Favorable response to doxorubicin combination chemotherapy does not yield good clinical outcome in patients with metastatic breast cancer with triple-negative phenotype

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>We analyzed the responses to first line treatment and clinical outcomes of metastatic breast cancer patients treated with palliative doxorubicin/cyclophosphamide (AC) according to molecular cancer subtype.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A retrospective analysis was performed for 110 metastatic breast cancer patients selected on the basis of palliative AC treatment and the availability of immunohistochemical data for estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2/neu) status.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of the 110 patients analyzed, 71 (64.5%) were hormone receptor positive (HR+), 14 (12.7%) were HER2+, and 25 (22.7%) were triple negative (TN). There were no differences in age, stage at diagnosis, total number of cycles of palliative chemotherapy, incidence of visceral metastasis, and metastatic sites with the exception of liver among breast cancer subtypes. The overall response rates to AC were 55.9% for the HR+ subgroup, 42.9% for the HER2+ subgroup, and 56.5% for the TN subgroup. The progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with HER2+ and TN were significantly shorter than in the HR+ (median PFS, 9.1 <it>vs </it>8.1 <it>vs </it>11.5 months, respectively; p = 0.0002). The overall survival (OS) was 25.4 months in the TN subgroup and 27.3 months in HER2+ subgroup. The median OS for these two groups was significantly shorter than for patients in the HR+ subgroup (median, 38.5 months; 95% CI, 30.1-46.9 months; p < 0.0001).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The response to palliative AC chemotherapy did not differ among breast cancer subtypes. Despite chemosensitivity for palliative AC, the TN subtype has a shorter overall survival than non-TN subtypes. Innovative treatment strategies should be developed to slow the course of disease.</p

A Numerical Study on the Performance Evaluation of a Semi-Type Floating Offshore Wind Turbine System According to the Direction of the Incoming Waves

In this study, the performance evaluation of a semi-type floating offshore wind turbine system according to the direction of the incoming waves is investigated. The target model in this this study is a DTU 10 MW reference wind turbine and a LIFES50+ OO-Star Wind Floater Semi 10 MW, which is the semisubmersible platform. Numerical simulation is performed using FAST developed by National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), which is an aero-hydro-servo-elastic fully coupled simulation tool. The analysis condition used in this study is the misalignment condition, which is the wind direction fixed at 0 degree and the wave direction changed at 15 degrees intervals. In this study, two main contents could be confirmed. First, it is confirmed that sway, roll, and yaw motions occur even though the direction of the incoming waves is 0 degree. The cause of the platform&rsquo;s motion such as sway, roll and yaw is the turbulent wind and gyroscope phenomenon. In addition, the optimal value for the nacelle&ndash;yaw angle that maximizes the rotor power and minimizes the tower load is confirmed by solving the multiobjective optimization problem. These results show the conclusion that setting the initial nacelle&ndash;yaw angle can reduce the tower load and get a higher generator power. Second, it is confirmed that the platform&rsquo;s motion and loads may be underestimated depending on the interval angle of incidence of the wind and waves. In particular, through the load diagram results, it is confirmed that most of the results are asymmetric, and the blade and tower loads are especially spiky. Through these results, the importance of examining the interval angle of incidence of the wind and waves is confirmed. Unlike previous studies, this will be a more considerable issue as turbines become larger and platforms become more complex

Wistin Exerts an Anti-Inflammatory Effect via Nuclear Factor-κB and p38 Signaling Pathways in Lipopolysaccharide-Stimulated RAW264.7 Cells

Inflammation is an immune response to cellular damage caused by various stimuli (internal or external) and is essential to human health. However, excessive inflammatory responses may be detrimental to the host. Considering that the existing drugs for the treatment of inflammatory diseases have various side effects, such as allergic reactions, stomach ulcers, and cardiovascular problems, there is a need for research on new anti-inflammatory agents with low toxicity and fewer side effects. As 4′,6-dimethoxyisoflavone-7-O-β-d-glucopyranoside (wistin) is a phytochemical that belongs to an isoflavonoid family, we investigated whether wistin could potentially serve as a novel anti-inflammatory agent. In this study, we found that wistin significantly reduced the production of nitric oxide and intracellular reactive oxygen species in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. Moreover, wistin reduced the mRNA levels of pro-inflammatory enzymes (inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase (COX-2)) and cytokines (interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6) and significantly reduced the protein expression of pro-inflammatory enzymes (iNOS and COX-2). Furthermore, wistin reduced the activation of the nuclear factor-κB and p38 signaling pathways. Together, these results suggest that wistin is a prospective candidate for the development of anti-inflammatory drugs

