• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.20
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• pp.8603-8605
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• 2014

Objective: To assess the safety of Brucea javanica and Cantharidin combined with chemotherapy in treating patients with non-small-cell lung carcinoma. Method: A consecutive cohort of patients with NSCLC were divided into four groups: experimental group A treated with Brucea javanica injection combined with chemotherapy; experimental group B with Cantharidin injection combined with chemotherapy; experimental group C treated with Brucea javanica and Cantharidin injection combined with chemotherapy; and the control group receiving only chemotherapy. After more than two courses of treatment, safety, quality of life and side effects were evaluated. Results: The incidences of myelosuppression in groups A, B and C were lower than that in Control group (p<0.05), but without significant differences among A, B and C. Adverse effects on the gastrointestinal tract also were lower than in controls (p<0.05) without variation amnog the combined treatment groups. Conclusions: Brucea javanica or Cantharidin combined with chemotherapy could in both cases improve quality of life in our cohort of NSCLC patients without any increase in toxicity. However, further clinical experiments should be conducted to evaluate the efficacy of Brucea javanica and Cantharidin combined with chemotherapy for patients with NSCLC.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.14
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• pp.5639-5644
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• 2014

Objective: This study aimed to determine effects of doctor-patient communication on the quality of life among breast cancer survivors in 16 communities in southern China. Methods: Multistage random sampling was to use to recruit 260 females from the Guangzhou Cancer Registry Database who were diagnosed with breast cancer. A questionnaire provided data on the doctor-patient communication (including the doctor's attitude, the patient's participation with the medical decision and information about the disease) and QOL (quality of life), as measured using FACT-B. Univariate analysis, non-conditional logistic regression was used to evaluate the associations between the doctor-patient communication and QOL. Results: Females who received good attitudes from doctors demonstrated higher FACT-B (OR=4.65, 95% CI: 1.68-12.86), social well-being (OR=5.88, 95% CI: 2.16-16.05), emotional well-being (OR=4.77, 95% CI: 1.92-11.88), and functional well-being ((OR=5.26, 95% CI: 1.90-14.52) compared to the females who encountered worse attitudes from their doctor, adjusting for age, education, marriage, employment, family income, years since diagnosis, TNM stage, radiation therapy, chemotherapy and side effects, particularly when the TNM stage was 0-II and the patients exhibited no side effects. Regardless of the length of time after diagnosis, doctors' good attitudes resulted in higher QOL scores. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that the doctor-patient communication has a significant association with the QOL of breast cancer survivors, mainly dependent on the doctors' attitude. Effective intervention is required to develop optimal doctor-patient communication.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.15
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• pp.6765-6768
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• 2015

Aims: To study the effectiveness of human recombinant endostatin injection (Endostar(R)) combined with cisplatin doublets in treating advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and to evaluate outcome by CT perfusion imaging. Methods: From April 2011 to September 2014, 76 patients with advanced NSCLC who were treated with platinum-based doublets were divided into group A (36 patients) and group B (40 patients). Endostar(R) 15mg/day was administered 4 days before chemotherapy and combined with chemotherapy from day 5 in group A, and combined with chemotherapy from the first day in Group B. Endostar(R) in the two groups was injected intravenously for 14 days. Results: Treatment effectiveness in the two groups differed with statistical significance (p<0.05). Effectiveness evaluated by CT perfusion imaging, BF, BV, MTT and PS also demonstrated significant differences (all p<0.05). Adverse reactions in the two groups did not significantly vary (p> 0.05). Conclusions: The response rate with Endostar(R) administered 4 days before chemotherapy and combined with chemotherapy from day 5 in group A was better than Endostar(R) combined with chemotherapy from the first day, and CT perfusion imaging could be a reasonable method for evaluation of patient outcomes.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.24
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• pp.10739-10743
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• 2015

