PURPOSE: The staging of bladder carcinoma is a major determinant of operative management. CT of bladder carcinoma has been widely used to diagnose external extension (pT3b and over), but tumors confined to the bladder wall (from pT1 to pT3a) are poorly delineated. The authors describe CT findings of the superficial bladder carcinoma (below T1, stage A) in thin section CT with air insufflation technique (air insufflation-CT) to facilitate early detection and to aid correct staging of the superficial bladder carcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The materials consisted of proved 24 cases (1'9 patients, single tumor: 16 patients, multiple tumors :3 patients) of stage A bladder carcinomas. Air insufflation-CT was performed by the infusion of approximately 200 mL of air into the bladder via a Foley catheter. After the routine pelvic CT, bladder tumors were re-scanned with 1.5 to 5 mm thickness and intervals. RESULTS: The superficial bladder carcinomas were detected as nodular(5 cases, 20.8%), papillary(15 cases, 62.5%), pyramidal(2 cases, 8.3%), and domed(2 cases, 8.3%) forms on air insufflation CT. These tumors were classified into three types according to the size of the tumoral neck:type I(pedundulated polypold tumor:4 cases, 16.6%), type II(polypid tumor with short neck :13 cases, 54.2%), and type Ill(sessile tumor :7 cases, 29. 2%). The mean size(tumoral width x height x base o, neck/stalk) of the tumors was 22 x 20 x 16mm. The average tumoral sizes according to each type of the superficial tumors were type 1:22 x 25 x 6mm, type 11:23 x 22 x 18mm, and type III :18 x 15 x 18mm. The mean width of the type I--II tumoral necks was 15mm. The mean length of the type I tumoral neck(pedicle) was 2.5mm. Papillary fronds of the tumors were seen in 10 cases(41.7%) of 24 superficial tumors. Outer margin of the involved bladder wall was smooth in all cases. CONCLUSION: Thin-sectin CT with air insufflation technique for bladder carcinoma was useful in tumoral demonstration, and characteristics of the superficial bladder carcinomas were small polypold tumors had a short neck mostly and smooth outer wall of the involved bladder wall.
Catheters ; Humans ; Insufflation* ; Neck ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms ; Urinary Bladder*

This study was conducted to compare the nutrient intake, physical characteristics, and health status according to daily fruits and vegetables intake of adolescents using the Korean national health and nutrition examination survey for the sixth period (2013∼2015). Subjects were 1,096 adolescents aged 13∼18 years. The average daily intake of fruits and vegetables was 518.49±4.94 g. The two groups (insufficient, sufficient) were divided by fruits and vegetables intake (<500 g/day, ≥500 g/day) and the ratio of the insufficient group was 75.9% while that of the adequate group was 24.1%. The mean of intake of energy, calcium, phosphorus, sodium, potassium, iron, thiamin, niacin, vitamin C and dietary fiber differed significantly between the insufficient and sufficient groups (P<0.01, P<0.001). However, there was no significant difference in physical characteristics between groups. The self-perceived health status was better in the sufficient group (P<0.05), while the insufficient group was aware of more stress in their daily life (P<0.05). The serum triglyceride was significantly higher in the sufficient group (P<0.05), while the total cholesterol was lower (P<0.05). As the characteristics of fruits and vegetables are different, it will be necessary to determine standards for consumption of each type. It is also necessary to consider whether a fruits and vegetables intake of 500 g would be a reasonable standard for adolescents. Nevertheless, the results of this study indicate efforts to increase fruits and vegetables intake by young people are necessary.
Adolescent* ; Ascorbic Acid ; Calcium ; Cholesterol ; Dietary Fiber ; Fruit* ; Humans ; Iron ; Niacin ; Nutrition Surveys* ; Phosphorus ; Potassium ; Sodium ; Triglycerides ; Vegetables*

BACKGROUND: Programmed death-1 (PD-1) is physiologically expressed by germinal center-associated helper T-cells and has an inhibitory effect on T-cell activity. METHODS: We examined 63 cases of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and determined the number of PD-1-positive helper T-cells in a representative tumor area after immunohistochemical staining using a monoclonal antibody against PD-1. The PD-1-positive cells were counted in 3 high-power fields (HPFs; 400x). RESULTS: Patients were divided into 2 groups: one with a high number of PD-1-positive cells (>20/HPF, n=33) and one with a low number of PD-1-positive cells (< or =20/HPF, n=30). The former group showed decreased overall survival, but at a statistically non-significant level (p=0.073). A high number of PD-1-positive cells was more common in patients at an advanced clinical stage and with high international prognostic index score (p=0.025 and p=0.026, respectively). The number of extranodal sites also somewhat correlated with the PD-1 staining status (p=0.071). However, the number of PD-1-positive cells was not associated with patient age, serum lactate dehydrogenase level, and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance score. CONCLUSIONS: The high number of PD-1-positive cells might be associated with an unfavorable outcome in DLBCL patients.
B-Lymphocytes ; Humans ; L-Lactate Dehydrogenase ; Lymphocytes, Tumor-Infiltrating ; Lymphoma ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse ; T-Lymphocytes ; T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer

Refractory angina pectoris is defined as angina refractory to optimal medical treatment and standard coronary revascularization procedures. Despite recent therapeutic advances, patients with refractory angina pectoris are not adequately treated. Spinal cord stimulation is a minimally invasive and reversible technique which utilizes electrical neuromodulation by means of an electrode implanted in the epidural space. It has been reported to be an effective and safe treatment for refractory angina pectoris. We report a case of spinal cord stimulation which has effectively relieved chest pain due to coronary artery disease in a 40-year-old man. This is the first report of spinal cord stimulation for treatment of refractory angina pectoris in South Korea.
Adult ; Angina Pectoris ; Chest Pain ; Coronary Artery Disease ; Electrodes ; Epidural Space ; Humans ; Republic of Korea ; Spinal Cord ; Spinal Cord Stimulation

PURPOSE: The optimal cytotoxic regimens have not been established for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who develop disease progression on first-line epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR-TKI). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We conducted a multi-center randomized phase II trial to compare the clinical outcomes between pemetrexed plus cisplatin combination therapy followed by maintenance pemetrexed (PC) and pemetrexed monotherapy (P) after failure of first-line EGFR-TKI. The primary objective was progression-free survival (PFS), and secondary objectives included overall response rate (ORR), overall survival (OS), health-related quality of life (HRQOL), and safety and toxicity profiles. RESULTS: A total of 96 patientswere randomized, and 91 patientswere treated at 14 centers in Korea. The ORR was 34.8% (16/46) for the PC arm and 17.8% (8/45) for the P arm (p=0.066). With 23.4 months of follow-up, the median PFS was 5.4 months in the PC arm and 6.4 months in the P arm (p=0.114). The median OS was 17.9 months and 15.7 months in PC and P arms, respectively (p=0.787). Adverse events ≥ grade 3 were reported in 12 patients (26.1%) in the PC arm and nine patients (20.0%) in the P arm (p=0.491). The overall time trends of HRQOL were not significantly different between the two arms. CONCLUSION: The outcomes of pemetrexed therapy in NSCLC patients with disease progression after firstline EGFR-TKI might not be improved by adding cisplatin.
Arm ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung ; Cisplatin ; Disease Progression ; Disease-Free Survival ; Epidermal Growth Factor ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Korea ; Lung Neoplasms ; Lung ; Pemetrexed ; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases ; Quality of Life ; Receptor, Epidermal Growth Factor ; Tyrosine