OBJECTIVE: Although radiation therapy (RT) and concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) are the global standards for adjuvant therapy treatment in cervical cancer, many Japanese institutions choose chemotherapy (CT) because of the low frequency of irreversible adverse events. In this study, we aimed to clarify the trends of adjuvant therapy for intermediate/high-risk cervical cancer after radical surgery in Japan. METHODS: A questionnaire survey was conducted by the Japanese Gynecologic Oncology Group to 186 authorized institutions active in the treatment of gynecologic cancer. RESULTS: Responses were obtained from 129 facilities. Adjuvant RT/CCRT and intensity-modulated RT were performed in 98 (76%) and 23 (18%) institutions, respectively. On the other hand, CT was chosen as an alternative in 93 institutions (72%). The most common regimen of CT, which was used in 66 institutions (51%), was a combination of cisplatin/carboplatin with paclitaxel. CT was considered an appropriate alternative option to RT/CCRT in patients with risk factors such as bulky tumors, lymph node metastasis, lymphovascular invasion, parametrial invasion, and stromal invasion. The risk of severe adverse events was considered to be lower for CT than for RT/CCRT in 109 institutions (84%). CONCLUSION: This survey revealed a variety of policies regarding adjuvant therapy among institutions. A clinical study to assess the efficacy or non-inferiority of adjuvant CT is warranted.
Chemoradiotherapy, Adjuvant ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Japan/epidemiology ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local/prevention & control ; *Practice Patterns, Physicians'/statistics & numerical data ; Risk Assessment ; Risk Factors ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms/radiotherapy/*therapy

In North Korea, the prevalence of hepatitis B is high due to natural factors, gaps in vaccination, and the lack of antiviral treatment. Aid projects are urgently needed, however impeded by North Korea's political and economical situation and isolation. The feasibility of a joint North Korean and German humanitarian hepatitis B prevention program was assessed. Part 1: Hepatitis B vaccination catch-up campaign. Part 2: Implementation of endoscopic ligation of esophageal varices (EVL) by trainings in Germany and North Korea. By vaccinating 7 million children between 2010 and 2012, the hepatitis B vaccination gap was closed. Coverage of 99.23% was reached. A total of 11 hepatitis B-induced liver cirrhosis patients (mean age 41.1 yr) with severe esophageal varices and previous bleedings were successfully treated by EVL without major complications. A clinical standard operating procedure, a feedback system and a follow-up plan were developed. The bi-modal preventive strategy was implemented successfully. Parts of the project can serve as an example for other low-income countries, however its general transferability is limited due to the special circumstances in North Korea.
Adult ; Combined Modality Therapy/methods/statistics & numerical data ; Democratic People's Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Esophageal and Gastric Varices/*embryology/*surgery ; Esophagoscopy/statistics & numerical data ; Feasibility Studies ; Female ; Hepatitis B/*epidemiology/*prevention & control ; Hepatitis B Vaccines/*administration & dosage ; Humans ; Male ; Mass Vaccination/*statistics & numerical data ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Secondary Prevention/methods/statistics & numerical data ; Treatment Outcome

Controversies persist regarding the effect of Helicobacter pylori eradication on the development of metachronous gastric cancer after endoscopic resection of early gastric cancer (EGC). The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of Helicobacter pylori eradication after endoscopic resection of EGC for the prevention of metachronous gastric cancer. A systematic literature review and meta-analysis were conducted using the core databases PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library. The rates of development of metachronous gastric cancer between the Helicobacter pylori eradication group vs. the non-eradication group were extracted and analyzed using risk ratios (RRs). A random effect model was applied. The methodological quality of the enrolled studies was assessed by the Risk of Bias table and by the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Publication bias was evaluated through the funnel plot with trim and fill method, Egger's test, and by the rank correlation test. Ten studies (2 randomized and 8 non-randomized/5,914 patients with EGC or dysplasia) were identified and analyzed. Overall, the Helicobacter pylori eradication group showed a RR of 0.467 (95% CI: 0.362-0.602, P < 0.001) for the development of metachronous gastric cancer after endoscopic resection of EGC. Subgroup analyses showed consistent results. Publication bias was not detected. Helicobacter pylori eradication after endoscopic resection of EGC reduces the occurrence of metachronous gastric cancer.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Combined Modality Therapy/statistics & numerical data ; Comorbidity ; Female ; Gastroscopy/*statistics & numerical data ; Helicobacter Infections/epidemiology/*prevention & control ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasms, Second Primary/*epidemiology/pathology/*prevention & control ; Risk Factors ; Stomach Neoplasms/*epidemiology/pathology/*surgery ; Treatment Outcome

The transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) and CD8-positive T cells are two important immune factors that function at opposite directions. The purpose of this study was to verify the relationship between the two factors and their associations with long-term effects of adjuvant chemotherapy or endocrine therapy in breast cancer. Expression of TGF-β1 precursor and CD8 was immunohistochemically detected on surgically-obtained tumor samples of 130 (stage I-III) invasive breast carcinomas from Chinese subjects, who were followed up for a mean time of 112 months. Interstitial CD8-positive cells and TGF-β1 precursor-positive cells adjacent to tumor nests were counted. Infiltration of CD8-positive lymphocytes into tumor nests and TGF-β1 precursor expression in tumor cells were observed and survival analysis was performed. Our results showed that density of interstitial CD8-positive lymphocytes was an independent adverse prognostic factor for distant disease-free survival (DDFS) (HR=8.416, 95% CI=1.636-43.292, P=0.011) in hormone receptor-positive patients who were on adjuvant endocrine therapy. For breast cancer patients who did not receive adjuvant chemotherapy, those without infiltration of CD8-positive cells into tumor nests had a shorter overall survival (OS) than their counterparts with CD8-positive cell infiltration into tumor nests (Log-Rank, P=0.003). But OS of patients without infiltration of CD8-positive cells into tumor nests was significantly prolonged by adjuvant chemotherapy (Log-Rank, P=0.013) and paralleled that of patients with CD8-positive cell infiltration. Although OS was shorter in the tumor cell TGF-β1 precursor (t-TGF-β1-pre)-positive patients than in the negative patients in patients without receiving chemotherapy (P=0.053), OS of t-TGF-β1-pre-positive patients was significantly prolonged by adjuvant chemotherapy (P=0.035) and was longer than that of t-TGF-β1-pre-negative patients. Analysis showed that t-TGF-β1-pre was an independent positive prognostic factor for DDFS (HR=0.392 95% CI=0.157-0.978, P=0.045) in patients who received adjuvant chemotherapy. This study suggested that density of interstitial CD8-positive lymphocytes was of prognostic value in hormone receptor-positive patients who received adjuvant endocrine therapy. Our study verified that adverse immunologic signatures consisting of absence of CD8-positive cells in tumor nests or expression of TGF-β1 precursor in tumor cells in breast cancer were associated with worse prognosis and significantly improved long-term survival with adjuvant chemotherapy, respectively.
Biomarkers, Tumor ; metabolism ; Breast Neoplasms ; drug therapy ; metabolism ; surgery ; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes ; metabolism ; Chemotherapy, Adjuvant ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Middle Aged ; Outcome Assessment (Health Care) ; methods ; statistics & numerical data ; Prognosis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Protein Precursors ; metabolism ; Retrospective Studies ; Transforming Growth Factor beta1 ; metabolism

Primary central nervous system germ cell tumors (CNS-GCTs) in children and adolescents have unique clinical features and methods of treatment compared with those in adults. There is little information about Chinese children and adolescents with CNS-GCTs. Therefore, in this study we retrospectively analyzed the clinical features and treatment outcome of Chinese children and adolescents with primary CNS-GCTs. Between January 2002 and December 2012, 57 untreated patients from a single institution were enrolled. They were diagnosed with CNS-GCTs after pathologic or clinical assessment. Of the 57 patients, 41 were males and 16 were females, with a median age of 12.8 years (range, 2.7 to 18.0 years) at diagnosis; 43 (75.4%) had non-germinomatous germ cell tumors (NGGCTs) and 14 (24.6%) had germinomas; 44 (77.2%) had localized disease and 13 (22.8%) had extensive lesions. Fifty-three patients completed the prescribed treatment, of which 18 underwent monotherapy of surgery, radiotherapy, or chemotherapy, and 35 underwent multimodality therapies that included radiotherapy combined with chemotherapy or surgery combined with chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. PEB (cisplatin, etoposide, and bleomycin) protocol was the major chemotherapy regimen. The median follow-up time was 32.3 months (range, 1.2 to 139 months). Fourteen patients died of relapse or disease progression. The 3-year event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival rates for all patients were 72.2% and 73.8%, respectively. The 3-year EFS was 92.9% for germinomas and 64.8% for NGGCTs (P = 0.064). The 3-year EFS rates for patients with NGGCTs who underwent monotherapy and multimodality therapies were 50.6% and 73.5%, respectively (P = 0.042). Our results indicate that multimodality therapies including chemotherapy plus radiotherapy were better treatment option for children and adolescents with CNS-GCTs.
Adolescent ; Antineoplastic Agents ; therapeutic use ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; therapeutic use ; Bleomycin ; administration & dosage ; Central Nervous System Neoplasms ; therapy ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Cisplatin ; administration & dosage ; Combined Modality Therapy ; statistics & numerical data ; Disease-Free Survival ; Etoposide ; administration & dosage ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; Neoplasms, Germ Cell and Embryonal ; therapy ; Retrospective Studies ; Survival Rate ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo summarize the effectiveness of Chinese and Western integrative medicine in treating medium and advanced lung cancer, and to provide guidelines for clinical application.

