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Purpose@#Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) has been associated with worse prognosis, and biomarkers are needed to identify high-risk patients who may benefit from clinical trials or escalated treatment after completion of standard treatment. We aimed to assess whether the post-treatment neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) can reflect patient prognosis and determine the follow-up period that can provide the most feasible data. @*Methods@#In this retrospective analysis involving patients with TNBC, clinicopathological data, including those on peripheral complete blood cell count, were collected. The prognostic powers of serial NLRs obtained at baseline and after treatment completion were compared. Kaplan-Meier curves were generated to compare the overall survival (OS) and distant disease-free survival (DDFS). @*Results@#In total, 210 patients were enrolled. Forty-three (20.5%) events were detected. Twothirds of the events (29/43) were related to breast cancer. Most recurrent breast cancer-related diseases (27/29) were detected within 5 years of the initial diagnosis. In contrast, half of the events due to secondary malignancies or non-breast-related diseases (7/14) occurred 5 years after the initial diagnosis. Comparison of the prognostic performance of NLRs at baseline and at 6, 12, and 24 months after treatment completion revealed the strongest prognostic performance at 6 months after treatment completion (area under the curve = 0.745). The high NLR group (NLR >2.47) showed worse OS (p = 0.006) and DDFS (p < 0.001) than low NLR group. @*Conclusion@#Elevated post-treatment NLR was significantly associated with worse survival in patients with TNBC. We believe that it can be a useful surrogate marker for identifying highrisk patients with TNBC.
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In 2017, Korean Society of Medical Oncology (KSMO) published the Korean management guideline of metastatic prostate cancer. This paper is the 2nd edition of the Korean management guideline of metastatic prostate cancer. We updated recent many changes of management in metastatic prostate cancer in this 2nd edition guideline. The present guideline consists of the three categories: management of metastatic hormone sensitive prostate cancer; management of metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer; and clinical consideration for treating patients with metastatic prostate cancer. In category 1 and 2, levels of evidence (LEs) have been mentioned according to the general principles of evidence-based medicine. And grades of recommendation (GR) was taken into account the quality of evidence, the balance between desirable and undesirable effects, the values and preferences, and the use of resources and GR were divided into strong recommendations (SR) and weak recommendations (WR). A total of 16 key questions are selected. And we proposed recommendations and described key evidence for each recommendation. The treatment landscape of metastatic prostate cancer is changing very rapid and many trials are ongoing. To verify the results of the future trials is necessary and should be applied to the treatment for metastatic prostate cancer patients in the clinical practice. Especially, many prostate cancer patients are old age, have multiple underlying medical comorbidities, clinicians should be aware of the significance of medical management as well as clinical efficacy of systemic treatment.
ABSTRACT
In 2017, Korean Society of Medical Oncology (KSMO) published the Korean management guideline of metastatic prostate cancer. This paper is the 2nd edition of the Korean management guideline of metastatic prostate cancer. We updated recent many changes of management in metastatic prostate cancer in this 2nd edition guideline. The present guideline consists of the three categories: management of metastatic hormone sensitive prostate cancer; management of metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer; and clinical consideration for treating patients with metastatic prostate cancer. In category 1 and 2, levels of evidence (LEs) have been mentioned according to the general principles of evidence-based medicine. And grades of recommendation (GR) was taken into account the quality of evidence, the balance between desirable and undesirable effects, the values and preferences, and the use of resources and GR were divided into strong recommendations (SR) and weak recommendations (WR). A total of 16 key questions are selected. And we proposed recommendations and described key evidence for each recommendation. The treatment landscape of metastatic prostate cancer is changing very rapid and many trials are ongoing. To verify the results of the future trials is necessary and should be applied to the treatment for metastatic prostate cancer patients in the clinical practice. Especially, many prostate cancer patients are old age, have multiple underlying medical comorbidities, clinicians should be aware of the significance of medical management as well as clinical efficacy of systemic treatment.
