BACKGROUND/AIMS: The purpose of this study was to identify predictive factors for erlotinib treatment in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients following gefitinib failure. METHODS: Forty-five patients with NSCLC who were treated with erlotinib following gefitinib failure at Seoul National University Hospital between August 2005 and November 2011 were enrolled. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation status, pathologic findings and other clinical factors, including response to tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and progression-free survival (PFS), were evaluated. RESULTS: Of the 45 patients, 40 patients (88.8%) had adenocarcinoma. The following EGFR mutations were observed: five patients with a deletion of exon 19, six patients with an L858R mutation, three patients with wild-type EGFR, and 31 patients with unknown mutations. The response rate of erlotinib was 4.4%, and stable disease was 42.2%. The median PFS for erlotinib was 2.6 months (95% confidence interval, 1.4 to 3.7). Patients with a PFS > or = 4 months during previous gefitinib treatment had a significantly longer PFS with erlotinib (3.3 months vs. 1.6 months, respectively; p < 0.01) than patients with PFS < 4 months with gefitinib. According to multivariate analyses, PFS > or = 4 months for previous gefitinib treatment was significantly associated with prolonged PFS with erlotinib (p = 0.04). However, the response rate of gefitinib and treatment sequence were not associated with prolonged PFS with erlotinib (p = 0.28 and p = 0.67, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Following rechallenge with the EGFR TKI erlotinib following gefitinib failure, patients who showed prolonged PFS with gefitinib benefit from erlotinib. However, further prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Antineoplastic Agents/*therapeutic use ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/*drug therapy/genetics/pathology ; Chi-Square Distribution ; Disease-Free Survival ; Erlotinib Hydrochloride/*therapeutic use ; Female ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Lung Neoplasms/*drug therapy/genetics/pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Mutation ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Protein Kinase Inhibitors/*therapeutic use ; Quinazolines/*therapeutic use ; Receptor, Epidermal Growth Factor/antagonists & inhibitors/genetics ; Republic of Korea ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Salvage Therapy ; Time Factors ; Treatment Failure

PURPOSE: The aims of this study were to investigate trends of aggressive treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients at the end-of-life (EOL) during the recent 5 years and examine the relationship between hospice consultation (HC) and aggressive care. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The medical records of 789 patients with stage IIIB-IV NSCLC at Seoul National University Hospital (SNUH) who received palliative chemotherapy and died from 2010 to 2014 were retrospectively reviewed. Indicators of aggressive treatment were evaluated, and the association of HC with these indicators was analyzed. RESULTS: During the last 5 years, the frequency of HC increased from 26.7% to 43.6%. The time interval from last chemotherapy to death increased, and the proportion of patients who received palliative chemotherapy, visited an emergency room, were admitted to intensive care unit, during the last month of life, and died in SNUH significantly decreased over time. Referral to HC was significantly associated with lower intensive care unit admission rates, lower out-of-hospital death rates, and less use of the chemotherapy within 1 month prior to death. Overall survival did not differ by HC. CONCLUSION: The pattern of cancer care nearthe EOL has become less aggressivewhen HCwas provided. The positive association of HCwith better EOL care suggests that providing HC at the optimal time might help to avoid futile aggressive treatment.
Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; Drug Therapy ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Hospice Care ; Hospices* ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units ; Lung Neoplasms* ; Lung* ; Medical Records ; Mortality ; Palliative Care ; Referral and Consultation ; Retrospective Studies ; Seoul ; Terminal Care

No abstract available.
Head and Neck Neoplasms* ; Head*

Squamous cell carcinoma of head and neck (SCCHN) is a group of cancer arising from mucosal surfaces of the head and neck. Optimal management of SCCHN requires a multidisciplinary team of surgical oncologists, radiation oncologists,medical oncologists, nutritionist, and speech-language pathologists, due to the complexity of anatomical structure and importance of functional outcome. Human papilloma virus (HPV)-related SCCHN represents a distinct subset from HPV negative SCCHN which is associated with carcinogen exposure such ascigarette smoking, betel nut use and alcohol. HPV related SCCHN responds better to concurrent chemoradiation and has better overall prognosis, compared to HPV negative SCCHN. Radiation therapy has been introduced to the treatment of SCCHN, administered concurrently with systemic chemotherapy for locoregional SCCHN, as well as a palliative measure for recurrent and/or metastatic (R/M) SCCHN. Recently, immune checkpoint inhibitors have been shown to improve overall survival in R/M-SCCHN and have been incorporated into the standard of care. Combination approaches with immune therapy and targeted therapy for biomarker enriched population based on genomics are being actively investigated and will shape the future of SCCHN treatment.

