Inhibition of P2RX7 contributes to cytotoxicity by suppression of glycolysis and AKT activation in human hepatocellular carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common form of primary liver cancer. HCC occurs people with chronic liver diseases. The purinergic receptor P2X 7 (P2RX7) is involved in tumor proliferation and growth.

Stereotactic body radiotherapy versus radiofrequency ablation as initial treatment of small hepatocellular carcinoma.

Background/aim: Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) may be an alternative treatment for patients with small (≤3 cm) hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) who were not indicated for resection or local ablation therapy. This study compared the therapeutic effects of radiofrequency ablation (RFA) and SBRT in patients with small (≤3 cm) HCCs.

Methods: Data of HCC patients who underwent SBRT or RFA as an initial treatment at four tertiary referral hospitals between March 2011 and February 2017 were reviewed.

Regression of liver fibrosis and hepatocellular carcinoma development after HCV eradication with oral antiviral agents.

We prospectively investigated the changes of liver stiffness (LS) and the occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after hepatitis C virus (HCV) eradication using direct antiviral agents (DAA) over three years. LS measurement using transient elastography and serum fibrosis surrogate markers before treatment and at 48, 96, 144 weeks after starting direct-acting antivirals (DAA) according to the protocol were evaluated. Patients were also compared with historical cohort treated with pegylated interferon (peg-IFN).

Clinical Trial to Reconfirm the Efficacy and Safety of Cefetamet Pivoxil Treatment in Sinusitis Patients: A Double-Blind, Randomized, Parallel Designed, Multicenter, Active Comparator Study (CASIS Study).

Objective: To evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety of cefetamet pivoxil for the treatment of acute bacterial rhinosinusitis in Korean patients compared to treatment with cefdinir.

Methods: A prospective, multicenter, randomized double-blind, comparative study was conducted by the Departments of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at 17 hospitals or universities in the Republic of Korea from March 2017 to April 2019. A total of 309 patients were screened and 249 patients participated in the study.

Effect of antiviral therapy in patients with low HBV DNA level on transarterial chemoembolization for hepatocellular carcinoma.

Antiviral therapy improves survival in patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV)-induced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the effect of antiviral therapy in patients with low-level viremia HBV-HCC receiving non-curative therapy remains unclear. We aimed to evaluate the role of antiviral therapy in patients with low-level viremia and treated with transarterial chemoembolization (TACE).

Combined therapy of transarterial chemoembolization and stereotactic body radiation therapy versus transarterial chemoembolization for ≤5cm hepatocellular carcinoma: Propensity score matching analysis.

Patients with liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are often ineligible for resection or local ablation therapy due to poor liver function and/or difficult location. The aim of this study is to evaluate therapeutic outcomes of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) combined with transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) compared with TACE alone for HCC measuring less than 5 cm. From March 2011 to December 2016, 85 patients underwent SBRT with TACE (SBRT-TACE group) and 114 underwent TACE (TACE group) at 4 tertiary hospitals.

Hepatitis B virus reactivation after radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma and efficacy of antiviral treatment: A multicenter study.

Convincing data that support routine use of preventive therapy against hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation in radiotherapy (RT) for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are lacking. The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence, clinical significance, and risk factors of HBV reactivation after RT. Medical records of 133 HBsAg (+) HCC patients who received radiotherapy from March 2009 to February 2016 were reviewed.

Clinical and Laboratory Characteristics and Mortality in Korean Patients with Systemic Sclerosis: A Nationwide Multicenter Retrospective Cohort Study.

Objective: We aimed to investigate demographic and clinical features and predictors of mortality in Korean patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc).

Methods: We performed a retrospective multicenter medical chart review in Korean patients diagnosed with SSc from 1986 to 2016 at 11 university hospitals representing each geographic area of Korea. SSc patients were defined according to the American College of Rheumatology preliminary classification criteria and subtyped as limited cutaneous (lcSSc) or diffuse cutaneous (dcSSc) SSc.