• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.157-164
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• 2019

Purpose: Although standard radical gastrectomy is recommended after noncurative resection of endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) for early gastric cancer in most cases, residual tumor and lymph node metastasis have not been identified after surgery. The aim of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of sentinel node navigation surgery after noncurative ESD. Materials and Methods: This trial is an investigator-initiated, multicenter prospective phase II trial. Patients who underwent ESD for clinical stage T1N0M0 gastric cancer with noncurative resections were eligible. Qualified investigators who completed the prior phase III trial (SENORITA 1) are exclusively allowed to participate. In this study, 2 detection methods will be used: 1) intraoperative endoscopic submucosal injection of dual tracer, including radioisotope and indocyanine green (ICG) with sentinel basins detected using gamma-probe; 2) endoscopic injection of ICG, with sentinel basins detected using a fluorescence imaging system. Standard laparoscopic gastrectomy with lymphadenectomy will be performed. Sample size is calculated based on the inferior confidence interval of the detection rate of 95%, and the calculated accrual is 237 patients. The primary endpoint is detection rate, and the secondary endpoints are sensitivity and postoperative complications. Conclusions: This study is expected to clarify the feasibility of laparoscopic sentinel basin dissection after noncurative ESD. If the feasibility is demonstrated, a multicenter phase III trial will be initiated to compare laparoscopic sentinel node navigation surgery versus laparoscopic standard gastrectomy in early gastric cancer after endoscopic resection.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.11
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• pp.4711-4716
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• 2014

Introduction: Adiponectin (ApN) is a complement C1q-related protein, mainly secreted from adipose tissue, that signals through ApN receptor1 (Adipo-R1) and ApN receptor 2 (Adipo-R2). Low serum ApN concentrations are associated with obesity-related malignancies. However, there are very few studies on any prognostic role of ApN receptors in gastric cancer. Objectives: The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between AdipoR1/R2 expression and early/advanced stage gastric cancer in terms of clinicopathologic characteristics and survival. Materials and Methods: Eighteen patients with early and 39 with advanced stage gastric cancer who underwent surgical gastric resection were included in this study. Results: Adipo-R1 expression was low in 2 of the 18 patients with early stage gastric cancer (11.1%), while 4 had low Adipo-R2 expression (22.2%). In those with advanced stage gastric cancer, 7 of 39 had low Adipo-R1 expression (17.9%) and 16 had low Adipo-R2 expression (41%). Adipo-R2 expression was significantly higher (p=0.011) in moderately differentiated tumors when compared to well-differentiated tumors. While there was nearly a statistically significant relationship between TNM stage (T, tumor size; N, regional lymph node; M, whether distant metastases exist) and Adipo-R2 expression (p=0.054), there was no relationship between Adipo-R1/-R2 expression with tumor stage and survival. Conclusion: Adipo-R1/-R2 expression has no prognostic significance of in early/advanced stage gastric cancer.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.598-608
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• 2023

Purpose: Lymph node (LN) metastasis is a crucial factor in the prognosis of patients with gastric cancer (GC) and is known to occur more frequently in cases with an advanced T stage. This study aimed to analyze the survival data of patients with advanced LN metastasis in T1 GC. Materials and Methods: From January 2008 to June 2018, 677 patients with pathological stage II GC who underwent radical gastrectomy were divided into an early GC group (EG: T1N2 and T1N3a, n=103) and an advanced GC (AGC) group (AG: T2N1, T2N2, T3N0, T3N1, and T4aN0, n=574). Short- and long-term survival rates were compared between the 2 groups. Results: A total of 80.6% (n=83) of the patients in the EG group and 52.8% (n=303) in the AG group had stage IIA AGC. The extent of LN dissection, number of retrieved LNs, and short-term morbidity and mortality rates did not differ between the 2 groups. The 5-year relapse-free survival (RFS) of all patients was 87.8% and the overall survival was 84.0%. RFS was lower in the EG group than in the AG group (82.2% vs. 88.7%, P=0.047). This difference was more pronounced among patients with stage IIA (82.4% vs. 92.9%, P=0.003). Conclusions: T1 GC with multiple LN metastases seems to have a worse prognosis compared to tumors with higher T-stages at the same level. Adjuvant chemotherapy is highly recommended for these patients, and future staging systems may require upstaging T1N2-stage tumors.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.841-844
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• 2015

