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Reports of tuberculosis (TB) outbreaks among schoolchildren have increased in recent years in countries across the Western Pacific Region. Cases from China, Japan, Mongolia and the Republic of Korea were studied to derive lessons from the challenges and responses to TB outbreaks in schools. Despite differences in the TB burden and outbreak preparedness, the four countries reported similar challenges. These included delayed diagnosis of index cases, lack of experienced health professionals and sustained financial support, and difficulty in responding to intensified media and community attention. Early detection of outbreaks, established resource mobilization networks, coordination among stakeholders and proactive communication were highlights of successful outbreak responses. These principles could be adapted to each context for responses to future TB outbreaks in schools., ((c) 2021 The authors; licensee World Health Organization.)

Japan and South Korea have among the highest suicide rates in the world. However, the age, gender, and time trends in each country differ substantially. Age-Period-Cohort (APC) analysis of suicide rates was conducted to better understand these differences. Using age- and gender-specific data on suicide between 1986 and 2015 in Japan and Korea, we implemented APC analysis to decompose the country-specific trends into age, calendar period, and birth cohort effects. APC analysis revealed three trends: (1) there was a sharp increase in suicide around retirement age in Korea but not in Japan (age effect); (2) there was a dramatic increase in suicide during the three decades of observation in Korea (period effect) whereas rates were more stable in Japan; and (3) the post-War generation in Japan (including baby boomer) had lower rates of suicide compared to generations born before 1916 or after 1961 (birth cohort effect), whereas suicide rate has increased linearly in each generation in Korea. Although Japan & Korea share high suicide rates, our APC analysis suggests divergent causes underlying these trends. Japanese suicide rates plateaued among the cohorts who experienced the post-War rapid economic growth (women born in 1951-1956 and men born in 1916-1961) (birth cohort effect) due to a strong social safety net for this cohort, while suicide rates in Korea continue to rise with each generation and is particularly elevated in post-retirement age. Japan and Korea need to pay more attention to suicide prevention in more recent birth cohorts., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: To report the long-term survival and toxicity of a multi-institutional phase 2 study of concurrent chemoradiation therapy (CCRT) for locally advanced cervical cancer in east and southeast Asia., Methods and Materials: Ten institutions from 8 Asian countries participated in the study. Between April 2003 and March 2006, 120 patients (60 with bulky stage IIB and 60 with stage IIIB) were treated with CCRT. Radiation therapy consisted of pelvic external beam radiation therapy and either high-dose-rate or low-dose-rate intracavitary brachytherapy. Five cycles of weekly cisplatin (40 mg/m(2)) were administered during the course of radiation therapy. Treatment results were evaluated by the rates of local control, overall survival, and late toxicities., Results: Median follow-up was 63.7 months, and the follow-up rate at 5 years was 98%. The 5-year local control and overall survival rates for all patients were 76.8% and 55.1%, respectively. The 5-year rates of major late toxicities of the rectum and bladder were 7.9% and 0%, respectively., Conclusions: The long-term results have suggested that CCRT is safe and effective for patients with locally advanced cervical cancer in east and southeast Asia. However, further efforts are needed to improve overall survival., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background & Aims: Two major types of gastric cancer, intestinal and diffuse, develop through distinct mechanisms; the diffuse type is considered to be more influenced by genetic factors, although the mechanism is unknown. Our previous genome-wide association study associated 3 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with diffuse-type gastric cancer (DGC); 1 was a functional SNP (rs2294008) in prostate stem cell antigen (PSCA), but the loci of the other 2 were not investigated., Methods: We performed high-density mapping to explore a linkage disequilibrium status of the 2 SNPs at chromosome 1q22. A DGC case-control study was conducted using DNA from 606 cases and 1264 controls (all Japanese individuals) and validated using DNA from Japanese (304 cases, 1465 controls) and Korean (452 cases, 372 controls) individuals. The effects of SNPs on function were analyzed by reporter assays and analyses of splice variants., Results: A region of a strong linkage disequilibrium with the 2 SNPs contained mucin 1 (MUC1) and other 4 genes and SNPs significantly associated with DGC (rs2070803: P = 4.33 × 10(-13); odds ratio [OR], 1.71 by meta-analysis of the studies on the 3 panels) but not with intestinal-type gastric cancer. Functional studies demonstrated that rs4072037 (P = 1.43 × 10(-11); OR, 1.66 by meta-analysis) in MUC1 affects promoter activity and determines the major splicing variants of MUC1 in the gastric epithelium. Individuals that carry both SNPs rs2294008 in PSCA and rs4072037 in MUC1 have a high risk for developing DGC (OR, 8.38)., Conclusions: MUC1 is the second major DGC susceptibility gene identified. The SNPs rs2070803 and rs4072037 in MUC1 might be used to identify individuals at risk for this type of gastric cancer., (Copyright © 2011 AGA Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

To understand the domestic population structure of Mycobacterium tuberculosis clinical isolates in the Republic of Korea, we genotypically analysed 80 isolates obtained from various geographical origins in the country. Of these, 64 (80.0 %) isolates were identified as Beijing family strains. It is particularly interesting that their phylogenetic classification, based on the ancient/modern separation and the presence/absence of the genomic region RD181, revealed a majority of the ancient (RD181+) subfamily in the population. The 15 loci of variable number of tandem repeat(s) of mycobacterial interspersed repetitive units (15-MIRU-VNTR) were also analysed. Combination with the previous VNTR data reported from surrounding countries revealed that the topology of the minimum spanning tree was linked tightly not to the geographical origins of the patients but to the phylogenetic characteristics of the isolates. These results show that the phylogeographical distribution of the M. tuberculosis Beijing family around far-eastern Asia could be estimated using international accumulation and comparison of VNTR genotyping data.