Purpose: The first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in Korea elicited changes in healthcare service utilization. This study aimed to report changes in healthcare service utilization among cancer patients during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in Korea. Materials and Methods: We analyzed records from National Health Insurance Service Database and identified cancer patients as those with specific beneficiary codes (“V193” or “V194”) assigned to cancer patients. We calculated percentage changes in the number of patients between 2019 and 2020 based on claims records for outpatient clinic visits, hospitalization, and emergency room visits by month, age group, residential areas, and hospital location. Results: The number of newly diagnosed cancer patients in 2020 decreased by 3.2%, compared to the previous year. The number of patients who visited an outpatient clinic, were hospitalized, and visited the emergency room decreased by 2.6%, 4.0%, and 3.5%, respectively, in 2020, compared to the year 2019. Conclusion During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of newly diagnosed cancer patients decreased by 3.2%, compared to the previous year, and their utilization of healthcare services declined significantly after the outbreak of COVID-19.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the survival of patients with locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (LA-HNSCC) undergoing concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CRT) alone with that of patients undergoing induction chemotherapy (IC) using docetaxel, cisplatin, and 5-fluorouracil (TPF) followed by CRT. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A search of the PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library databases was performed in April 2015 and abstracts from the American Society of Clinical Oncology meetings (2008-2014) were reviewed. Summaries of the results were pooled using a fixed-effect model, and the risk of bias was evaluated using the Cochrane tool. RESULTS: A total of six relevant trials comprising 1,280 patients were identified. There was no statistically significant overall survival (OS) advantage for TPF prior to CRT (TPF/CRT) over CRT alone (hazard ratio [HR] 0.92; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.79 to 1.09; p=0.339). Progression-free survival (PFS) was significantly longer in the TPF/CRT arms (HR, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.70 to 0.95; p=0.009). Patients with non-oropharyngeal LA-HNSCC obtained the greatest OS and PFS benefits from TPF (HR, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.47 to 0.99; p=0.043 and HR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.48 to 0.94; p=0.022, respectively). The complete response rate was significantly increased (risk ratio [RR], 1.34; 95% CI, 1.14 to 1.56; p < 0.001), and the distant metastasis rate tended to decrease (RR, 0.65; 95% CI, 0.40 to 1.04; p=0.071) in the TPF/CRT arms. CONCLUSION: IC with TPF followed by CRT is not superior to CRT alone for OS. However, PFS and the complete response rate were significantly improved in the TPF/CRT arms. TPF/CRT for patients with nonoropharyngeal LA-HNSCC provided clear survival advantages.
Arm ; Bias (Epidemiology) ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* ; Chemoradiotherapy ; Cisplatin* ; Disease-Free Survival ; Epithelial Cells* ; Fluorouracil* ; Head and Neck Neoplasms ; Head* ; Humans ; Induction Chemotherapy* ; Medical Oncology ; Neck* ; Neoplasm Metastasis

PURPOSE: The dose intensity of doxorubicin (DID) is important to the survival of diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) patients. However, due to expected toxicities, most elderly patients cannot receive full doses of anthracyclines. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of DID on the survival of elderly DLBCL patients (age > or = 70 years) in the rituximab era. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed 433 DLBCL patients who were treated with R-CHOP between December 2003 and October 2011 at the Seoul National University Hospital. Of these patients, 19.2% were aged > or = 70 years. We analyzed the survival outcomes according to DID. RESULTS: Significantly poorer overall survival (OS) was observed for patients aged > or = 70 years (2-year OS rate: 59.9% vs. 84.2%; p < 0.001). DID < or = 10 mg/m2/wk had a significant effect on the OS and progression-free survival (PFS) in elderly patients (2-year OS rate: 40.0% in DID < or = 10 mg/m2/wk vs. 62.6% in DID > 10 mg/m2/wk; p=0.031; 2-year PFS: 35.0% vs. 65.7%; p=0.036). The OS on each 1.7 mg/m2/wk doxorubicin increment above 10 mg/m2/wk in elderly patients was not significant among the groups (2-year OS rate: 75.0% in DID 10.0-11.7 mg/m2/wk vs. 66.7% in DID 15.0-16.7 mg/m2/wk; p=0.859). Treatment related mortality was not related to DID. CONCLUSION: DID can be reduced up to 10 mg/m2/wk in elderly DLBCL patients in the rituximab era. Maintenance of DID > 10 mg/m2/wk and judicious selection of elderly patients who are tolerant to DID is necessary.
Aged* ; Anthracyclines ; Disease-Free Survival ; Doxorubicin* ; Humans ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; Mortality ; Seoul

