No abstract available.
Aspergillosis*

No abstract available.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Cell Line*

Hodgkin's disease (HD) is a hematologic malignancy which shows common features regardless of race, but racial differences may be considered with certain clinical characteritcs. HD in Korea shows somewhat different characteristics when compared to cases in Western countries. We evaluated the clinical and histopathologic characteristics of HD, the outcomes of various chemotherapy regimens, and prognostic factors of HD in Korea. One hundred and five patients with initial histopathologic diagnosis of Hodgkin's disease were retrospectively reviewed 20 years after diagnosis at Yonsei University College of Medicine. Nodular sclerosis was the most common histopathogic subtype (41%) and mixed cellularity was nearly as common (40%). The overall complete remission rate (CR) was 87.6%. The disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) rate were 79.2% and 84.8% at 5-years, 70% and 79.2% at 10- and 20-years. There were no significant differences in CR rate and DFS, but OS rates were significantly higher in m-BACOP and ABVD regimen. Univariate analysis revealed that age, B-symptom, ECOG scale, Ann Arbor stage, international prognostic index, and serum beta2-microglobulin level were significant prognostic factors for both DFS and OS. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that age, B symptoms, and ECOG scale were significant prognostic factors for OS only. In conclusion, the survival rates of HD patients in our center were superior to those of previous reports in Korea and Western countries. Considering the higher OS rate and decreased incidence of side effects, the ABVD regimen may be recommended for the initial treatment of Hodgkin's disease.
Treatment Outcome ; Remission Induction ; Prognosis ; Middle Aged ; Male ; Korea ; Humans ; Hodgkin Disease/mortality/*therapy ; Follow-Up Studies ; Female ; Disease-Free Survival ; Child, Preschool ; Child ; Antineoplastic Agents/*pharmacology ; Aged, 80 and over ; Aged ; Adult ; Adolescent

Nocardiosis is an acute, subacute, or chronic infection, most often beginning in the lung, and usually affects the immunocompromised host. Nocardial infections are not rare in the United States, 500 to 1000 cases are recognized each year, but rarely reported in Korea. Disorders associated with cellular immune dysfunction are the major risk factors for nocardiosis. We report one case of brain and retroperitoneal abscess caused by Nocardia asteroides in patient who has had a chronic lymphocytic leukemia and diabetes mellitus, with a review of the relevant literature.
Abscess ; Brain ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Humans ; Immunocompromised Host ; Korea ; Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell* ; Lung ; Nocardia asteroides ; Nocardia Infections* ; Risk Factors ; United States

Primary gastric lymphoma is the most common form of extralymphatic non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Most cases are of B-cell origin and few cases of lymphoma of T-cell origin have been reported. Peripheral T cell lymphoma is a lymphoma of extrathymic origin. Expression of T-cell intracellular antigen (TIA)-1 can be detected in all cytotoxic cells, and the expression of this cytotoxic protein is associated with extranodal presentation. We report a case of primary peripheral T cell lymphoma of the stomach with cytotoxic T-cell phenotype in a 70-year-old male presenting with upper gastrointestinal bleeding.
Aged ; B-Lymphocytes ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Lymphoma ; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin ; Lymphoma, T-Cell, Peripheral* ; Male ; Phenotype* ; Stomach* ; T-Lymphocytes

