Purpose: Radiotherapy is used to reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence after surgery, but it is a potential cause of secondary cancer. We validated the risk of secondary cancer in primary breast cancer who received radiotherapy compared with those who did not from a matched cohort using a large-scale observational study of the Observational Health Data Sciences and Informatics (OHDSI) data network. Materials and Methods: A retrospective comparative cohort study using propensity score-matched cohorts was performed using two Observational Medical Outcome Partnership common data model databases, from tertiary general hospitals in South Korea. Among female patients who underwent surgery after the diagnosis of breast cancer, the risk of secondary primary malignant occurrence after 1:1 matching was analyzed. Results: Among 27,078 patients with breast cancer, there was no significant difference in the risk of secondary cancer following radiotherapy in 4,426 patients after 1:1 propensity-score matching. Further, there were no significant differences in the sensitivity analysis according to age, latency period, and number of radiation treatments. Conclusion There was no difference in the risk of secondary cancer in the patients diagnosed with breast cancer depending on whether or not radiotherapy was performed after surgery. In the future, it is necessary to analyze including data generated during cancer treatment.

Background: Poor outcomes after acute ischemic stroke (AIS) revascularization are anticipated in patients with dementia due to advanced age, comorbidities, and reduced disease awareness. This study investigated clinical characteristics and short-term outcomes of AIS revascularization in patients undergoing dementia treatment. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed patients who underwent AIS revascularization therapy at eight centers of the Catholic University of Korea. Patients receiving anti-dementia medication for cognitive impairment before stroke onset were analyzed. Clinical characteristics and outcomes, including the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score, hemorrhagic transformation, and mortality, were collected. Results: Among 1,379 patients who received AIS revascularization over 5 years, 13 (0.94%; mean age 83 years; 8 females) had a preexisting diagnosis of dementia (Alzheimer’s disease in 11, mild cognitive impairment in 2) and were on anti-dementia medication. Two patients underwent intravenous thrombolysis combined with endovascular therapy, whereas 11 underwent endovascular therapy alone. Most patients (11/13, 84.6%) presented with an unclear onset time. Stroke lesions were located in the right middle cerebral artery (MCA) in seven cases, left MCA in three, bilateral MCAs in one, and posterior circulation in two. Hemorrhagic transformation occurred in six patients (46%), of whom three (23%) were symptomatic. The mRS scores at discharge were 6 in two patients, 5 in one patient, 4 in nine patients, and 3 in one patient. Four patients died within 3 months of stroke onset. Conclusion The proportion of patients with cognitive impairment receiving anti-dementia medication among those undergoing stroke revascularization therapy was very small. The rates of hemorrhagic transformation and mortality were high. None of the patients achieved favorable outcomes at discharge.

Background: With the increasing demand for surgical procedures in dermatology, resident education in surgical dermatology has become important for delivering high-quality treatment.However, it remains unclear if a sufficient number of residency programs with quality standards exist, as there has been little research on this subject in South Korea. Objective: To identify the status of surgical dermatology education among residents and assess dermatologists’ perceptions of the subject. Methods: A 35-question survey was developed and distributed to all resident training hospitals and local clinics listed by the Korean Society of Dermatologic Surgery. Only third- and fourthyear residents were included and board-certified specialists from training hospitals and local clinics responded to the surveys. Results: Survey participants included 88 residents and 120 specialists of whom one-quarter of the residents attended regular monthly educational sessions. Most residents (93%) participated in cosmetic procedures, and many performed laser therapy. However, the opportunity for toxin or filler injection was rare, with only 12% of the residents having experience with filler injections. In response, 49% of residents and 32% of specialists said that more cosmetic training was required, whereas 28% of residents and 50% of specialists said that more training for both cosmetic and conventional surgeries was necessary. Conclusion The survey demonstrated a need for more training programs in surgical dermatology during residency and a perception gap between residents and specialists. Therefore, developing educational residency programs that focus on basic dermatologic surgery principles and their applications in cosmetic procedures is essential.

Purpose: CEA is a useful tumor marker for colon cancer. The aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic value of changes in CEA levels before and after surgery in colon cancer patients who underwent radical surgery. Methods: A total of 601 colon cancer patients who underwent radical surgery from January 2007 to December 2017 at a single institution were evaluated. Patients were categorized according to preoperative and postoperative CEA levels.We adjusted patient characteristics using propensity score matched analysis between groups and compared survival outcomes according to changes in CEA levels before and after surgery. Results: According to the preoperative and postoperative CEA levels, patients were classified into 3 groups: group 1, ≤5 and ≤5 ng/mL, respectively (n = 407); group 2, >5 and ≤5 ng/mL, respectively (n = 127); and group 3 (>5 and >5 ng/mL, respectively (n = 67). Postoperative CEA elevation was associated with adverse clinical features. Before and after matching, the patients in group 3 showed significantly lower disease-free survival and overall survival rates compared to the patients in group 1 and group 2. In multivariate analysis, changes in CEA levels were an independent prognostic factor of overall survival (P = 0.041). Conclusion The changes in CEA levels before and after surgery can be a useful prognostic factor for disease-free survival and overall survival in colon cancer patients.

