• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.221-228
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• 2014

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the value of serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) levels to detect gastric cancer recurrence. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 154 patients who developed recurrence within 2 years after curative gastric cancer surgery and analyzed the relationship between postoperative CEA and CA19-9 levels and recurrence. We readjusted the cut-off values to improve the detection of recurrence. Subgroup analysis according to clinicopathologic variables was performed to further investigate the relationship between recurrence and CEA and CA19-9 levels. Results: The sensitivity and specificity for elevated CEA levels to detect recurrence were 40.6% and 89.5%, respectively, and those for CA19-9 were 34.2% and 93.6%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity for elevation of either tumor marker were 54.3% and 84.0%, respectively; those for elevation of both tumor markers were 19.2% and 98.4%, respectively. By readjusting the cut-off values from 5.0 ng/ml to 5.2 ng/ml for CEA and from 37.00 U/ml to 30.0 U/ml for CA19-9, the sensitivity was increased from 34.2% to 40.2% for CA19-9, while there was no increase in sensitivity for CEA. In subgroup analysis, the sensitivity of CEA was higher in patients with elevated preoperative CEA levels than in patients with normal preoperative CEA levels (86.7% versus 33.7%; P<0.001). Furthermore, the sensitivity of CA19-9 was higher in patients with elevated preoperative CA19-9 levels than in patients with normal preoperative CA19-9 levels (82.61% versus 26.83%; P<0.001). Conclusions: CEA and/or CA19-9 measurement with the readjusted cut-off values allows for more effective detection of gastric cancer recurrence.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.104-111
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• 2003

Purpose: The prognostic significance of peri-operative serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and carbohydrate antigen (CA)19-9 determination in patients with gastric cancer has been controversial. This study was performed to evaluate the significance of CEA and CA19-9 as clinical predictors of prognosis. Materials and Methods: The correlations between peri-operative serum CEA/CA19-9 levels and clinicopathologic factors were evaluated retrospectively in gastric cancer patients who had undergone curative surgery during the period from January 1995 to December 1998 at the Department of Surgery, Yonsei University College of Medicine. Results: The positive rates for CEA and CA19-9 were $17.9\%$ and $18.4\%$, respectively. The CEA positivity was related to the depth of invasion (P=0.040), lymph-node metastasis (P=0.000), and stage (P=0.001). The CA19-9 positivity was significantly related to the depth of invasion (P=0.000), lymph-node status (P=0.000), and stage (P=0.000). The positive rate of combined assay of pre-operative CEA and CA19-9 was $30.0\%$ There were statistically significant correlations with stage, depth of invasion, or degree of lymphnode metastasis in the combined assay. The survival rates according to the positivity of CEA and to the positivity of CA19-9 were clearly different (P=0.000). Conclusion: It should be stressed that even a simple blood test prior to surgery could be useful in establishing the depth of invasion, the status of lymph-node involvement, and the prognosis. For improved survival, an aggressive lymphadenectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy should be considered for patients with positive levels of pre-operative CA19- 9.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.31-42
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• 2021

Objectives : This study was undertaken to investigate the hepatoprotective effect of Spatholobi Caulis water extract (SC) to thioacetamide (TAA)-induced acute liver injury (ALI) in rats. Methods : The rats were injected intraperitoneally with TAA (200 mg/kg body weight) and orally administered SC (100 or 200 mg/kg b.w.) daily for 3 days. Liver biomarkers were assessed by serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase (GOT), glutamic pyruvic transaminase (GPT), and ammonia levels. Malondialdehyde (MDA) was measured both serum and liver tissue. In addition, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase, anti-oxidant, and inflammation-related proteins were investigated by western blot analysis. Histological examination further confirmed though hematoxylin and eosin stain. Results : The SC treatment reduced liver function markers like GOT and GPT and also remarkably decreased ammonia level. Moreover, the elevated MDA level in TAA-induced group was significantly reduced by SC treatment. NADPH oxidase expression associated with oxidative stress including NOX2, NOX4, and p47phox markedly inhibited by SC administration. SC treatment exerted anti-oxidant effect through the increase of anti-oxidant enzyme including superoxide dismutase (SOD), Catalase, and heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1). The protein expressions of inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-�� (TNF-��), IL-6, and IL-1�� induced by nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-��B) activation were modulated through blocking the phosphorylation of inhibitor of nuclear factor ��B�� (I��B)��. SC treatment also improved histological alterations. Conclusion : These findings suggested that SC administration may be a potential candidate for the prevention or treatment of ALI.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.73-77
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• 2020