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Purpose@#Treatment with 4 cycles of docetaxel and cyclophosphamide (TC) in the adjuvant setting is associated with better outcomes than treatment with doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide (AC). However, Western guidelines have indicated that TC confers a high risk (>20%) of febrile neutropenia (FN), while AC confers an intermediate risk (10%–20%) of FN. Threrefore, we evaluated the incidence of FN and the clinical utilization of pegfilgrastim prophylaxis after adjuvant TC chemotherapy. @*Methods@#We categorized 201 patients who received adjuvant TC chemotherapy into 3 groups according to the method of prophylaxis and compared neutropenic events, other adverse events, and hospital care costs in the 3 groups. @*Results@#The incidence of grade 4 neutropenia decreased from 93.0% in patients without prophylaxis to 82.4% in those who received secondary prophylaxis and 16.7% in those who received primary prophylaxis. Although the incidence of FN was not different between patients without prophylaxis and patients who received secondary prophylaxis (15.7% and 14.9%), none of the patients who received primary prophylaxis developed FN. Moreover, a decrease in neutropenic events resulted in a significant decrease in the mean duration of neutropenia (2.50 days to 0.08 days, P < 0.001), the risk of hospitalization (29.8% to 2.2%, P < 0.001), and the mean total hospital care cost for all chemotherapy cycles (790.80 to 486.00 US dollars, P < 0.001). @*Conclusion@#The use of pegfilgrastim prophylaxis during adjuvant TC chemotherapy is associated with significant decreases in the incidence of neutropenic events, hospitalization, and hospital care cost compared to those seen in patients without prophylaxis.
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Background/Aims@#Adherence to tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) has become a critical aspect of care in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). We aimed to examine the association of TKI adherence with overall survival (OS) outcomes in Korean patients diagnosed with CML and treated with TKIs using data from the National Health Information Database. @*Methods@#This study included 2,870 CML patients diagnosed between 2005 and 2013. Drug adherence was evaluated according to the medication possession ratio (MPR) and classified as high adherence (i.e., MPR ≥ 0.95 [upper 50%]), moderate adherence (i.e., MPR ≥ 0.68 and < 0.95 [middle 25%]), and low adherence (i.e., MPR < 0.68 [lower 25%]). @*Results@#The median MPR was 0.95 (range, 0 to 4.67). Male sex (p = 0.003), age < 70 years (p < 0.001), high income (≥ 30%, p < 0.001), and maintaining frontline TKI (< 0.001) were associated with better adherence. Adherence to dasatinib was the lowest (vs. imatinib or nilotinib, p < 0.001). Compared with high MPR patients, those with moderate MPR (hazard ratio [HR], 4.90; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.87 to 6.19; p < 0.001) and low MPR (HR, 11.6; 95% CI, 9.35 to 14.42; p < 0.001) had poorer OS. @*Conclusions@#Adherence to TKI treatment is an important factor predicting survival outcomes in Korean CML patients. Male sex, age < 70 years, high income, and maintaining frontline TKI are associated with high adherence to TKI. Thus, those without these characteristics should be closely monitored for treatment adherence.
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Purpose@#Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) involving trastuzumab markedly increases pathologic complete response (pCR) rates in patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive (HER2+) breast cancer. Despite increasing pCR rates, long-term survival gains are controversial owing to distinctive biologic behavior mediated by the presence of hormonal receptors (HRs) that may interact with HER2 receptors. We, therefore, investigated the differences in relative survival gain provided by neoadjuvant trastuzumab-based chemotherapy on HR positive (HR+) status of patients. @*Methods@#We retrospectively ana Patient clinical characteristics were compared usin lyzed women with stage II or III HER2+ breast cancer who underwent NAC followed by a breast cancer surgery between 2008 and 2013. The survival benefits of adding trastuzumab to NAC were analyzed by classifying patients into HR+ and HR negative (HR−) groups. @*Results@#Of 666 patients included in the study, 374 (52.1%) were HR+ and 319 (47.9%) were HR−. In the HR+ group, trastuzumab treatment led to higher pCR rates and significantly better breast cancer specific survival (BCSS) and overall survival (OS) than no trastuzumab treatment. However, among patients with HR− breast cancer, trastuzumab treatment showed no statistically significant difference between BCSS and OS following multivariate analysis. @*Conclusion@#We found that the addition of trastuzumab to NAC improved relative survival benefit in HER2+/HR+ patients than in HER2+/HR− patients, even though the pCR rate increases were lower. Although pCR has been regarded as a surrogate marker for estimating long-term survival benefits after NAC, it alone may not translate into real long-term oncologic outcomes in particular cancer subtypes after trastuzumab-based NAC. Further longer-term evaluation of the objective survival benefit after NAC driven by a dual HER2 block according to HR status is warranted.
