Comparing efficacy of high-dose rate brachytherapy versus helical tomotherapy in the treatment of cervical cancer / 부인종양

Objective@#Boost radiation using brachytherapy (BT) is a standard treatment for local disease control in concomitant chemoradiation therapy (CCRT) for advanced cervical cancer.However, it is associated with gastrointestinal and genitourinary complications. Hence, this study investigates the feasibility of helical tomotherapy (HT) as an alternative to BT. @*Methods@#Medical records of patients who underwent CCRT between 2000 and 2017 at a single institution were retrospectively reviewed. Patients with stage IIB–IVA cancers were selected based on the 2009 criteria of The International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics.External beam radiation combined with chemotherapy was followed by either BT or HT. The propensity score matching of both groups was calculated using logistic regression analysis.Disease outcomes and treatment-related adverse events were compared between the 2 groups. @*Results@#The matched population included 70 BT patients and 35 HT patients. The 5-year progression-free survival rates for BT and HT were 72.6% and 72.5%, respectively (p=0.721).There was no difference in the overall survival rate between the two groups (p=0.203). The presence of acute and chronic gastrointestinal complications was also similar between the groups (p=0.460 and p=0.563, respectively). The chronic genitourinary toxicities were also comparable (p=0.105). @*Conclusions@#HT boost treatment showed comparable disease outcomes with those observed with conventional BT in patients with advanced cervical cancer. HT could be a complementary boost protocol as a single modality or hybrid with BT in selected patients.Further studies with longer follow-up periods are warranted to confirm long-term outcomes.

Comparing efficacy of high-dose rate brachytherapy versus helical tomotherapy in the treatment of cervical cancer / 부인종양

Objective@#Boost radiation using brachytherapy (BT) is a standard treatment for local disease control in concomitant chemoradiation therapy (CCRT) for advanced cervical cancer.However, it is associated with gastrointestinal and genitourinary complications. Hence, this study investigates the feasibility of helical tomotherapy (HT) as an alternative to BT. @*Methods@#Medical records of patients who underwent CCRT between 2000 and 2017 at a single institution were retrospectively reviewed. Patients with stage IIB–IVA cancers were selected based on the 2009 criteria of The International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics.External beam radiation combined with chemotherapy was followed by either BT or HT. The propensity score matching of both groups was calculated using logistic regression analysis.Disease outcomes and treatment-related adverse events were compared between the 2 groups. @*Results@#The matched population included 70 BT patients and 35 HT patients. The 5-year progression-free survival rates for BT and HT were 72.6% and 72.5%, respectively (p=0.721).There was no difference in the overall survival rate between the two groups (p=0.203). The presence of acute and chronic gastrointestinal complications was also similar between the groups (p=0.460 and p=0.563, respectively). The chronic genitourinary toxicities were also comparable (p=0.105). @*Conclusions@#HT boost treatment showed comparable disease outcomes with those observed with conventional BT in patients with advanced cervical cancer. HT could be a complementary boost protocol as a single modality or hybrid with BT in selected patients.Further studies with longer follow-up periods are warranted to confirm long-term outcomes.

Overexpression of HER2/HER3 and clinical feature of ovarian cancer / 부인종양

OBJECTIVES: Human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2) and 3 (HER3) belong to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) family of transmembrane receptor tyrosine kinases. In this study, we assessed HER2/HER3 expression levels in specimens of epithelial ovarian cancer and determined their correlation with clinical features of ovarian cancer. METHODS: Tissue microarrays (TMAs) were prepared from paraffin blocks of 105 ovarian tumour samples. HER2, HER3, PI3K, Akt, p-Akt, mTOR, p-mTOR, S6, and p-S6 expression levels were investigated using immunohistochemistry (IHC). HER2 and HER3 amplifications were determined using in situ hybridization (ISH). The correlation between HER2/3 expression and disease outcome of the patients including surgical outcome, progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) was analysed. RESULTS: HER2 positivity was 3.8% by IHC and 5.7% by ISH, whereas that of HER3 was 12.4% and 8.6%, respectively. HER2 status by either IHC or ISH was not related to PFS (p=0.128, 0.168, respectively) and OS (p=0.245, 0.164, respectively). However, the HER3 status determined using fluorescence ISH was associated with poor PFS (p=0.035 on log rank test), which was a significant risk factor even after adjusting other possible risk factors in multivariate analysis (hazard ratio=2.377 [1.18–7.49], p=0.021). Expressions of Akt, p-mTOR, and S6 were also related with poor progression (p=0.008, 0.049, 0.014, respectively). CONCLUSION: HER3 is possibly an independent marker for poor prognosis in individuals with ovarian cancer, as the HER3 signalling pathway is distinct from that of HER2. The possibility of targeted therapy for patients with HER3 alteration in ovarian cancer should be evaluated.