Ovarian cancer is common malignant disease with high mortality in the female. However, lymph node metastasis in the head and neck of ovarian cancer is very rare than in para-aortic, pelvic lymph node. A 49-year-old female patient came to our clinic with a left neck mass. After total thyroidectomy and left selective neck dissection for the cervical neck level II, III, IV, V, VI for ovarian cancer and thyroid cancer, she had already undergone chemotherapy (Paclitaxel+Carboplatin) 18 month ago. CT scan showed only lymph node enlargement in left neck level II. Positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) revealed a hypermetabolic lesion in same area but no other hypermetabolic lesion, especially in the pelvic and abdominal cavity. Fine needle aspiration cytology revealed metastatic carcinoma. The serum level of CA-125 was elevated to 43.8U/mL, whereas other tumor markers (CA 19-9, CEA) were in the normal range. She underwent a revision of selective neck lymph node dissection for the cervical neck levels I, II, and III, and on the review of surgical pathology, metastatic carcinoma was suspected. Thus, we performed immunohistochemical staining for the tissue; as a result, it was finally diagnosed as metastatic ovarian cancer (positive for CK7, ER and PR, and negative for CK20). Adjuvant chemotherapy (Paclitaxel+Carboplatin) was planned on the tumor board, and the patient successfully received chemotherapy.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.15
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• pp.6255-6259
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• 2015

Purpose: To evaluate the prognostic value of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) in gallbladder cancer (GBC). Materials and Methods: Serum ALP and GGT levels and clinicopathological parameters were retrospectively evaluated in 199 GBC patients. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to determine the cut-off values of ALP and GGT. Then, associations with overall survival were assessed by multivariate analysis. Based on the significant factors, a prognostic score model was established. Results: By ROC curve analysis, $ALP{\geq}210U/L$ and $GGT{\geq}43U/L$ were considered elevated. Overall survival for patients with elevated ALP and GGT was significantly worse than for patients within the normal range. Multivariate analysis showed that the elevated ALP, GGT and tumor stage were independent prognostic factors. Giving each positive factor a score of 1, we established a preoperative prognostic score model. Varied outcomes would be significantly distinguished by the different score groups. By further ROC curve analysis, the simple score showed great superiority compared with the widely used TNM staging, each of the ALP or GGT alone, or traditional tumor markers such as CEA, AFP, CA125 and CA199. Conclusions: Elevated ALP and GGT levels were risk predictors in GBC patients. Our prognostic model provides infomration on varied outcomes of patients from different score groups.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.11
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• pp.6557-6562
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• 2013

Objective: Specific promoters could improve efficiency and ensure the safety of gene therapy. The aim of our study was to screen examples for lung cancer. Methods: The firefly luciferase gene was used as a reporter, and promoters based on serum markers of lung cancer were cloned. The activity and specificity of seven promoters, comprising CEACAM5 (carcinoembryonic antigen, CEA), GRP (Gastrin-Releasing Peptide), KRT19 (cytokeratin 19, KRT), SFTPB (surfactant protein B, SP-B), SERPINB3 (Squamous Cell Carcinoma Antigen, SCCA), SELP (Selectin P, Granule Membrane Protein 140kDa, Antigen CD62, GMP) and DKK1 (Dickkopf-1) promoters were compared in lung cancer cells to obtain cancer-specific examples with strong activity. Results: The CEACAM5, DKK1, GRP, SELP, KRT19, SERPINB3 and SFTPB promoters were cloned. Furthermore, we successfully constructed recombinant vector pGL-CEACAM5 (DKK1, GRP, SELP, KRT19, SERPINB3 and SFTPB) contained the target gene. After cells were transfectedwith recombinant plasmids, we found that the order of promoter activity from high to low was SERPINB3, DKK1, SFTPB, KRT19, CEACAM5, SELP and GRP and the order for promoters regarding specificity and high potential were SERPINB3, DKK1, SELP, SFTPB, CEACAM5, KRT19 and GRP. Conclusion: The approach adopted is feasible to screen for new tumour specific promoters with biomarkers. In addition, the screened lung-specific promoters might have potential for use in lung cancer targeted gene therapy research.

• Journal of Radiopharmaceuticals and Molecular Probes
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.77-85
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• 2022

The Td05 and Sgc8c, DNA-based aptamers, are well-known to target internalized surface markers (IGHM and PTK7) of Burkitt's lymphoma and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Thus, Td05 and Sgc8c labeled with metallic radioisotope ⁶⁴Cu can be evaluated as potential diagnostic PET imaging agents. In this study, we modified the carbon chain length of the last adenosine of aptamer (n = 3, 6, 12) to increase tumor cell uptake and select the best candidate among six types of aptamer analogues and one adenosine of aptamer. After labeling of ⁶⁴Cu, [⁶⁴Cu]Cu-DOTA-aptamer analogues were evaluated in vitro studies (serum stability, Log P values, cell uptake, biodistribution). Then, we evaluate in vivo PET imaging study for two candidates (⁶⁴Cu-DOTA-C12-Sgc8c, ⁶⁴Cu-DOTA-C6-Td05). PET images clearly visualize tumors at 24 h post-injection rather than at an early time point and the tumor-to-background ratio also increases at the delay time point. ⁶⁴Cu-DOTA-C12-Sgc8c and ⁶⁴Cu-DOTA-C6-Td05 could be used as potential radiotracers for lymphoma.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.3937-3940
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• 2013

