, date of diagnosis of cancer, operative data, treatment outcome, progression free survival and overall survival. Results: Thirty cases of VTEs were identified in a total 2,316 gynecologic oncology cases. The incidence of symptomatic VTEs in total gynecologic oncology patients in our institution is 1.295%. The incidence of VTEs in ovarian cancer patients in our institution was 5.9%. Duration for VTE detection ranged from 13 months before diagnosis of cancer to 33 months after diagnosis of cancer. Most of the VTE cases were detected in ovarian cancer patients (60%). The most common cell type was adenocarcinoma (moderately to poorly differentiated) which accounted for 26.7% of the cases. The second most common cell type was clear cell carcinoma with 23.3% of the cases. Thirty percent of VTE cases developed before cancer was diagnosed, 20% were diagnosed at the same time as cancer detection and fifty percent developed after cancer was diagnosed. Median disease free survival of the gynecologic oncology patients with VTE was 7.5 months. Median overall survival (OS) was 12 months. Median progession free survivals of DVT and PE groups were 11.5 and 5.5 months, respectively. OS of DVT and PE was 12.0 and 11.5 months respectively. Conclusions: The incidence of VTE in Asian countries is believed to be lower than in European or Western countries. From our retrospective review, the incidence of VTEs in all types of gynecologic oncology was 1.295%, much lower than reported in the West. The reason for the lower incidence may genetic differences. Another factor is that VTE in this review was symptomatic, which is less than asymptomatic VTE. More than half of VTEs in this study developed in ovarian cancer patients. The results are compatible with earlier reports that among gynecologic malignancies, the incidence of VTE is highest in ovarian cancer.

• 대한두경부종양학회지
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• 제15권1호
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• pp.22-28
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• 1999

Purpose: We performed this study retrospectively to evaluate local control, survival, prognostic factors, and failure patterns in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of Waldeyer's ring. Materials and Methods: From April 1984 to November 1996,41 patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of Waldeyer's ring were treated with combined chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Age was ranged from 19 to 73 years old with a median age of 55 years, and there were 26 male and 15 female patients. Primary site was tonsil in 26 and base of the tongue in 7 and nasopharynx in 8, and stage distribution showed stage I in 12 and stage II in 29 patients. Pathologic classification was done according to Working Formulation. There were 1 with follicular mixed small cleaved and large cell, 8 with diffuse small cleaved cell, 7 with diffuse mixed small and large cell, and 25 cases with diffuse large cell. All patients were treated with combination of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Chemotherapy regimen consisted of either CHOP-Bleo(cyclophosphamide, adriamycin, vincristine, prednisolone, bleomycin) or COP-BLAM III(cyclophosphamide, vincristine, prednisolone, bleomycin, adriamycin, procarbazine). Radiation dose ranged from 3600cGy to 6620cGy with a median dose of 5040cGy. Follow-up time was ranged from 15 months to 159 months(median 55 months). Results: The complete response was achieved in 98%(40/41) and partial response in 2%(1/41). The complete response rate were the followings: 66.7% for stage I and 51.7% for stage II after chemotherapy, 100% for stage I and 96.6% for stage II after overall treatment respectively. The overall survival rate and disease-tree survival rates at 5 years were 82.6% and 79.5%, respectively. Prognostic factors for overall survival were age(p=0.007), stage(p=0.03), nodal status(p=0.006) and radiation dose(p=0.003). The factors associated with disease-tree survival were stage(p=0.04), nodal status(p=0.004) and radiation dose(p=0.009). The failure patterns were analized in evaluable 35 patients with complete response. Locoregional failure was noted in 2 patients and distant metastasis in 5 patients. Conclusion: Our results suggest that combined modality therapy is the appropriate treatment for stage I-II intermediate grade non-hodgkin's lymphoma of the Waldeyer's ring. However, our material is small and the analysis is retrospective. Randomized prospective studies for combined therapy, radiation therapy alone and chemotherapy alone are needed.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제14권3호
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• pp.2101-2105
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• 2013