METHODSFor this metaanalysis, a comparative search of Chinese medicine data in Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) and Chinese BioMedical Literature Database (CBM) was undertaken to identify articles related to randomized comparative research of Chinese and Western integrative medicine in treating medium and advanced lung cancer between 1996 to 2006. Quality of life (QOL) was estimated using RevMan 4.2 software for data processing, adopting the odd ratio (OR) and the 95% confidence interval (CI).

RESULTSThrough meta-analysis of 10 qualified articles, the results were as follows: the merging effectiveness of QOL [OR=3.80, 95% CI (2.65, 5.47)]; the rate of survival [OR=3.44, 95% CI (2.04, 5.80)]; the tumor response rate [OR=1.88, 95% CI (1.37, 2.58)]; the tumor developing rate [OR=0.33, 95% CI (0.23, 0.48)]. Significant differences existed between the Chinese and Western integrative medicine treatment group and the Western treatment group (P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONSChinese and Western integrative medicine treatment of medium and advanced lung cancer has shown to improve patients' QOL and survival rate; it also can control tumor development in the short term.

Carcinoma ; epidemiology ; pathology ; therapy ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Disease Progression ; Humans ; Integrative Medicine ; methods ; Lung Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; pathology ; therapy ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; methods ; Neoplasm Staging ; Publication Bias ; statistics & numerical data ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic ; statistics & numerical data ; Treatment Outcome ; Western World

OBJECTIVE: Arsenic trioxide (As2O3) can be used as a possible pharmaceutical alternative that augments radiofrequency (RF) ablation by reducing tumor blood flow. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of intraarterial and intravenous administration of As2O3 on RF-induced ablation in an experimentally induced liver tumor. MATERIALS AND METHODS: VX2 carcinoma was grown in the livers of 30 rabbits. As2O3 (1 mg/kg) was administered through the hepatic artery (n = 10, group A) or ear vein (n = 10, group B), 30 minutes before RF ablation (125 mA +/- 35; 90 +/- 5degrees C). As a control group, 10 rabbits were treated with RF ablation alone (group C). RF was intentionally applied to the peripheral margin of the tumor so that ablation can cover the tumor and adjacent hepatic parenchyma. Ablation areas of the tumor and adjacent parenchymal changes among three groups were compared by the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U test. RESULTS: The overall ablation areas were 156 +/- 28.9 mm2 (group A), 119 +/- 31.7 (group B), and 92 +/- 17.4 (group C, p < 0.04). The ablation area of the tumor was significantly larger in group A (73 +/- 19.7 mm2) than both group B (50 +/- 19.4, p = 0.02) and group C (28 +/- 2.2, p < 0.01). The ratios of the tumoral ablation area to the overall ablation area were larger in group A (47 +/- 10.5%) than that of the other groups (42 +/- 7.3% in group B and 32 +/- 5.6% in group C) (p < 0.03). CONCLUSION: Radiofrequency-induced ablation area can be increased with intraarterial or intravenous administration of As2O3. The intraarterial administration of As2O3 seems to be helpful for the selective ablation of the tumor.
Animals ; Arsenicals/*pharmacology ; Catheter Ablation/*methods ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Contrast Media/diagnostic use ; Disease Models, Animal ; Liver/radiography ; Liver Neoplasms, Experimental/*drug therapy/radiography/*surgery ; Oxides/*pharmacology ; Rabbits ; Statistics, Nonparametric ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

OBJECTIVEThere is heterogeneity in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The purpose of this study is to investigate the prognostic factors of invasive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

METHODSFrom June 2002 to June 2006, 137 patients with invasive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma were treated by regular regimen consisting of radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The clinical data including prognostic factors was analyzed by SPSS 10.0.

RESULTSAfter treated with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, 35 (25.5%) patients achieved CR, 67 (48.9%) PR, 6 (4.3%) SD, 29 (21.2%) PD, ORR (objective response rate) of this series was 74.5%. The overall 4-year survival rate was 70.8%. The PFS (prognosis free survival) was 42.7%. Multivariate analysis using Cox model indicated that clinical stage III-IV, PS score > or = 2, more than 2 external nodal involvement were closely correlated with overall survival.

