Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the healthcare workers’ awareness and support regarding the sexuality of cancer patients, their families. Methods: A self-reported questionnaire survey was conducted on the healthcare workers in Shikoku Cancer Center on May 2014. Results: Four hundred and fifty-seven (84.9%) workers responded to the questionnaire. It was 29.8% who have communicated about sexual issues with patients and their families, 67.0% acknowledged the necessity of supporting them. In the group which had experience in communicating about sexual issues and participating in study meetings of sexuality, there were more healthcare workers who acknowledged the necessity of support significantly (aware group). In the aware group, the reasons why they hesitated and felt difficulty in communicating about sexual issues were that they had no chances to communicate with patients about sexual issues (93.5%), they didn’t know whether the patients needed intervention of healthcare workers (89.2%), they felt lack of their knowledge of support regarding sexuality (89.2%), and they felt lack of their skill of support regarding sexuality (88.9%). In the aware group, in order to get knowledge and information about sexuality, books and brochures which could be introduced to the patients and their families (96.4%) were considered to be most wanted. Conclusion: We have to make an effort so that all healthcare workers recognize the importance of the necessity of communicating about sexual issues with the patients, their families and their partners.

Objective: The feasibility of peri-orbital electrodes, which are not invasive and do not induce pain, as a supplemental electrode for detection of ictal discharges in medial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) was examined. Methods: Patients with MTLE, who underwent video-EEG monitoring with simultaneous peri-orbital and sphenoidal electrodes and obtained good outcome following standard anterior temporal lobectomy, were subjects in this study. Initial ictal discharge amplitudes were compared between sphenoidal (Sp1/ 2), standard anterior temporal in 10-20 system (F7/ 8), peri-orbital (superior orbital lateral: SOL, inferior orbital medial: IOM), frontopolar (Fp1/ 2), frontal (F3/4) and ear (A1/ 2) electrodes. Results: A total of 34 consecutive seizures from 20 patients were analyzed, with a maximum amplitude observed at Sp1/2 (57.57±5.59), followed by F7/8 (54.89±5.59), SOL (50.97±5.59), IOM (46.95±5.59), A1/2 (45.07±5.69), Fp1/2 (44.78±5.62), and F3/4 (37.75±5.66) (mean±standard error, μV). There was no statistical difference between Sp1/2, F7/8, SOL, and IOM values. When the sphenoidal electrode was omitted, 13 seizures (13/34, 38.2%) resulted in the highest amplitude at peri-orbital electrodes and 10 seizures (10/ 34, 29.4%) at F7/8. Conclusions: Peri-orbital electrodes could detect ictal discharges in MTLE as well as sphenoidal and standard anterior temporal electrodes in 10-20 system and are useful for supplemental recording for detecting ictal epileptiform discharges in MTLE.

Objective: To clarify the frequency of deficient mismatch repair (dMMR) in Japanese ovarian cancer patients, we examined microsatellite instability (MSI) status and immunohistochemistry (IHC) subtypes, including endometrioid carcinoma (EMC), clear cell carcinoma (CCC), or a mixture of both (Mix). Methods: We registered 390 patients who were diagnosed with EMC/CCC/Mix between 2006 and 2015 and treated at seven participating facilities. For 339 patients confirmed eligible by the Central Pathological Review Board, MSI, IHC, and MutL homolog 1 methylation analyses were conducted. The tissues of patients with Lynch syndrome (LS)-related cancer histories, such as colorectal and endometrial cancer, were also investigated. Results: MSI-high (MSI-H) status was observed in 2/217 CCC (0.9%), 10/115 EMC (8.7%), and 1/4 Mix (25%). Additionally, loss of MMR protein expression (LoE-MMR) was observed in 5/219 (2.3%), 16/115 (14.0%), and 1/4 (25%) patients with CCC, EMC, and Mix, respectively. Both MSI-H and LoE-MMR were found significantly more often in EMC (p<0.001). The median (range) ages of patients with MMR expression and LoE-MMR were 54 (30–90) and 46 (22–76) (p=0.002), respectively. In the multivariate analysis, advanced stage and histological type were identified as prognostic factors. Conclusion The dMMR rate for EMC/CCC was similar to that reported in Western countries. In Japan, it is assumed that the dMMR frequency is higher because of the increased proportion of CCC.

The background and course of Kampo treatment in 39 patients with uncontrollable otolaryngeal symptoms treated between April 2013 and March 2016, in the Department of Kampo Medicine at Tohoku University Hospital, were analyzed retrospectively. An improvement in overall symptoms was noted with Kampo treatment in 28 of 39 cases (71%). The commonly reported subjective symptoms included glossodynia (7 cases), postnasal drip (4 cases), oral discomfort (4 cases), dizziness (3 cases), and taste disorder (3 cases). Analysis using the classification of qi, blood, and fluid revealed that cases with qi stagnation pattern (15 of 18 cases) were effectively treated with Kampo treatment. Prior reports support our finding that smoothing qi with Kampo medicine is effective in alleviating some chronic symptoms. The symptoms improved within 6 weeks after the treatment was initiated. Therefore, a 6-week period can be considered sufficient to determine the effectiveness of Kampo medicine. Many of the patients for whom Kampo treatment was not effective had depression and domestic stress. In conclusion, Kampo treatment may be effectively used to treat uncontrollable, chronic otolaryngeal symptoms in selected cases that are unresponsive to Western medicine.