Background: Gastric cancer as one of the most important diseases affecting health in all worldwide. Current studies have confirmed associations of cytokine gene polymorphisms with the risk of gastric cancer development. The current research aimed to assess the association of IL-1B+3954 genotypes with the risk of gastric cancer in the Iranian population. Materials and Methods: This case-control study covered 49 gastric cancer patients compared to 53 cancer free individuals as a control group. Genomic-DNA extraction was carried out from bioptic samples of patients and peripheral blood of healthy volunteers. Polymorphism of IL-1B +3954 genotypes were analysed with a polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method. Results: The frequencies of IL-1B +3954 A1A1, A1A2 and A2A2 genotypes in healthy individuals were 26.4, 66 and 7.6 %, respectively. However, in gastric cancer patients, A1A1, A1A2 and A2A2 with 4.1, 51 and 44.9% were observed (p<0.05). Conclusions: The findings of our results show a positive association between the IL-1B+3954 genotype distribution and the risk of gastric cancer disease in the Iranian population.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.65-68
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• 2013

Gastric carcinoma rarely presents as a perforation, but when it does, is perceived as advanced disease. The majority of such perforations are Stage III/IV disease. A T1 gastric carcinoma has never been reported to perforate spontaneously in English literature. We present a 56 year-old Chinese male who presented with a perforated gastric ulcer. Intra-operatively, there was no suspicion of malignancy. At operation, an open omental patch repair was performed. Post-operative endoscopy revealed a macroscopic Type 0~III tumour and from the ulcer edge biopsy was reported as adenocarcinoma. Subsequently, the patient underwent open subtotal gastrectomy and formal D2 lymphadenectomy. The final histopathology report confirms T1b N0 disease. The occurrence of a perforated early gastric cancer reemphasises the need for vigilance, including intra-operative frozen section and/or biopsy, as well as routine post-operative endoscopy for all patients.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.113-119
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• 2008

Purpose: This study investigated whether a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) located at position -2 in the Kozak sequence of the TFF1 gene is associated with H. pylori infection and the development of gastric cancer in Koreans. Materials and Methods: We enrolled 167 patients with gastric cancer from January 2000 to December 2003 and also 299 healthy controls during the same period. The genotype of the TFF1 SNP was analyzed by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism and single strand conformation polymorphism. We also examined the H. pylori infection by Giemsa staining. Results: No significant difference in the allele or the TFF1 SNP genotype frequency was observed between the patients with gastric cancer and the control subjects (P=0.595 and P=0.715, respectively). When stratified by the histological subtype of gastric cancer and the age of the patients, the risk was not statistically significant between the two study groups (P=0.088 and P=0.551, respectively). H. pylori infection was detected in 39 cases and it was not associated with the TFF1 genotype. Conclusion: These findings suggest that this TFF1 gene polymorphism is not associated with H. pylori infection and gastric cancer in Koreans and so it doesn't contribute to the susceptibility to gastric cancer in Koreans.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.186-191
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• 2017

The role of nodal station No. 14v (along the superior mesenteric vein) in lymphadenectomy for distal gastric cancer remains elusive. A 73-year-old woman underwent endoscopic submucosal dissection for gastric cancer, and was referred to our division for additional surgery because of pathologically non-curative resection. A laparoscopic distal gastrectomy with D1+ dissection was performed, with a final diagnosis of pT1bN1M0, Stage IB (2 nodal metastases to No. 6). Four months post-surgery, abdominal computed tomography revealed a 14-mm solitary nodule along the superior mesenteric vein. The lesion was excised and pathologically identified as a lymph node metastasis. Adjuvant chemotherapy with tegafur-gimeracil-oteracil potassium (S-1) was administered for the metastasis. Presently the patient survives without recurrence, 5.5 years after the second operation. Our findings suggest that there is lymphatic flow from the No. 6 to the No. 14v nodal station. Some patients with a No. 6 metastasis may benefit from a No. 14v lymphadenectomy, even in early-staged disease.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.224-249
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• 2023

