Background: Psoriasis imposes a significant treatment burden on patients, particularly impacting well-being and quality of life (QoL). The psychosocial impact of psoriasis treatments remains unexplored in most patient populations. Objective: To assess the impact of adalimumab on health-related QoL (HRQoL) in Korean patients with psoriasis. Methods: This 24-week, multicenter, observational study, assessed HRQoL in Korean patients treated with adalimumab in a real-world setting. Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) including European Quality of Life-5 Dimension scale (EQ-5D), EQ-5D VAS, SF-36, and DLQI were evaluated at week 16 and 24, versus baseline. Patient satisfaction was assessed using TSQM. Results: Among 97 enrolled patients, 77 were assessed for treatment effectiveness. Most patients were male (52, 67.5%) and mean age was 45.4 years. Median baseline body surface area and Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) scores were 15.00 (range 4.00~80.00) and 12.40 (range 2.70~39.40), respectively. Statistically significant improvements in all PROs were observed between baseline and week 24. Mean EQ-5D score improved from 0.88 (standard deviation [SD], 0.14) at baseline to 0.91 (SD, 0.17) at week 24 (p=0.0067). The number of patients with changes in PASI 75, 90, or 100 from baseline to week 16 and 24 were 65 (84.4%), 17 (22.1%), and 1 (1.3%); and 64 (83.1%), 21 (27.3%), and 2 (2.6%), respectively. Overall treatment satisfaction was reported, including effectiveness and convenience. No unexpected safety findings were noted. Conclusion Adalimumab improved QoL and was well-tolerated in Korean patients with moderate to severe psoriasis, as demonstrated in a real-world setting. Clinical trial registration number (clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03099083).

Purpose: In this trial, we investigated the efficacy and safety of adjuvant letrozole for hormone receptor (HR)-positive breast cancer. Here, we report the clinical outcome in postmenopausal women with HR-positive breast cancer treated with adjuvant letrozole according to estrogen receptor (ER) expression levels. Methods: In this multi-institutional, open-label, observational study, postmenopausal patients with HR-positive breast cancer received adjuvant letrozole (2.5 mg/daily) for 5 years unless they experienced disease progression or unacceptable toxicity or withdrew their consent. The patients were stratified into the following 3 groups according to ER expression levels using a modified Allred score (AS): low, intermediate, and high (AS 3–4, 5–6, and 7–8, respectively). ER expression was centrally reviewed. The primary objective was the 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate. Results: Between April 25, 2010, and February 5, 2014, 440 patients were enrolled. With a median follow-up of 62.0 months, the 5-year DFS rate in all patients was 94.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 91.8–96.6). The 5-year DFS and recurrence-free survival (RFS) rates did not differ according to ER expression; the 5-year DFS rates were 94.3% and 94.1%in the low-to-intermediate and high expression groups, respectively (p = 0.6), and the corresponding 5-year RFS rates were 95.7% and 95.4%, respectively (p = 0.7). Furthermore, 25 patients discontinued letrozole because of drug toxicity. Conclusion Treatment with adjuvant letrozole showed very favorable treatment outcomes and good tolerability among Korean postmenopausal women with ER-positive breast cancer, independent of ER expression.

Purpose: In this trial, we investigated the efficacy and safety of adjuvant letrozole for hormone receptor (HR)-positive breast cancer. Here, we report the clinical outcome in postmenopausal women with HR-positive breast cancer treated with adjuvant letrozole according to estrogen receptor (ER) expression levels. Methods: In this multi-institutional, open-label, observational study, postmenopausal patients with HR-positive breast cancer received adjuvant letrozole (2.5 mg/daily) for 5 years unless they experienced disease progression or unacceptable toxicity or withdrew their consent. The patients were stratified into the following 3 groups according to ER expression levels using a modified Allred score (AS): low, intermediate, and high (AS 3–4, 5–6, and 7–8, respectively). ER expression was centrally reviewed. The primary objective was the 5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate. Results: Between April 25, 2010, and February 5, 2014, 440 patients were enrolled. With a median follow-up of 62.0 months, the 5-year DFS rate in all patients was 94.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 91.8–96.6). The 5-year DFS and recurrence-free survival (RFS) rates did not differ according to ER expression; the 5-year DFS rates were 94.3% and 94.1%in the low-to-intermediate and high expression groups, respectively (p = 0.6), and the corresponding 5-year RFS rates were 95.7% and 95.4%, respectively (p = 0.7). Furthermore, 25 patients discontinued letrozole because of drug toxicity. Conclusion Treatment with adjuvant letrozole showed very favorable treatment outcomes and good tolerability among Korean postmenopausal women with ER-positive breast cancer, independent of ER expression.

