Publications by authors named "Kyung Ja Cho"
Article Synopsis
- PD-L1 expression serves as a crucial biomarker in predicting how patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma might respond to immune checkpoint inhibitors, making it important to evaluate different testing methods.
- A study conducted at Asan Medical Center evaluated PD-L1 expression in 156 cases using various standardized assays and a laboratory-developed test, revealing good to excellent agreement among the methods.
- The results highlighted that PD-L1 expression significantly varies with tumor location and suggests that the different assays could potentially be used interchangeably for assessing PD-L1 in head and neck cancers.
Article Synopsis
- * A case study reports a 40-year-old man with RMS in his forehead who had specific genetic markers and cellular characteristics identified through imaging techniques and tests.
- * Despite undergoing surgery and additional treatment, the patient unfortunately died of cancer progression 10 months after his diagnosis, highlighting the importance of detailed molecular analysis for effective treatment.
Background: Patients achieving pathological complete response (pCR) post-neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) and surgery for locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) have a favorable prognosis. However, recurrence occurs in approximately 20-30% of all patients, with few studies evaluating their prognostic factors. We identified these prognostic factors, including inflammation-based markers, in patients with ESCC showing pCR after nCRT and surgery.
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- - The study analyzed the effectiveness of cytotoxic chemotherapy, specifically doxorubicin combined with dacarbazine, in treating recurrent desmoid tumors in 25 patients from two hospitals in Korea between 2007 and 2020.
- - Results showed a significant objective response rate of 64% and a disease control rate of 96%, with a median follow-up of 55 months demonstrating a 3-year progression-free survival (PFS) rate of 65% and overall survival (OS) rate of 89%.
- - Despite manageable severe hematologic side effects in some patients, the findings suggest that this treatment could be a viable option for those battling progressive desmoid tumors.
Article Synopsis
- * The study analyzed 81 OSC patients from Asan Medical Center and found that 38.3% had hrHPV, which correlated with specific clinicopathologic features like high Ki-67 index and loss of zinc finger protein 750 expression.
- * Prognostic factors for recurrence or metastasis include tumor size, TILs, and site of origin, with high TILs and site of origin identified as independent factors, indicating that prognosis in OSC is independent of hrHPV infection
Article Synopsis
- * In a sample of 128 MEC cases, researchers found that p16 expression was present in 76% of cases, and lymphoid stroma was observed in 49%, with both factors linked to better clinical outcomes and survival rates.
- * The study concluded that p16 expression and lymphoid stroma presence could serve as valuable prognostic tools to improve the treatment and prediction of outcomes for MEC patients.
Mucoepidermoid carcinomas (MECs) are the most common salivary gland malignancy and have a diverse histology. Many histologic variants of MEC have now been confirmed with characteristic molecular alterations involving CRTC1::MAML2 or CRTC1::MAML3 translocations. We here report a series of 7 trabecular variants of MEC which showed a predominant trabecular or nested pattern with either focal glandular differentiation or clear cell change and keloid-like fibrosis in the background.
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- Current diagnosis of oral and laryngeal epithelial lesions relies on WHO histological criteria, which can lead to inconsistent results among observers.
- The study integrated immunohistochemistry (IHC) to assess p53 and Ki-67 expression in 114 cases, developing a predictive model that accurately differentiates between dysplastic and non-dysplastic lesions.
- Results showed high accuracy in classifying lesions based on expression patterns, with correlations found between p53 mutations and specific expression types, enhancing diagnostic consistency.
Article Synopsis
- Primary cardiac sarcomas are rare, with intimal sarcoma presenting diagnostic challenges; recent studies identified MDM2 amplification as a key genetic characteristic.
- In a review of 48 cases over 25 years, most tumors were found in the right atrium, with angiosarcoma as the most common subtype; seven cases were reclassified as intimal sarcoma using immunohistochemistry for MDM2.
- The study highlights that adjuvant therapy significantly improves overall survival, especially in angiosarcoma, while MDM2 positive intimal sarcoma showed better survival compared to undifferentiated types.
Background: Ossified cartilage is much more susceptible to cancer infiltration, but the reason remains unknown, and the relationship between the ossification pattern and cancer infiltration has not been studied.
Methods: The presence of thyroid cartilage ossification, cancer infiltration, ossification pattern (usual: direction from inferior to superior; unusual: other than the usual pattern), and distance between cancer and ossified cartilage were evaluated in laryngectomy specimens.
Results: There were 28 and 27 cases of usual and unusual patterns, respectively.
Article Synopsis
- - The study analyzes cervical metastasis from unknown primary tumors (CUP) in Korea, focusing on human papillomavirus (HPV) and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) status, based on data from 95 cases collected over ten years from six hospitals.
- - Findings reveal that 38.9% of CUP cases were HPV-related, 5.3% were EBV-related, and the majority (48.4%) were unrelated to either virus, with HPV-related cases showing significantly better overall survival.
- - The research indicates a high frequency of virus-unrelated CUP in Korea, while HPV and EBV-related CUP share characteristics with oropharyngeal and nasopharyngeal cancers, respectively,
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the relationship between pleomorphic adenomas (PA) and carcinoma ex pleomorphic adenomas (CPA), specifically looking for precursor lesions that could lead to CPA.
- Researchers performed immunohistochemistry on resected cases to analyze markers like p53 and HER2 in both CPA and atypical PA cases.
- Results showed a significant presence of apocrine changes in residual PAs associated with CPA, indicating these changes may act as precursors, and they emphasize the importance of testing for HER2 in atypical cases.
Objective: To compare the clinical and radiological features of various etiologies of chronic diffuse lacrimal gland enlargement.
