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Ji Hae Hwang,1,2,&ast; Kyeongmin Lee,1,&ast; Eunji Choi,1,3 Ha Na Cho,1 Boyoung Park,4 Yumie Rhee,5 Kui Son Choi1 1Graduate School of Cancer Science and Policy, National Cancer Center, Goyang, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea; 2Center for Emergency Operations, Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Cheongju, Republic of Korea; 3Quantitative Sciences Unit, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA; 4Department of Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea; 5Department of Internal Medicine, Endocrine Research Institute, Severance Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Kui Son ChoiGraduate School of Cancer Science and Policy, National Cancer Center, 323, Ilsan-ro, Ilsandong-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do, 10408, Republic of KoreaTel +82-31-920-2912Fax +82-31-920-2189Email kschoi@ncc.re.krPurpose: Poor sleep quality is a common problem among middle-aged women. Few studies, however, have assessed differences in sleep quality among premenopausal, perimenopausal, and postmenopausal women and related risk factors in Korea women. The aim of this study was to assess sleep quality and factors associated therewith according to menopausal status in Korean women.Patients and Methods: This study was based on the 2016 Korean Study of Women’s Health Related Issues (K-Stori), a cross-sectional survey employing nationally representative random sampling. In total, 3000 Korean women aged 45 to 64 years completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Comparison of demographic characteristics and sleep quality among pre-, peri-, and postmenopausal women was conducted.Results: Among the participants, 26% suffered from poor sleep quality based on the PSQI. The prevalence of poor sleep quality increased with later menopausal stage (from 18.8% in the premenopausal stage to 29.5% in the postmenopausal stage P < 0.001). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that peri- and postmenopausal women were 1.50 and 1.73 times more likely to have poor sleep quality in comparison to premenopausal women, respectively. Chronic disease, depression, at-risk drinking, taking dietary supplements, and single women were associated with a higher likelihood of having poor sleep quality. Health status, at-risk drinking, chronic illness, dietary supplementation, and depression were significantly associated with poor sleep quality.Conclusion: Poor sleep quality appears to be prevalent in peri- and postmenopausal women in Korea. The management of sleep quality during menopause transition is important, and further research on how sleep disturbances influence the health status of women in menopausal transition is required.Keywords: menopause, sleep quality, Pittsburgh sleep quality index

Binh Thang Tran,1,2 Nhu Hiep Pham,3 Thanh Xuan Nguyen,3 Kui Son Choi,1,4 Dae Kyung Sohn,1,5 Sun-Young Kim,1 Jae Kyung Suh,6 Thuy Duyen Nguyen,1,7 Van Sang Phan,2 Dinh Trung Tran,8 The Thanh Nguyen,9 Thi Thanh Binh Nguyen,10 Minh Tu Nguyen,11 Jin-Kyoung Oh1,12 1Department of Cancer Control and Population Health, Graduate School of Cancer Science and Policy, National Cancer Center, Goyang, Republic of Korea; 2Faculty of Public Health, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Hue University, Hue City, Vietnam; 3Department of Abdominal Emergency and Pediatric Surgery, Hue Central Hospital, Hue City, Vietnam; 4National Cancer Control Institute; National Cancer Center, Goyang, Republic of Korea; 5Center for Colorectal Cancer, Research Institute and Hospital, National Cancer Center, Goyang, South Korea; 6Division of Healthcare Technology Assessment Research, National Evidence-Based Healthcare Collaborating Agency, Seoul, Korea; 7Center for Population Health Sciences, Hanoi University of Public Health, Hanoi, Vietnam; 8Faculty of Public Health, Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy, Da Nang City, Vietnam; 9Department of Endoscopy and Functional Exploration, Da Nang Oncology Hospital, Da Nang City, Vietnam; 10Department of Pediatrics, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Hue University, Hue City, Vietnam; 11Undergraduate Training Office, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Hue University, Hue City, Vietnam; 12Division of Cancer Prevention & Early Detection, National Cancer Center, Goyang, Republic of KoreaCorrespondence: Jin-Kyoung OhDepartment of Cancer Control and Population Health, Graduate School of Cancer Science and Policy, National Cancer Center, 323 Ilsan-Ro, Ilsandong-Gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do 410-769, Republic of KoreaTel +82-31-920-2921Fax +82-31-920-2929Email jkoh@ncc.re.krPurpose: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is an important construct in clinical settings, and it is crucial that it should be properly measured. As the EuroQol-5-dimensions-5 levels (EQ-5D-5L) is more effective for such measurement than the 3-level model, data on economic models, clinical studies, and public health evaluations previously collected through the EQ-5D-3L need to be revaluated using the EQ-5D-5L. This study evaluated colorectal cancer (CRC) patients’ HRQoL scores using the Vietnamese EQ-5D-5L value set.Patients and Methods: The cross-sectional study included CRC patients treated at a tertiary public hospital. HRQoL was assessed using the EQ-5D-5L, and HRQoL utility scores were calculated using the Vietnamese value set. Tobit regression examined factors associated with HRQoL.Results: The analysis included 197 CRC patients. Ages ranged from 20 to 87 years (M = 57.64, SD = 13.5); 42.2% and 57.8% were diagnosed with cancer of the colon or rectum/anus, respectively. Mean EQ-5D-5L was 0.561 (range, − 0.5115 to 1). Most participants experienced anxiety/depression (88%), followed by pain/discomfort (87%), mobility (71%), usual activity (69%), and self-care (67%). Advanced CRC stage (stage II: β − 0.303, se 0.08; stage III: β − 0.305, se 0.07; stage IV: β − 0.456, se 0.07) and surgery (β − 0.113, se 0.05) were negatively associated with EQ-5D-5L scores. Advanced education (high school: β 0.273, se 0.07); college/vocational: β 0.134se 0.05; university/higher: Coef 0.213, se 0.08;) and older age (age group 35− 44: β 0.253, se 0.10; 45− 54: β 0.327, se 0.09; 55− 64: β 0.355 se 0.09; 65+ β 0.204, se 0.09) were positively associated with EQ-5D-5L scores.Conclusion: Patients in advanced CRC stages or undergoing surgery experienced lower HRQoL and higher prevalence of anxiety/depression and pain/discomfort. Older age and high educational attainment predicted high HRQoL. This study provides information on CRC patients’ health utility based on various patient characteristics, which can be used in future economic evaluations.Keywords: HRQoL, EQ-5D-5L, utility, colorectal cancer, Vietnam