Solitary splenic metastases from head and neck cancer are rare. We report a 35-year-old male with nasal cavity cancer with metastasis to the cervical lymph nodes. The patient underwent three cycles of induction chemotherapy, followed by left medial maxillectomy with modified radical neck dissection and concurrent chemoradiotherapy with weekly cisplatin. After 7 months of a disease-free interval, positron-emission tomography showed a high uptake in the spleen, and a biopsy confirmed metastatic carcinoma. After four cycles of systemic chemotherapy with docetaxel and cisplatin, laparoscopic splenectomy was performed. This case highlights that solitary splenic metastasis, although rare, may occur with a locoregionally controlled head and neck cancer and could be treated with local and systemic treatment.
Adult ; Biopsy ; Chemoradiotherapy ; Cisplatin ; Head ; Head and Neck Neoplasms ; Humans ; Induction Chemotherapy ; Lymph Nodes ; Male ; Nasal Cavity ; Neck ; Neck Dissection ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; Spleen ; Splenectomy ; Taxoids

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Although crizotinib is standard chemotherapy for advanced anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), clinical factors affecting progression-free survival (PFS) have not been reported. The purpose of this study was to identify clinical factors affecting PFS of crizotinib and develop a prognostic model for advanced ALK-positive NSCLC. METHODS: Clinicopathologic features of patients enrolled in PROFILE 1001, 1005, 1007, and 1014 (training cohort) were reviewed. We conducted multivariate Cox analysis for PFS and overall survival (OS) in the training cohort (n = 159) and generated a proportional hazards model based on significant clinicopathologic factors, and then validated the model in an independent validation cohort (n = 40). RESULTS: In the training cohort, the objective response rate was 81.5%. Median PFS and OS from the start of crizotinib were 12.4 and 31.3 months, respectively. Multivariate Cox analysis showed poor performance status, number of metastatic organs (≥ 3), and no response to crizotinib independently associated shorter PFS. Based on a score derived from these three factors, median PFS and OS of patients with one or two factors were significantly shorter compared to those without these factors (median PFS, 22.4 months vs. 10.5 months vs. 6.5 months; median OS, not reached vs. 29.1 months vs. 11.8 months, respectively; p < 0.001 for each group). This model also had validated in an independent validation cohort. CONCLUSIONS Performance status, number of metastatic organs, and response to crizotinib affected PFS of crizotinib in ALK-positive NSCLC. Based on these factors, we developed a simple and useful prediction model for PFS.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate and compare cancer treatment near the end-of-life (EOL) over a 10-year period. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with advanced solid cancer at Seoul National University Hospital who received palliative chemotherapy and had died were enrolled. We categorized the consecutive patients according to two time periods: 2002 (n=57) and 2012 (n=206). Aggressiveness of cancer treatment near the EOL was evaluated. RESULTS: The median patient age was 62, and 65.4% of patients (n=172) were male. Time from the last chemotherapy to death (TCD) was found to have been significantly shortened, from 66.0 days to 34.0 days during 10 years (p < 0.001); 17% of patients received molecular targeted agents as the last chemotherapy regimen in 2012. The proportion of patients who received intensive care unit care within the last month increased from 1.8% in 2002 to 19.9% in 2012 (p < 0.001), and emergency room visits within the last month also increased from 22.8% to 74.8% (p < 0.001). Although hospice referral increased from 9.1% to 37.4% (p < 0.001), timing of referral was delayed from median 53 days to 8 days before death (p=0.004). Use of targeted agents as the last chemotherapy for over-two-regimen users was associated with shortened TCD (hazard ratio, 2.564; p=0.002). CONCLUSION: Cancer treatment near the EOL became more aggressive over 10 years.
Drug Therapy ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Hospices ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units ; Male ; Molecular Targeted Therapy ; Referral and Consultation ; Seoul ; Terminal Care