五鍼刺法원리 및 임상응용에 관한 연구 II 임상응용에 관한 연구

Objective : To review the clinical basis of the Sa-Ahm 5 Element acupuncture originated about 360 years ago, papers and books were researched. Methods : Total of 58 books and papers ranging from ancient Huang Di nei jing to modern Bio Medical Acupuncture for Pain Management were investigated to study the clinical practice of it. Results : It could be practiced differently depending upon the viewpoints of diagnosis. They are ranging from theories of the greater -less of Yin and Yang, 7 emotions, organs- visceras, 8 diagnostic criteria, and pulse diagnosis to meridian circulation. Conclusions : It needs to be set clinical guidelines by which to practice Sa-Ahm acupuncture though it is nowadays mostly-used method in accordance with practitioner's viewpoints

五鍼刺法원리 및 임상응용에 관한 연구 I 원리에 관한 연구

Objective : To review the theoretic basis of the Sa -Ahm 5 Element acupuncture devised about 360 years ago, papers and books were researched. Methods : Total of 59 books and papers ranging from ancient Huang Di nei jing to modern Bio Medical Acupuncture for Pain Management were researched to study the basic theory of it in relation to the 5 Shu points, Results : Gao-mu in Chinese Ming dynasty, for the 1st time, had used 5 Shu points based on creation cycle as tonification and sedation treatment respectively and named it as ‘tonification and sedation treatment of self meridian’ but since then, this method, without special reasons, has been rarely used until Sa -Ahm’s new doctrine that include the concept of destruction cycle was asserted. Conclusions : Sa - Ahm 5 Element acupuncture is a method which uses 5 Shu points from the viewpoints of simultaneous tonification and sedation methods which are based on promotion and control cycles. Though it is nowadays mostly-used method in accordance with practitioner’s points, it needs to be set guidelines by which to effectively practice Sa -Ahm acupuncture

IMPLEMENTATION AND PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF PROGRAMMABLE TEST BEDS FOR REAL-TIME WIRELESS W-CDMA

Abstract. We have proposed the programmable test beds that present the system-level environment to verify and analyze the performance of baseband MODEM schemes and RF/IF hardware for Wideband CDMA (W-CDMA), PCS, CDMA2000, and IMT-2000 systems. These test beds have been implemented with 10 FPGAs for channel CODEC and commercial components for RF/IF transceiver. The DSP boards for real-time H.263 encoding/decoding and hardware channel-emulator have been also used. Therefore, our test beds allow the rapid development of each blocks and enable to reduce Turn-Around-Time (TAT) by easily analyzing the multimedia data communication systems up to 1Mbps/20Mcps. The measurement results show that the performance of our test beds is identical to that of commercial CDMA systems in restrict experimental environments

Clinicopathological Characteristics of Serrated Polyposis Syndrome in Korea: Single Center Experience

Background/Aim. Serrated polyposis syndrome (SPS) is a rare condition characterized by multiple serrated polyps throughout the colon and rectum. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinicopathological characteristics of SPS in Koreans. Methods. This retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data was performed using information from the endoscopy, clinical records, and pathology database system of Uijeongbu St. Mary’s Hospital. Consecutive patients satisfying the updated 2010 World Health Organization criteria for SPS between June 2011 and May 2014 were enrolled. Results. Of the 17,552 patients who underwent colonoscopies during the study period, 11 (0.06%) met the criteria for SPS. The mean age of these patients was 55.6 years. Ten patients (91%) were males. None had a family history of CRC or a first-degree relative with SPS. Seven patients (64%) had synchronous advanced adenoma. One patient had coexistence of SPS with CRC that was diagnosed at the initial colonoscopy. Five patients (45%) had more than 30 serrated polyps. One of the patients underwent surgery and 10 underwent endoscopic resection. Conclusion. The prevalence of SPS in this study cohort was comparable to that in Western populations. Considering the high risk of CRC, correct diagnosis and careful follow-up for SPS are necessary