Boyoung Park,1,2 Hye Mi Cho,2 Eun Hye Lee,3 Seunghoon Song,2 Mina Suh,2 Kui Son Choi,1,2 Bong Joo Kang,4 Kyungran Ko,5 Ann Yi,6 Hae Kyoung Jung,7 Joo Hee Cha,8 Jae Kwan Jun,1,2 1National Cancer Center Graduate School of Cancer Science and Policy, Goyang, Republic of Korea; 2National Cancer Control Institute, National Cancer Center, Goyang, Republic of Korea; 3Department of Radiology, Bucheon Hospital, Soonchunhyang University College of Medicine, Bucheon, Republic of Korea; 4Department of Radiology, Seoul St Mary’s Hospital, Catholic University of Korea College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea; 5Center for Breast Cancer, National Cancer Center Hospital, National Cancer Center, Goyang, Republic of Korea; 6Department of Radiology, Seoul National University Hospital Healthcare System Gangnam Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea; 7Department of Radiology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam, Republic of Korea; 8Department of Radiology and Research Institute of Radiology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of breast density on breast cancer risk among women screened via a nationwide mammographic screening program. Patients and methods: We conducted a nested case–control study for a randomly selected population of 1,561 breast cancer patients and 6,002 matched controls from the National Cancer Screening Program. Breast density was measured and recorded by two independent radiologists using the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS). Associations between BI-RADS density and breast cancer risk were evaluated according to screening results, time elapsed since receiving non-recall results, age, and menopausal status after adjusting for possible covariates. Results: Breast cancer risk for women with extremely dense breasts was five times higher (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] =5.0; 95% confidence interval [CI]) =3.7–6.7) than that for women with an almost entirely fatty breast, although the risk differed between recalled women (aOR =3.3, 95% CI =2.3–3.6) and women with non-recalled results (aOR =12.1, 95% CI =6.3–23.3, P-heterogeneity =0.001). aORs for BI-RADS categories of breast density were similar when subjects who developed cancer after showing non-recall findings during initial screening were grouped according to time until cancer diagnosis thereafter (

Chi-Fuk So,1 Kup-Sze Choi,1 Thomas KS Wong,2 Joanne WY Chung2,31Centre for Integrative Digital Health, School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, 2Department of Nursing and Health Sciences, Tung Wah College, Hong Kong, 3Department of Health and Physical Education, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong KongAbstract: The race for the next generation of painless and reliable glucose monitoring for diabetes mellitus is on. As technology advances, both diagnostic techniques and equipment improve. This review describes the main technologies currently being explored for noninvasive glucose monitoring. The principle of each technology is mentioned; its advantages and limitations are then discussed. The general description and the corresponding results for each device are illustrated, as well as the current status of the device and the manufacturer; internet references for the devices are listed where appropriate. Ten technologies and eleven potential devices are included in this review. Near infrared spectroscopy has become a promising technology, among others, for blood glucose monitoring. Although some reviews have been published already, the rapid development of technologies and information makes constant updating mandatory. While advances have been made, the reliability and the calibration of noninvasive instruments could still be improved, and more studies carried out under different physiological conditions of metabolism, bodily fluid circulation, and blood components are needed.Keywords: noninvasive, glucose monitoring, diabetes mellitus, blood glucose measurement