PURPOSE: The aim of this retrospective study is to assess the necessity of staging laparotomy in the management of supradiaphragmatic CS I-II Hodgkin's disease. Prognostic factors and the usefulness of prognostic factor groups were also analyzed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From 1985 to 1995, fifty one patients who were diagnosed as supradiaphragmatic CS I-II Hodgkin's disease at Yonsei Cancer Center in Seoul, Korea were enrolled in this study. Age range was 4 to 67 with median age of 30. The number of patients with each CS IA, IIA, and IIB were 16, 25, and 10, respectively. Radiotherapy (RT) was delivered using 4 or 6 MV photon beam to a total dose of 19.5 to 55.6Gy (median dose : 45Gy) with a 1.5 to 1.8Gy per fraction. Chemotherapy (CT) was given in 2-12 cycles (median : 6 cycles). Thirty one patients were treated with RT alone, 4 patients with CT alone and 16 patients with combined chemoradiotherapy. RT volumes varied from involved fields (3), subtotal nodal fields (18) or mantle fields (26). RESULTS: Five-year disease-free survival rate (DFS) was 78.0% and overall survival rate (OS) was 87.6%. Fifty patients achieved a complete remission after initial treatment and 8 patients were relapsed. Salvage therapy was given to 7 patients, 1 with RT alone, 4 with CT alone, 2 with RT+CT. Only two patients were successfully salvaged. Feminine gender and large mediastinal adenopathy were significant adverse prognostic factors in the univariate analysis for DFS. The significant adverse prognostic factors of OS were B symptom and clinical stage. When patients were analyzed according to European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) prog-nostic factor groups, the DFS in patients with very favorable, favorable and unfavorable group was 100, 100 and 55.8% (p<0.05), and the OS in each patients' group was 100, 100 and 75.1% (p<0.05), respectively. In very favorable and favorable groups, the DFS and OS were all 100% by RT alone, but in unfavorable group, RT with CT had a lesser relapse rate than RT alone. The subtotal nodal irradiation had better DFS than mantle RT in patients treated with RT. CONCLUSION: In present study, the DFS and OS in patients who did not undergo staging laparotomy were similar with the results in the literatures of which patients were surgically staged. Therefore, we may suggest that staging laparotomy would not influence the outcome of treatments. In univariate analysis, gender, large mediastinal adenopathy, B symptoms and clinical stage were significant prognostic factors for the survival rate. We confirm the usefulness of EORTC prognostic factor groups which may be a good indicator to select the treatment modality.
Chemoradiotherapy ; Disease-Free Survival ; Drug Therapy ; Hodgkin Disease* ; Humans ; Korea ; Laparotomy ; Radiotherapy ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Salvage Therapy ; Seoul ; Survival Rate

PURPOSE: The aim of this retrospective study is to assess the necessity of staging laparotomy in the management of supradiaphragmatic CS I-II Hodgkin's disease. Prognostic factors and the usefulness of prognostic factor groups were also analyzed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From 1985 to 1995, fifty one patients who were diagnosed as supradiaphragmatic CS I-II Hodgkin's disease at Yonsei Cancer Center in Seoul, Korea were enrolled in this study. Age range was 4 to 67 with median age of 30. The number of patients with each CS IA, IIA, and IIB were 16, 25, and 10, respectively. Radiotherapy (RT) was delivered using 4 or 6 MV photon beam to a total dose of 19.5 to 55.6Gy (median dose : 45Gy) with a 1.5 to 1.8Gy per fraction. Chemotherapy (CT) was given in 2-12 cycles (median : 6 cycles). Thirty one patients were treated with RT alone, 4 patients with CT alone and 16 patients with combined chemoradiotherapy. RT volumes varied from involved fields (3), subtotal nodal fields (18) or mantle fields (26). RESULTS: Five-year disease-free survival rate (DFS) was 78.0% and overall survival rate (OS) was 87.6%. Fifty patients achieved a complete remission after initial treatment and 8 patients were relapsed. Salvage therapy was given to 7 patients, 1 with RT alone, 4 with CT alone, 2 with RT+CT. Only two patients were successfully salvaged. Feminine gender and large mediastinal adenopathy were significant adverse prognostic factors in the univariate analysis for DFS. The significant adverse prognostic factors of OS were B symptom and clinical stage. When patients were analyzed according to European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) prog-nostic factor groups, the DFS in patients with very favorable, favorable and unfavorable group was 100, 100 and 55.8% (p<0.05), and the OS in each patients' group was 100, 100 and 75.1% (p<0.05), respectively. In very favorable and favorable groups, the DFS and OS were all 100% by RT alone, but in unfavorable group, RT with CT had a lesser relapse rate than RT alone. The subtotal nodal irradiation had better DFS than mantle RT in patients treated with RT. CONCLUSION: In present study, the DFS and OS in patients who did not undergo staging laparotomy were similar with the results in the literatures of which patients were surgically staged. Therefore, we may suggest that staging laparotomy would not influence the outcome of treatments. In univariate analysis, gender, large mediastinal adenopathy, B symptoms and clinical stage were significant prognostic factors for the survival rate. We confirm the usefulness of EORTC prognostic factor groups which may be a good indicator to select the treatment modality.
Chemoradiotherapy ; Disease-Free Survival ; Drug Therapy ; Hodgkin Disease* ; Humans ; Korea ; Laparotomy ; Radiotherapy ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Salvage Therapy ; Seoul ; Survival Rate

