Purpose: Renal tumors account for approximately 7% of all childhood cancers. These include Wilms tumor (WT), clear cell sarcoma of the kidney (CCSK), malignant rhabdoid tumor of the kidney (MRTK), renal cell carcinoma (RCC), congenital mesoblastic nephroma (CMN) and other rare tumors. We investigated the epidemiology of pediatric renal tumors in Korea. Materials and Methods: From January 2001 to December 2015, data of pediatric patients (0–18 years) newly-diagnosed with renal tumors at 26 hospitals were retrospectively analyzed. Results: Among 439 patients (male, 240), the most common tumor was WT (n=342, 77.9%), followed by RCC (n=36, 8.2%), CCSK (n=24, 5.5%), MRTK (n=16, 3.6%), CMN (n=12, 2.7%), and others (n=9, 2.1%). Median age at diagnosis was 27.1 months (range 0-225.5) and median follow-up duration was 88.5 months (range 0-211.6). Overall, 32 patients died, of whom 17, 11, 1, and 3 died of relapse, progressive disease, second malignant neoplasm, and treatment-related mortality. Five-year overall survival and event free survival were 97.2% and 84.8% in WT, 90.6% and 82.1% in RCC, 81.1% and 63.6% in CCSK, 60.3% and 56.2% in MRTK, and 100% and 91.7% in CMN, respectively (p < 0.001). Conclusion The pediatric renal tumor types in Korea are similar to those previously reported in other countries. WT accounted for a large proportion and survival was excellent. Non-Wilms renal tumors included a variety of tumors and showed inferior outcome, especially MRTK. Further efforts are necessary to optimize the treatment and analyze the genetic characteristics of pediatric renal tumors in Korea.

Background: Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) constitutes 10%–20% of all malignant lymphomas and has a high cure rate (5-year survival, around 90%). Recently, interest has increased concerning preventing secondary complications (secondary cancer, endocrine disorders) in long-term survivors. We aimed to study the epidemiologic features and therapeutic outcomes of HL in children, adolescents, and young adults in Korea. Methods: We performed a multicenter, retrospective study of 224 patients aged < 25 years diagnosed with HL at 22 participating institutes in Korea from January 2007 to August 2016. Results: A higher percentage of males was diagnosed at a younger age. Nodular sclerosis histopathological HL subtype was most common, followed by mixed cellularity subtype.Eighty-one (36.2%), 101 (45.1%), and 42 (18.8%) patients were classified into low, intermediate, and high-risk groups, respectively. Doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, dacarbazine was the most common protocol (n = 102, 45.5%). Event-free survival rate was 86.0% ± 2.4%, while five-year overall survival (OS) rate was 96.1% ± 1.4%: 98.7% ± 1.3%, 97.7% ± 1.6%, and 86.5% ± 5.6% in the low, intermediate, and high-risk groups, respectively (P = 0.021). Five-year OS was worse in patients with B-symptoms, stage IV disease, highrisk, splenic involvement, extra-nodal lymphoma, and elevated lactate dehydrogenase level.In multivariate analysis, B-symptoms and extra-nodal involvement were prognostic factors for poor OS. Late complications of endocrine disorders and secondary malignancy were observed in 17 and 6 patients, respectively. Conclusion This is the first study on the epidemiology and treatment outcomes of HL in children, adolescents, and young adults in Korea. Future prospective studies are indicated to develop therapies that minimize treatment toxicity while maximizing cure rates in children, adolescents, and young adults with HL.

Background: To track triage, routing, and treatment status regarding access to endovascular treatment (EVT) after acute ischemic stroke (AIS) at a national level. Methods: From national stroke audit data, potential candidates for EVT arriving within 6 hours with National Institute of Health Stroke Scale score of ≥ 7 were identified. Acute care hospitals were classified as thrombectomy-capable hospitals (TCHs, ≥ 15 EVT cases/year) or primary stroke hospital (PSH, < 15 cases/year), and patients' initial routes and subsequent inter-hospital transfer were described. Impact of initial routing to TCHs vs. PSHs on EVT and clinical outcomes were analyzed using multilevel generalized mixed effect models. Results: Out of 14,902 AIS patients, 2,180 (14.6%) were EVT candidates. Eighty-one percent of EVT candidates were transported by ambulance, but only one-third were taken initially to TCHs. Initial routing to TCHs was associated with greater chances of receiving EVT compared to initial routing to PSHs (33.3% vs 12.1%, P < 0.001; adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.21; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.59–2.92) and favorable outcome (38.5% vs. 28.2%, P < 0.001; aOR, 1.52; 95% CI, 1.16–2.00). Inter-hospital transfers to TCHs occurred in 17.4% of those initially routed to a PSH and was associated with the greater chance of EVT compared to remaining at PSHs (34.8% vs. 7.5%, P < 0.001), but not with better outcomes. Conclusion Two-thirds of EVT candidates were initially routed to PSHs despite greater chance of receiving EVT and having favorable outcomes if routed to a TCH in Korea. Process improvement is needed to direct appropriate patients to TCHs.