Objective: To explore the expression and significance of estrogen receptor (ER), progestrone receptor (PR), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), CA15-3, CA125 and carcinoma embryonic antigen (CEA) expression in judging the prognosis of breast cancer. Materials and Methods: Sixty-five patients with breast cancer undergoing operations in the general surgery department were considered as the observation group, and 50 healthy outpatients of our hospital as the control group. Cubital venous blood was drawn in the morning from fasting patients in the two groups and chemiluminescence immunoassays were used to detect the levels of CA15-3, CA125 and CEA in serum. The follow-up duration was from 4 months to 2 years, and change in levels of the indicators was detected by dynamically drawing blood. After surgery, cancer tissue samples of patients in observation group remained on file (the non-recurrent patients were biopsied). Immunohistochemistry was applied to determine the expression of ER, PR and VEGF in tissue. Results: The effective rate of 12 patients with negative ER and PR expression was 33.3% in the observation group, being associated with prognosis to varying extents. Serum CA15-3, CA125 and CEA in the observation group were all significantly higher than in control group (p<0.01). With increase in pathological staging, levels of serum CA15-3, CA125 and CEA gradually increased (p<0.01). Levels in patients with lymph node metastasis were markedly higher than in those without (p<0.01). In addition, values with distal lymph node metastasis were notably higher than with adjacent lymph node metastasis (p<0.01). The postoperative follow-up results revealed that positive VEGF and levels of serum VEGF, CA15-3, CA125 and CEA in recurrence group were obviously higher than in non-recurrence group (p<0.01). Conclusions: Joint detection of ER and PR expression as well as levels of serum VEGF, CA15-3, CA125 and CEA is meaningful and can guide the diagnosis and treatment for breast cancer.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.58 no.6
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• pp.582-589
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• 2005

Background : The incidence of lung adenocarcinoma, which is more prevalent in women and nonsmokers, is increasing. The aim of this study was to determine the prognostic factors of an adenocarcinoma of the lung. Material and method : The clinical information of patients diagnosed with an adenocarcinoma of the lung at the Kosin University Gospel Hospital from January 1994 to July 2004 was reviewed retrospectively. The survival time of these patients was analyzed by the patient's age, gender, performance status, weight loss, smoking history, location of the primary tumor, clinical stage, serologic tumor markers, and treatment modality. Results : For all 422 patients with an adenocarcinoma of the lung, 247 (58.5%) were male, and their mean age was 59.8 years the. The majority of patients were smokers (58.3%), and the tumors were located in the periphery (59.7%). In the smokers, the tumor was located more in the central airway compared to the non-smokers (42.8% vs. 31.9%, p=0.12). The overall median survival time was 390 days (95% CI;304-436 days). Univariate survival analysis revealed that an older age (${\geq}65$ years old), male, weight loss, smoker, central type, advanced clinical stage, elevated serum carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA, >5 ng/ml) and neuron specific enolase (NSE, >15 ng/ml), and the supportive care only were significantly poor prognostic factors. The median survival time was shorter in the smokers than nonsmokers (289 days vs. 533 days, p<0.001). In addition, it was also shorter in the elevated NSE group than in the normal range group (207 days vs. 469 days, p<0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that age, clinical stage, serum NSE, smoking status, and treatment modality were independent predictors of survival (hazard ratios: 1.68, 1.94, 1.92, 2.39 and 1.57, respectively). Conclusions : Smoking is an important prognostic factor in an adenocarcinoma of the lung, but not gender. This suggests that the better prognosis of women is more related with the lower rate of smoking. In addition, the elevated serum NSE is also an important prognostic in an adenocarcinoma of the lung.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.158-164
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• 2012

Inhibiting the bioactivities of circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) results in significant inhibition of neovessel formation during tumor angiogenesis. To investigate the potential effect of phloroglucinol as an EPC inhibitor, we performed several in vitro functional assays using $CD34^+$ cells isolated from human umbilical cord blood (HUCB). Although a high treatment dose of phloroglucinol did not show any cell toxicity, it specifically induced the cell death of EPCs under serum free conditions through apoptosis. In the EPC colony-forming assay (EPC-CFA), we observed a significant decreased in the small EPC-CFUs for the phloroglucinol group, implying that phloroglucinol inhibited the early stage of EPC commitment. In addition, in the in vitro expansion assay using $CD34^+$ cells, treatment with phloroglucinol was shown to inhibit endothelial lineage commitment, as demonstrated by the decrease in endothelial surface markers of EPCs including $CD34^+$, $CD34^+/CD133^+$, $CD34^+/CD31^+$ and $CD34^+/CXCR4^+$. This is the first report to demonstrate that phloroglucinol can inhibit the functional bioactivities of EPCs, indicating that phloroglucinol may be used as an EPC inhibitor in the development of biosafe anti-tumor drugs that target tumor angiogenesis.