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Background/Aims: Few studies have investigated the prognosis of non-gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) under the modified National Institutes of Health (NIH) consensus criteria in Korea. This study aims to clarify the clinical usefulness of the modified NIH criteria for risk stratification. Methods: From January 2000 through October 2012, 88 patients who underwent curative resection for primary GISTs were included in this study. The enrolled patients were stratified to predict recurrence by the original NIH criteria and modified NIH criteria. Results: In all, 88 patients had non-gastric GISTs, including 82 and 6 patients with GISTs of the small intestine and colorectum, respectively. The mean age was 57.3±13.0 years, and the median follow-up duration was 3.40 years (range, 0.02-12.76 years). All patients who were placed in the intermediate-risk category according to the original NIH criteria were reclassified into the high-risk category according to the modified NIH criteria. Therefore, the proportion of cases in the intermediate-risk category declined to 0.0% from 25.0% (22/88), and the proportion of cases in the high-risk category increased to 43.2% (38/88) from 18.2% (16/88) under the modified NIH criteria. Among the 22 reclassified patients, 6 (27.3%) suffered a recurrence during the observational period, and the recurrence rate of high-risk category patients was 36.8% (14/38). Conclusions: Patients in the high-risk category according to the modified NIH criteria had a high GIST recurrence rate. Therefore, the modified NIH criteria are clinically useful in selecting patients who need imatinib adjuvant chemotherapy after curative surgical resection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using detailed data from Korea, free from the selection bias problem and providing industry codes for companies a venture capital (VC) fund invests in, this study conducts comprehensive analyses of performance and performance persistence of VC funds. We find significant differences between the results using a non-risk-adjusted and those using a riskadjusted performance measure. Another notable finding is that government participation affects the risk-adjusted performance and cash inflows of venture capital funds. Furthermore, the persistence of performance is much weaker when we control risk of VC funds. In addition, we provide the evidence that the performance in a public market has a positive influence on the probability of raising subsequent venture capital funds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractPaecilomyces cicadaeMiquel Samson is the anamorph of Cordyceps cicadaeShing and is used in functional foods for the prevention and treatment of various diseases. In the present study, we examined the effects of P. cicadaepolysaccharide (PCP) on dendritic cell (DC) maturation. Phenotypic maturation of DCs by PCP was confirmed by the elevated expressions of CD80, CD86, major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-I, and MHC-II molecules and functional maturation by increased expression of interleukin-12, interleukin-1β, and tumor necrosis factor-α, enhanced allogenic T cell stimulation, and decreased endocytosis. PCP induced the maturation of DCs from C3H/HeN and C57BL/6 mice but not from Toll-like receptor (tlr) 4–/–knockout mice and TLR4-mutated C3H/HeJ mice, which suggests that TLR4 is the membrane receptor for PCP. PCP increased the degradation of inhibitor of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) α/β, which enhanced the nuclear translocation of NF-κB p50/p65 and induced the phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase, c-Jun N-terminal kinase, and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases, which are signaling molecules downstream of TLR4. These results indicate that PCP induces DC maturation through TLR4 signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sparganosis is a seldom encountered disease of the breast. Based on the results of previous studies and our own experience, we investigated the clinical characteristics of breast sparganosis. Method: Four patients who were treated for breast sparganosis at Samsung Medical Center were included in the study, and additional data were retrieved from the Index Medicus and the Science Citation Index (SCI). The Korean Medical (KM) database and the Korean Association of Medical Journal Editors (KAMJE) database were searched to include information from Korean journals that is not included in international citation indexes. Results: Among 35 patients, 8 (32%) had a record of oral ingestion of an intermediary host. All patients presented with a breast mass, with migration in 6 cases (25%) and pain or an itching sensation in 6 cases (25%). Elongated tubular structures were found in the subcutaneous layer in 22 cases (88%) during radiologic exam. All patients underwent complete surgical excision. Twenty-seven of 29 (93.1%) patients' spargana was separated and confirmed grossly. Histologically, granulomatous inflammation was the most common feature. A single worm was extracted in 16 cases (76.2%) and 5 cases (23.8%) had multiple worms. Conclusion: Sparganosis tends to present as a suspicious mass in the subcutaneous layer of the breast. Complete surgical excision is the treatment of choice, with careful postoperative surveillance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The p53 gene has been referred to as 'the guardian of the genome' because it controls apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association of p53 codon 72 genetic polymorphism and the p53 immunohistochemistry with Helicobacter pylori-associated gastroduodenal diseases, including gastric cancer. This study included 1,852 subjects: controls and patients with gastric cancer, dysplasia, benign gastric ulcers, and duodenal ulcers (DU). Biallelic polymorphism was genotyped by restriction fragment length polymorphism. Immunohistochemical analysis for the detection of mutant type p53 expression was performed. The frequency of the Pro/Pro allele of the p53 codon 72 was higher in the patients with H. pylori-positive dysplasia than in controls (OR: 2.3, 95% CI: 1.3-4.3), but it was less frequent among patients with a H. pylori-positive DU (OR: 0.5, 95% CI: 0.3-0.8). However, there was no significant association with gastric cancer, including the location, stage, or histological type of gastric cancer. Expression of a mutant type of p53 protein was detected in 6.3% of dysplastic tissues and 26.5% of cancerous tissues compared 0% in the controls. Positive expression was higher in the intestinal type of cancer (34.9%) than in the diffuse type (15.0%; P = 0.001). These results suggest that genetic polymorphism of p53 codon 72 played a role in the determination of H. pylori-associated gastroduodenal diseases, but p53 immunostaining did not correlate with those of the p53 genetic polymorphism analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To examine the current practices relating to do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders for terminal patients with cancer at teaching hospitals in Korea. Methods: The records of 387 deaths from January 1 to December 31, 2005 at four cancer centers were identified and reviewed to assess the DNR delineation. Basic demographics, circumstances surrounding the establishment of the DNR directive, the percentage of orders for identified populations, and the time interval between DNR consent and death were evaluated. Results: An order of DNR consent was obtained from 296 patients (76%) of a total of 387 patients. All DNR consents were made between the physician and family, without involving the patient. Written preprinted DNR consent forms were used in 169 (57%) cases and 127 patients (43%) had verbal DNR permission. DNR consent was interpreted in two ways: one forbade resuscitation in two hospitals and the other implied limited care in two other hospitals. A unilateral physician decision to withhold cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was decided for 62 (16%) patients. Terminal CPR was performed on 29 (7%) patients. DNR discussion was made within 7 days of the day of death on 228 (77%) patient among the 296 DNR consenting patients. Conclusion: From our teaching-hospital–based analysis of terminal cancer patients in Korea, consent for a DNR order was common. However, DNR order forms were not standardized and lacked room to document patient involvement in the decision. Usually the DNR decision was made within last days of the patient's life. Our results reflect the need for the improvement of end-of-life care decisions in Korea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]