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Purpose@#The regimen including concurrent docetaxel, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide (TAC) has been categorized as an important risk factor for febrile neutropenia (FN).This comparative study examined the clinical impact of long-acting granulocyte colonystimulating factor (G-CSF) (pegfilgrastim) during adjuvant TAC chemotherapy in Korean patients with advanced breast cancer. @*Methods@#We analyzed data from 239 patients who received 6 cycles of adjuvant TAC chemotherapy. We categorized patients into 2 groups according to the use of primary prophylactic pegfilgrastim and compared the incidence and risk of FN, hospital care costs, and survival in the 2 groups. @*Results@#The incidence of FN decreased from 54.2% to 21.2% in all patients, after the use of pegfilgrastim. The analysis of a total of 1,432 chemotherapy cycles showed that the incidence of FN decreased from 36.1% to 9.1% after the use of pegfilgrastim. Moreover, the decrease in the incidence of FN with the use of pegfilgrastim resulted in a significant decrease in the mean duration of neutropenia (4.15 to 1.29 days), the risk of hospitalization (99.5% to 29.7%) and the mean total hospital care cost (USD 3,038 to USD 2,347). High relative dose intensity (RDI) in patients treated with pegfilgrastim than in those not treated with pegfilgrastim (99.18% vs. 93.85%) was associated with a better overall survival (p = 0.033). @*Conclusions@#The use of pegfilgrastim during adjuvant TAC chemotherapy was significantly associated with a decrease in the incidence and risk of FN, hospital care costs, and risk of death compared to the use of adjuvant TAC without primary prophylaxis.
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Purpose@#The prognostic implications of serum vitamin D status after a 5-year adjuvant endocrine therapy on the risk of late recurrence among hormone receptor (HR)-positive breast cancer patients remain unclear. Hence, we investigated this among Korean HRpositive breast cancer patients. @*Methods@#A total of 455 patients with HR-positive stage I–III invasive breast cancer who underwent curative surgery at St. Vincent's Hospital between February 2004 and April 2012 were included in this retrospective study. Patients were categorized based on their serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels after the 5-year adjuvant endocrine therapy. Initial recurrence sites were categorized. The primary clinical outcome was late recurrence-free survival (LRFS). @*Results@#Among the 455 patients, 242 and 213 were included in the 25(OH)D-deficient group and 25(OH)D-sufficient group, respectively. Forty-eight patients experienced late recurrence.Across all recurrence sites, the 25(OH)D-deficient group showed significantly worse LRFS rates than the 25(OH)D-sufficient group (hazard ratio [HR], 2.284; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.155–4.515; p = 0.018). After patient subgrouping based on recurrence site, the 25(OH)D-deficient group also showed significantly worse LRFS rates in terms of regional lymph node (LN) (HR, 17.453; 95% CI, 2.46–128.83; p = 0.005), bone (HR, 2.394; 95% CI, 1.024–5.599; p = 0.044), and visceral (HR, 2.735; 95% CI, 1.182–6.328; p = 0.019) recurrence.However, there was no significant difference between the 2 groups in terms of local recurrence (p = 0.611). @*Conclusions@#We found that 25(OH)D deficiency after the 5-year adjuvant endocrine therapy was associated with worse LRFS among HR-positive breast cancer patients, particularly with respect to regional LN, bone, and visceral recurrence.