Background: Applying antibiotic ointment after skin surgery can decrease infection and improve scar. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) is known to be able to promote the growth and movement of epidermal cells to stimulate wound healing. Recombinant human EGF (rhEGF) ointment can be used in wet closed dressing to promotes wound healing and prevent complications by maintaining a wet environment. Objective: To compare the efficacy of rhEGF ointment and conventional antibiotic ointment after cutaneous resection. Methods: Patients who had excision procedures in two or more sites were enrolled. Each wound was assigned to the rhEGF group or the antibiotic ointment group. Wounds were subjected to Physician Global Assessment (PhGA), Patient Global Assessment (PGA), and Patient satisfaction assessment (PSA). The length and area of wounds, and melanin and erythema index (MI and EI) were also assessed for these wounds. Results: Among 11 patients with a total of 20 pairs of resection sites, PhGA, PGA, MI, and EI showed no significant difference between rhEGF and antibiotic ointment groups. However, changes in length and area of wounds showed significant differences between the two groups. Conclusion RhEGF ointment showed similar short-term cosmetic results with antibiotic ointment, and improved surgical results in regards of the wound size. Applying rhEGF could reduce the use of antibiotic ointments for cutaneous clean (class I) wound surgery.

The expression of BCL-2 interacting cell death suppressor (BIS), an anti-stress or anti-apoptotic protein, has been shown to be regulated at the transcriptional level by heat shock factor 1 (HSF1) upon various stresses. Recently, HSF1 was also shown to bind to BIS, but the significance of these protein-protein interactions on HSF1 activity has not been fully defined. In the present study, we observed that complete depletion of BIS using a CRISPR/Cas9 system in A549 non-small cell lung cancer did not affect the induction of heat shock protein (HSP) 70 and HSP27 mRNAs under various stress conditions such as heat shock, proteotoxic stress, and oxidative stress. The lack of a functional association of BIS with HSF1 activity was also demonstrated by transient downregulation of BIS by siRNA in A549 and U87 glioblastoma cells. Endogenous BIS mRNA levels were significantly suppressed in BIS knockout (KO) A549 cells compared to BIS wild type (WT) A549 cells at the constitutive and inducible levels. The promoter activities of BIS and HSP70 as well as the degradation rate of BIS mRNA were not influenced by depletion of BIS. In addition, the expression levels of the mutant BIS construct, in which 14 bp were deleted as in BIS-KO A549 cells, were not different from those of the WT BIS construct, indicating that mRNA stability was not the mechanism for autoregulation of BIS. Our results suggested that BIS was not required for HSF1 activity, but was required for its own expression, which involved an HSF1-independent pathway.
Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* ; Cell Death ; Down-Regulation ; Glioblastoma ; Heat-Shock Proteins ; Homeostasis ; Hot Temperature ; Oxidative Stress ; RNA Stability ; RNA, Messenger ; RNA, Small Interfering ; Shock ; Transcriptional Activation*

On December 3, 2014, a type O foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak began in Korea. Although vaccinations were administered, FMD cases increased steadily for five months, and reached 185 cases by April 2015. Most of the affected animals were pigs, which are vulnerable to vaccination. The FMD virus belonged to the South-East Asia (SEA) topotype that had been observed three times in Korea between April 2010 and July 2014. However, the FMD virus isolated in December 2014 had a unique feature; that is, partial deletion of the 5′ non-coding region, a deletion not seen in previous SEA topotype isolates identified in Korea. We conclude that this outbreak included the introduction of a new FMD strain to Korea, and that Korea was now affected by genetically similar FMD virus strains that are related to those from neighboring countries.
Animals ; Asia ; Foot-and-Mouth Disease ; Korea ; Swine ; Vaccination

BACKGROUND: Previous reports have demonstrated a bidirectional relationship between depression and diabetes mellitus (DM), accentuating a need for more intensive depression screening in DM patients. There is a relative paucity of data on the mortality of depressed DM patients in Korea. METHODS: Retrospective data from January 2003 to December 2013 were collected for adult type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients older than 30 years using the National Health Information database maintained by the Korean National Health Insurance Service (NHIS). Demographic characteristics were analyzed with descriptive statistics, and the annual prevalence of depression was estimated. Mortality rates and hazard ratios for each age group (stratified into six age groups) of patients diagnosed with T2DM in 2003 were estimated using a Cox proportional hazard method, with the Kaplan-Meier cumulative survival curve showing the overall survival rates according to the T2DM status until the given year of 2013. RESULTS: The annual prevalence of depression was consistently higher in T2DM group from 2003 to 2013. The mortality hazard ratio was higher in the depressed in all age groups, and the risk was higher in male groups and in younger-aged groups. CONCLUSION: Depression was significantly associated with a high mortality risk in T2DM patients; hence, a more systematic surveillance of T2DM patients to identify risk factors for depression might contribute significantly to reducing mortality risk in this group of patients.
Adult ; Cohort Studies* ; Depression* ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Mass Screening ; Methods ; Mortality* ; National Health Programs ; Prevalence ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Factors ; Survival Rate