Gastric cancer is heterogeneous in morphology, biology, genomics, and treatment response. Alterations in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) overexpression, microsatellite instability (MSI) status, programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) levels, and fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) can be used as biomarkers. Since the combination of fluoropyrimidine/platinum plus trastuzumab that was investigated in the ToGA trial was approved as a standard of care in HER2-positive patients in 2010, no other agents showed efficacy in the first- (HELOISE, LOGiC, JACOB trials) and second- (TyTAN, GATSBY, T-ACT trials) line treatments. Despite the success in treating breast cancer, various anti-HER2 agents, including a monoclonal antibody (pertuzumab), an antibody-drug conjugate (ADC; trastuzumab emtansine [T-DM1]), and a small molecule (lapatinib) failed to translate into clinical benefits until the KEYNOTE-811 (first-line) and DESTINY-Gastri01 (≥second-line) trials were conducted. The incorporation of HER2-directed treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors in the form of a monoclonal antibody or ADC is now approved as a standard treatment. Despite the promising results of new agents (engineered monoclonal antibodies, bi-specific antibodies, fusion proteins, and small molecules) in the early phase of development, the management of HER2-positive gastric cancer requires further optimization to achieve precision medicine with a chemotherapeutic backbone. Treatment resistance is a complex process that can be overcome using a combination of chemotherapy, targeted agents, and immune checkpoint inhibitors, including novel agents. HER2 status must be reassessed in patients undergoing anti-HER2 treatment with disease progression after the first-line treatment. As a general guideline, patients who need systemic treatment should receive chemotherapy plus targeted agents, anti-angiogenic agents, immune checkpoint inhibitors, or their combinations.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.185-198
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• 2024

Purpose: Peritoneal washing cytology (PWC) is a widely used diagnostic tool for detecting peritoneal metastasis of advanced gastric cancer. However, the prognosis of patients with positive PWC remains poor even after gastrectomy, and treatments vary among institutions and eras. In this study, we identified the clinical factors that can help predict cytology-positive (CY(+)) gastric cancer. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the national data of patients with gastric cancer from 2019, as provided by the Information Committee of the Korean Gastric Cancer Association. Of the 13,447 patients with gastric cancer, 3,672 underwent PWC. Based on cytology results, we analyzed the clinicopathological characteristics and assessed the possibility of CY(+) outcomes in relation to T and N stages. Results: Of the 3,270 patients who underwent PWC without preoperative chemotherapy, 325 were CY(+), whereas 2,945 were negative. CY(+) was more commonly observed in patients with Borrmann type IV gastric cancer, an undifferentiated histological type, and advanced pathological stages. Multivariate analysis revealed Borrmann type IV (odds ratio [OR], 1.821), tumor invasion to T3-4 (OR, 2.041), and lymph node metastasis (OR, 3.155) as independent predictors of CY(+). Furthermore, for circular tumor location, the N stage emerged as a significant risk factor for CY(+), particularly when the tumor was located on the posterior wall (PW) side. Conclusions: Lymph node metastasis significantly affects CY(+) outcomes, particularly when the tumor is located on the PW side. Therefore, PWC should be considered not only in suspected serosal exposure cases but also in cases of lymph node metastasis.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.102-110
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• 2019

Purpose: Despite an increased acceptance of laparoscopic gastrectomy (LG) in early gastric cancer (EGC), there is insufficient evidence for its oncological safety in advanced gastric cancer (AGC). This is a prospective phase II clinical trial to evaluate the feasibility of LG with D2 lymph node dissection (LND) in AGC. Materials and Methods: The primary endpoint was set as 3-year disease-free survival (DFS). The eligibility criteria were as follows: 20-80 years of age, cT2N0-cT4aN3, American Society of Anesthesiologists score of 3 or less, and no other malignancy. Patients were enrolled in this single-arm study between November 2008 and May 2012. Exclusion criteria included cT4b or M1, or having final pathologic results as EGC. All patients underwent D2 lymphadenectomy. Three-year DFS rates were estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: A total of 157 patients were enrolled. The overall local complication rate was 10.2%. Conversion to open surgery occurred in 11 patients (7.0%). The mean follow-up period was $55.0{\pm}20.4months$ (1-81 months). The cumulative 3-year DFS rates were 76.3% for all stages, and 100%, 89.3%, 100%, 88.0%, 71.4%, and 35.3% for stage IB, IIA, IIB, IIIA, IIIB, and IIIC, respectively. Recurrence was observed in 37 patients (23.6%), including hematogenous (n=6), peritoneal (n=13), locoregional (n=1), distant node (n=8), and mixed recurrence (n=9). Conclusions: In addition to being technically feasible for treatment of AGC in terms of morbidity, LG with D2 LND for locally advanced gastric cancer showed acceptable 3-year DFS outcomes.