Over the past decade, continent urinary diversion, especially orthotopic bladder substitutions, has become increasingly popular following radical cystectomy for bladder cancer. The ultimate goal of orthotopic bladder substitution is to offer patients the best quality of life, similar to that of patients with native bladders. To achieve that purpose, surgeons should be familiar with the characteristics of good candidates for neobladders, the possible intraoperative and postoperative problems related to the surgery, and the solutions to these problems. Postoperative surveillance and instructions given to the patients also contribute to successful, functional results. Here, we reviewed the indications, pitfalls, and solutions for orthotopic bladder substitutions and the patients' quality of life after surgery. When performed properly, orthotopic continent diversion offers good quality of life with few long-term complications. Therefore, we believe it is the best option for the majority of patients requiring cystectomy.
Cystectomy ; Humans ; Ileum ; Quality of Life ; Urinary Bladder ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms ; Urinary Diversion

PURPOSE: We investigated changing patterns of primary treatment in Korean men with prostate cancer (PC) and impact of sociodemographic factors on treatment choice from a nationwide cohort over 10 years. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a cohort study of a 2% nationwide random sample of Korean National Health Insurance. A total of 1,382 patients who had undergone active treatments for newly diagnosed PC between 2003 and 2013 were included. Time trends in primary treatment of PC, including radical surgery, radiation therapy (RT), and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) were analyzed. RESULTS: Total number of patients undergoing active treatments increased significantly (162%). Surgery cases showed the most significant increase, from 22.4% in 2003 to 45.4% in 2013, while the relative proportion of ADT showed a tendency to decrease from 60.3% in 2003 to 45.4% in 2013, and the relative proportion of RT was variable over 10 years (from 7.2% to 18.4%). While treatment patterns differed significantly according to age (p < 0.001) and income classes (p=0.014), there were differences in primary treatment according to residential area. In multinomial logistic regression analysis, older patients showed significant association with ADT or RT compared to surgery, while patients with higher income showed significant association with surgery. CONCLUSION: Treatment pattern in Korean PC patients has changed remarkably over the last 10 years. Sociodemographic factors do affect the primary treatment choice. Our results will be valuable in overviewing changing patterns of primary treatment in Korean PC patients and planning future health policy for PC.
Cohort Studies ; Health Policy ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male ; National Health Programs ; Prostate* ; Prostatectomy ; Prostatic Neoplasms* ; Radiotherapy

PURPOSE: To develop the dose volume histogram (DVH) management software which guides the evaluation of radiotherapy (RT) plan of a new case according to the biological consequences of the DVHs from the previously treated patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We determined the radiation pneumonitis (RP) as an biological response parameter in order to develop DVH management software. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of lung cancer patients treated with curative 3-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT). The biological event was defined as RP of the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) grade III or more. RESULTS: The DVH management software consisted of three parts (pre-existing DVH database, graphical tool, and Pinnacle3 script). The pre-existing DVH data were retrieved from 128 patients. RP events were tagged to the specific DVH data through retrospective review of patients' medical records. The graphical tool was developed to present the complication histogram derived from the pre-existing database (DVH and RP) and was implemented into the radiation treatment planning (RTP) system, Pinnacle3 v8.0 (Phillips Healthcare). The software was designed for the pre-existing database to be updated easily by tagging the specific DVH data with the new incidence of RP events at the time of patients' follow-up. CONCLUSION: We developed the DVH management software as an effective tool to incorporate the phenomenological consequences derived from the pre-existing database in the evaluation of a new RT plan. It can be used not only for lung cancer patients but also for the other disease site with different toxicity parameters.
Humans ; Incidence ; Lung Neoplasms ; Medical Records ; Radiation Pneumonitis ; Retrospective Studies

The funding acknowledgment in this article was partially omitted as published.

