Comments on Japan’s Assistance to Afghanistan

政治学 / Political Science and International RelationsThe size and forms of assistance to Afghanistan by Japan after the 9.11 terrorist attacks to the United States of America as well as its basic policy on the country were decided by the summer 2002, and have unchanged until now. The main reason for this is lack of attention of the higher authorities and mass media in Japan. Since last year summer, those attention has soared the second time. This, together with a new strategy of the U.S.A. opens a precious opportunity for Japan to change the policy towards Afghanistan and adjust its assistance to the grand situation of the country. The discussion paper raises seven points on Japan’s assistance to Afghanistan: attention by the higher authorities and mass media; volume; strategy; local coordination; capacity; Afghanistan’s ownership; and security. And it draw lessons from the past assistance of Japan and discusses on its possible future assistance based on the author’s experiences as director in charge of the Foreign Ministry of Japan and Deputy Chief of Mission in Kabul and his researches since summer 2004.GRIPS-GCOE State-Building Workshop: Afghanistan (March 4, 2009

The Clinical Impact of Hepatic Arterial Infusion Chemotherapy New-FP for Hepatocellular Carcinoma with Preserved Liver Function

Background: Systemic treatments are recommended for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in preserved liver function. However, their effects are unsatisfactory in some tumor conditions, particularly macrovascular invasion (MVI) including major portal vein tumor thrombus (PVTT). We compared the efficacy of hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy (HAIC) regimens New-FP and sorafenib for various tumor conditions in preserved liver function. Methods: We retrospectively collected the data of 1709 patients with HCC who were treated with New-FP or sorafenib. Survival was assessed after propensity score matching. Subgroup analyses were conducted: cohort 1 (no MVI or extrahepatic spread (EHS)), cohort 2 (MVI only), cohort 3 (EHS only), cohort 4 (MVI and EHS), and cohort 5 (major PVTT). Results: The New-FP group had a longer median survival time (MST) than the sorafenib in the whole analysis (18 vs. 9 months; p < 0.0001). New-FP demonstrated a longer MST compared with sorafenib in cohort 2 and cohort 4. In cohort 5, the MST of the New-FP group was 16 months, while that of sorafenib was 6 months (p < 0.0001). For major PVTT-HCC, the response rate of New-FP was 73.0%. The MST of patients who achieved complete response with New-FP was 59 months. Conclusions: HAIC using New-FP is promising for patients with MVI- and major PVTT-HCC in preserved liver function