Immunoglobulin G4-related disease is a recently recognized entity characterized by a mass-forming or regional lesion that contains an extensive infiltration of IgG4-producing plasma cells with dense fibrosis. Immunoglobulin G4-related disease can affect any organ system, but solitary hepatic lesion of Immunoglobulin G4-related disease is very rare. This entity mimics primary malignant hepatic tumor, such as hepatocellular carcinoma or intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. We experienced a case of hepatic IgG4-related inflammatory pseudotumor in a 50-year-old woman, mimicking hepatocellular carcinoma.
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular* ; Cholangiocarcinoma ; Female ; Fibrosis ; Granuloma, Plasma Cell* ; Humans ; Immunoglobulins* ; Middle Aged ; Plasma Cells

B-cell lymphoma (BCL)-2-interacting cell death suppressor (BIS) has diverse cellular functions depending on its binding partners. However, little is known about the effects of biochemical modification of BIS on its various activities under oxidative stress conditions. In this study, we showed that H₂O₂ reduced BIS mobility on SDS–polyacrylamide gels in a time-dependent manner via the activation of extracellular signaling-regulated kinase (ERK). The combined results of mass spectroscopy and computational prediction identified Thr285 and Ser289 in BIS as candidate residues for phosphorylation by ERK under oxidative stress conditions. Deletion of these sites resulted in a partial reduction in the H₂O₂-induced mobility shift relative to that of the wild-type BIS protein; overexpression of the deletion mutant sensitized A172 cells to H₂O₂-induced cell death without increasing the level of intracellular reactive oxygen species. Expression of the BIS deletion mutant decreased the level of heat shock protein (HSP) 70 mRNA following H₂O₂ treatment, which was accompanied by impaired nuclear translocation of heat shock transcription factor (HSF) 1. Co-immunoprecipitation assays revealed that the binding of wild-type BIS to HSF1 was decreased by oxidative stress, while the binding of the BIS deletion mutant to HSF1 was not affected. These results indicate that ERK-dependent phosphorylation of BIS has a role in the regulation of nuclear translocation of HSF1 likely through modulation of its interaction affinity with HSF1, which affects HSP70 expression and sensitivity to oxidative stress.
Cell Death ; Gels ; Heat-Shock Proteins ; Hot Temperature ; Immunoprecipitation ; Lymphoma, B-Cell ; Mass Spectrometry ; Oxidative Stress* ; Phosphorylation* ; Phosphotransferases ; Reactive Oxygen Species ; RNA, Messenger ; Shock ; Transcription Factors

BACKGROUND: Hand eczema is one of the most common skin disorders and negatively affects quality of life. However, a large-scale multicenter study investigating the clinical features of patients with hand eczema has not yet been conducted in Korea. OBJECTIVE: To identify the prevalence of various hand diseases, which is defined as all cutaneous disease occurring in hands, and to investigate the clinical features of patients with hand eczema and the awareness about hand eczema in the general population and to compare the prevalence of hand eczema between health care providers and non-health care providers. METHODS: To estimate the prevalence of hand diseases, we analyzed the medical records of patients from 24 medical centers. Patients were assessed by online and offline questionnaires. A 1,000 from general population and 913 hand eczema patients answered the questionnaire, for a total of 1,913 subjects. RESULTS: The most common hand disease was irritant contact dermatitis. In an online survey, the lifetime prevalence of hand eczema was 31.2%. Hand eczema was more likely to occur in females (66.0%) and younger (20~39 years, 53.9%). Health care providers and housewives were the occupations most frequently associated with hand eczema. Winter (33.6%) was the most common season which people experienced aggravation. The 63.0% and 67.0% answered that hand eczema hinders their personal relationship and negatively affects daily living activities, respectively. CONCLUSION: Hand eczema is a very common disease and hinders the quality of life. The appropriate identification of hand eczema is necessary to implement effective and efficient treatment.
Activities of Daily Living ; Dermatitis, Contact ; Eczema* ; Female ; Hand* ; Health Personnel ; Humans ; Korea* ; Medical Records ; Occupations ; Prevalence ; Quality of Life ; Seasons ; Skin ; Surveys and Questionnaires