Effectiveness of adjuvant systemic chemotherapy for intermediate-risk stage IB cervical cancer.

Objective: To examine the effectiveness of systemic chemotherapy following radical hysterectomy for women with intermediate-risk stage IB cervical cancer.

Materials And Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of a previously organized nation-wide cohort study examining 6,003 women with stage IB-IIB cervical cancer who underwent radical hysterectomy between 2004 and 2008 in Japan. Survival of 555 women with stage IB cervical cancer in the intermediate-risk group (deep stromal invasion > 50%, large tumor size > 4 cm, and lympho-vascular space invasion [LVSI]) were examined based on adjuvant therapy patterns: chemotherapy alone ( 223, 40.

Effects of Tolvaptan Addition to Furosemide in Normo- and Hyponatremia Patients with Heart Failure and Chronic Kidney Disease Stages G3b-5: A Subanalysis of the K-STAR Study.

Background: Tolvaptan increases free water clearance (aquaresis) and thereby improves hyponatremia. Although hyponatremia on admission is common in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF), little is known regarding the response to tolvaptan in those who also have chronic kidney disease (CKD) with or without hyponatremia. The aim of this subanalysis was to investigate the differences in treatment response between normo- and hyponatremia patients with CHF and CKD stages G3b-5.

Effects of Additive Tolvaptan vs. Increased Furosemide on Heart Failure With Diuretic Resistance and Renal Impairment - Results From the K-STAR Study.

Background: Although diuretic resistance leading to residual congestion is a known predictor of a poorer heart failure (HF) prognosis, better therapeutic strategies for effective and safe decongestion have not been established.

Methods and results: In this study, 81 HF patients with fluid retention (despite taking ≥40 mg/day furosemide (FUR)), with an estimated glomerular filtration rate <45 mL/min/1.73 m, were randomized into 2 groups and administered either ≤15 mg/day additive tolvaptan (TLV) or ≤40 mg/day increased FUR for 7 days.

Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial Evaluating the Efficacy and Safety of Eplerenone in Japanese Patients With Chronic Heart Failure (J-EMPHASIS-HF).

Background: The mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist eplerenone improved clinical outcomes among patients with heart failure with reduced ejection faction (HFrEF) in the EMPHASIS-HF (Eplerenone in Mild Patients Hospitalization And SurvIval Study in Heart Failure) study. However, similar efficacy and safety have not been established in Japanese patients. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of eplerenone in patients with HFrEF in a multicenter, randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled outcome study (ClinicalTrials.

Clinical features and predictors of patients with critical limb ischemia who responded to autologous mononuclear cell transplantation for therapeutic angiogenesis.

The clinical features of patients with critical limb ischemia (CLI) who responded to angiogenesis using autologous peripheral blood mononuclear cell transplantation (PB-MNC) have not yet been fully characterized, and there are no useful predictors to judge the curative effect in the early period after PB-MNC. This study sought to clarify the clinical features and predictors in patients with CLI who were successfully treated using PB-MNC. 30 consecutive patients [arteriosclerosis obliterans: 24 patients, thromboangiitis obliterans: 6 patients] who were diagnosed with major amputation despite maximal medical therapy were enrolled in this study.

[Satisfaction with immunotherapy in patients with advanced cancer].

Patient satisfaction with cancer immunotherapy, which is not covered by health insurance in Japan, was evaluated among 65 patients with advanced cancer who had received immunotherapy in our hospital for 2 years. Satisfaction measures were based on patients' expectations for medical care, cost, and staff services, and involved a questionnaire consisting of 25 items. Results of the questionnaire analysis showed that most patients, who expected much of antigen-specific vaccination such as dendritic cells (DC) pulsed tumor-associated antigens, were dissatisfied with the high cost of private immunotherapy(i.

Can serum albumin level affect the pharmacological action of tolvaptan in patients with liver cirrhosis? A post hoc analysis of previous clinical trials in Japan.

Background: Patients with hypoalbuminemia often fail to respond to increased doses of loop diuretics. We therefore performed a post hoc analysis to investigate the pharmacological action of tolvaptan and whether it is dependent on the serum albumin level.

Methods: This analysis was based on four previous clinical trials of tolvaptan in patients with liver cirrhosis who exhibited insufficient response to conventional diuretics.

Clinical value of assessing the response to imatinib monitored by interphase FISH and RQ-PCR for BCR-ABL in peripheral blood for long-term survival of chronic phase CML patients: results of the Niigata CML-multi-institutional co-operative clinical study.

This retrospective analysis investigated the prognostic value of monitoring the response to imatinib using peripheral blood (PB) samples and the impact of the response on outcome in 133 patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). We divided the response into 3 categories according to the results of neutrophil (N)-FISH and BCR-ABL transcript levels in PB; more than a 3-log reduction [major molecular response (MMR)], between a 2-log and 3-log reduction or negative with N-FISH [complete cytogenetic response equivalent (CCyRe)], N-FISH positive or less than a 2-log reduction (non-CCyRe). The median follow-up was 5.

A chronic myeloid leukemia patient with atypical karyotype and BCR-ABL e13a3 transcript caused by complex chromosome rearrangement.

Philadelphia (Ph) chromosome as a result of t (9; 22) (q34; q11) is observed in more than 90% of chromic myeloid leukemia (CML) patients. Cases in which the typical Ph chromosome is not visible at the karyotype level comprise 5-10% of CML patients. CML cases with fusion transcripts such as e13a3 in which ABL exon 3 rather than exon 2 has fused to BCR are very rare.

Peptide tyrosine tyrosine-positive ovarian carcinoid tumor arising from a dermoid cyst.

A case of ovarian carcinoid tumor of the trabecular type is presented. The small carcinoid tumor was found incidentally in a resected dermoid cyst. Histologically, the tumor was surrounded by a smooth muscle layer with focal stromal invasion.