Anti-cancer effects of benzimidazole derivative BNZ-111 on paclitaxel-resistant ovarian cancer.

Objective: Ovarian cancer, a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women, remains a formidable challenge, especially in the context of platinum-resistant disease. This study investigated the potential of the benzimidazole derivative BNZ-111 as a novel treatment strategy for platinum-resistant ovarian cancer.

Methods: The human EOC cell lines A2780, HeyA8, SKOV3ip1, A2780-CP20, HeyA8-MDR, and SKOV3-TR were treated with BNZ-111, and cell proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle were assessed.

Depleting myeloid-biased haematopoietic stem cells rejuvenates aged immunity.

Ageing of the immune system is characterized by decreased lymphopoiesis and adaptive immunity, and increased inflammation and myeloid pathologies. Age-related changes in populations of self-renewing haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are thought to underlie these phenomena. During youth, HSCs with balanced output of lymphoid and myeloid cells (bal-HSCs) predominate over HSCs with myeloid-biased output (my-HSCs), thereby promoting the lymphopoiesis required for initiating adaptive immune responses, while limiting the production of myeloid cells, which can be pro-inflammatory.

Psychometric validation of the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Endometrial among endometrial cancer patients.

Objective: To evaluate a psychometric validation of the endometrial cancer subscales (EnCS) in the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Endometrial (FACT-EN) among patients with endometrial cancer.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at a tertiary university-based hospital in South Korea between April and October 2022. Participants completed a survey questionnaire that included the FACT-EN.

Major clinical research advances in gynecologic cancer in 2023: a tumultuous year for endometrial cancer.

In the 2023 series, we summarized the major clinical research advances in gynecologic oncology based on communications at the conference of Asian Society of Gynecologic Oncology Review Course. The review consisted of 1) Endometrial cancer: immune checkpoint inhibitor, antibody drug conjugates (ADCs), selective inhibitor of nuclear export, CDK4/6 inhibitors WEE1 inhibitor, poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors. 2) Cervical cancer: surgery in low-risk early-stage cervical cancer, therapy for locally advanced stage and advanced, metastatic, or recurrent setting; and 3) Ovarian cancer: immunotherapy, triplet therapies using immune checkpoint inhibitors along with antiangiogenic agents and PARP inhibitors, and ADCs.

Combined radiomics-clinical model to predict platinum-sensitivity in advanced high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma using multimodal MRI.

Introduction: We aimed to predict platinum sensitivity using routine baseline multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and established clinical data in a radiomics framework.

Methods: We evaluated 96 patients with ovarian cancer who underwent multimodal MRI and routine laboratory tests between January 2016 and December 2020. The patients underwent diffusion-weighted, contrast-enhanced T1-weighted, and T2-weighted MRI.

Initial experience with the enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols in gynecologic surgery at an urban academic tertiary medical center.

Background: The enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols have been consistently associated with improved patient experience and surgical outcomes. Despite the release of ERAS Society guidelines specific to gynecologic oncology, the adoption of ERAS in gynecology on global level has been disappointingly low and some centers have shown minimal improvement in clinical outcomes after adopting ERAS. The aim of this study is to describe the development and early experience of ERAS protocols in gynecologic surgery at an urban academic tertiary medical center.

Practice guidelines for management of uterine corpus cancer in Korea: a Korean Society of Gynecologic Oncology consensus statement.

The Korean Society of Gynecologic Oncology (KSGO) had been making an effort to standardize and enhance the quality of domestic uterine corpus cancer treatment by developing updated clinical practice guidelines in 2021. The KSGO revised the guidelines based on a literature search using 4 key elements: Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcome framework. These elements include the evaluation of the efficacy and safety of immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment in recurrent/advanced endometrial cancer patients who have failed platinum-based chemotherapy, as well as the effect of combined treatment with trastuzumab in patients with HER2/neu-positive endometrial cancer.

Initial Experience of Articulating Laparoscopic Instruments for Benign Gynecologic Disease: A Single-Arm Multicenter Prospective Study (Korean Gynecologic Oncology Group 4002).

Laparoscopic surgery has evolved with technological advances in many aspects and increasing demand for its benefits in cosmetics, fast recovery, reduced complication rates and pain. However, it still possesses drawbacks such as limited surgical movement due to the nature of rigid laparoscopic instruments. In order to overcome such limitations, several laparoscopic jointed instruments have been developed.

Feasibility and Surgical Outcomes of Hybrid Robotic Single-Site Hysterectomy Compared with Single-Port Access Total Laparoscopic Hysterectomy.

We compared surgical outcomes between single-port access total laparoscopic hysterectomy (SPA-TLH) and hybrid robotic single-site hysterectomy (RSSH), a new technique of combining the benefits of SPA-TLH with RSSH in this study. A total of 64 patients were retrospectively analyzed. They underwent either hybrid RSSH or SPA-TLH for benign gynecologic disease between December 2018 and August 2021.

Does Robot Assisted Laparoscopy (RAL) Have an Advantage in Preservation of Ovarian Reserve in Endometriosis Surgery? Comparison of Single-Port Access (SPA) RAL and SPA Laparoscopy.

The purpose of this study was to compare single-port access (SPA) laparoscopy and SPA robot assisted laparoscopy (RAL) for endometriosis with respect to ovarian reserve preservation and surgical outcomes. Clinical factors affecting any reduction in ovarian function after surgery were also evaluated. Patients with endometriosis who underwent SPA laparoscopy (n = 87) or RAL (n = 78) were retrospectively reviewed.