Background: Long-term survival is a problem with locally advanced and metastatic renal cell carcinomas. Sunitinib malate is an oral multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor, but data on sunitinib use as a second line treatment in metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) are limited. Prognostic and predictive value of peripheral blood markers has been shown for many cancers. Materials and Methods: Efficacy and safety profiles of sunitinib after interferon alpha (IFN-${\alpha}$) were evaluated based on retrospective data for 23 patients with mRCC. Hematological parameters (neutrophils, lymphocytes, platelets, mean platelet volume, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, platelet/lymphocyte ratio) were recorded at the time of metastasis. It was evaluated whether hematological parameters were prognostic and predictive factors. Results: Median progression-free survival (PFS) time was 16.5 months (95%CI: 0-34.5). Median overall survival (OS) time was 25.7 months (95%CI: 10.8-40.0). Most common side effects were neutropenia (52.2%), stomatitis (26.1%) and hand-food syndrome (26.1%). PFS was found 3.13 vs 17.1 months in patients with neutrophil / lymphocyte ratio (NLR)>3 vs $NLR{\leq}3$ (p:0.012). Median OS was 6.96 vs 27.1 months in patients with NLR>3 vs $NLR{\leq}3$ (p:0.001).While 75% of patients who responded to sunitinib had $NLR{\leq}3$, in 72% of patients with no response to sunitinib NLR>3 was detected (p:0.036). The association between the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) criteria and NLR was statistically significant (p:0.022). Conclusions: Data on second line sunitinib treatment following cytokine in mRCC are limited. In our study, we observed second line sunitinib treatment following IFN-${\alpha}$ to be effective and tolerable. NLRappeared to have prognostic and predictive value.

• 동의생리병리학회지
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• 제19권5호
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• pp.1281-1291
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• 2005

Chungpae-tang is suggested to have the antitumor activity on lung cancer. This study was peformed to investigate apoptotic effect in vitro and antitumor effect and immune response after injection of B16-F10 melanoma cells and Chungpae-tang into a tail vein of C57BL/6 mice and administratition of Chungpae-tang in A549 human lung cancer cell line in vivo, respectively. Experimental studies were obtained by measuring the median survival time and cytokine expression through RT-PCR, and ELISA assay. The results were summarized as follows: 5 mg/ml of Chungpae-tang causing DNA fragmentation, caspase-3 enzyme activation, PARP fragmentation, and cytochrome c release, suggested that Chungpae-tang has in vitro apoptotic effect in A549 human lung cancer cell line in the apoptosis-induced experiment. The median survival time of the Chungpae-tang treated group was 21 days and that of control group was 22 days, suggesting that the median survival time between the Chungpae-tang treated group and the control group was not significant. Cytokine expression between the Chungpae-fang treated group and the control group was noticeable, but was not significant in the RT-PCR. In the ELISA assay, IL-2 productivity in the Chungpae-tang treated group was to increase more than that in the normal group (p<0.05) and was no significant between the Chungpae-tang treated group and the control group. $INF-\gamma$ productivity of the control group decreased more than that of the normal group (p<0.05) and that of the Chungpae-tang-treated group increased more than that of the control group (p<0.05). IL-12 productivity of the control group increased more than that of the normal group (p<0.05) and that of the Chungpae-tang-treated group decreased more than that of the control group (p<0.05) and the normal group. IL-4 productivity of the Chungpae-tang-treated group increased more than that of the normal group and the control group (p<0.05). IL-10 productivity of the Chungpae-tang-treated group increased more than that of the normal group and the control group (p<0.05). Accordingly the results show Chungpae-tang could induce apoptosis in A549 human lung cancer cell line and bring to antitumor effect and immune response against injection of B16-F10 melanoma cells into a tail vein of C57BL/6 mice but it needs more research on the precise mechanism of such effects.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제13권8호
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• pp.4045-4050
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• 2012

Objective: The impact of ablative oral cancer surgery was studied, with particular reference to recurrence and nodal metastasis, to assess survival probability and prognostic indicators and to elucidate if ethnicity influences the survival of patients. Methods: Patients who underwent major ablative surgery of the head and neck region with neck dissection were identified and clinical records were assessed. Inclusion criteria were stage I-IV oral and oropharyngeal malignancies necessitating resection with or without radiotherapy from 2004 to 2009. All individuals had a pre-operative assessment prior to the surgery. The post operative assessment period ranged from 1 year to 5 years. Survival distributions were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves. Results: 87 patients (males:38%; females:62%) were included in this study, with an age range of 21-85 years. Some 78% underwent neck dissections while 63% had surgery and radiotherapy. Nodal recurrence was detected in 5.7% while 20.5% had primary site recurrence within the study period. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis revealed that the median survival time was 57 months. One year overall survival (OS) rate was 72.7% and three year overall survival rate dropped to 61.5%. On OS analysis, the log-rank test showed a significant difference of survival between Malay and Chinese patients (Bonferroni correction p=0.033). Recurrence-free survival (RFS) analysis revealed that 25% of the patients have reached the event of recurrence at 46 months. One year RFS rate was 85.2% and the three year survival rate was 76.1%. In the RFS analysis, the log-rank test showed a significant difference in the event of recurrence and nodal metastasis (p<0.001). Conclusion: Conservative neck is effective, in conjunction with postoperative radiotherapy, for control of neck metastases. Ethnicity appears to influence the survival of the patients, but a prospective trial is required to validate this.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• 제40권2호
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• pp.109-113
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• 2007