PURPOSE: According to the presence of proper muscle in the resected specimens from primary T1G3 bladder tumors, we compared the prognosis and investigated factors that were predictive of disease progression during the follow-up and upstaging after radical cystectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We reviewed the records of 157 patients who were diagnosed with primary T1G3 bladder cancer for the assessment and comparison of disease recurrence, disease progression and patient survival. There were 101 and 56 patients with and without proper muscle in the their transurethral resection (TUR) specimens (T1G3 and T1xG3, respectively); 30 and 20 of these patients, respectively, had undergone immediate cystectomy. RESULTS: Among the patients who were followed up after transurethral surgery, there were no differences in the survival between the two groups. For the patients treated by immediate cystectomy, the 5-year cancer-specific survival was 100% for the T1G3 patients at a mean follow-up of 54.5 months while it was 76.6% for the T1xG3 patients at a mean follow-up of 46.0 months (p=0.042). With the absence of radiologic findings suggestive of invasive bladder cancer, 55.6% of the T1xG3 patients were upstaged after radical cystectomy, whereas only 12.0% of the T1G3 patients were upstaged (p=0.002). Between the followed-up group and the cystectomy groups, more patients in the cystectomy group had non-papillary shaped bladder tumor (75.0% vs. 38.9%, respectively, p=0.010). Similarly, the T1x-G3 patients who progressed during follow-up or who were upstaged after radical cystectomy had more non-papillary shaped tumor than the patients who were without progression or upstaging (80.1% vs. 38.5%, respectively, p=0.006). CONCLUSIONS: For primary T1G3 bladder cancer, non-papillary shaped tumor without proper muscle in the resected specimen is a risk factor for the progression during follow-up or upstaging after radical cystectomy that should warrant consideration for repeated resection or early cystectomy.
Cystectomy ; Disease Progression ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Risk Factors ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms* ; Urinary Bladder*

Despite rapid increase in incidence of prostate cancer (PC) and PC survivors, there are few studies regarding competing causes of death and time trends in Asian population. We conducted a cohort study of 2% nationwide random sample of Korean National Health Insurance employees. A total of 873 patients who had received active treatments, including surgery, radiation therapy (RT) and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), for newly diagnosed PC between 2003 and 2010 were included. The cause of death was categorized as PC, other cancers, cardiovascular disease, and other causes. During a median follow-up of 4.75 years, 29.4% (257/873) of the study population died. PC, other cancers, cardiovascular disease, and other causes were responsible for 46.3%, 35.4%, 6.6%, and 11.7%, respectively, of the decedents. Significant differences existed in the cause of death among treatment groups (P < 0.001). Only 20% and 9.5% of surgery and RT group died of PC, whereas 63.9% of ADT group died of PC. Other cancers were responsible for 56%, 74.6% and 17.8% of death in the surgery, RT and ADT group, respectively, while cardiovascular disease accounted for 4%, 6.3%, and 7.1% of death in the treatment groups. Analysis of time trends showed that PC-specific death tended to decrease (from 42.9% in 2003 to 23.1% in 2010), whereas non-PC causes tended to increase over the 8 years. Our results are valuable in overviewing causes of death and time trends in Korean PC patients, and planning future health policy for PC.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Cardiovascular Diseases ; Cause of Death* ; Cohort Studies* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Health Policy ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Mortality ; National Health Programs ; Prostate* ; Prostatectomy ; Prostatic Neoplasms* ; Survivors

PURPOSE: To compare the clinical efficacy and safety of three phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitors in the treatment of mele erectile dysfunction according to patient preference. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between January 2004 and August 2005, 113 male erectile dysfunctional patients were enrolled to this randomized, prospective, comparative, open-label, triple-crossover study of three PDE5 inhibitors. Patients were assigned to one of six medication schedules, and were prescribed a full dose of the drugs for 8 weeks, with a week of washout period prior to the next drug cycle. The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) scores and side effects related with each medication were obtained at the end of study. 48 patients finished all the medications, and completed the study with a global assessment questionnaire on their drug preference and reasons for that preference. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 54.6 (33-73) years. The mean pre-treatment IIEF and EF domain scores (+/-S.D.) were 28.2+/-14.7 and 10.6+/-6.6, respectively. The scores were significantly improved, to 47.9+/-14.6 and 19.9+/-6.6 with sildenafil, to 49.7+/-12.3 and 21.3+/-5.8 with vardenafil, and to 47.9+/-14.9 and 19.8+/-7.2 with tadalafil (p < 0.01). There were no significant differences in the scores or frequencies of side effects between the drugs. The preference percentages were 29.2, 29.2 and 35.4% for sildenafil, vardenafil and tadalafil, respectively. Patient preference was mainly due to improvement in erectile function (70.9%), such as rigid erection, prolonged erection and fast erection, and not to the infrequent rate of side effects (20.8%). CONCLISIONS: There were no significant differences of the efficacy and safety among the three PDE5 inhibitors. The preference for a drug for the treatment of erectile dysfunction was mainly related to the efficacy on the improvement of erectile function rather than the less frequent side effects.
Appointments and Schedules ; Erectile Dysfunction* ; Humans ; Male ; Patient Preference* ; Phosphodiesterase 5 Inhibitors* ; Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors ; Prospective Studies ; Questionnaires

