• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.19
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• pp.8429-8433
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• 2014

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are believed to be particularly important and a reliable marker of malignancy. However, the prognostic significance of CTCs detected in patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is still unclear. We therefore aimed to assess the prognostic relevance of CTCs using a meta-analysis. We searched PubMed for relevant studies and statistical analyses were conducted to calculate the hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using fixed or random-effect models according to the heterogeneity of included studies. A total of 7 papers covering 440 SCLC patients were combined in the final analysis. The meta-analysis revealed that CTCs were significantly associated with shorter overall survival (HR=1.9; 95%CI: 1.19-3.04; Z=2.67; P<0.0001) and progression-free survival (HR=2.6; 95%CI: 1.9-3.54; Z=6.04; P<0.0001). The results thus suggest that the presence of CTCs indicates a poor prognosis in patients with SCLC. Further well-designed prospective studies are required to explore the clinical applications of CTCs in SCLC.

• Journal of Haehwa Medicine
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.223-239
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• 2001

A literature study on cancer therapy of warm-hot oriental medicine was done, and the results were as follows. 1. In oriental medicine, oncogens are six exopathogens, seven modes of emotion, overwork, pathogenic factors, and especially related with pathologic cold situation. 2. There are many capillaries in tuomr, and because temperature of inner space of tumor is higher than normal organization. Tumor cell has a character which is weak for high temperature. 3. Warm-hot herb drugs have effects of dissipating mass, warming kidney to reinforce yang and dispering, so it has a function of suppressing tumor as well as improving immunity in cancer therapy. 4. In traditional medical books, main prescriptions of cancer therapy are xinzhiyinyanggongjiwan(新製陰陽攻積丸), qianjinxiaoshiwan(千金硝石丸), feiqiwan(肥氣丸), xibenwan(息賁丸), fuliangwan(伏梁丸), beiqiwan, bentunwan(賁豚丸), zengsunwujiwan(增損五積丸), and these are composed of warm-hot herb drugs. 5. In current, the study of warm-hot drugs is progressed in immunological capacity, anti-tumor activity, stimulating bone marrow and regulating hormone secretion. It will be expected that advanced study of these must be accomplished in cancer patients.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.53 no.2
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• pp.223-226
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• 2015

We report here a case of strongyloidiasis in a 72-year-old diabetic patient (woman) accompanied by gastrointestinal stromal tumor receiving imatinib therapy, first diagnosed as hypereosinophilic syndrome and treated with steroids for uncontrolled eosinophilia. She suffered from lower back pain and intermittent abdominal discomfort with nausea and diagnosed with gastrointestinal stromal tumor. After post-operative imatinib treatment eosinophilia persisted, so that steroid therapy was started under an impression of hypereosinophilic syndrome. In spite of 6 months steroid therapy, eosinophilia persisted. Stool examination was performed to rule out intestinal helminth infections. Rhabditoid larvae of Strongyloides stercoralis were detected and the patient was diagnosed as strongyloidiasis. This diagnosis was confirmed again by PCR. The patient was treated with albendazole for 14 days and her abdominal pain and diarrhea improved. This case highlights the need for thorough investigation, including molecular approaches, to test for strongyloidiasis before and during steroid therapies.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.85-90
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• 2000

In radiation therapy, the effects of radiation are decided total dose, total treatment times and number of radiation dose fractions. We considered that total dose, total treatment times and number of radiation dose fractions in intensity modulation radiation therapy(IMRT) infuence tumor cell killing. The goal of three dimensional conformal radiation therapy(3DCRT) in radiation therapy is to conform the partial distribution of the prescribed radiation dose to the precise 3D configuration of the tumor, and at the same time, to minimize the dose to the surrounding normal tissues. To optimize treatment volume of tumor, treatment volume will be same tumor volume. All IMRT compare to conventional treatment plus boost IMRT when total dose irradiated 75 - 90 Gy. Because of biological effect, total dose are decreased 12.5 - l5Gy in all IMRT.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.211-216
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• 1999

We analyzed retrospectively the 74 patients with salivary tumors who were treated surgically at Chonbuk National University Hospital. The following results were obtained: 1) The most prevalent site was parotid gland and minor salivary gland is second in order. The most prevalent site of minor salivary gland tumor was palate. 2) Slow-growing painless mass was the most common chief complaints. 3) The most frequnet age incidence was 4th and 6th decades. 4) Sex ratio of male to female was 1:1.1, but in minor salivary gland tumor, female was more prevalent and sex ratio of male to female was 1:1.5. 5) Histopathologically, the most common salivary gland tumor was pleomorphic adenoma. Among the benign tumors, the pleomorphic adenoma was most common and Warthin's tumor was next. Among the malignant tumors, the mucoepidermoid carcinoma was most common and adenoid cystic carcinoma, adenocarcinoma were the next. 6) 59 patients with benign tumor and 15 patients with malignant tumor were treated with operative therapy. Among patients with malignant tumor, 12 patients were treated with postoperative radiation therapy. 7) Overall incidence of postoperative complication was 14.9% and the most common complication was transient facial nerve weakness and hematoma.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.357-370
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• 2012