PURPOSE: Anaphylaxis is a medical emergency requiring immediate recognition and treatment. Despite the serious nature of these reactions, there is no universal agreement on the definition and there have been few epidemiologic studies of anaphylaxis in children. The purpose of the study is to investigate the causative agents, presenting signs and symptoms and course of disease in children suitable for established diagnostic criteria for anaphylaxis in the middle area of South Korea. METHODS: We identified potential episodes of anaphylaxis occuring between March 1994 and October 2007 from the university hospitals in the middle area of South Korea. We reviewed all patients' medical records diagnosed with anaphylaxis and other related diagnoses. From chart review, we retrospectively collected demographic and epidemiologic data. RESULTS: We identified 40 patients with anaphylaxis. Patients' ages ranged from 2 months to 17 years, with a mean age of 6.6 years. A causative agent was recognized in 84.5%. The inciting agent included foods in 26 cases (65%), medication in 7 cases (17.5%) and bee sting in 1 case (2.5%). Mucocutaneous manifestations were the most common, respiratory symptoms were in 35 patients, cardiovascular symptoms were in 8 patients, and gastrointestinal symptoms were in 5 patients. CONCLUSION: We found some cases of anaphylaxis which had misdiagnosed as urticaria or angioedema using the established diagnostic criteria. Therefore, clinicians must accurately know the criteria of anaphylaxis and make an effort to identify cases of anaphylaxis with a high suspicion. Also, we found the epidemiology, causative agents, and symptoms and treatments of anaphylaxis in the middle area of South Korea. Our data will be the basis for anaphylactic studies in South Korea.
Anaphylaxis ; Angioedema ; Bees ; Bites and Stings ; Child ; Collodion ; Emergencies ; Epidemiologic Studies ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; Medical Records ; Republic of Korea ; Retrospective Studies ; Urticaria

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Vaccinations in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are recommended to prevent infectious diseases. However, there are few reports of vaccination in IBD patients in Korea. The frequency of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use is high despite its uncertain effectiveness. This study aimed to identify the rates of vaccination and use of CAM in patients with IBD. METHODS: A total of 219 patients attended an education session for IBD patients held at Severance Hospital on March 23, 2013. We conducted a survey on vaccination and CAM use in IBD patients; 120 patients completed the questionnaire. RESULTS: The influenza vaccination rate was 44.2% and pneumococcal vaccination rate was 4.2%. Thirty-one (66%) patients were aware of the importance of vaccination. The vaccination rate was higher in patients who were aware of the importance of vaccination compared with that in patients who were unaware of the importance of vaccination (70.1% vs. 41.7%, P=0.004). The rate of CAM use was 30.0%. The most commonly used CAMs were oral products: vitamins (33.3%), red ginseng (25.0%), and probiotics (19.4%). CONCLUSIONS: Awareness of the importance of vaccination and actual vaccination rates were low in IBD patients. Despite insufficient evidence on the effectiveness of CAMs in IBD patients, many patients used CAMs. We believe that repeated education and promotion of vaccination are important. Further large-scale studies to investigate the efficacy and safety of CAMs are warranted in patients with IBD.
Communicable Diseases ; Complementary Therapies* ; Education ; Humans ; Inflammatory Bowel Diseases* ; Influenza, Human ; Korea ; Panax ; Probiotics ; Vaccination* ; Vitamins ; Surveys and Questionnaires

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of autologous transplantation of peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC) mobilized with high-dose consolidation chemotherapy and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). Twenty patients received myeloablative chemotherapy or chemo-radiotherapy including total body irradiation followed by the infusion of PBSC. PBSC were collected by large-volume leukaphereses. The mean number of mononuclear cells and CD34-positive cells infused were 7.2 x 10(8)/kg (range, 2.2-16.6), and 6.6 x 106/kg (range, 2.1-27.7), respectively. Engraftment failure was not seen in the enrolled patients. The median time to neutrophil (> or = 500/microL) and platelet recovery (> or = 50,000/microL) from the transplant was 12 days (range, 8-20) and 28 days (range, 10-600), respectively. The 2-year probability of disease-free survival (DFS) and relapse were 43% and 57% for patients with AML transplanted in first complete remission (CR1). The outcome of the patients transplanted in the advanced status was significantly worse than the patients transplanted in CR1 (P=0.04). Most relapses occurred within 1 year after transplantation. Fatal hepatic veno-occlusive disease was observed in one case. Other transplantation-related toxicities were mild. Our results demonstrated that autologous transplantation of high-dose consolidation chemotherapy-mobilized peripheral blood progenitor cells is feasible in the patients with AML in CR1. To further reduce the risk of leukemia relapse, much effort should be contributed to the field of ex vivo purging and post-transplant immunotherapy.
Adult ; Female ; Hematopoiesis ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Mobilization* ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation*/adverse effects ; Human ; Leukemia, Myelocytic, Acute/therapy* ; Leukemia, Myelocytic, Acute/mortality ; Male ; Middle Age ; Transplantation, Autologous