Background: s/Aims: Microwave ablation (MWA) is an emerging ablative therapy that surpasses previous methods by achieving higher temperatures and creating larger ablation zones within shorter periods. This study compared the therapeutic outcomes of MWA with those of liver resection in real-world clinical practice. Methods: A total of 178 patients with 259 nodules who underwent MWA or liver resection between January 2015 and July 2023 were enrolled. Local tumor progression (LTP)-free survival, overall progression (OP)-free survival, and overall survival (OS) were assessed based on the treatment modality for the index nodule. Results: Of the 178 patients, 134 with 214 nodules underwent MWA, and 44 with 45 nodules underwent liver resection. The median follow-up period was 2.0±1.5 years. The annual incidence of LTP was 3.7% for MWA and 1.4% for liver resection. Treatment modality did not significantly affect LTP-free survival (hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% confidence interval, 0.14-2.69; P=0.511). For nodules larger than 3 cm, LTP-free survival was not affected by the treatment modality. Similarly, OP-free survival and OS were not influenced by treatment modality. Conclusions MWA and liver resection demonstrated comparable treatment outcomes in terms of local tumor control, overall recurrence, and survival. MWA may be an alternative treatment option for select patients; however, further studies are necessary to generalize these findings.

Background: s/Aims: Microwave ablation (MWA) is an emerging ablative therapy that surpasses previous methods by achieving higher temperatures and creating larger ablation zones within shorter periods. This study compared the therapeutic outcomes of MWA with those of liver resection in real-world clinical practice. Methods: A total of 178 patients with 259 nodules who underwent MWA or liver resection between January 2015 and July 2023 were enrolled. Local tumor progression (LTP)-free survival, overall progression (OP)-free survival, and overall survival (OS) were assessed based on the treatment modality for the index nodule. Results: Of the 178 patients, 134 with 214 nodules underwent MWA, and 44 with 45 nodules underwent liver resection. The median follow-up period was 2.0±1.5 years. The annual incidence of LTP was 3.7% for MWA and 1.4% for liver resection. Treatment modality did not significantly affect LTP-free survival (hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% confidence interval, 0.14-2.69; P=0.511). For nodules larger than 3 cm, LTP-free survival was not affected by the treatment modality. Similarly, OP-free survival and OS were not influenced by treatment modality. Conclusions MWA and liver resection demonstrated comparable treatment outcomes in terms of local tumor control, overall recurrence, and survival. MWA may be an alternative treatment option for select patients; however, further studies are necessary to generalize these findings.

Background: s/Aims: Microwave ablation (MWA) is an emerging ablative therapy that surpasses previous methods by achieving higher temperatures and creating larger ablation zones within shorter periods. This study compared the therapeutic outcomes of MWA with those of liver resection in real-world clinical practice. Methods: A total of 178 patients with 259 nodules who underwent MWA or liver resection between January 2015 and July 2023 were enrolled. Local tumor progression (LTP)-free survival, overall progression (OP)-free survival, and overall survival (OS) were assessed based on the treatment modality for the index nodule. Results: Of the 178 patients, 134 with 214 nodules underwent MWA, and 44 with 45 nodules underwent liver resection. The median follow-up period was 2.0±1.5 years. The annual incidence of LTP was 3.7% for MWA and 1.4% for liver resection. Treatment modality did not significantly affect LTP-free survival (hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% confidence interval, 0.14-2.69; P=0.511). For nodules larger than 3 cm, LTP-free survival was not affected by the treatment modality. Similarly, OP-free survival and OS were not influenced by treatment modality. Conclusions MWA and liver resection demonstrated comparable treatment outcomes in terms of local tumor control, overall recurrence, and survival. MWA may be an alternative treatment option for select patients; however, further studies are necessary to generalize these findings.

In the 2023 series, we summarized the major clinical research advances in gynecologic oncology based on communications at the conference of Asian Society of Gynecologic Oncology Review Course. The review consisted of 1) Endometrial cancer: immune checkpoint inhibitor, antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), selective inhibitor of nuclear export, CDK4/6 inhibitors WEE1 inhibitor, poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors. 2) Cervical cancer: surgery in low-risk early-stage cervical cancer, therapy for locally advanced stage and advanced, metastatic, or recurrent setting; and 3) Ovarian cancer: immunotherapy, triplet therapies using immune checkpoint inhibitors along with antiangiogenic agents and PARP inhibitors, and ADCs. In 2023, the field of endometrial cancer treatment witnessed a landmark year, marked by several practice-changing outcomes with immune checkpoint inhibitors and the reliable efficacy of PARP inhibitors and ADCs.

In the 2023 series, we summarized the major clinical research advances in gynecologic oncology based on communications at the conference of Asian Society of Gynecologic Oncology Review Course. The review consisted of 1) Endometrial cancer: immune checkpoint inhibitor, antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), selective inhibitor of nuclear export, CDK4/6 inhibitors WEE1 inhibitor, poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors. 2) Cervical cancer: surgery in low-risk early-stage cervical cancer, therapy for locally advanced stage and advanced, metastatic, or recurrent setting; and 3) Ovarian cancer: immunotherapy, triplet therapies using immune checkpoint inhibitors along with antiangiogenic agents and PARP inhibitors, and ADCs. In 2023, the field of endometrial cancer treatment witnessed a landmark year, marked by several practice-changing outcomes with immune checkpoint inhibitors and the reliable efficacy of PARP inhibitors and ADCs.