ABSTRACT
Purpose@#The regimen including concurrent docetaxel, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide (TAC) has been categorized as an important risk factor for febrile neutropenia (FN).This comparative study examined the clinical impact of long-acting granulocyte colonystimulating factor (G-CSF) (pegfilgrastim) during adjuvant TAC chemotherapy in Korean patients with advanced breast cancer. @*Methods@#We analyzed data from 239 patients who received 6 cycles of adjuvant TAC chemotherapy. We categorized patients into 2 groups according to the use of primary prophylactic pegfilgrastim and compared the incidence and risk of FN, hospital care costs, and survival in the 2 groups. @*Results@#The incidence of FN decreased from 54.2% to 21.2% in all patients, after the use of pegfilgrastim. The analysis of a total of 1,432 chemotherapy cycles showed that the incidence of FN decreased from 36.1% to 9.1% after the use of pegfilgrastim. Moreover, the decrease in the incidence of FN with the use of pegfilgrastim resulted in a significant decrease in the mean duration of neutropenia (4.15 to 1.29 days), the risk of hospitalization (99.5% to 29.7%) and the mean total hospital care cost (USD 3,038 to USD 2,347). High relative dose intensity (RDI) in patients treated with pegfilgrastim than in those not treated with pegfilgrastim (99.18% vs. 93.85%) was associated with a better overall survival (p = 0.033). @*Conclusions@#The use of pegfilgrastim during adjuvant TAC chemotherapy was significantly associated with a decrease in the incidence and risk of FN, hospital care costs, and risk of death compared to the use of adjuvant TAC without primary prophylaxis.
ABSTRACT
Purpose@#The prognostic implications of serum vitamin D status after a 5-year adjuvant endocrine therapy on the risk of late recurrence among hormone receptor (HR)-positive breast cancer patients remain unclear. Hence, we investigated this among Korean HRpositive breast cancer patients. @*Methods@#A total of 455 patients with HR-positive stage I–III invasive breast cancer who underwent curative surgery at St. Vincent's Hospital between February 2004 and April 2012 were included in this retrospective study. Patients were categorized based on their serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels after the 5-year adjuvant endocrine therapy. Initial recurrence sites were categorized. The primary clinical outcome was late recurrence-free survival (LRFS). @*Results@#Among the 455 patients, 242 and 213 were included in the 25(OH)D-deficient group and 25(OH)D-sufficient group, respectively. Forty-eight patients experienced late recurrence.Across all recurrence sites, the 25(OH)D-deficient group showed significantly worse LRFS rates than the 25(OH)D-sufficient group (hazard ratio [HR], 2.284; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.155–4.515; p = 0.018). After patient subgrouping based on recurrence site, the 25(OH)D-deficient group also showed significantly worse LRFS rates in terms of regional lymph node (LN) (HR, 17.453; 95% CI, 2.46–128.83; p = 0.005), bone (HR, 2.394; 95% CI, 1.024–5.599; p = 0.044), and visceral (HR, 2.735; 95% CI, 1.182–6.328; p = 0.019) recurrence.However, there was no significant difference between the 2 groups in terms of local recurrence (p = 0.611). @*Conclusions@#We found that 25(OH)D deficiency after the 5-year adjuvant endocrine therapy was associated with worse LRFS among HR-positive breast cancer patients, particularly with respect to regional LN, bone, and visceral recurrence.