Purpose: Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography–computed tomography (PET-CT) is gaining evidence as a predictive factor in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) is the standard treatment in early-stage NSCLC when a patient is unsuitable for surgery. We performed a study to assess the prognostic clinical significance of PET-CT after SABR in early-stage NSCLC. Materials and Methods: Seventy-six patients with stage I NSCLC treated with SABR were investigated. Total radiation dose ranged from 36 to 63 Gy in three to eight fractions depending on tumor location and size. Respiratory motion control was implemented at simulation and during treatment. PET-CT prior to SABR was performed in 66 patients (86.8%). Results: Median follow-up time was 32 months (range, 5 to 142 months). Local control rate at 1, 2, and 5 years were 95.9%, 92.8%, and 86.7%, respectively. Overall survival (OS) at 1, 2, and 5 years were 91.0%, 71.3%, and 52.1% respectively. Cause-specific survival at 1, 2, and 5 years were 98.6%, 93.1%, and 84.3% respectively. Tumor size and pre-SABR maximal standardized uptake value (SUVmax) demonstrated statistical significance in the Kaplan-Meier survival analyses with log-rank test. In multivariate analyses pre-SABR SUVmax remained statistically significant in correlation to OS (p=0.024; hazard ratio [HR], 3.2; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.2 to 8.8) and with marginal significance in regards to regional progression-free survival (p=0.059; HR, 32.5; 95% CI, 2.6 to 402.5). Conclusion Pre-SABR SUVmax demonstrated a predictive power in statistical analyses. Tumors with SUVmax above 6 at diagnosis were associated with inferior outcomes.

Objective: In this study we investigated whether current mood states of patients with bipolar disorder have an influence on the screening accuracy of the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ). Methods: A total of 452 patients with mood disorder (including 192 with major depressive disorder and 260 with bipolar disorder completed the Korean version of the MDQ. Patients with bipolar disorder were subdivided into three groups (bipolar depressed only, bipolar euthymic only, bipolar manic/hypomanic only) according to current mood states. The screening accuracy of the MDQ including sensitivity, specificity and area under the curve (AUC) of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were evaluated according to current mood states. Results: The optimal cutoff of MDQ was 5 in this study sample. Sensitivity and specificity were not significantly different according to current mood states. Significant differences in AUCs of four independent ROC curves were not found (ROC 1st curve included all bipolar patients; ROC 2nd curve included only bipolar depressed patients; ROC 3rd curve included only bipolar manic/hypomanic patients; ROC 4th curve included only bipolar euthymic patients). Conclusion The study results showed that current mood states (either euthymic state, depressed or manic/hypomanic) did not significantly influence the screening accuracy of the MDQ suggesting that the MDQ could be a useful screening instrument for detecting bipolar disorder in clinical practice regardless of the current mood symptoms of subjects.

PURPOSE: ¹⁸F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) is the standard imaging modality for response evaluation in FDG-avid lymphoma, but the prognostic value is not established in follicular lymphoma (FL). This study investigated the prognostic value of Deauville 5-point scale (D5PS) from paired interim PET/CT (PET(Interim)) and end-of-induction therapy PET/CT (PET(EOI)) in patients with FL.METHODS: FL staging and response assessment PET/CT images from 2013 to 2015 were retrospectively reviewed. PET(Interim) was performed 3 or 4 cycles after chemotherapy and PET(EOI) after 6 or 8 cycles. D5PS scores of 1, 2, and 3 were considered as negative (−), and scores 4 and 5 were considered as positive (+). Statistical analysis was done using Cox regression analysis, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, and the log-rank test.RESULTS: Thirty-three patients with set of baseline, interim, and end-of-induction therapy PET/CTstudies were included. Ten patients (30.3%) had progression. The median progression-free survival (PFS) was 38.8 months (range 3.5–72.7 months). On PET(Interim), 23 patients were negative and 10 were positive. On PET(EOI) scans, 29 patients were negative, and 4 were positive. On multivariate analysis, PET(EOI)(−) was associated with longer PFS. PET(Interim)(+) and PET(EOI)(+) patients had a significantly shorter PFS than PET(Interim)(−) patients (39.9 months, 95%confidence interval [CI] 23.0–56.9, versus 55.5months, 95%CI 49.7–61.2, p=0.005) and PET(EOI)(−) patients (14.2 months, 95% CI 8.5–19.8, versus 60.5 months, 95% CI 52.1–69.0, p<0.001).CONCLUSION: For patients with FL, PET(Interim) and PET(EOI) response is predictive of PFS, and PET(EOI)(+) is an independent prognostic factor for progression of FL.
Disease-Free Survival ; Drug Therapy ; Electrons ; Fluorodeoxyglucose F18 ; Humans ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Lymphoma ; Lymphoma, Follicular ; Multivariate Analysis ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; Positron-Emission Tomography and Computed Tomography ; Retrospective Studies

No abstract available.
Dermatitis, Atopic ; Stem Cells

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are membrane receptors whose agonist-induced dynamic conformational changes trigger heterotrimeric G protein activation, followed by GRK-mediated phosphorylation and arrestin-mediated desensitization. Cytosolic regions of GPCRs have been studied extensively because they are direct contact sites with G proteins, GRKs, and arrestins. Among various cytosolic regions, the role of helix 8 is least understood, although a few studies have suggested that it is involved in G protein activation, receptor localization, and/or internalization. In the present study, we investigated the role of helix 8 in dopamine receptor signaling focusing on dopamine D1 receptor (D1R) and dopamine D2 receptor (D2R). D1R couples exclusively to Gs, whereas D2R couples exclusively to Gi. Bioinformatic analysis implied that the sequences of helix 8 may affect GPCR-G protein coupling selectivity; therefore, we evaluated if swapping helix 8 between D1R and D2R changed G protein selectivity. Our results suggest that helix 8 is not involved in D1R-Gs or D2R-Gi coupling selectivity. Instead, we observed that D1R with D2R helix 8 or D1R with an increased number of hydrophobic residues in helix 8 relative to wild-type showed diminished β-arrestin-mediated desensitization, resulting in increased Gs signaling.
Arrestin ; Arrestins ; Computational Biology ; Cytosol ; Dopamine ; Family Characteristics ; GTP-Binding Proteins ; Membranes ; Phosphorylation ; Receptors, Dopamine D1 ; Receptors, Dopamine D2 ; Receptors, Dopamine