배경: 비소세포폐암에 흔히 발생하는 악성 흉수는 환자의 예후에 나쁜 인자로 작용하여, 원격전이가 발생한 환자들과 비슷한 생존기간을 보인다. 비소세포폐암에 발생하는 악성 흉수의 진단과 치료에 대한 연구는 많이 이루어졌으나, 환자의 예후에 영향을 미치는 인자에 대한 연구는 많지 않다. 저자들은 악성 흉수가 발생한 비소세포폐암 환자들의 예후에 영향을 미치는 예후 인자들을 알아보고자 연구를 시행하였다. 대상 및 방법: 2002년 1월부터 2003년 12월까지 악성 흉수를 동반한 비소세포폐암으로 치료를 받은 환자 33명을 대상으로 하였다. 환자의 예후에 영향을 미칠 가능성이 있는 환자의 특성(성별, 연령), 폐암 조직형 및 병기, 흉수 천자액 검사(pH, CEA, LDH, glucose, albumin), 흉수 발견 후 치료 방법을 인자로 설정하여 조사하였다. 각 인자의 생존기간을 Kaplan-Meier법으로 구한 후, log-rank test를 통한 단변량분석으로 인자 각 군의 생존기간 차이를 비교하였고, 환자의 예후에 영향을 미치는 독립적 예후 인자를 찾기 위해 다변량분석으로 Cox Regression을 실시하였다. 결과: 대상환자 33명의 폐암 조직형은 선암이 23명으로 가장 많았다. 폐암과 악성 흉수가 동시에 진단된 경우를 제외하면 폐암 진단 후 악성 흉수가 진단되기까지의 중앙값 기간은 7.3개월($25^{th}{\sim}75^{th}:\;3.9{\sim}11.8$)이었다. 환자의 중앙값 생존기간은 3.6개월(95% Confidence Interval: $1.14{\sim}5.99$)이었다. 단변량분석에선 폐암 조직형이 유의성은 떨어지나 생존기간에 차이를 보였다(선암 4.067 vs. 비선암 1.867 개월, p=0.067). 교란변수의 영향을 제거한 다변량분석에서 통계적 유의성은 없으나 비선암이 선암보다 사망위험도가 높아지는 경향을 보였다(R.R 2.754, 95% Cl $0.988{\sim}7.672$, p=0.053). 결론: 본 연구에서 저자들은 악성흉수가 발생한 비소세포폐암 환자들의 예후에 영향을 미치는 예후 인자를 확인할 수 없었다. 그러나 조직형에 따라 암사망 위험도에 차이를 보이는 경향이 관찰되어 향후 이에 대한 연구가 필요할 것이다.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제14권11호
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• pp.6369-6373
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• 2013

Background: Gastric cancer is one of the most common causes of cancer deaths all over the world and the most important reason for its high rate of death is its belated diagnosis at advanced stages of the disease. Events occur in patients which are regarded not only as themselves factors affecting patients' survival but also which can be affected by other factors. This study was designed and implemented aiming to identify these events and to investigate factors affecting their occurrence. Materials and Methods: Data from 330 patients with gastric cancer undergoing surgery at the Iran Cancer Institute from 1995-1999 were analyzed. The survival time of these patients was determined after surgery and the effects of various factors including demographic, diagnostic and clinical as well as medical, and post-surgical varuiables on the occurrence of death hazard without relapse, hazard of relapse, and death hazard with a relapse were assessed. Results: The median survival time for these patients was 16.3 months and the 5-year survival rate was 21.6%. Based on the results of multi-state model, age and distant metastases affected relapse whereas disease stage, type and extent of surgery, lymph nodes metastases, and number of renewed treatments affected death hazard without relapse. Moreover, age, type and extent of surgery, number of renewed treatments, and liver metastases were identified as factors affecting death hazard in patients with relapse. Conclusions: Most cancer studies pay heed to factors which have effect on death occurrence, but some events occur which should be taken into consideration to better describe the natural process of the disease and provide researchers with more accurate data.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제14권10호
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• pp.6109-6114
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• 2013

