• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.223-241
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• 2013

Boney metastasis may lead to terrible suffering from debilitating pain. The most likely malignancies that spread to bone are prostate, breast, and lung. Painful osseous metastases are typically associated with multiple episodes of breakthrough pain which may occur with activities of daily living, weight bearing, lifting, coughing, and sneezing. Almost half of these breakthrough pain episodes are rapid in onset and short in duration and 44% of episodes are unpredictable. Treatment strategies include: analgesic approaches with "triple opioid therapy", bisphosphonates, chemotherapeutic agents, hormonal therapy, interventional and surgical approaches, steroids, radiation (external beam radiation, radiopharmaceuticals), ablative techniques (radiofrequency ablation, cryoablation), and intrathecal analgesics.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.224-229
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• 2018

Background: The patients receiving hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) are known to have a high incidence of breakthrough nausea and vomiting due to the conditioning regimen. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the adequacy of antiemetic therapy for breakthrough nausea and vomiting in patients receiving HSCT and to propose an effective treatment regimen. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the electronic medical records of 109 adult patients. The collected data were used to identify (1) antiemetic and dosing regimens prescribed for controlling breakthrough nausea and vomiting, (2) the rate of patients who developed breakthrough nausea and vomiting, and (3) the percent of antiemetics prescribed on the day of symptom onset. Based on the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guideline, we assessed the suitability of antiemetics for breakthrough nausea and vomiting, and prescription timing. Results: All patients were prescribed pro re nata antiemetics. About 40.0%, 41.4%, and 18.6% of patients were using one, two, and three or more additional drugs for breakthrough nausea and vomiting, respectively. The most frequently administered drugs were intravenous metoclopramide (43.8%) and granisetron patch (36.2%). Breakthrough nausea and vomiting occurred in 87 patients (79.1%) and they developed symptoms 320 cases. About 220 cases (68.8%) were treated with additional antiemetics on the day of symptom onset and the rate of symptom resolution was only 10.3% (9 patients). Conclusion: The breakthrough nausea and vomiting in patients receiving HSCT occurred very frequently and was hard to control, thus requiring more rapid and aggressive treatments.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.22-29
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• 2024

Breakthrough pain is transitory pain that occurs despite the use of opioids for background pain control. Breakthrough pain occurs in 40% to 80% of patients with cancer pain. Despite effective analgesic therapy, patients and their caregivers often feel that their pain is not sufficiently controlled. Therefore, an improved understanding of breakthrough pain and its management is essential for all physicians caring for patients with cancer. This article reviews the definition, clinical manifestations, accurate diagnostic strategies, and optimal treatment options for breakthrough pain in patients with cancer. This review focuses on the efficacy and safety of rapid-onset opioids, which are the primary rescue drugs for breakthrough pain.

• BMB Reports
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• v.43 no.12
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• pp.773-780
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• 2010

Cancers are still difficult targets despite recent advances in cancer therapy. Due to the heterogeneity of cancer, a single-treatment modality is insufficient for the complete elimination of cancer cells. Therapeutic strategies from various aspects are needed. Gene therapy has been expected to bring a breakthrough to cancer therapy, but it has not yet been successful. Gene therapy also should be combined with other treatments to enhance multiple therapeutic pathways. In this view, gene delivery vector itself should be equipped with intrinsic anti-cancer activities. HVJ (hemagglutinating virus of Japan; Sendai virus) envelope vector (HVJ-E) was developed to deliver therapeutic molecules. HVJ-E itself possessed anti-tumor activities such as the generation of anti-tumor immunities and the induction of cancer-selective apoptosis. In addition to the intrinsic anti-tumor activities, therapeutic molecules incorporated into HVJ-E enabled to achieve multi-modal therapeutic strategies in cancer treatment. Tumor-targeting HVJ-E was also developed. Thus, HVJ-E will be a novel promising tool for cancer treatment.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2022

Thyroid cancer is one of the slow-growing tumors with excellent oncological outcomes. However, a small set of patients with unexpectedly severe outcomes are usually ignored. Anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC) remains one of the most aggressive and lethal solid tumors. Recently, dabrafenib and trametinib combination therapy or neoadjuvant BRAF induction therapy has shown promising results. In addition, a combination of targeted drugs, immunotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapy can improve overall survival in ATC patients. Another disease for which there is no breakthrough treatment is radioactive iodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). To date, multikinase inhibitors (sorafenib, lenvatinib) targeting the growth factor signaling pathway have been developed and approved as anticancer agents for patients with advanced DTC. This review includes results from multikinase inhibitors to the emergence of new target molecules, including rearrangements during transformation (RET) and tropomyosin receptor kinase (TRK).