During the 2006-2007 winter season in South Korea, several outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (H5N1) were confirmed among domestic poultry and in migratory bird habitats. Phylogenetic analysis showed that all isolates were closely related and that all belong to the A/bar-headed goose/Qinghai/5/2005-like lineage rather than the A/chicken/Korea/ES/2003-like lineage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report an unusual case of veno-caliceal fistula that developed because of high ureteric pressure caused by graft ureteric stricture after kidney transplantation in a 60-year-old patient. We further confirmed its presence with radiological images. Recirculation of creatinine and other uremic toxins resulted in a biochemical picture of renal failure in the presence of normal kidney function, confirmed by normal scintigraphy findings. Drainage of the pelvi-caliceal system could not be assessed accurately by means of diuretic renogram using technetium-99m diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid with frusemide because of the rapid clearance of tracer activity from the system in the presence of a veno-caliceal fistula. The patient's renal function improved rapidly after interrupting urine recirculation by using percutaneous drainage, confirming 'pseudo renal failure' as the cause of his persistently increased serum creatinine concentration. The ureter was re-implanted later, and the veno-caliceal fistula was not seen in the nephrostogram after the operation. He remains well with stable renal function at 3 years' follow-up. Clinicians should exercise judgment when evaluating patients with allograft dysfunction, especially when the investigation and clinical findings show contradicting results.Copyright © 2007 by National Kidney Foundation, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patients undergoing treatment for cancer have reported a variety of work-related problems. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of a cancer diagnosis on employment status, and to identify relevant associated factors. This prospective cohort study was conducted at the National Cancer Center in Korea. Male patients newly diagnosed with stomach, liver, or colorectal cancers were recruited. Patients were interviewed and asked to complete an employment questionnaire every 3 months for 24 months. Clinical, sociodemographic and work-related factors were assessed. There were 305 male patients who had a primary diagnosis of cancer and underwent appropriate treatment. Of the 305 male patients who were employed at the time of diagnosis, 53% lost their job, and of these 23% later reemployed. In a multivariate Cox regression analysis, job loss was significantly associated with years of education, job characteristics and disease stage. Reemployment was significantly associated with disease stage and cancer site. Change of employment was common among cancer patients in Korea. With an understanding of the factors involved, it should be possible to reduce unnecessary work cessation, and increase the rate of employment of cancer survivors. Copyright (c) 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The O1 and O2 serogroups of avian pathogenic E. coli (APEC) and human extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (huExPEC) are closely related, but their evolutionary relationships need to be further elucidated. This study classified nineteen O1 and O2 APEC into rpoB sequence types (RSTs) and compared them with reference huExPEC using molecular prophage typing, virulence and antibiotic resistance gene profiling, and comparative genomics. Most O1:K1 and O2:K1 APEC (73.7%) were classified as RST46-1 and RST47-9. RST47-9 is unique to Korean O1 APEC and likely derives from RST46-1 APEC. The six APEC showed high genome coverage/identity with the Korean RST46-1 huExPEC. Based on RST network and comparative genomics, we hypothesized that the O1 antigen first appeared in RST19-1 and O2 in RST24-1 E. coli in humans. Then, O1 and O2-antigen horizontally transferred to human RST46-1, where a unique K1 capsule (K1-cps) first appeared. The Korean APEC and huExPEC share evolutionary CRISPR spacers but differ in molecular antibiograms and prophage contents. Thus, RST46-1 huExPEC transmitted and evolved in poultry. The zoonotic risks remain unknown, but the substantial virulence of the RST46-1 APEC indicates that the reverse zoonotic risk of huExPEC in poultry is alarming., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.)

Objective: Low-dose computed tomography screening reduces lung cancer and overall mortality, but the participation rate remains low. The objective of this study was to develop a decision aid (DA) that addresses the overabundance of healthcare options and barriers to participation in lung cancer screening (LCS) among the general population aged 40-79 years in Korea., Materials and Methods: The DA was developed by following the International Patient Decision Aid Standards process. To evaluate the DA, participants aged 40-79 years were purposively sampled from four districts of the Seoul metropolitan area, with 25 individuals from each decade of the age range. Participants used the DA for LCS, and pre-post comparison was conducted. The primary outcome was a change in intention to undergo LCS after completing the DA. The secondary outcomes were changes in knowledge and attitude about LCS, decisional conflict, and the perceived usefulness of the DA., Results: The DA prototype contained lung cancer risk assessment and decision-making components that addressed knowledge, risks, benefits, costs, and personal values. In a pilot study of 100 participants (mean age 59.0 [SD 11.1] years, 80 % male, 25 % of whom had undergone LCS), knowledge about LCS increased (mean [SD] score [out of 100] before vs. after: 68.3 [13.4] vs. 73.6 [18.0], p < 0.001). A positive change in attitude was observed (p = 0.004), but the intention to screen remained consistent (70 % before vs. 72 % after; p = 0.650). Eighty-eight participants reported the lowest level of conflict in decision-making, and most reported that the DA was useful (mean [SD] score 78.8 [9.0] out of 100). 72 % reported that the DA facilitated self-decision-making, but 27 % felt the DA recommended LCS., Conclusions: This study highlights the potential of a well-designed DA to enhance knowledge and attitudes about LCS, but those improvements did not translate to a significant change in screening intentions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Symptoms of depression are associated with impaired interoceptive processing of bodily sensation. The antidepressant effects of subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation (SCC DBS) include acute change in bodily sensation, and the SCC target is connected to cortical regions critically involved in interoception. This study tests whether cortical interoceptive processing is modulated by SCC DBS for treatment resistant depression (TRD)., Methods: In eight patients receiving SCC DBS for TRD, we used electroencephalography (EEG) to measure the heartbeat-evoked potential (HEP), a putative read-out of neural interoception, before surgery and over six months of treatment with DBS. We also examined the immediate effect of DBS on the HEP, and correlated HEP change over time with outcomes of treatment for depression., Results: HEP amplitude increased from baseline after six months of DBS treatment, and this increase was associated with faster antidepressant response. Recording with stimulation on (versus off) had an immediate effect on HEP in the laboratory. Overall, modulation of the HEP was most pronounced in sensors over the left parietal cortex., Conclusion: Brain-based evidence implies an interoceptive element in the mechanism of treatment efficacy with deep brain stimulation for TRD, and substantiates a theorized connection between interoception and depression., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Natural and artificial endolysins exhibit bactericidal effects by destroying peptidoglycans in the cell wall of gram-positive bacteria and are usually composed of an N-terminal catalytic domain (CTD) and a C-terminal cell wall-binding domain (CBD). The structures and receptors of CBDs are variable, but bacterial Src homology 3 (SH3b) CBDs are prevalent among the natural endolysins of Staphylococcus aureus . Moreover, although recombinant endolysins with a C-terminal 6x histidine tag (His-tag) are often produced and convenient to purify, the deleterious effects of His-tags on antibacterial activity have not been evaluated thoroughly. Recently, we reported that the antibacterial activity of a commercial lysostaphin without a His-tag differed from that of cell-free lysostaphin with a C-terminal His-tag, and lysostaphin also contains a C-terminal SH3b CBD. In this study, we directly compared the effects of His-tags on the antibacterial activities of lysostaphin and several chimeric lysins possessing different SH3b CBDs. We confirmed that antibacterial activity decreased 16.0-32.0-fold after a His-tag was added to the SH3b CBD.

Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19), attributed to the severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), has posed global health challenges since it first emerged in 2019, and its impact continues to persist. The neurotropic nature of SARS-CoV-2 remains undisclosed, though researchers are proposing hypotheses on how the virus is transmitted to the central nervous system. One of the prevailing hypotheses is that SARS-CoV-2 travels through the olfactory nerve system via the olfactory epithelium (OE). Using a K18-human angiotensin converting-enzyme 2 (hACE2) transgenic mouse model with impaired olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) induced by zinc sulfate, we examined the role of the olfactory nerve in the brain invasion by SARS-CoV-2. Mice lacking OSNs exhibited reduced levels of viral transmission to the brain, leading to significantly improved outcomes following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Moreover, a positive correlation was observed between viral persistence in the OE and brain infection. These results indicate that early inhibition of the olfactory nerve pathway effectively prevents viral invasion of the brain in K18-hACE2 mice. Our study underscores the significance of the olfactory nerve pathway in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to the brain., Competing Interests: Declarations Competing interests The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Iatrogenic pseudoaneurysm is a rare but potentially fatal complication of a thyroid biopsy. However, a standard management strategy has not yet been established. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ultrasound (US)-guided thrombin injection (TI) for thyroid pseudoaneurysms. This retrospective study included 7256 patients who underwent thyroid biopsy and TI from January 2020 to January 2024. The technical success, clinical efficacy, and complication rates were evaluated. A total of 0.1% (7/7256) of pseudoaneurysms developed after thyroid biopsy. Except for 1 case that showed obliteration with manual compression, the remaining 6 refractory aneurysms (0.08%) were managed with US-guided TI. All cases (100%) were successfully occluded with US-guided TI. No major complications were observed. One patient (16.7%) developed transient loss of consciousness, which spontaneously resolved within a few seconds. US-guided TI is an effective, relatively safe, and minimally invasive method for managing pseudoaneurysms after thyroid biopsy., (© 2025 by American Journal of Neuroradiology.)

Neuromodulation is increasingly becoming a therapeutic option for treatment resistant psychiatric disorders. These non-invasive and invasive therapies are still being refined but are clinically effective and, in some cases, provide sustained symptom reduction. Neuromodulation relies on changing activity within a specific brain region or circuit, but the precise mechanisms of action of these therapies, is unclear. Here we review work in both humans and animals that has provided insight into how therapies such as deep brain and transcranial magnetic stimulation alter neural activity across the brain. We focus on studies that have combined neuromodulation with neuroimaging such as PET and MRI as these measures provide detailed information about the distributed networks that are modulated and thus insight into both the mechanisms of action of neuromodulation but also potentially the basis of psychiatric disorders. Further we highlight work in nonhuman primates that has revealed how neuromodulation changes neural activity at different scales from single neuron activity to functional connectivity, providing key insight into how neuromodulation influences the brain. Ultimately, these studies highlight the value of combining neuromodulation with neuroimaging to reveal the mechanisms through which these treatments influence the brain, knowledge vital for refining targeted neuromodulation therapies for psychiatric disorders., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to American College of Neuropsychopharmacology.)