Aim: To determine whether beta-blockers (BBs) improve the overall survival (OS) of patients with metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Materials and Methods: The medical charts of 107 patients with metastatic NSCLC were retrospectively assessed. Thirty-five patients (BB group) using BBs during chemotherapy (CT) were compared with 72 controls [control=(C) group] who did not use BBs following the diagnosis of NSCLC. The histological tumor subtype, performance status (ECOG), age, gender, smoking status, comorbidities, other medications and chemotherapeutics that were received in any line of treatment were recorded. We compared the overall survival (OS) of the patients in the BB and C groups. Results: The mean age of the patients was 61 years (range 42-81 years) and all patients were administered CT. The BB group was more likely to have HT and IHD and was more likely to use RAS blockers (p<0.01 for all) compared with the C group, as expected. The mean follow-up time was 17.8 months (range 1-102 months) for the entire group. The most commonly prescribed BB agent was metoprolol (80% of cases). At the time of the analysis, 74 (69%) of all patients had died. In the univariate analysis the median overall survival (OS) was 19.25 (${\pm}2.87$) months (95%CI: 13.62-24.88) in the BB group and 13.20 (${\pm}2.37$) months (95%CI: 8.55-17.85) in the C group (p=0.017). However, the benefit of BBs on survival disappeared in the multivariate analysis. Conclusions: The use of BBs during CT may be associated with an improved OS for patients with metastatic NSCLC.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• 제23권1호
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• pp.11-16
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• 2020

Purpose: D-dimer levels are known to be associated with poor outcomes in patients with various cancers, but their significance at the end of life remains unclear. This study investigated D-dimer levels as a prognostic indicator for terminal cancer patients in the last hours of life. Methods: The retrospective study was conducted at a palliative care unit of a tertiary cancer center, using a database to analyze the records of patients treated from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2018. In total, 67 terminal cancer patients with available data on D-dimer levels were included. Patients' demographic data, clinical information, and laboratory values, including D-dimer levels, were collected. Survival was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method and the log-rank test. A Cox proportional-hazards model was used to identify prognostic factors of poor survival. Results: The most common site of cancer was the lung (32.8%) and the median survival time was 5 days. Most laboratory results, particularly D-dimer levels, deviated from the normal range. Patients with high D-dimer levels had a significantly shorter survival time than those with low D-dimer levels (4 days vs. 7 days; P=0.012). In the Cox regression analysis, only a high D-dimer level was identified as a predictor of a poor prognosis (hazard ratio, 1.83; 95% confidence interval, 1.09~3.07). Conclusion: Our results suggest that at the very end of life, D-dimer levels may serve as a prognostic factor for survival in cancer patients.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• 제22권2호
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• pp.120-134
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• 2022

Purpose: This study aimed to identify prognostic factors for patients with distant lymph node-involved gastric cancer (GC) using a machine learning algorithm, a method that offers considerable advantages and new prospects for high-dimensional biomedical data exploration. Materials and Methods: This study employed 79 features of clinical pathology, laboratory tests, and therapeutic details from 289 GC patients whose distant lymphadenopathy was presented as the first episode of recurrence or metastasis. Outcomes were measured as any-cause death events and survival months after distant lymph node metastasis. A prediction model was built based on possible outcome predictors using a random survival forest algorithm and confirmed by 5×5 nested cross-validation. The effects of single variables were interpreted using partial dependence plots. A contour plot was used to visually represent survival prediction based on 2 predictive features. Results: The median survival time of patients with GC with distant nodal metastasis was 9.2 months. The optimal model incorporated the prealbumin level and the prothrombin time (PT), and yielded a prediction error of 0.353. The inclusion of other variables resulted in poorer model performance. Patients with higher serum prealbumin levels or shorter PTs had a significantly better prognosis. The predicted one-year survival rate was stratified and illustrated as a contour plot based on the combined effect the prealbumin level and the PT. Conclusions: Machine learning is useful for identifying the important determinants of cancer survival using high-dimensional datasets. The prealbumin level and the PT on distant lymph node metastasis are the 2 most crucial factors in predicting the subsequent survival time of advanced GC.