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Purpose: Enamel matrix derivative (EMD) has demonstrated beneficial effects on wound healing following surgery. However, the effects of recombinant human fibroblast growth factor 2 (rhFGF-2) in periodontal regeneration therapy have not been extensively studied. This retrospective study was conducted to compare the wound healing outcomes of the modified papilla preservation technique (mPPT) between EMD and rhFGF-2 therapies., Methods: A total of 79 sites were evaluated for early wound healing using the modified early wound healing index (mEHI), which included 6 items: incision, fibrin clotting, step, redness, swelling, and dehiscence. A numeric analog scale, along with postoperative images of the 6 mEHI items, was established and used for the evaluations. The inter-rater reliability of the mEHI was assessed via intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs). After adjusting for factors influencing the mPPT, the differences in mEHI scores between the EMD and rhFGF-2 groups were statistically analyzed. Additionally, radiographic bone fill (RBF) was evaluated 6 months after surgery., Results: The ICC of the mEHI was 0.575. The mEHI, redness score, and dehiscence scores were significantly higher in the rhFGF-2 group (n=33) than in the EMD group (n=46). Similar results were observed in the subgroup of patients aged 50 years or older, but not in those younger than 50 years. In the subgroup with non-contained bone defects, related results were noted, but not in the subgroup with contained bone defects. However, early wound healing did not correlate with RBF at 6 months after surgery., Conclusions: Within the limitations of this study, the findings suggest that early wound healing following the use of mPPT with rhFGF-2 is somewhat superior to that observed after mPPT with EMD. However, mEHI should be improved for use as a predictive tool for early wound healing and to reflect clinical outcomes after surgery., Competing Interests: No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported., (Copyright © 2024. Korean Academy of Periodontology.)

The platinum-based chemotherapy regimen FOLFIRINOX (leucovorin, fluorouracil, irinotecan, and oxaliplatin) is currently used as a standard treatment for patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer. FOLFIRINOX is associated with severe toxicities, including neutropenia, febrile neutropenia, and anorexia; however, there are currently no reliable biomarkers to predict its efficacy and safety. Several studies of patients with various cancers have shown that tumor expression of excision repair cross-complementing (ERCC) proteins and glutathione S-transferase Pi (GSTPi) correlates with the response to platinum-based chemotherapies. Therefore, in this study, we examined the associations between expression of ERCC proteins and GSTPi and the safety and efficacy of FOLFIRINOX in 34 patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer. ERCC1, ERCC2, ERCC4, and GSTPi expression were examined by immunohistochemical staining of tumor specimens and the results were correlated with overall survival, progression-free survival, response rate, disease control rate, and the frequency of grade 3-4 neutropenia and non-hematologic toxicities. We found that ERCC1, ERCC2, ERCC4, and GSTPi were expressed in tumor samples from 64%, 24%, 18%, and 64% of patients, respectively. Notably, there were no statistically significant associations between the expression pattern of any of the proteins and either the clinical outcomes or the frequency of grade 3-4 neutropenia or grade 3-4 anorexia. Collectively, these data indicate that tumor expression of ERCC1, ERCC2, ERCC4, and GSTPi does not predict the safety or efficacy of FOLFIRINOX in patients with pancreatic cancer., Competing Interests: None.

Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the fucosylated fraction of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP-L3) as a marker of early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)., Patients and Methods: We diagnosed early HCC in 15 patients (15 tumors) by gadolinium-ethoxybenzyl-diethylenetriamine-pentaacetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging and confirmed the diagnoses using new criteria of the International Consensus Group for Hepatocellular Neoplasia. We measured the AFP-L3%, simultaneously, using a liquid-phase binding assay-electrokinetic analyte transport assay. We compared the AFP-L3% levels between patients with early HCC and a control cohort with benign liver disease., Results: The AFP-L3% levels were higher in patients with early HCC than in the controls (4.1%±4.0% vs. 2.0%±3.5%, p=0.024). The sensitivity and specificity with AFP-L3% were 33.3% and 78.7% at a cut-off value of 5%, and 20.0% and 88.0% at a cut-off value of 7%, respectively., Conclusion: AFP-L3% is a suitable serological marker for evaluating early HCC.

Background: No reliable prognostic predictor is known for patients undergoing sorafenib treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)., Patients and Methods: In 81 patients receiving sorafenib treatment for advanced HCC, we evaluated the prognostic significance of an inflammation-based prognostic score, the Glasgow prognostic score [evidenced by an elevated C-reactive protein level (>1.0 mg/dl) and hypoalbuminemia (<3.5 g/dl)] and compared it with Child-Pugh grade, Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer staging system, Japan Integrated Staging (JIS) score, and the performance status by Cox-proportional analysis., Results: Median overall survival after sorafenib administration was 11.3 months. On multivariate analysis, Glasgow prognostic score (0 vs. 1 and 2; p<0.001), JIS score (1 and 2 vs. 3 and 4; p=0.001), and performance status (0 vs. 1; p=0.001) were found to be independently associated with survival., Conclusion: The Glasgow prognostic score has significant prognostic value in patients undergoing sorafenib treatment for advanced HCC.