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PURPOSE@#The concurrent regimen of docetaxel, doxorubicin, and cyclophosphamide (TAC) has been categorized as a high-risk factor for febrile neutropenia (FN). The incidence of FN was reported to be as high as 17%–26% in studies conducted in Western countries. However, these rates may vary among different ethnic groups. This study aimed to evaluate the incidence of FN and its effect on prognosis following adjuvant TAC chemotherapy in Korean patients with advanced breast cancer.@*METHODS@#We analyzed data from 187 patients who received 6 cycles of adjuvant TAC chemotherapy between July 2005 and December 2014. No patients received long-acting granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) as primary prophylaxis for FN due to guidelines for cost reimbursement in Korea. The incidence rates of FN, dose reduction of TAC, relative dose intensity (RDI), relapse-free survival (RFS), and overall survival (OS) were investigated.@*RESULTS@#A total of 102 (54.5%) patients experienced FN, especially older patients (51 years vs. 49 years, p=0.045). RDI was lower in patients with FN than in those without (96.4% vs. 99.5%, p=0.001, respectively). Death was reported in 2 patients (2.35%) without FN and in 10 patients (9.80%) with FN (hazard ratio [HR]: 6.64; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.28 to 34.36; p=0.024). No significant differences in RFS (p=0.235) were found using Kaplan-Meier analysis.@*CONCLUSION@#The incidence of FN was significantly higher in Korea than in Western countries, and FN had a negative impact on the patients' prognosis. Primary prophylactic G-CSF should be prioritized in Korean patients with advanced breast cancer who receive adjuvant TAC chemotherapy.
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BACKGROUND/AIMS: Because of rarity, role of chemotherapy of bladder adenocarcinoma are still unidentified. Therefore, we performed a retrospective analysis of the clinical features and chemotherapy outcomes of bladder adenocarcinoma. METHODS: Eligible patients for this retrospective analysis were initially diagnosed with bladder adenocarcinoma and presented with a clinically no other primary site of origin. The collected data included age, gender, performance status, stage, hemoglobin, albumin, initial date of diagnosis, treatment modality utilized, response to treatment, presence of relapse, last status of patient, and last date of follow-up. RESULTS: We retrospectively reviewed 29 patients, who were treated with chemotherapy for bladder adenocarcinoma at 10 Korean medical institutions from 2004 to 2014. The median age of patients was 58 years (range, 17 to 78) and 51.7% of the patients were female. Urachal adenocarcinoma was identified in 15 patients. Of 27 symptomatic patients, 22 experienced gross hematuria. Twelve patients were treated with 5-f luorouracil based chemotherapy, five were gemcitabine based, three were taxane and others. Thirteen of them achieved complete response (10.3%) or partial response (34.5%). Median progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) for all patients were 10.6 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 9.5 to 11.6) and 24.5 months (95% CI, 1.2 to 47.8), respectively. The cases of urachal adenocarcinoma exhibited worse tendency in PFS and OS (p = 0.024 and p = 0.046, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Even though bladder adenocarcinoma had been observed moderate effectiveness to chemotherapy, bladder adenocarcinoma is a highly aggressive form of bladder cancer. PFS and OS were short especially in urachal carcinoma.
Subject(s)
Female , Humans , Adenocarcinoma , Diagnosis , Disease-Free Survival , Drug Therapy , Follow-Up Studies , Gynecology , Hematuria , Recurrence , Retrospective Studies , Urinary Bladder Neoplasms , Urinary BladderABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The current TNM staging system for papillary thyroid cancer (PTC), which is based on tumor diameter, may not precisely reflect the true tumor burden. Therefore, we investigated whether preoperative tumor volume might more accurately reflect tumor burden and predict prognosis in patients with T1N0 PTC than preoperative tumor diameter. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed data from 1,659 patients with T1N0 PTC, and after exclusion, a total of 1,081 patients were ultimately included. Tumor volume (V) was calculated for all patients using preoperative ultrasonography, and patients were grouped according to tumor diameter (T1a vs. T1b) and tumor volume (V1a vs. V1b). The recurrence-free survival (RFS) rates were then compared for these groups. RESULTS: The mean follow-up time was 66.12±28.75 months, and 97.2% of the cohort experienced RFS. The optimal volume cut-off was defined as 0.545 cm³. There were no differences in RFS rates between T1a/T1b groups (all ages) and V1a/V1b groups (< 45 years of age). However, ≥ 45-year-old patients in the V1b group had a significantly poorer RFS rate than those in the V1a group. These results were confirmed by multivariate analysis. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that preoperative tumor volume may be more useful for predicting prognosis than tumor diameter in ≥ 45-year-old patients with T1N0 PTC.