PURPOSE: We investigated the predictors for developing intravesical recurrence following curative surgery for primary upper tract transitional cell carcinoma (UTTCC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The data of 207 patients without a prior history of bladder tumor or distant metastasis were analyzed. We evaluated the influence of multiple clinicopathologic parameters, such as age, sex, T stage, N stage, grade, carcinoma-in-situ, anatomical location, multifocality, lymphovascular invasion (LVI), preoperative urine cytology, and operative methods, on intravesical recurrence. Considering the possibility of bias from the effect of adjuvant treatment, the same analyses were performed in 184 patients excluding those who underwent adjuvant therapy. Mean follow-up was 59.7 months. RESULTS: Of 207 patients, 91 (44%) experienced intravesical recurrence at a mean interval of 13.2 months. Among them, 66% (60/91) experienced intravesical recurrence within 12 months postoperatively. Eighty-nine percent of the recurred bladder tumors were superficial tumors and 64% were grade 1 or 2. Among the multiple parameters analyzed, LVI was the only significant predictor for intravesical recurrence in univariate and multivariate analysis (p=0.008; HR=1.911), whereas preoperative urine cytology was marginally significant. Similar results were obtained in the analysis for 184 patients without adjuvant therapy. Ten patients (11%) underwent muscle-invasive bladder tumor recurrence. Muscle-invasive bladder tumor recurrence was significantly associated with the presence of LVI compared with superficial bladder tumor recurrence (70% vs. 30%; p=0.005). CONCLUSIONS: LVI in primary UTTCC was a significant predictor of intravesical recurrence after curative surgery, whereas preoperative urine cytology was a possible predictor. Therefore, we recommend more rigorous cystoscopic follow-up in patients with these risk factors.
Bias (Epidemiology) ; Carcinoma, Transitional Cell ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Multivariate Analysis ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Recurrence ; Risk Factors ; Urinary Bladder ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms ; Urinary Tract

BACKGROUND: Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are essential for maintaining immune homeostasis and facilitating tissue regeneration by fostering an environment conducive to tissue repair. However, in damaged tissues, excessive inflammatory responses can overwhelm the immunomodulatory capacity of Tregs, compromising their functionality and potentially hindering effective regeneration. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) play a key role in enhancing Treg function. MSCs enhance Treg activity through indirect interactions, such as cytokine secretion, and direct interactions via membrane proteins. METHODS: This review examines the regenerative functions of Tregs across various tissues, including bone, cartilage, muscle, and skin, and explores strategies to enhance Treg functionality using MSCs. Advanced techniques, such as the overexpression of relevant genes in MSCs, are highlighted for their potential to further enhance Treg function. Additionally, emerging technologies utilizing extracellular vesicles (EVs) and cell membrane-derived vesicles derived from MSCs offer promising alternatives to circumvent the potential side effects associated with live cell therapies. This review proposes approaches to enhance Treg function and promote tissue regeneration and also outlines future research directions. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: This review elucidates recent technological advancements aimed at enhancing Treg function using MSCs and examines their potential to improve tissue regeneration efficiency.

BACKGROUND: Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are essential for maintaining immune homeostasis and facilitating tissue regeneration by fostering an environment conducive to tissue repair. However, in damaged tissues, excessive inflammatory responses can overwhelm the immunomodulatory capacity of Tregs, compromising their functionality and potentially hindering effective regeneration. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) play a key role in enhancing Treg function. MSCs enhance Treg activity through indirect interactions, such as cytokine secretion, and direct interactions via membrane proteins. METHODS: This review examines the regenerative functions of Tregs across various tissues, including bone, cartilage, muscle, and skin, and explores strategies to enhance Treg functionality using MSCs. Advanced techniques, such as the overexpression of relevant genes in MSCs, are highlighted for their potential to further enhance Treg function. Additionally, emerging technologies utilizing extracellular vesicles (EVs) and cell membrane-derived vesicles derived from MSCs offer promising alternatives to circumvent the potential side effects associated with live cell therapies. This review proposes approaches to enhance Treg function and promote tissue regeneration and also outlines future research directions. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: This review elucidates recent technological advancements aimed at enhancing Treg function using MSCs and examines their potential to improve tissue regeneration efficiency.