PURPOSE: Dexrazoxane has been used as an effective cardioprotector against anthracycline cardiotoxicity. This study intended to analyze cardioprotective efficacy and secondary malignancy development, and elucidate risk factors for secondary malignancies in dexrazoxane-treated pediatric patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data was collected from 15 hospitals in Korea. Patients who received any anthracyclines, and completed treatment without stem cell transplantation were included. For efficacy evaluation, the incidence of cardiac events and cardiac event-free survival rates were compared. Data about risk factors of secondary malignancies were collected. RESULTS: Data of total 1,453 cases were analyzed; dexrazoxane with every anthracyclines group (D group, 1,035 patients) and no dexrazoxane group (non-D group, 418 patients). Incidence of the reported cardiac events was not statistically different between two groups; however, the cardiac event-free survival rate of patients with more than 400 mg/m2 of anthracyclines was significantly higher in D group (91.2% vs. 80.1%, p=0.04). The 6-year cumulative incidence of secondary malignancy was not different between both groups after considering follow-up duration difference (non-D, 0.52%±0.37%; D, 0.60%±0.28%; p=0.55). The most influential risk factor for secondary malignancy was the duration of anthracycline administration according to multivariate analysis. CONCLUSION: Dexrazoxane had an efficacy in lowering cardiac event-free survival rates in patients with higher cumulative anthracyclines. As a result of multivariate analysis for assessing risk factors of secondary malignancy, the occurrence of secondary malignancy was not related to dexrazoxane administration.
Anthracyclines ; Cardiotoxicity ; Dexrazoxane ; Disease-Free Survival ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Multivariate Analysis ; Neoplasms, Second Primary ; Risk Factors* ; Stem Cell Transplantation

Knowledge of the clinical course of chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) remains unclear. The purpose of our study was to investigate the clinical course of CSU in the Korean adult population. Each patient in the CSU group who was defined by disease codes between 2003 and 2007 was tracked whether he or she went into remission or not until 2013. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was carried out to analyze remission, and log-rank tests were performed for between-group comparisons. Demographic differences between subjects who went into remission 1 year after the initial diagnosis and those who did not were analyzed using χ² tests. A total of 13,969 subjects were included in the CSU group. The 1-, 2-, 3-, 4-, and 5-year remission rates of CSU were 21.5%, 33.0%, 38.9%, 42.6%, and 44.6%, respectively. The proportion of subjects in the 65+ age group (P=0.050) and with male gender (P=0.002) was significantly higher among subjects who did not go into remission 1 year after the initial diagnosis. Our study indicates that CSU could have a more persistent course than previously reported.
Adult ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Urticaria

There was no previous population-based study on the comparison of the risk of chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) between autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITD) and age- and gender-matched controls. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the risk of CSU after diagnosis of AITD using national registry data from Korea. The secondary objective was to evaluate other risk factors of CSU. Based on the disease code diagnoses in 2003-2005, we composed an AITD group (n=3,659) and an age- and gender-matched control group (n=18,295). Each patient was tracked for whether CSU occurs or not until 2013. After adjusting for demographic differences and comorbidities, patients with AITD had a significantly higher rate of CSU compared to the control group (hazard ratio [HR], 1.46; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.25-1.70; P<0.001). Among the AITD patients, the adjusted HR for CSU was higher in patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HR, 1.50) than in those with Grave's disease (HR, 1.33), although the difference was not statistically significant (P=0.368). Analysis of CSU patients associated with AITD showed that female patients had a significantly higher risk of CSU compared to male ones (HR, 1.34; P=0.001) and that those with allergic rhinitis (HR, 1.51; P<0.001), atopic dermatitis (HR, 2.44; P<0.001), and asthma (HR, 1.50; P<0.001) had a significantly higher risk of CSU compared to patients without respective diseases. Our results demonstrated that AITD could be significantly associated with an increased risk of CSU.
Asthma ; Comorbidity ; Dermatitis, Atopic ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Graves Disease ; Hashimoto Disease ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Rhinitis, Allergic ; Risk Factors ; Thyroid Diseases* ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroiditis ; Urticaria*