Subject(s)
Humans , Middle Aged , Cohort Studies , Follow-Up Studies , Multivariate Analysis , Neoplasm Staging , Prognosis , Recurrence , Retrospective Studies , Thyroid Gland , Thyroid Neoplasms , Tumor Burden , UltrasonographyABSTRACT
The management of advanced prostate cancer has evolved rapidly. Androgen deprivation therapy, via surgical or medical castration, is the first-line therapy for hormone-naïve metastatic prostate cancer. For approximately a decade, docetaxel-based chemotherapy was the only approved agent to show a survival benefit for castration-resistant prostate cancer. However, over the last 5 years, significant advances in the field have led to the approval of several new agents with different mechanisms of action, such as the new androgen pathway inhibitors abiraterone and enzalutamide, a new cytotoxic agent, cabazitaxel, and new bone-seeking agents such as radium-223, which have all been associated with improved quality of life and pain palliation and an increase in survival. However, there has been no Korean treatment guideline for metastatic prostate cancer which is developed based on thorough search for relevant articles, including recently developed agents, and adequate review and assessment of evidences, and thus, a guideline adequate for domestic circumstance is eagerly needed. Experts from the Genitourinary Oncology Committee of the Korea Cancer Study Group developed clinical recommendations for the treatment of metastatic prostate cancer based on 19 key questions. The Korean Association for Clinical Oncology, the Korean Prostate Society, the Korean Urological Oncology Society, and the Korean Society of Pathologists reviewed and endorsed the guidelines. These are the first Korean treatment guidelines developed specifically for metastatic prostate cancer.
Subject(s)
Castration , Drug Therapy , Korea , Medical Oncology , Neoplasm Metastasis , Prostate , Prostatic Neoplasms , Quality of LifeABSTRACT
Bone marrow examination is useful in the diagnosis and staging of hematologic disease. This procedure is generally considered safe; however, there are several adverse events associated with bone marrow biopsy. The most frequent and serious adverse event is hemorrhage. Risk factors include coagulopathy, myeloproliferative disorders, and anticoagulant or antiplatelet medications. Most hemorrhage is local hematoma; however, infrequently retroperitoneal hemorrhage occurs. In the case of massive hemorrhage, operation or angiographic embolization may be required. We report on a case of retroperitoneal hemorrhage after bone marrow aspiration and biopsy in an essential thrombocythemia patient.
Subject(s)
Humans , Biopsy , Bone Marrow Examination , Bone Marrow , Diagnosis , Hematologic Diseases , Hematoma , Hemorrhage , Methods , Myeloproliferative Disorders , Risk Factors , Thrombocythemia, EssentialABSTRACT
Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), which may occur as an autosom-al dominant disorder, is caused by the absence of neurofibromin protein due to somatic mutations in the NF1 gene, and it has been associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. Herein we describe a family with two women affected by both NF1 and early-onset breast cancer. We evaluated whether the concomitance of NF1 and early-onset breast cancer could be due to disease-causing mutations in both NF1 and BRCA1 gene in a Korean family with clinical features of both NF1 and hereditary breast cancer. Mutation analyses identified nonsense mutations in NF1 and BRCA1 genes. Our findings indicate that an awareness of the possible concomitance of NF1 and BRCA1 gene mutations is important for identifying the genetic origin of early-onset breast cancer in patients with NF1 to achieve early detection of cancers and decrease breast cancer-associated morbidity and mortality in these patients.
Subject(s)
Female , Humans , Breast , Breast Neoplasms , Codon, Nonsense , Genes, BRCA1 , Genes, Neurofibromatosis 1 , Germ-Line Mutation , Mortality , Neurofibromatosis 1 , Neurofibromin 1ABSTRACT
Ovarian cancer is generally primary cancer and less frequently originates from metastasis from non-gynecological cancer. Ovarian metastasis from lung cancer represents only 2~4% of all ovarian metastatic cancers. We report a case of ovarian metastasis of non-small cell lung cancer with epidermal growth factor receptor mutation. The patient underwent cytoreductive surgery for the ovarian mass and erlotinib therapy for the metastatic lung cancer. Erlotinib therapy markedly decreased the size of lung mass.