The effect of adding chewing gum to oral carbohydrates on preoperative anxiety scores in women undergoing gynecological surgery: A randomized controlled study.

Background: Preoperative anxiety is an unpleasant experience that can adversely affect perioperative outcomes. Although clinical benefits of preoperative oral carbohydrate is well reported, the effect of adding chewing gum to carbohydrate loading has never been studied. We aimed to investigate the effect of adding gum-chewing to oral carbohydrates on preoperative anxiety and gastric volume in patients undergoing gynecologic surgery.

High-throughput organo-on-pillar (high-TOP) array system for three-dimensional ex vivo drug testing.

The development of organoid culture technologies has triggered industrial interest in ex vivo drug test-guided clinical response prediction for precision cancer therapy. The three-dimensional culture encapsulated with basement membrane (BM) components is extremely important in establishing ex vivo organoids and drug sensitivity tests because the BM components confer essential structures resembling tumor histopathology. Although numerous studies have demonstrated three-dimensional culture-based drug screening methods, establishing a large-scale drug-screening platform with matrix-encapsulated tumor cells is challenging because the arrangement of microspots of a matrix-cell droplet onto each well of a microwell plate is inconsistent and difficult to standardize.

The Effect of Intrathecal Morphine on Postoperative Opioid Consumption in Patients Undergoing Abdominal Surgery for Gynecologic Malignancy: A Randomized Sham-Controlled Trial.

Background: Surgery for gynecologic malignancy via midline-laparotomy leads to severe postoperative pain. Adequate pain control while sparing opioid consumption does offer benefits in postoperative complications and recovery. Intrathecal morphine (ITM) provides simple and effective analgesia.

Development and Validation of 18F-FDG PET/CT-Based Models for Predicting Successful Complete Cytoreduction During Primary Cytoreductive Surgery for Advanced Ovarian cancer.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to develop an 18F-FDG PET/CT-based model to predict complete cytoreduction during primary cytoreductive surgery (CRS) for ovarian cancer (OC).

Patients And Methods: We retrospectively identified patients with stage III-IV OC who underwent primary CRS between June 2013 and February 2020 at 2 tertiary centers. Patients from each hospital were assigned to training and test sets.

Comparison of Surgical Outcomes of Adnexectomy by Vaginal Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery (vNOTES) Versus Single-Port Access (SPA) Surgery.

The objective of the present pilot study is to compare operative outcomes between vaginal natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (vNOTES) and single-port access (SPA) adnexectomy. Subjects were patients who underwent adnexectomy for benign adnexal disease, from November 2019 to May 2021. A total of 12 patients underwent vNOTES adnexectomy, and 55 patients received SPA laparoscopic adnexectomy.

Role of reactive thrombocytosis after primary cytoreductive surgery in advanced ovarian cancer.

We investigated the incidence of reactive thrombocytosis after maximal cytoreductive surgery in advanced epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) and its role in patient survival. We retrospectively reviewed the electronic medical records of patients who underwent primary cytoreductive surgery for advanced EOC from 1 January 2012 to 31 December 2017. We analyzed the serum platelet counts at various time points from before surgery, during the peri-operative period, and after each cycle of adjuvant chemotherapy.

Impact of bevacizumab and secondary cytoreductive surgery on survival outcomes in platinum-sensitive relapsed ovarian clear cell carcinoma: A multicenter study in Korea.

Objective: This study investigated survival outcomes for platinum-sensitive relapsed ovarian clear cell carcinoma (OCCC) by treatment method.

Methods: OCCC patients with platinum-sensitive recurrence that received secondary treatment at five institutions between July 2007 and June 2021 were included. Patient characteristics and survival outcomes were compared according to the use of bevacizumab (BEV) during second-line chemotherapy and secondary cytoreductive surgery (CRS).

Comparison of Surgical Outcomes of Hysterectomy by Vaginal Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery (vNOTES) versus Single-Port Access (SPA) Surgery.

Single-port access (SPA) laparoscopic surgery and vaginal natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (vNOTES) have many advantages. The objective of the present study is to compare patient characteristics, operative details, and postoperative outcomes between the two surgical methods. Patients who were planned to undergo vNOTES or SPA laparoscopic surgery between April 2020 and June 2021 were prospectively enrolled.

Anticancer Activity of the Combination of Cabozantinib and Temozolomide in Uterine Sarcoma.

Purpose: To evaluate the anticancer effects of cabozantinib, temozolomide, and their combination in uterine sarcoma cell lines and mouse xenograft models.

Experimental Design: Human uterine sarcoma cell lines (SK-LMS-1, SK-UT-1, MES-SA, and SKN) were used to evaluate the anticancer activity of cabozantinib, temozolomide, and their combination. The optimal dose of each drug was determined by MTT assay.

Real-world experience of pembrolizumab and lenvatinib in recurrent endometrial cancer: A multicenter study in Korea.

Objective: To investigate the effectiveness and safety of pembrolizumab and lenvatinib (PEMBRO+LEN) for recurrent endometrial cancer (EC) in a real-world setting.

Methods: This multicenter retrospective cohort study included patients with recurrent EC who received PEMBRO+LEN between March 2020 and May 2021 at three tertiary hospitals in Korea. We summarized patient characteristics and evaluated the response rates, survival outcomes, and treatment-related adverse events (AEs).