Materials And Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 91 consecutive patients who underwent surgical biopsy for chronic diffuse lacrimal gland enlargement and were diagnosed with non-specific dacryoadenitis (DA) (n = 42), immunoglobulin G4-related dacryoadenitis (IgG4-RD) (n = 33), and lymphoma (n = 16). Data on patient demographics, clinical presentation, and CT imaging findings (n = 73) and MRI (n = 43) were collected.
NY-ESO-1 as a diagnostic and prognostic marker for myxoid liposarcoma.
Am J Transl Res
February 2022
Article Synopsis
- Myxoid liposarcoma (MLS) is a challenging lipogenic sarcoma to diagnose in small samples, and the study investigated the expression of a cancer-testis antigen called NY-ESO-1 in various soft tissue tumors (STTs) to assess its diagnostic potential.
- Out of 434 STT cases, 14.75% tested positive for NY-ESO-1, with MLS being the most prevalent type among positive cases (70.3%), demonstrating a high sensitivity (84.4%) and specificity (100%) for diagnosing MLS.
- NY-ESO-1 positivity correlated with poorer overall survival rates in MLS patients, suggesting that it could serve as a valuable diagnostic marker and prognostic indicator, with potential
Article Synopsis
- CIC-DUX4 fusion gene-associated sarcoma is a new category of round cell sarcoma that resembles Ewing sarcoma, making it crucial to distinguish between the two for effective treatment.
- A study involving 70 patients revealed that 8.6% had CIC-DUX4 sarcoma, characterized by distinct histological features such as varying cell types and unusual nuclei, unlike those found in Ewing sarcoma family tumors.
- Despite similar overall survival rates between CIC-DUX4 sarcomas and Ewing sarcoma, the former showed significantly shorter disease-free survival and poorer treatment responses, highlighting the need for molecular testing for accurate diagnosis.
Yolk sac tumors (YSTs), which are also called endodermal sinus tumors, are malignant tumors of germ cell origin. These tumors usually occur in the gonads, but 20% of cases have been reported at extragonadal sites. The head and neck is a rarely affected region that accounts for just 1% of all malignant tumors of germ cell origin.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: To report a rare case of granular cell tumor invading the retina.
Case Presentation: A 56-year-old female complained of blurred vision for 2 weeks in her left eye. An irregular-shaped retinal mass in the inferonasal and extending to the optic disc accompanied by dense exudation and extensive serous retinal detachment was observed.
Article Synopsis
- A study established a detailed sarcoma-specific database in Korea, compiling 28 years of data on adult bone and soft tissue sarcoma patients treated from 1989 to 2017.
- The analysis included 3,420 patients, revealing that soft tissue sarcomas were more prevalent than bone sarcomas, with median ages at diagnosis of 50 and 37, respectively.
- Findings showed notable shifts in treatment approaches over time, including a decline in surgery-only treatments and an increase in adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy, with older age linked to poorer survival outcomes.
Genomic alteration in rare subtype of sarcomatoid salivary duct carcinoma.
Pathol Res Pract
December 2021
Article Synopsis
- Salivary duct carcinoma (SDC) is a dangerous type of salivary gland cancer with a variety of forms, including a rare variant called sarcomatoid SDC, which was the focus of this study.
- The research examined three patients with sarcomatoid SDC, analyzing their cancer characteristics and molecular profiles, revealing that the tumors had both invasive ductal carcinoma and sarcomatoid features.
- Key findings included that diagnostic markers like androgen receptor (AR) and epithelial membrane antigen (EMA) were consistent across different tumor areas, and that genetic changes in the sarcomatoid variant were similar to those in the typical variant of SDC, suggesting a shared pathology.
Article Synopsis
- The study analyzes pericardial effusion (PE) cytology in a large group of patients to improve diagnosis of metastatic cancer and evaluate long-term outcomes using the international reporting system for serous fluid cytopathology (ISRSFC).
- A total of 574 PE specimens from 486 patients were reviewed, revealing that 66.6% of cases were deemed "negative," while 22.3% showed "malignancy," primarily originating from the lungs.
- The findings indicate that patients with gastric cancer have the worst prognosis, with a one-year survival rate of 0%, whereas those with lung, breast, and other cancers exhibited higher survival rates, highlighting a critical need for targeted patient management strategies.
Article Synopsis
- The study focused on liposarcoma (LPS) to describe its clinical progression and assess the role of PD-L1 in treatment outcomes following surgery for localized cases.
- A total of 332 patients were analyzed, revealing a high recurrence rate (40.7%) and the significance of factors like tumor size, location, and surgical margins on recurrence-free survival.
- Although a notable percentage of patients displayed PD-L1 positivity, it did not correlate with improved survival, highlighting the need for further research on advanced LPS treatment strategies.
Tumors are composed of subpopulations of cancer cells with functionally distinct features. Intratumoral heterogeneity limits the therapeutic effectiveness of cancer drugs. To address this issue, it is important to understand the regulatory mechanisms driving a subclonal variety within a therapy-resistant tumor.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: A multimodal approach is the standard treatment for desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT); however, many patients are diagnosed with inoperable disease, which leaves chemotherapy as the only treatment option. There are limited data on the effectiveness of palliative chemotherapy, especially when used after first-line treatment. Here, we evaluated the clinical outcomes of patients with DSRCT treated with multiple lines of chemotherapy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: More clear classification of chronic invasive fungal infection of paranasal sinuses in the clinical presentation, radiologic findings, and pathology is needed. To describe the imaging findings of patients with chronic invasive fungal sinusitis (CIFS) and chronic granulomatous invasive fungal sinusitis (CGIFS).
Methods: Eleven patients with CIFS or CGIFS between January 2014 and July 2019 were included in this retrospective study.