Subject(s)
Humans , Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung , Lung , Lung Neoplasms , Neoplasm Metastasis , Ovarian Neoplasms , ErbB Receptors , Erlotinib HydrochlorideABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The combination of gemcitabine and docetaxel (GD) is used to effectively treat patients with soft tissue sarcoma (STS). It is widely considered that the conventional doses used are too high for long term use and many patients must discontinue GD treatment due to its toxicity. Therefore, to determine the appropriate dose meeting acceptable efficacy results, while minimizing toxic side effects, we treated patients with a weekly infusion of GD (weekly GD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 22 patients presenting a variety of STSs were treated at Yonsei Cancer Center. All patients had metastatic or recurrent cancer and had previously received doxorubicin and ifosfamide combination chemotherapy. In all cases, gemcitabine (1,000 mg/m2) and docetaxel (35 mg/m2) were administered intravenously on days 1 and 8 of a 21-day cycle. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of these patients. RESULTS: The response rate was 4.5%, with one patient diagnosed with leiomyosarcoma having a partial response, and the disease control rate was 40.9%. The median progression-free survival (PFS) duration was 2.7 months and the PFS was correlated with the treatment response to a weekly GD. The median overall survival (OS) duration was 7.8 months and the OS was correlated with histology. There was no significant difference in OS between patients who received weekly GD as a 2nd line chemotherapy and those who received 3rd line or more. Treatment was generally well tolerated. CONCLUSION: Weekly GD was well tolerated and showed moderate efficacy, indicating that this could be a reasonable option as a salvage treatment for metastatic STS.
Subject(s)
Humans , Deoxycytidine , Disease-Free Survival , Doxorubicin , Drug Therapy, Combination , Ifosfamide , Leiomyosarcoma , Medical Records , Retrospective Studies , Sarcoma , TaxoidsABSTRACT
PURPOSE: With current advances in surgical technique, the prognosis for elective open repair of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) has improved, but the mortality rate for ruptured AAA remains high. The aim of this study was to define the risk factors of AAA rupture. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of 169 AAA patients who underwent open surgical repair between March 2000 and October 2010. According to the rupture, the patients were divided into 2 groups: 'ruptured' (n=41), 'non-ruptured' (n=128). To define the risk factor of ruptured AAA, we compared following variables between the 2 groups: clinical co-morbidities (hypertension, diabetes mellitus, ischemic heart disease, malignancies), diameter (maximal diameter of AAA), location of rupture, gender, and previous abdominal surgery history. RESULTS: Mean patient-age was 68.4+/-4.4 years (range: 32 to 86 years); the majority of patients were males, 135 (79.8%). Mean diameter of AAA was 6.67+/-2.0 cm (range: 4 to 15 cm); 'non-ruptured': 6.3+/-1.6 cm, 'ruptured': 7.8+/-2.6 cm. The risk of AAA rupture was statistically significantly increased with increased diameter of the AAA (P=0.007). On multivariateanalysis, the only statistically significant risk factor for AAA rupture was diameter of AAA (P=0.004). CONCLUSION: The only significant risk factor for AAA rupture found in this study is the diameter of AAA. To minimize the rupture rate of the AAA patients, we will have to closely monitor the size of AAA diameter.
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal , Diabetes Mellitus , Myocardial Ischemia , Organothiophosphorus Compounds , Prognosis , Retrospective Studies , Risk Factors , RuptureABSTRACT
Juvenile onset ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic inflammatory arthritis showing oligoarthritis and enthesopathy of the peripheral and axial skeleton. This have been shown to have different clinical presentation and outcome from adult onset ankylosing spondylitis. Takayasu arteritis is a uncommon, chronic inflammatory disease of elastic arteries such as the aorta, its larger branches and the pulmonary artery trunk. Although, it has rare report about association between ankylosing spondylitis and Takayasu arteritis, there was no report of juvenile onset ankylosing spondylitis with Takayasu arteritis. Thereby, we report a patient with Takayasu arteritis who had juvenile onset ankylosing spondylitis in the course of his disease.