The present study aimed at evaluating and comparing the diagnostic performance of B-mode ultrasound (US), elastography score (ES), and strain ratio (SR) for the differentiation of breast lesions. This retrospective study enrolled 431 lesions from 417 in-hospital patients. All patients were examined with both conventional ultrasound and elastography. Two experienced radiologists reviewed ultrasound and elasticity images. The histopathologic result obtained from ultrasound-guided core biopsy or operation excisions were used as the reference standard. Pathologic examination revealed 276 malignant lesions (64%) and 155 benign lesions (36%). A cut-off point of 4.15 (area under the curve, 0.891) allowed significant differentiation of malignant and benign lesions. ROC (receiver-operating characteristic) curves showed a higher value for combination of B-mode ultrasound and elastography for the diagnosis of breast lesions. Conventional ultrasound combined elastography showed high sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy for group II lesions (10mm${\leq}20mm$). Elastography combined with conventional ultrasound show high specificity and accuracy for differentiation of benign and malignant breast lesions. Elastography is particularly important for the diagnosis of BI-RADS 4 and small breast lesions.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.5 no.5
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• pp.447-462
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• 2013

An analysis model for predicting the tip bearing capacity of drilled shafts in cohesionless soils is improved in this study. The evaluation is based on large amounts of drilled shaft load test data. Assessment on the analysis model reveals a greater variation in two coefficients, namely, the overburden bearing capacity factor ($N_q$) and the bearing capacity modifier for soil rigidity (${\zeta}_{qr}$). These factors are modified from the back analysis of drilled shaft load test results. Different effective shaft depths and interpreted capacities at various loading stages (i.e., low, middle, and high) are adopted for the back calculation. Results show that the modified bearing capacity coefficients maintain their basic relationship with soil effective friction angle ($\bar{\phi}$), in which the $N_q$ increases and ${\zeta}_{qr}$ decreases as $\bar{\phi}$ increases. The suggested effective shaft depth is limited to 15B (B = shaft diameter) for the evaluation of effective overburden pressure. Specific design recommendations for the tip bearing capacity analysis of drilled shafts in cohesionless soils are given for engineering practice.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.9-18
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• 2010

There are two kinds of models in two-phase pressured drop; homogeneous flow model and separated flow model. Many previous researchers have developed correlations for two-phase pressure drop in a microchannel. Most correlations were modified Lockhart and Martinelli's correlation, which was based on the separated flow model. In this study, experiments for adiabatic liquid water and nitrogen gas flow in rectangular microchannels were conducted to investigate two-phase pressure drop in the rectangular microchannels. Two-phase frictional pressure drop in the rectangular microchannels is highly related with flow regime. Homogeneous model with six two-phase viscosity models: $Owen^{(21)}$'s, $MacAdams^{(22)}$'s, Cicchitti et ${al.}^{(23)}$'s, Dukler et ${al.}^{(24)}$'s, Beattie and ${Whalley}^{(25)}$'s, Lin et ${al.}^{(26)}$'s models and six separated flow models: Lockhart and $Martinelli^{(27)}$'s, ${Chisholm}^{(31)}$'s, Zhang et ${al.,}^{(15)}$'s, Lee and ${Lee}^{(5)}$'s, Moriyama and ${Inue}^{(4)}$'s, Qu and $Mudawar^{(8)}$'s models were assessed with our experimental data. The best two-phase viscosity model is Beattie and Whalley's model. The best separated flow model is Qu and Mudawar's correlation. Flow regime dependency in both homogeneous and separated flow models was observed. Therefore, new flow pattern based correlations for both homogeneous and separated flow models were individually proposed.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.19 no.7
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• pp.1040-1046
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• 2006

Studies were carried out with a repeated $4{\times}4$ Latin square design with eight cannulated pigs fed four experimental diets to investigate the effect of dietary fiber and starch sources on apparent ileal and fecal amino acid digestibility. Each period lasted 15 d, with diet acclimation from d 1 to 7, feces collection for 48 h on d 8 to 9 and ileal sample collection for 12 h on d 13 to 15. The four experimental diets consisted mainly of cooked rice with the addition of protein sources (CON), partial replacement of cooked rice with either potato starch (PS), sugar beet pulp (SBP) or wheat bran (WB). Chromic oxide was used as an indigestible marker. With the exception of histidine, lysine and tryptophan, no differences were observed in the apparent ileal digestibility of amino acids between diets. The inclusion of potato starch did not affect the ileal and fecal amino acid digestibility. In comparison with diet CON, a decreased (p<0.05) ileal digestibility of histidine was found in pigs fed diet SBP, while the ileal digestibilities of histidine, lysine and tryptophan were decreased (p<0.05) by the inclusion of wheat bran. Inclusion of fiber sources (sugar beet pulp and wheat bran) caused a reduction (p<0.05) in the fecal amino acid digestibility and the net disappearance of amino acids in the large intestine. Of the indispensable amino acids, there was a 'net synthesis' for methionine in the large intestine of pigs when diets were supplemented with dietary fiber. The decrease in fecal amino acid digestibility with the addition of dietary fiber indicates an increase in the synthesis of bacterial protein in the large intestine.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.24
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• pp.10797-10801
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• 2015