The comparison of surgical outcomes and learning curves of radical hysterectomy by laparoscopy and robotic system for cervical cancer: an experience of a single surgeon

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to compare and determine the feasibility, surgical outcomes, learning curves of robotic radical hysterectomy with lymph node dissection (RRHND) to conventional laparoscopic radical hysterectomy with lymph node dissection (LRHND) performed by a single surgeon, in patients with cervical cancer. METHODS: Between April 2009 and March 2013, 22 patients underwent LRHND and 19 patients underwent RRHND. Variables such as age, body mass index, International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics stage, histological results, number of dissected lymph nodes, operative time, estimated blood loss, days of hospitalization and complications were reviewed. Learning curves of operation time was obtained using cumulative sum (CUSUM) method. RESULTS: Both groups showed similar patient and tumor characteristics. In surgical outcome analysis, RRHND (51.8±10.4 minutes) showed longer preparing time than LRHND (42.5±14.1 minutes). In the LRHND group, 8 patients experienced postoperative complications (5 void difficulty, 1 postoperative bleeding, 1 right basal ganglia infarction, 1 fever). On the other hand, in the RRHND group, 4 patients experienced a postoperative complication (2 bleeding, 1 peritonitis, 1 dehiscence of trocar site). Using CUSUM method, the learning curves were obtained by plotting the cumulative sequential differences between each data point and the average operation time, and showed two distinct phases in both type of operations. CONCLUSION: RRHND would be appropriate surgical approach in patients with cervical cancer with favorable outcome of less voiding difficulty. A minimum of 13 cases of robotic radical hysterectomies are required to achieve surgical improvement in the treatment of cervical cancer.

Evaluation of risk factors of vaginal cuff dehiscence after hysterectomy

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate risk factors of vaginal cuff dehiscence or evisceration according to the type of operation. METHODS: Medical records of 604 women who underwent hysterectomies at Korea University Anam Hospital between June 2007 and June 2011 were reviewed. They were allocated to six groups. The six types of hysterectomies included robotic hysterectomy (n = 7), robotic radical hysterectomy and node dissection (RRHND, n = 9), total laparoscopic hysterectomy (TLH, n = 274), laparoscopy assisted vaginal hysterectomy (LAVH, n = 238), laparoscopic radical hysterectomy and node dissection (n = 11), and abdominal radical hysterectomy (ARH, n = 63). The characteristics and outcomes of each groups were compared. RESULTS: There was no difference in the characteristics of patients between 6 groups. In total of 604 hysterectomies, 3 evisceration (0.49%) and 21 dehiscences (3.47%) occurred. Evisceration were found in RRHND (1/9, 11.1%), TLH (1/276, 0.36%), and ARH (1/63, 1.56%). Dehiscences occurred in TLH (15/274, 5.42%), LAVH (4/238, 1.68%), and ARH (2/63, 3.17%). In 169 cases of TLH with intra-corporeal continuous suture, 1 evisceration and 4 dehiscences occurred, whereas 11 dehiscences occurred in 105 TLH cases with vaginal continuous locking suture (2.96% vs. 10.47%, P = 0.02). CONCLUSION: The incidence of vaginal cuff dehiscenceand eviscerationwas significantly higher in TLH than LAVH. The intra-corporeal cuff suture was superior to the vaginal suture to prevent the vaginal cuff complications in TLH.

Comparison of the Efficacy and Safety of the Unicenta and Melsmon Injection for the Menopausal Symptoms / 대한폐경학회지

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of Unicenta (UNCNT) and Melsmon in women with the menopausal symptoms, by analysing the changes in the Kupperman index (primary endpoint), and the hormonal change (secondary endpoint). METHODS: This is a randomized, multi-Center, double-Blind, parallel, non-inferiority clinical study of four different tertiary medical centers. We began the participant recruitment in September 2011, with 218 patients applied over 7 months. All participants had the last visit in April 2012. RESULTS: The Unicenta injection was not inferior to that of Melsmon as measured by the Kupperman index following the injection in both the intent-to-treat and the per-protocol populations (P = 0.63, P = 0.85, respectively). Side effects occurred in 14.0% of the cases (15 patients/18 cases) in the case group, and in 12.6% (14 patients/15 cases) in the control group (P value=0.7599). None were reported to be associated with the medication. The laboratory results and the vital signs showed no statistically significant risk for safety. CONCLUSION: The study showed that Unicenta is not inferior to Melsmon in the change of the Kupperman index after 12 days of injection. The efficacy and safety of Unicenta was shown, with the improvement of the menopausal symptoms.