In the 2023 series, we summarized the major clinical research advances in gynecologic oncology based on communications at the conference of Asian Society of Gynecologic Oncology Review Course. The review consisted of 1) Endometrial cancer: immune checkpoint inhibitor, antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), selective inhibitor of nuclear export, CDK4/6 inhibitors WEE1 inhibitor, poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors. 2) Cervical cancer: surgery in low-risk early-stage cervical cancer, therapy for locally advanced stage and advanced, metastatic, or recurrent setting; and 3) Ovarian cancer: immunotherapy, triplet therapies using immune checkpoint inhibitors along with antiangiogenic agents and PARP inhibitors, and ADCs. In 2023, the field of endometrial cancer treatment witnessed a landmark year, marked by several practice-changing outcomes with immune checkpoint inhibitors and the reliable efficacy of PARP inhibitors and ADCs.

Background/Aims: Sorafenib is the standard of care in the management of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics, treatment patterns and outcomes of sorafenib among HCC patients in South Korea. Methods: This population-based retrospective, single-arm, observational study used the Korean National Health Insurance database to identify patients with HCC who received sorafenib between July 1, 2008, and December 31, 2014. A total of 9,923 patients were recruited in this study. Results: Among 9,923 patients, 6,669 patients (68.2%) received loco-regional therapy prior to sorafenib, and 1,565 patients (15.8%) received combination therapy with concomitant sorafenib;2,591 patients (26.1%) received rescue therapy after sorafenib, and transarterial chemoembolization was the most common modality applied in 1,498 patients (15.1%). A total of 3,591 patients underwent rescue therapy after sorafenib, and the median overall survival was 14.5 months compared to 4.6 months in 7,332 patients who received supportive care after sorafenib. The mean duration of sorafenib administration in all patients was 105.7 days; 7,023 patients (70.8%) received an initial dose of 600 to 800 mg. The longest survival was shown in patients who received the recommended dose of 800 mg, subsequently reduced to 400 mg (15.0 months). The second longest survival was demonstrated in patients with a starting dose of 800 mg, followed by a dose reduction to 400–600 mg (9.6 months). Conclusions Real-life data show that the efficacy of sorafenib seems similar to that observed in clinical trials, suggesting that appropriate subsequent therapy after sorafenib might prolong patient survival.

Purpose: There are no reliable biomarkers to guide treatment for patients with borderline resectable pancreatic cancer (BRPC) in the neoadjuvant setting. We used plasma circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) sequencing to search biomarkers for patients with BRPC receiving neoadjuvant mFOLFIRINOX in our phase 2 clinical trial (NCT02749136). Materials and Methods: Among the 44 patients enrolled in the trial, patients with plasma ctDNA sequencing at baseline or post-operation were included in this analysis. Plasma cell-free DNA isolation and sequencing were performed using the Guardant 360 assay. Detection of genomic alterations, including DNA damage repair (DDR) genes, were examined for correlations with survival. Results: Among the 44 patients, 28 patients had ctDNA sequencing data qualified for the analysis and were included in this study. Among the 25 patients with baseline plasma ctDNA data, 10 patients (40%) had alterations of DDR genes detected at baseline, inclu-ding ATM, BRCA1, BRCA2 and MLH1, and showed significantly better progression-free survival than those without such DDR gene alterations detected (median, 26.6 vs. 13.5 months; log-rank p=0.004). Patients with somatic KRAS mutations detected at baseline (n=6) had significantly worse overall survival (median, 8.5 months vs. not applicable; log-rank p=0.003) than those without. Among 13 patients with post-operative plasma ctDNA data, eight patients (61.5%) had detectable somatic alterations. Conclusion Detection of DDR gene mutations from plasma ctDNA at baseline was associated with better survival outcomes of pati-ents with borderline resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma treated with neoadjuvant mFOLFIRINOX and may be a prognostic biomarker.

In the 2022 series, we summarized the major clinical research advances in gynecologic oncology based on communications at the conference of Asian Society of Gynecologic Oncology Review Course. The review consisted of 1) Ovarian cancer: long-term follow-up data, new poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors, overall survival (OS) issues with PARP inhibitor monotherapy, hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and antibody-drug conjugate; 2) Cervical cancer: surgery in early stage disease, therapy for locally advanced stage and advanced, metastatic, or recurrent setting; and 3) Corpus cancer: follow-up regimen, immune checkpoint inhibitor, WEE1 inhibitor, selective inhibitor of nuclear export. A special note was made on the withdrawal of PARP inhibitor from the market for heavily pretreated ovarian cancer patients based on the final OS results of ARIEL-4 and SOLO-3 due to concerns of increased risk of death.