Publications by authors named "Ko-Chao Lee"

Purpose: Stage III colorectal cancer (CRC) is typically treated with surgery; however, it has a high recurrence rate and inconsistent benefits from postoperative chemotherapy. Inflammatory markers like the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) have shown prognostic value in various cancers. However, the prognostic significance of NLR measured before and after CRC surgery is not clear.

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Colorectal cancer (CRC) has become a prevalent and deadly malignancy over the years. Drug resistance remains a major challenge in CRC treatment, significantly affecting patient survival rates. Obesity is a key risk factor for CRC development, and accumulating evidence indicates that increased secretion of adipokines, including Visfatin, under obese conditions contributes to the development of resistance in CRC to various therapeutic methods.

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Background: Robot-assisted surgery has been increasingly adopted in colorectal cancer resection.

Objective: The study aimed to compare the inpatient outcomes of robot-assisted versus conventional laparoscopic colorectal cancer resection in patients aged 75 years and older.

Design: A retrospective, population-based study.

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, a consumable mushroom, has shown a potential to enhance the production of neuroprotective bioactive metabolites. Traumatic brain injury (TBI) often leads to cognitive, physical, and psychosocial impairments, resulting in neuroinflammation and the loss of cortical neurons. In this research, the effects of mycelium, its derivative erinacine C, along with the underlying mechanisms, were examined in terms of oxidative stress modulation and neurological improvement in a rat model of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study aimed to investigate if long-term aspirin use affects the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) among hospitalized patients aged 50 and older in the U.S. using a large national database.
  • - Researchers analyzed data from over 3.4 million patients, finding that 19.7% had a history of long-term aspirin use, and after balancing groups, results showed aspirin use was linked to a significantly lower likelihood of being diagnosed with CRC (adjusted odds ratio of 0.64).
  • - The findings suggest that long-term aspirin use may be associated with a reduced risk of CRC in U.S. adults over 50, irrespective of factors like age, sex, race, BMI, or smoking habits.
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Hepatectomy and/or local ablation therapy have been recommended for colorectal cancer liver metastases (CRLM). However, they still lack strong evidence for their survival benefits, in addition to systemic therapy. This study aims to evaluate the survival evidence of hepatectomy and/or radiofrequency ablation (RFA) therapy in CRLM patients from a large multi-institutional database.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study focuses on metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) and the transition of lymph node metastasis (LNM) from Stage II to Stage III, which is crucial for prognosis and treatment strategies.* -
  • Using advanced proteomic analysis (LC-MS/MS iTRAQ), researchers identified 48 proteins that are differentially expressed between non-LNM and LNM CRC samples, revealing specific protein markers pertinent to cancer progression.* -
  • Two key proteins, chromogranin-A (CHGA) and UCHL1, were found to influence cancer cell behavior, such as migration and invasiveness, and their inactivation affected various pathways crucial for CRC development.*
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Background And Aim: Morbid obesity is associated with poorer postoperative outcomes in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients. We aimed to evaluate short-term outcomes after robotic versus conventional laparoscopic CRC resection in morbidly obese patients.

Methods: This population-based, retrospective study extracted data from the US Nationwide Inpatient Sample during 2005-2018.

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Background: Antrodin C, a maleimide derivative compound isolated from the ethanol extract of the mycelium of , is an endemic fungus of Taiwan and a potential chemoprotective agent. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the mode of action of antrodin C on cancer cells, especially in human colorectal cancer (CRC), remain unclear.

Methods: The cell death and ROS of the antrodin-C-treated HCT-116 cells were measured by annexin V-FITC/propidium iodide staining, DCFDA, and Fluo-3 fluorescence staining assays.

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Background: Chronic radiation proctitis (CRP) may develop in patients within months to years after undergoing pelvic radiotherapy. Numerous treatment modalities are available to achieve hemostasis in CRP, but the optimal treatment remains controversial. We report our clinical experience and long-term outcomes using radiofrequency ablation (RFA) in patients with CRP.

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Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a worldwide pandemic and complex disorder associated with colorectal cancer (CRC). This study aims to identify the influence of number of MetS components on CRC incidence and mortality, using a national, longitudinal dataset of hospital care in Taiwan.

Methods: Patient data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD) from 2001 to 2008 were extracted.

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Ginger extracts have been shown to have health-promoting pharmacological activity and beneficial effects, including antioxidant and anticancer properties. The extraction of ginger by natural deep eutectic solvents (NaDES) has been shown to enhance bioactivity, but the cytotoxicity of NaDES extracts needs to be further determined. Signaling through the CXC chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4) expressed on colorectal cancer (CRC) cells has a pivotal role in tumor cell chemosensitivity.