The Korean Neurosurgical Society, with its 62 years of history, has witnessed substantial growth in the field of neurosurgery, producing over 3400 neurosurgeons, establishing 12 divisions and nine regional branches, and advancing in clinical management, diagnostic methods and academic research. Despite these developments, the regulations governing neurosurgical training and evaluation methods for training hospitals have remained largely unchanged, necessitating comprehensive revisions in response to evolving medical environments. To provide balanced participation opportunities for neurosurgery residents, the Korean Neurosurgical Society formed the Training Status Investigation Standard Change Task Force (TF team) under the Training Education Committee. This paper presents the TF team's findings and proposals for revising training status investigation standards and evaluation criteria. Through the processes including a lot of team meetings, workshops, education programs, official communications with 12 division societies, benchmarking from other societies and analysis of encrypted data from the past 5 years for neurosurgical training hospitals, the TF team created a revised training status investigation proposal, supplemented main surgery criteria. And we applied this revised proposal to the training status investigation data collected from training hospitals in 2022 for simulation. We reduced the score for main surgeries to 10 points, introduced core competency surgery standards, allocating 5 points each for brain core competency surgery and spine and peripheral core competency surgery, for a total of 10 points. We also adjusted the major surgery score to 13 points, expanding the total surgery index score to 33 points. We introduced additional definitions for main surgeries in the areas of spine, pediatrics, and functional surgery. The equipment score was reduced from 17 to 9 points. We specified minimum requirements for resident allocation eligibility, and if a hospital meets all of these criteria, they become eligible to apply for resident allocation. We introduced a new bonus point system for hospitals performing mechanical thrombectomy or stenting and surgery for peripheral nerve diseases. The proposed revisions aim to improve the training and education of neurosurgical residents and overall neurosurgical care in Korea by creating a balanced and differentiated evaluation system for training hospitals. Further monitoring, communication, and adjustments are crucial for successful implementation.

Purpose: To propose a novel recursive partitioning analysis (RPA) classification model in patients with IDH-wildtype glioblastomas that incorporates the recently expanded conception of the extent of resection (EOR) in terms of both supramaximal and total resections., Experimental Design: This multicenter cohort study included a developmental cohort of 622 patients with IDH-wildtype glioblastomas from a single institution (Severance Hospital) and validation cohorts of 536 patients from three institutions (Seoul National University Hospital, Asan Medical Center, and Heidelberg University Hospital). All patients completed standard treatment including concurrent chemoradiotherapy and underwent testing to determine their IDH mutation and MGMTp methylation status. EORs were categorized into either supramaximal, total, or non-total resections. A novel RPA model was then developed and compared with a previous Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) RPA model., Results: In the developmental cohort, the RPA model included age, MGMTp methylation status, Karnofsky performance status, and EOR. Younger patients with MGMTp methylation and supramaximal resections showed a more favorable prognosis [class I: median overall survival (OS) 57.3 months], whereas low-performing patients with non-total resections and without MGMTp methylation showed the worst prognosis (class IV: median OS 14.3 months). The prognostic significance of the RPA was subsequently confirmed in the validation cohorts, which revealed a greater separation between prognostic classes for all cohorts compared with the previous RTOG RPA model., Conclusions: The proposed RPA model highlights the impact of supramaximal versus total resections and incorporates clinical and molecular factors into survival stratification. The RPA model may improve the accuracy of assessing prognostic groups. See related commentary by Karschnia et al., p. 4811., (©2024 American Association for Cancer Research.)

Background: Hemoplasma infections in cattle are caused by Mycoplasma wenyonii and Candidatus Mycoplasma haemobos and induce asymptomatic or chronic infections but occasionally lead to life-threatening hemolytic anemia. Despite the global distribution of bovine hemoplasmas, information regarding their transmission vectors and prevalence is still lacking in the Republic of Korea. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the infection rate of bovine hemoplasma in cattle and houseflies and to assess the risk factors associated with hemoplasma infection in cattle., Methods: Overall, 376 blood samples were collected from Korean indigenous cattle (male, 10-13 months old), along with 2,690 houseflies (Musca domestica) from the same farm where the cattle were raised. PCR assays targeting the 16S rRNA gene were performed to detect hemoplasmas, and positive samples were sequenced., Results: The infection rate of bovine hemoplasmas was 50.8% (191/376) in cattle and 7.4% in pooled houseflies. Among cattle, 18.6% (70/376) and 20.0% (75/376) tested positive for M. wenyonii and Candidatus M. haemobos, respectively. Conversely, in houseflies, Candidatus M. haemobos was more frequently detected (5.9%) than M. wenyonii (0.7%). Co-infection was 12.2% (46/376) in cattle and 0.7% in flies. Furthermore, hemoplasma infection was significantly associated with the grazing experience of their dams. Cattle born to cows with grazing experience exhibited a higher risk for M. wenyonii infection (odds ratio [OR] = 1.62; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.03-2.55; P = 0.045), whereas these cattle had a lower risk for Candidatus M. haemobos infection (OR = 0.32, 95% CI: 0.19-0.74; P = 0.000) than animals born to cows without grazing experience. The sequences obtained from houseflies were confirmed as Candidatus M. haemobos, which displayed high similarity (98.2-100%) to those from cattle obtained in this study., Conclusions: To our knowledge, this study represents the first report of bovine hemoplasmas identified in houseflies. This molecular evidence suggests that houseflies may be possible vectors for Candidatus M. haemobos., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Purpose: Research on the prevalence of prostate cancer (PCa) screening and reasons for undergoing screening is limited. We aimed to identify the factors influencing PCa screening behavior and explore the underlying motivations among Korean men., Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study used data from the 2023 Korean National Cancer Screening Survey, which employs a nationally representative random sampling method. This study included 1,784 men aged 40-74 years. The respondents reported their experiences with PCa screening. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was conducted to identify the factors associated with participation in PCa screening., Results: The lifetime PCa screening rate was 18.6%. Among screening modalities, transrectal ultrasonography was the most frequently used (31.9%), followed by prostate-specific antigen tests (25.6%) and digital rectal examinations (21.5%). The multivariable analysis identified several factors that significantly increased the likelihood of screening participation, including older age, living with a spouse, poor self-reported health, and abstinence from alcohol consumption in the previous 12 months. Men who had undergone colorectal cancer screening were more likely to participate in PCa screening (adjusted odds ratio, 4.01; 95% confidence interval, 2.03-7.93) than those who had not. The primary motivations for screening were recommendations from family or social networks (31.9%) and inclusion in health examination packages (24.3%), whereas healthcare provider recommendations (18%) and symptomatic concerns (5.7%) were the least influential., Conclusion: Our findings highlight the importance of providing evidence-based information for PCa screening recommendations and the need for improved communication and implementation of a shared decision-making approach for PCa screening in Korea.

Dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI (DCE-MRI) is increasingly used to non-invasively image blood-brain barrier leakage, yet its clinical utility has been hampered by issues such as noise and partial volume artifacts. In this retrospective study involving 306 adult patients with diffuse glioma, we applied deep learning-based super-resolution and denoising (DLSD) techniques to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and resolution of DCE-MRI. Quantitative analysis comparing standard DCE-MRI (std-DCE) and DL-enhanced DCE-MRI (DL-DCE) revealed that DL-DCE achieved significantly higher SNR and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) compared to std-DCE (SNR, 52.09 vs 27.21; CNR, 9.40 vs 4.71; P < 0.001 for all). Diagnostic performance assessed by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) showed improved differentiation of WHO grades based on a pharmacokinetic parameter [Formula: see text] (AUC, 0.88 vs 0.83, P = 0.02), while remaining comparable to std-DCE in other parameters. Analysis of arterial input function (AIF) reliability demonstrated that [Formula: see text] exhibited superior agreement compared to [Formula: see text], as indicated by mostly higher intraclass correlation coefficients (Time to peak, 0.79 vs 0.43, P < 0.001). In conclusion, DLSD significantly enhances both the image quality and reliability of DCE-MRI in patients with diffuse glioma, while maintaining or improving diagnostic performance., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

This article presents a fully integrated CMOS ferrofluidic platform featuring on-chip three-electrode electrochemical cells, temperature regulators, and magnetic sensors. The proposed platform consists of 25 ferrofluidic pixels and 2 magnetic sensors. Each ferrofluidic pixel comprises a spiral inductor, a three-electrode electrochemical cell, a temperature sensor, and a localized Joule heater. Unlike pneumatic-based platforms, this ferrofluidic platform does not require an external pneumatic pump to drive droplets. Instead, the on-chip spiral inductors generate magnetic fields to manipulate the ferrofluidic droplets. Additionally, these inductors are repurposed as heat radiators. The CMOS ferrofluidic platform is implemented using a 45-nm CMOS SOI process. Theoretical analyses of ferrofluidic control and magnetic sensing are conducted to understand the relationship between ferrofluidic movement conditions and the integrated magnetic sensor. The on-chip electrochemical potentiostat is characterized using various concentrations of methylene blue solution, and the variation in the electrochemical sensor is measured. As proof of concept, biological measurements with on-chip real-time recombinase polymerase amplification (RT-RPA) are demonstrated. The proposed platform offers a fully integrated solution for ferrofluidic manipulation, sensing, and temperature regulation without the need for external bulky equipment, thereby supporting advanced biomolecular processing. While RT-RPA is used here solely for demonstration purposes, our ferrofluidic multi-functional CMOS array platform is also capable of processing a wide range of other molecular analytes. This versatility underscores the platform's potential for broad applications in molecular diagnostics and bioanalytical research.

Background and Purpose: The cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO 2 ) is considered a robust marker of the infarct core in 15 O-tracer-based PET. We aimed to delineate the infarct core in patients with acute ischemic stroke by using commonly used relative CBF (rCBF) < 30% and oxygen metabolism parameter of CMRO 2 on CT perfusion in comparison with pretreatment DWI-derived infarct core volume., Materials and Methods: Patients with acute ischemic stroke who met the inclusion criteria were recruited. The CMRO 2 and CBF maps in CT perfusion were automatically generated by using postprocessing software. The infarct core volume was quantified with relative cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (rCMRO 2 ) <20% -30% and rCBF <30%. The optimal threshold was defined as those that demonstrated the smallest mean absolute error, lowest mean infarct core volume difference, narrowest 95% limit of agreement, and largest intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) against the DWI., Results: This study included 76 patients (mean age ± standard deviation, 69.97 ± 12.15 years, 43 men). The optimal thresholds of rCMRO 2 <26% resulted in the lowest mean infarct core volume difference, narrowest 95% limit of agreement, and largest ICC among different thresholds. Bland-Altman analysis demonstrated a volumetric bias of 1.96 mL between DWI and rCMRO 2 <26%, whereas in cases of DWI and rCBF <30%, the bias was notably larger at 14.10 mL. The highest correlation was observed for rCMRO 2 <26% (ICC = 0.936), whereas rCBF <30% showed a slightly lower ICC of 0.934., Conclusions: CT perfusion-derived CMRO 2 is a promising parameter for estimating the infarct core volume in patients with acute ischemic stroke., (© 2024 by American Journal of Neuroradiology.)