Radiation therapy, the most commonly used for the treatment of brain tumors, has been shown to be of major significance in tumor control and survival rate of brain tumor patients. About 200,000 patients with brain tumor are treated with either partial large field or whole brain radiation every year in the United States. The use of radiation therapy for treatment of brain tumors, however, may lead to devastating functional deficits in brain several months to years after treatment. In particular, whole brain radiation therapy results in a significant reduction in learning and memory in brain tumor patients as long-term consequences of treatment. Although a number of in vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated the pathogenesis of radiation-mediated brain injury, the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which radiation induces damage to normal tissue in brain remain largely unknown. Therefore, this review focuses on the pathophysiological mechanisms of whole brain radiation-induced cognitive impairment and the identification of novel therapeutic targets. Specifically, we review the current knowledge about the effects of whole brain radiation on pro-oxidative and pro-inflammatory pathways, matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs)/tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) system and extracellular matrix (ECM), and physiological angiogenesis in brain. These studies may provide a foundation for defining a new cellular and molecular basis related to the etiology of cognitive impairment that occurs among patients in response to whole brain radiation therapy. It may also lead to new opportunities for therapeutic interventions for brain tumor patients who are undergoing whole brain radiation therapy.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2021

Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) using X-rays is a standard technique implemented for treating head and neck cancer (HN C). Compared to 3D conformal RT, IMRT can significantly reduce the radiation dose to surrounding normal tissues by using a highly conformal dose to the tumor. Proton therapy is a type of RT that uses positively charged particles named protons. Proton therapy has a unique energy deposit (i.e., Bragg peak) and greater biological effectiveness than that of therapy using X-rays. These inherent properties of proton therapy make the technique advantageous for HNC treatment. Recently, advanced techniques such as intensity-modulated proton therapy have further decreased the dose to normal organs with a higher conformal dose to the tumor. The usage of proton therapy for HNC is becoming widespread as the number of operational proton therapy centers has increased worldwide. This paper aims to present the current clinical evidence of proton therapy utility to HNC clinicians through a literature review. It also discusses the challenges associated with proton therapy and prospective development of the technique.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.52 no.9
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• pp.2072-2077
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• 2020

The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the feasibility of sensing changes in a tumor during boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) using a Monte Carlo simulation tool. In the simulation, an epi-thermal neutron source and a water phantom including boron uptake regions (BURs) were simulated. Moreover, this simulation also included a detector for positron emission tomography (PET) scanning and an adaptively-designed collimator (ADC) for PET. After the PET scanning of the water phantom, including the 511 keV source in the BUR, the ADC was positioned in the PET's gantry. Single prompt gamma rays were collected through the ADC during neutron irradiation. Then, single prompt gamma ray-based tomography images of different sized tumors were acquired by a four-step process. Both the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and tumor size were analyzed from each step image. From this analysis, we identified a decreasing trend of both the SNR and signal intensity as the tumor size decreased, which was confirmed in all images. In conclusion, we confirmed the feasibility of sensing changes in a tumor during BNCT using PET and an ADC through Monte Carlo simulation.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.179-185
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• 2007

Background: Adenovirus (Ad) vectors have been widely used for many gene therapy applications because of their high transduction ability and broad tropism. However, their utility for cancer gene therapy is limited by their poor transduction into cancer cells lacking the primary receptor, coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (CAR). Methods: To achieve CAR-independent gene transfer via Ad, we pretreated Ad with 1,2-dioleoyl-3-trimethylammonium propane (DOTAP) and analyzed their transduction efficiency into cancer cells in vitro and in vivo comparing with the virus alone. Results: Treatment of DOTAP significantly increased adenoviral gene transfer in tumor cells in vitro. Moreover, DOTAP at an optimum dose $(10{\mu}g/ml)$ enhanced IL-12 transgene expression by fivefold in tumor, and twofold in serum after intratumoral injection of adenovirus expressing IL-12N220L (Ad/IL-12N220L). In addition, cotreatment of DOTAP decreased tumor growth rate in the Ad/IL-12N220L-transduced tumor model, finally leading to enhanced survival rate. Conclusion: Our results strongly suggest that DOTAP could be of great utility for improving adenovirus-mediated cancer gene therapy.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.264-267
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• 2005

A 12-year-old, 8.0 kg, spayed female, mixed-breed dog was presented to the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital of Chungnam National University (VMTH, CNU). That case has been growing up mass in her left upper hindlimb about for 2 years and has showed vomiting and anorexia for 3 days. The patient was diagnosed with mast cell tumor on the basis of fine-needle aspiration (FNA) cytology techniques. According to World Health Organization clinical staging system for diagnosing mast cell tumors, it was classified into stage IIIa. The patient was treated by adjuvant corticosteroid therapy, but complete surgical excision was not achieved by owner's request. In the early stage of therapy, the size of the mass was gradually reduced with only adjuvant glucocorticoid therapy, so the patient's general condition was maintained well. But after 53 days later, the treatmant was not effective anymore and mass size was increased. Two months later, she was euthanized because of intermittent vomiting and severe respiratory distress. Splenic mass, duodenal ulceration, liver mass and infiltrated mast cell tumor in upper hindlimb muscle region were found in necropsy examination.