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Article Synopsis
  • A study was done to see how often patients had problems after a special surgery for hemorrhoids using LigaSure devices, compared to an older method called Ferguson's.
  • They found that 5% of the patients had delayed bleeding after surgery, and men were more likely to experience this issue.
  • As the surgeon gained more experience over time, the chance of delayed bleeding went down, eventually becoming similar to the older surgery method.
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The drug resistance of colorectal cancer (CRC) cells against 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) therapy is a major challenge to successful cancer treatment. While previous studies have proposed several 5-FU resistance mechanisms, the effects of the adipokines on cancer cells remain unclear. Thus, this study investigated the effect of resistin on 5-FU-treated CRC cell lines.

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Background/aims: A combination of fluorescence two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry approach was used to search for potential markers for prognosis and intervention of colorectal cancer (CRC) at different stages of lymph node metastasis (LMN). This quantitative proteomic survey aimed to investigate the LNM-associated proteins and evaluate the clinicopathological characteristics of these target proteins in CRC from stage I to stage IV.

Methods: Sixteen CRC cases were categorized into paired non-LNM and LNM groups, and two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis and MS proteome analysis were performed.

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Ailanthoidol (ATD) has been isolated from the barks of and displays anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiadipogenic, and antitumor promotion activities. Recently, we found that ATD suppressed TGF-β1-induced migration and invasion of HepG2 cells. In this report, we found that ATD exhibited more potent cytotoxicity in Huh7 hepatoma cells (mutant : Y220C) than in HepG2 cells (wild-type ).

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The red blood cell distribution width (RDW) is a simple and widely available parameter obtained from a complete blood cell count test and is usually used in the analysis of anemia. Recently, studies have discovered the association between RDW and the host inflammatory response of cancer patients. We aimed to determine the prognostic value of RDW in colorectal cancer (CRC) patients.

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Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a highly lethal malignant cancer. Capecitabine, a 5-fluororacil (5-FU) derivate, is its first-line drug, but the resistance of CRC to capecitabine is still the most challenging factor for curing patients. It has been suggested that thymidylate synthase (TYMS) level might affect the capecitabine efficacy in CRC patients, but the mechanism still needs more elucidation.

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Purpose: Obesity is an independent risk factor for worse outcomes in various surgical settings. Whether obesity is a prognostic factor for postoperative morbidity and mortality of colorectal cancer (CRC) is inconclusive. This study aimed to determine the impact of obesity on short-term postoperative outcomes in CRC patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery.

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(1) Background: To investigate the prognostic value of cancer-inflammation prognostic index (CIPI) in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) on regorafenib treatment; (2) Methods: Patients with mCRC who were given regorafenib as later-line treatment at Kaohsiung and Linkou Chang-Gung Memorial Hospital between November 2014 and January 2021 were consecutively enrolled. All relevant clinicopathologic, laboratory data and survival status were recorded. Independent prognostic factors were determined by the multivariate Cox regression method; (3) Results: In total, 106 patients in the training cohort and 250 in the validation cohort were enrolled.

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CIL-102 (1-[4-(furo[2,3-b]quinolin-4-ylamino) phenyl]ethanone) is a major active agent of Camptotheca acuminata's alkaloid derivative, and its anti-tumorigenic activity, a valuable biological property of the agent, has been reported in many types of cancer. In this study, we researched the novel CIL-102-induced protein for either the induction of cell apoptosis or the inhibition of cell migration/invasiveness in colorectal cancer cells (CRC) and their molecular mechanism. Firstly, our data showed that CIL-102 treatment not only increased the cytotoxicity of cells and the production of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), but it also decreased cell migration and invasiveness in DLD-1 cells.

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Ailanthoidol (ATD), a neolignan, possessed an antitumor promotion effect in the mouse skin model in our previous investigation. However, other antitumor properties remain to be elucidated. Liver cancer is a major cause of death in the world, and its prognosis and survival rate are poor.

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Background: Obesity is adversely affecting perioperative outcomes; however, long-term outcomes do not appear to be affected by excess body weight (the obesity paradox). The purpose of this study is to examine the association between obesity and surgical outcomes in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) using data from the United States National Inpatient Sample (NIS).

Methods: Patients ≥20 years old diagnosed with CRC who received surgery were identified in the 2004-2014 NIS database.

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Erinacine S, the new bioactive diterpenoid compound isolated from the ethanol extract of the mycelia of Hericium erinaceus, displays great health-promoting properties. However, the effects of erinacine S on inductive apoptosis in cancer cells such as gastric cancer and its molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Our results demonstrated that erinacine S treatment significantly induces cell apoptosis with increased ROS production in gastric cancer cells, but not in normal cells.

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