Written exposure therapy (WET) is a five-session exposure-based protocol for treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The brevity and tolerability of WET present the potential to overcome barriers in implementing evidence-based therapy for PTSD within the Korean mental healthcare system. This study investigated the effectiveness of WET in Korean patients with PTSD through a waitlist-controlled trial (KCT0008112). A total of 57 patients with PTSD were allocated non-randomly to either WET ( n  = 27) or treatment-as-usual waitlist groups ( n  = 30). Both groups were followed up until the twenty-fourth week after the initial session. Primary outcomes assessed included PTSD symptoms, depressive symptoms, and general function. In the WET group, significant improvements were observed in PTSD symptoms, depressive symptoms, and general function compared to the control group. After the waiting period, the waitlist group also participated in WET, and exhibited significant improvement in all scores. The between- and within-group effect sizes were large. The dropout rate in both groups was 10.9%, and the mean satisfaction ratings were 28.24 ± 3.33 (range 22-32; scale range 8-32). The present study provides evidence of WET successfully reducing PTSD and depressive symptoms and improving general function among Korean patients with PTSD. Moreover, WET was well tolerated and received by Korean patients with PTSD.

Although several observational studies have reported a link between the use of underarm cosmetic products and the risk of breast cancer, the findings remain inconsistent. This study aimed to investigate these associations using a meta-analysis of observational studies. In the meta-analysis of seven case-control studies, we found no association between the use of underarm antiperspirants or deodorants and the risk of breast cancer (OR = 0.96, 95%CI 0.78-1.17; I 2  = 60.0%). Further prospective cohort studies that provide a higher level of evidence are warranted to confirm our findings.

This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the Cancer Public Library Database (CPLD), established under the Korean Clinical Data Utilization for Research Excellence project (K-CURE). The CPLD links data from four major population-based public sources: the Korea National Cancer Incidence Database in the Korea Central Cancer Registry, cause-of-death data in Statistics Korea, the National Health Information Database in the National Health Insurance Service, and the National Health Insurance Research Database in the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service. These databases are linked using an encrypted resident registration number. The CPLD, established in 2022 and updated annually, comprises 1,983,499 men and women newly diagnosed with cancer between 2012 and 2019. It contains data on cancer registration and death, demographics, medical claims, general health checkups, and national cancer screening. The most common cancers among men in the CPLD were stomach (16.1%), lung (14.0%), colorectal (13.3%), prostate (9.6%), and liver (9.3%) cancers. The most common cancers among women were thyroid (20.4%), breast (16.6%), colorectal (9.0%), stomach (7.8%), and lung (6.2%) cancers. Among them, 571,285 died between 2012 and 2020 owing to cancer (89.2%) or other causes (10.8%). Upon approval, the CPLD is accessible to researchers through the K-CURE portal. The CPLD is a unique resource for diverse cancer research to investigate medical use before a cancer diagnosis, during initial diagnosis and treatment, and long-term follow-up. This offers expanded insight into healthcare delivery across the cancer continuum, from screening to end-of-life care.

Multiview data are widespread in real-world applications, and multiview clustering is a commonly used technique to effectively mine the data. Most of the existing algorithms perform multiview clustering by mining the commonly hidden space between views. Although this strategy is effective, there are two challenges that still need to be addressed to further improve the performance. First, how to design an efficient hidden space learning method so that the learned hidden spaces contain both shared and specific information of multiview data. Second, how to design an efficient mechanism to make the learned hidden space more suitable for the clustering task. In this study, a novel one-step multiview fuzzy clustering (OMFC-CS) method is proposed to address the two challenges by collaborative learning between the common and specific space information. To tackle the first challenge, we propose a mechanism to extract the common and specific information simultaneously based on matrix factorization. For the second challenge, we design a one-step learning framework to integrate the learning of common and specific spaces and the learning of fuzzy partitions. The integration is achieved in the framework by performing the two learning processes alternately and thereby yielding mutual benefit. Furthermore, the Shannon entropy strategy is introduced to obtain the optimal views weight assignment during clustering. The experimental results based on benchmark multiview datasets demonstrate that the proposed OMFC-CS outperforms many existing methods.

Following the Hebei Spirit oil spill (HSOS) in December 2007, benthic organisms of the Taean coast on the west coast of Korea were heavily affected. A month after HSOS, the alkyl PAHs in the oyster body elevated to 13,500 ng/g dry wt, although it dropped to 5335 ng/g dry wt in December 2008, and returned to the levels before the accident (547-858 ng/g dry wt) by 2010. In 2008 spring, the damaged oysters exhibited deteriorated growth and reproduction, exhibiting signs of physiological stress. However, a year after the accident, oysters exhibited signs of recovery from the stresses. Gonad maturation, reproductive effort, and carbohydrate content recorded in 2010 were comparable to the levels in 2009 and the levels in undamaged oysters. Our study suggested that the Pacific oysters recovered from the HSOS stresses within a year, although long-term monitoring of oyster health must be carried out to ascertain the recovery., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The co-authors of this study “Sublethal Impacts of Hebei Spirit Oil Spill on the Growth and Reproductive Physiology of the Pacific Oyster Crassostrea gigas at Taean on the West Coast of Korea (2008-2010)” declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