Background: To explore the molecular mechanisms of metastatic osteosarcoma (OS) by using the microarray expression profiles of metastatic and non-metastatic OS samples. Materials and Methods: The gene expression profile GSE37552 was downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus database, including 2 human metastatic OS cell line models and 2 two non-metastatic OS cell line models. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified by Multtest package in R language. In addition, functional enrichment analysis of the DEGs was performed by WebGestalt, and the protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks were constructed by Hitpredict, then the signal pathways of the genes involved in the networks were performed by Kyoto Encyclopaedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) automatic annotation server (KAAS). Results: A total of 237 genes were classified as DEGs in metastatic OS. The most significant up- and down-regulated genes were A2M (alpha-2-macroglobulin) and BCAN (brevican). The DEGs were significantly related to the response to hormone stimulus, and the PPI network of A2M contained IL1B (interleukin), LRP1 (low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1) and PDGF (platelet-derived growth factor). Furthermore, the MAPK signaling pathway and focal adhesion were significantly enriched. Conclusions: A2M and its interactive proteins, such as IL1B, LRP1 and PDGF may be candidate target molecules to monitor, diagnose and treat metastatic OS. The response to hormone stimulus, MAPK signaling pathway and focal adhesion may play important roles in metastatic OS.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.14
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• pp.5597-5600
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• 2014

Objectives: To assess side effects on Cantharidin sodium and Shenmai injection combined with chemotherapy in treating patients with breast cancer postoperatively. Method: Patients with breast cancer receiving postoperative chemotherapy were retrospectively collected, and divided into four groups: group A with cantharidin sodium injection combined with chemotherapy; group B with Shenmai injection combined with chemotherapy; group C with both cantharidin sodium and Shenmai injection combined with chemotherapy; while group D (control group) received chemotherapy alone. All patients were administered docetaxel at a dose of $75mg/m^2$ on day 1, epirubicin hydrochloride at a dose of $60mg/m^2$ on day 1, and cyclophosphamide at a dose of $500mg/m^2$ on day 1 for 3 cycles (repeated at 21 day intervals). After ${\geq}$ three courses of treatment, quality of life and side effects were evaluated. Results: There were a total of 78 patients in this study, and the incidence of leukopenia and gastrointestinal reactions in groups A and B were lower than those in the control group and lowest in group C (p<0.05). Conclusions: Thus cantharidin sodium and Shenmai injection combined with chemotherapy reduce side effects and deserve to be further investigated in randomized clinical control trials.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.15
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• pp.6387-6390
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• 2014

Background: The prognostic significance of the circulating absolute monocyte count (AMC) in patients with locally advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is uncertain. This study was designed to assess the association of circulating AMC with survival outcomes in patients diagnosed with locally advanced or metastatic HCC receiving systemic chemotherapy. Materials and Methods: Between January 1, 2005 and December 30, 2012, locally advanced or metastatic HCC patients who had Child-Pugh stage A or B disease and received systemic chemotherapy were retrospectively enrolled. Patient features including gender, age, extrahepatic metastasis, Child-Pugh stage, serum alpha-fetoprotein(AFP) level and AMC were collected to investigate their prognostic impact on overall survival(OS). Results: A total of 216 patients were eligible for the study. The optimal cut-off value of AMC for OS analysis was $0.38{\times}10^9/L$. Median OS was 5.84 months in low-AMC group (95% confidence interval [CI], 5.23 to 6.45), and 5.21 months in high-AMC group (95% CI, 4.37 to 6.04; p=0.003). In COX multivariate analysis, elevated AMC remained as an independent prognostic factor for worse OS (HR, 1.578; 95% CI, 1.120 to 2.223, p=0.009). Conclusions: Our results indiicate that circulating AMC is confirmed to be an independent prognostic factor for OS in patients with locally advanced or metastatic HCC receiving systemic chemotherapy.