BACKGROUND: Psoriasis is an immune-mediated, chronic inflammatory disease affecting multiple aspects of patients' lives. Its epidemiology varies regionally; however, nationwide epidemiologic data on psoriasis depicting profile of Korean patients has not been available to date. OBJECTIVE: To understand nationwide epidemiologic characteristics and clinical features of adult patients with psoriasis visited university hospitals in Korea. METHODS: This multicenter, non-interventional, cross-sectional study recruited 1,278 adult patients with psoriasis across 25 centers in Korea in 2013. Various clinical data including PASI, BSA, DLQI, SF-36 and PASE were collected. RESULTS: A total of 1,260 patients completed the study (male:female=1.47:1). The mean age was 47.0 years with a distribution mostly in the 50s (24.9%). Early onset (<40 years) of psoriasis accounted for 53.9% of patients. The mean disease duration was 109.2 months; mean body mass index was 23.9 kg/m²; and 12.7% of patients had a family history of psoriasis. Plaque and guttate types of psoriasis accounted for 85.8% and 8.4%, respectively. Patients with PASI ≥10 accounted for 24.9%; patients with body surface area ≥10 were 45.9%. Patients with DLQI ≥6 accounted for 78.8%. Between PASI <10 and PASI ≥10 groups, significant difference was noted in age at diagnosis, disease duration, blood pressure, waist circumference of female, and treatment experiences with phototherapy, systemic agents, and biologics. CONCLUSION: This was the first nationwide epidemiologic study of patients with psoriasis in Korea and provides an overview of the epidemiologic characteristics and clinical profiles of this patient population.
Adult ; Biological Products ; Blood Pressure ; Body Mass Index ; Body Surface Area ; Cross-Sectional Studies* ; Diagnosis ; Epidemiologic Studies ; Epidemiology ; Female ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; Korea* ; Phototherapy ; Psoriasis* ; Waist Circumference

Controlled-release carbamazepine (CBZ) could be more harmful than the regular form in special situations due to their respective biochemical characteristics. When primary treatment is not effective in acute intoxication, extracorporeal treatment (ECTR) could be an option. We recently applied ECTR to a patient with combined intoxication of topiramate and controlled-release CBZ who deteriorated despite receiving primary treatment. The patient improved after administering ECTR. Early ECTR intervention may be beneficial for the treatment of CBZ intoxication, especially of the controlled-release form.
Carbamazepine* ; Extracorporeal Circulation ; Humans

BACKGROUND: The development of therapies for psoriasis has led to the need for a new strategy to the treatment of patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis. New consensus guidelines for psoriasis treatment have been developed in some countries, some of which have introduced treatment goals to determine the timing of therapeutic regimens for psoriasis. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the opinions held by Korean dermatologists who specialize in psoriasis about treatment goals, and to compare these with the European consensus. METHODS: Korean dermatologists who specialize in psoriasis were asked 11 questions about defining the treatment goals for psoriasis. The questionnaire included questions about the factors used to classify the severity of psoriasis, defining the induction and maintenance phases of psoriasis treatment, defining treatment responses during the induction phase, and defining treatment responses during the maintenance phase. RESULTS: The Korean consensus showed responses that were almost similar to the European consensus, even without using the Delphi technique, which uses repeated rounds of questions to reach a consensus. Only one response that related to psoriasis severity in the context of the quality of patients' lives differed from the European consensus. CONCLUSION: The concept of using treatment goals in the treatment of moderate-to-severe psoriasis can be applied to Korean psoriasis patients. Since a tool for assessing the quality of patients' lives is not commonly used in Korea, the development of a simple, rapidly completed, and region-specific health-related quality of life assessment tool would enable treatment goals to be used in routine clinical practice.
Consensus* ; Delphi Technique ; Humans ; Korea ; Psoriasis* ; Quality of Life ; Severity of Illness Index ; Surveys and Questionnaires