This study assessed survival for lung cancer patients meeting criteria for the National Lung Cancer Screening Program in Korea launched in 2019 and updated guideline reported by the US Preventive Service Task Force (USPSTF). We assessed all-cause mortality based on the Korean Lung Cancer Registry (KLCR), including lung cancer patients diagnosed in 2014-2016. We compared survival among lung cancer patients eligible for extended USPSTF criteria (age 50-80 years and ≥ 20 pack-years) and those meeting current criteria (age 54-74 years and ≥ 30 pack-years, current or within the past 15 years). The nearest neighbour propensity-score matching was performed to generate a matched set. Kaplan-Meier curves were generated to compare survival among groups; differences in survival were analyzed using the stratified log-rank test. The mortality risk was estimated based on a Cox proportional hazards regression model and the robust standard error was calculated. Of 8110 patients, 37.4% and 24.3% met the extended USPSTF eligibility criteria and National Lung Cancer Screening Program (NLCSP) criteria, respectively. Overall mortality risk was not significantly different between the extended younger age group and the NLCSP group (hazard ratio [HR] [95% confidence interval (CI)]: 0.78 [0.59-1.02]). The extended older age group had a significantly higher mortality risk (HR [95% CI]: 1.41 [1.26-1.58]). Mortality risk was not significantly different between patients who smoked 20-29 pack-years and those who smoked ≥ 30 pack-years (HR [95% CI]: 0.90 [0.79-1.03]). Lung cancer patients aged 50-53 years and those with a 20-29 pack-years smoking history exhibited similar mortality risk to individuals meeting current criteria, while patients aged 75-80 years were at a higher risk of death. Although we verified similar or higher mortality risks in extended subgroups, a careful assessment of the benefits and harms of the screening tests is necessary when contemplating the extension of criteria., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Purpose: The time-intensive nature of acquiring 3D T1-weighted MRI and analyzing brain volumetry limits quantitative evaluation of brain atrophy. We explore the feasibility and reliability of deep learning-based accelerated MRI scans for brain volumetry., Methods: This retrospective study collected 3D T1-weighted data using 3T from 42 participants for the simulated acceleration dataset and 48 for the validation dataset. The simulated acceleration dataset consists of three sets at different simulated acceleration levels (Simul-Accel) corresponding to level 1 (65% undersampling), 2 (70%), and 3 (75%). These images were then subjected to deep learning-based reconstruction (Simul-Accel-DL). Conventional images (Conv) without acceleration and DL were set as the reference. In the validation dataset, DICOM images were collected from Conv and accelerated scan with DL-based reconstruction (Accel-DL). The image quality of Simul-Accel-DL was evaluated using quantitative error metrics. Volumetric measurements were evaluated using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and linear regression analysis in both datasets. The volumes were estimated by two software, NeuroQuant and DeepBrain., Results: Simul-Accel-DL across all acceleration levels revealed comparable or better error metrics than Simul-Accel. In the simulated acceleration dataset, ICCs between Conv and Simul-Accel-DL in all ROIs exceeded 0.90 for volumes and 0.77 for normative percentiles at all acceleration levels. In the validation dataset, ICCs for volumes > 0.96, ICCs for normative percentiles > 0.89, and R 2  > 0.93 at all ROIs except pallidum demonstrated good agreement in both software., Conclusion: DL-based reconstruction achieves clinical feasibility of 3D T1 brain volumetric MRI by up to 75% acceleration relative to full-sampled acquisition., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Infection with tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) causes anemia, jaundice, and growth retardation in cattle. Many studies have conducted antigen (Ag) tests for major TBPs, such as Anaplasma spp. and Theileria spp., in Korean indigenous cattle (KIC); however, few studies have analyzed antibodies (Ab) against these pathogens. Materials and Methods: This study simultaneously tested 15 housed cattle raised indoor for over a year and 67 grazing cattle for Anaplasma spp. and Theileria spp. Ag using polymerase chain reaction analysis and Ab using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: The A. phagocytophilum was detected in 3 housed cattle (20.0%) and 30 grazing cattle (44.8%), whereas the T. orientalis was detected in 3 housed cattle (20.0%) and 54 grazing cattle (80.6%). The positivity rates for Anaplasma spp. Ab did not differ significantly between housed and grazing cattle (4 out of 15 [93.3%] and 55 out of 67 [80.0%], respectively). The positivity rates for Theileria spp. Ab were higher in grazing cattle than in housed cattle (21 of 67 [31.3%] and 0 out of 15 [0.0%], respectively) ( P < 0.01). No difference was observed between the frequency of grazing and the abundance of Ab against either pathogen. Meanwhile, as a result of comparing the detection of pathogen Ag and Ab, Anaplasma spp. showed the highest proportions of 73.3% and 47.8% in Ag (-)/Ab (+) for housed cattle and grazing cattle, respectively. Theileria spp. showed the highest rates of 80.0% in Ag (-)/Ab (-) for housed cattle and 52.2% in Ag (+)/Ab (-) for grazing cattle. Conclusions: This is the first study to determine the impact of antibody abundance against Anaplasma spp. and Theileria spp. on antigen prevalence in KIC.