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.77 no.6
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• pp.237-242
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• 2014

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airway that comprises a variety of etiologies and inflammatory phenotypes. Clinically, there is a wide range of patients with varying severities and responses to individual drugs. The introduction of inhaled corticosteroid therapy has dramatically changed the treatment of asthma. Recent development of new therapies suggests the possibility of another breakthrough. These can be categorized as follows: anti-cytokine therapies that usually target eosinophilic inflammation, sublingual immunotherapy, and bronchial thermoplasty. In this paper, we will review the major articles related to asthma treatment that were published in 2013.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.184-190
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• 2020

Radiation therapy (RT) has improved patient outcomes, but treatment-related complication rates remain high. In the conventional 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional conformal RT (3D-CRT) era, there was little room for toxicity reduction because of the need to balance the estimated toxicity to organs at risk (OARs), derived from dose-volume histogram data for organs including the lung, heart, spinal cord, and liver, with the planning target volume (PTV) dose. Intensity-modulated RT (IMRT) is an advanced form of conformal RT that utilizes computer-controlled linear accelerators to deliver precise radiation doses to the PTV. The dosimetric advantages of IMRT enable better sparing of normal tissues and OARs than is possible with 3D-CRT. A major breakthrough in the treatment of esophageal cancer (EC), whether early or locally advanced, is the use of proton beam therapy (PBT). Protons deposit their highest dose of radiation at the tumor, while leaving none behind; the resulting effective dose reduction to healthy tissues and OARs considerably reduces acute and delayed RT-related toxicity. In recent studies, PBT has been found to alleviate severe lymphopenia resulting from combined chemo-radiation, opening up the possibility of reducing immune suppression, which might be associated with a poor prognosis in cases of locally advanced EC.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.80-88
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• 2013

Purpose: To identify the predictive factors of long-term therapeutic response or resistance to lamivudine treatment in children and adolescents with chronic hepatitis B. Methods: Eighty one children and adolescents with chronic hepatitis B were included, who received lamivudine treatment for at least 6 months. Their condition was monitored for at least 12 months (12-88 months) thereafter. Twenty one (25.9%) were preschool children ($age{\leq}6$). For patients who had developed HBeAg seroconversion or breakthrough, univariate and multivariate analyses were used to identify the effects of age, gender, pretreatment alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and hepatitis B virus DNA levels. Results: HBeAg seroconversion occurred in 49 (60.5%) of the 81 patients after the initiation of the lamivudine therapy. In 65 patients whom were monitored for over 24 months, the seroconversion rate was significantly higher in younger patients (p=0.040), especially in those patients of preschool age ($age{\leq}6$, p=0.031). The seroconversion rate was significantly higher in higher pretreatment ALT (p=0.003). The breakthrough occurred in 21 (25.9%) of the 81. The breakthrough rate was lower in younger aged patients ($age{\leq}6$), and with higher pretreatment ALT levels, but no significant difference. Conclusion: Younger age is a good predictor of HBeAg seroconversion in children with long-term lamivudine treatment as well as high pretreatment ALT levels.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.39-61
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• 2024

Background: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) have been implementing the expedited programs that promote the innovative approval of new medications to be used for serious diseases. The authors comprehensively investigated, analyzed, and compared the regulations and guidelines associated with the expedited programs. Methods: The expedited programs for innovative drug development and approval were searched from the homepages of FDA, EMA and MFDS. The detailed information on the regulations and guidelines associated with the programs was comprehensively extracted from various electronic repositories of each regulatory authority. The information on each program was analyzed, categorized, and compared from the points of benefits, applicability with scientific rationale, application procedure, and maintenance. Results: FDA's programs include Fast Track Designation, Breakthrough Therapy Designation, Priority Review Designation, and Accelerated Approval. EMA's regulation implements PRIority MEdicines (PRIME), Accelerated Assessment, Marketing Authorization under Exceptional Circumstances (MAEC), and Conditional Marketing Authorization (CMA). MFDS has a single Expedited Program. These programs are broadly categorized into those that 1) facilitate early and proactive communication with regulatory authorities, 2) shorten the review time after submitting a marketing application, and 3) temporarily approve a marketing authorization under certain conditions. Conclusion: Each expedited program requires a different level and amount of safety and efficacy evidence to be submitted to each regulatory authority. This article will likely provide the comprehensive information on which program provides scientific and regulatory advantages to be taken for innovative medication development.

• Journal of TMJ Balancing Medicine
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.9-12
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• 2011

Objectives: Functional Cerebrospinal Therapy (FCST) is a rather new physiologic therapeutics. It has passed about two decades since its basic idea was founded. This study briefly reviewed its early history. Methods: The first FCST patient was a stroke patient in the year 1992. Basic ideas of FCST was devised one by one and later developed into a systematic clinical application. The first official lecture was held in the year 2004. Yinyang balance in the meridian-system-based network over the whole body was a mainstay idea. Results: As other stories on newly-developed therapeutics, there was an effort to make a breakthrough for difficult clinical problems, and followed by a creative initial idea along with incessant refinement in the early history of FCST. Conclusions: Patient-centered approaches was a mainspring in the development and refinement of FCST. History of FCST hereafter may well follow the trace.