CONCLUSIONThe overall survival of invasive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma treated with present combined therapy regimen has been improved greatly. However, further investigation is still needed for exploring more effective individualized treatment regimen.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; therapeutic use ; Combined Modality Therapy ; statistics & numerical data ; Cyclophosphamide ; therapeutic use ; Disease-Free Survival ; Doxorubicin ; analogs & derivatives ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse ; drug therapy ; pathology ; radiotherapy ; Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin ; drug therapy ; pathology ; radiotherapy ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Prednisone ; therapeutic use ; Prognosis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Remission Induction ; Retrospective Studies ; Vincristine ; therapeutic use

OBJECTIVETo analyze the clinical and pathological features in order to investigate appropriate way of diagnosis and treatment for non-functional islet cell tumors of the pancreas (NFICT).

METHODSThe data and experience of surgically treated 43 patients with pathologically confirmed NFICT over the last 30 years were retrospectively reviewed. The survival rate was estimated using Kaplan-Meier method and the potential risk factors affecting survival were compared with Log rank test.

RESULTSThere were 7 males and 36 females in this series with a mean age of 31.6 years ranged from 8 to 67 years. Twenty-eight patients were diagnosed as having non-functional islet cell carcinomas of the pancreas (NFICC) and 15 patients benign islet cell tumors. The most common symptoms in NFICT were abdominal pain 55.8%, nausea and/or vomiting (32.6%), fatigue (25.6%) and abdominal mass (23.3%). Preoperatively, all of those were found to have a mass in their pancrease by ultrasonic and computed tomography examination, with 21 in the head, 10 in the body and 6 in the tail of the pancreas. Multicemtric tumor were found in one patient. Thirty-nine of these 43 patients (90.7%) underwent surgical resection, with a curative resection in 30 (69.8%) and palliative in 9 (20.9%). The resectability and curative resection rate in 28 patients with nonfunctioning islet cell carcinomas of the pancreas was 78.6% and 60.7%, respectively. None of the 15 patients with benign nonfunctioning islet cell tumor of the pancreas died of this disease. While the overall cumulative 5- and 10-year survival rate in 28 patients with non-functional islet cell carcinomas of the pancreas was only 58.1% and 29.0%, respectively. Curative resection, female, younger than 30 years old and mass diameter < 10 cm were found to be positive prognostic factors. But multivariate Cox regression analysis indicated that radical resection was the only independent prognostic factor (P = 0.007).

CONCLUSIONNonfunctioning islet cell tumor of the pancreas is frequently found in young female. Surgical resection, especially curative resection can achieve satisfactory long-term survival.

Adenoma, Islet Cell ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; therapeutic use ; Carcinoma, Islet Cell ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Chemotherapy, Adjuvant ; methods ; statistics & numerical data ; Child ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Doxorubicin ; therapeutic use ; Female ; Fluorouracil ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mitomycin ; therapeutic use ; Multivariate Analysis ; Pancreatic Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy ; methods ; statistics & numerical data ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Regression Analysis ; Retrospective Studies

OBJECTIVETo analyze the clinical characteristics, efficiency of treatment and potential prognostic factors of breast cancer patients with liver metastases (BCLM).

METHODSThe data of clinical characteristics, response to treatment and survival were retrospectively analyzed in 152 breast cancer patients with liver metastasis using SPSS 11.5.

RESULTSThe median disease free survival (DFS), the median survival of recurrence (MSR) and median time to progress (TTP) of this series was 21 months, 16 months and 7.4 months, respectively. The response rate in chemotherapy group was higher than that in the transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) group (37.7% vs. 53%, P = 0. 039). The TTP was longer (7 m vs. 10 m, P = 0.048) and the response rate (63.3% vs. 40.0%, P = 0.04) in taxanes-based chemotherapy group was significantly higher than that in non-taxanes-containing regimen. The MSR in patients with single liver metastases treated by TACE was longer than that by chemotherapy (16 m vs. 30 m, P = 0.0052), but it was not observed in the patients with multiple metastases. Pathological tumor size (PT) and axillary lymph node status at diagnosis, negative estrogen receptor (ER) status, abnormal ALT level induced by liver metastases, metastastic tumor size were significantly correlated with shorter survival.

CONCLUSIONThe effective chemotherapy especially the taxane-containing regimen and TACE may improve outcome for breast cancer patient with liver metastasis.

Alanine Transaminase ; blood ; Antineoplastic Agents ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Breast ; drug effects ; pathology ; surgery ; Breast Neoplasms ; metabolism ; pathology ; therapy ; Bridged-Ring Compounds ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use ; Chemoembolization, Therapeutic ; methods ; statistics & numerical data ; Combined Modality Therapy ; Disease Progression ; Disease-Free Survival ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; metabolism ; secondary ; therapy ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Mastectomy ; methods ; statistics & numerical data ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Prognosis ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Receptors, Estrogen ; metabolism ; Retrospective Studies ; Taxoids ; administration & dosage ; therapeutic use