Ovarian cancer risk score predicts chemo-response and outcome in epithelial ovarian carcinoma patients

Hsiao-Yun Lu,Yi-Jou Tai,Yu-Li Chen,Ying-Cheng Chiang,Heng-Cheng Hsu,Wen-Fang Cheng 대한부인종양학회 2021 Journal of Gynecologic Oncology Vol.32 No.2

Objective: Cytoreductive surgery followed by adjuvant chemotherapy is a standard frontlinetreatment for epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). We aimed to develop an ovarian cancer riskscore (OVRS) based on the expression of 10 ovarian-cancer-related genes to predict thechemoresistance, and outcomes of EOC patients. Methods: We designed a case-control study with total 149 EOC women including 75chemosensitives and 74 chemoresistants. Gene expression was measured using thequantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. We tested for correlation between theOVRS and chemosensitivity or chemoresistance, disease-free survival (DFS), and overallsurvival (OS), and validated the OVRS by analyzing patients from the TCGA database. Results: The chemosensitive group had lower OVRS than the chemoresistant group (5 vs. 15, p≤0.001, Mann-Whitney U test). Patients with disease relapse (13 vs. 5, p<0.001, Mann Whitney U test) or disease-related death (13.5 vs. 6, p<0.001) had higher OVRS than thosewithout. OVRS ≥10 (hazard ratio=3.29; 95% confidence interval=1.94–5.58; p<0.001) was theonly predictor for chemoresistance in multivariate analysis. The median DFS (5 months vs. 24 months) and OS (39 months vs. >60 months) of patients with OVRS ≥10 were significantlyshorter than those of patients with OVRS <9). The high OVRS group also had significantlyshorter median OS than the low OVRS group in 255 patients in the TCGA database (39 vs. 49months, p=0.046). Conclusions: Specific genes panel can be clinically applied in predicting the chemoresistanceand outcome, and decision-making of epithelial ovarian cancer.

Student`s Perceptions of Online Academic English Tutoring

( Hsiao Fang Cheng ) 범태평양 응용언어학회 2015 Journal of Pan-Pacific Association of Applied Ling Vol.19 No.1

English textbooks are widely used in every discipline in the majority of colleges and universities in Taiwan. To prepare college students for their future careers, it is necessary they be given systematic training and practice in reading these books. However, due to time constraints, most content teachers focus on the delivery of content rather than the language in the texts. To compensate for the lack of time available for academic English instruction, this study attempts to investigate an alternative online approach to improving student``s academic English reading comprehension. Using a Course Management System, students were given Internet access to detailed explanations by their teachers of both the content and the language of their texts. A survey was conducted at the end of the semester to investigate the students`` reading needs as well as what they thought of the online support. The survey results revealed that students needed training in reading strategies, the analysis of complex sentence structure and the accurate pronunciation of terminology. Tn addition, more than eighty percent of the participants thought online support was a viable alternative to in-class language instruction, but less than ten percent had used the facilities provided. Drawing on the results of this study, some pedagogical implications are proposed.

Diffusion Tensor-Derived Properties of Benign Oligemia, True “at Risk” Penumbra, and Infarct Core during the First Three Hours of Stroke Onset: A Rat Model

Fang-Ying Chiu,Duen-Pang Kuo,Yung-Chieh Chen,Yu-Chieh Kao,Hsiao-Wen Chung,Cheng-Yu Chen 대한영상의학회 2018 Korean Journal of Radiology Vol.19 No.6

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate diffusion tensor (DT) imaging-derived properties of benign oligemia, true “at risk” penumbra (TP), and the infarct core (IC) during the first 3 hours of stroke onset. Materials and Methods: The study was approved by the local animal care and use committee. DT imaging data were obtained from 14 rats after permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO) using a 7T magnetic resonance scanner (Bruker) in room air. Relative cerebral blood flow and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps were generated to define oligemia, TP, IC, and normal tissue (NT) every 30 minutes up to 3 hours. Relative fractional anisotropy (rFA), pure anisotropy (rq), diffusion magnitude (rL), ADC (rADC), axial diffusivity (rAD), and radial diffusivity (rRD) values were derived by comparison with the contralateral normal brain. Results: The mean volume of oligemia was 24.7 ± 14.1 mm3, that of TP was 81.3 ± 62.6 mm3, and that of IC was 123.0 ± 85.2 mm3 at 30 minutes after pMCAO. rFA showed an initial paradoxical 10% increase in IC and TP, and declined afterward. The rq, rL, rADC, rAD, and rRD showed an initial discrepant decrease in IC (from -24% to -36%) as compared with TP (from -7% to -13%). Significant differences (p < 0.05) in metrics, except rFA, were found between tissue subtypes in the first 2.5 hours. The rq demonstrated the best overall performance in discriminating TP from IC (accuracy = 92.6%, area under curve = 0.93) and the optimal cutoff value was -33.90%. The metric values for oligemia and NT remained similar at all time points. Conclusion: Benign oligemia is small and remains microstructurally normal under pMCAO. TP and IC show a distinct evolution of DT-derived properties within the first 3 hours of stroke onset, and are thus potentially useful in predicting the fate of ischemic brain.

Implementation of the Land Surface Processes into a Vector Vorticity Equation Model (VVM) to Study its Impact on Afternoon Thunderstorms over Complex Topography in Taiwan

Chien-Ming Wu,Hsiao-Chun Lin,Fang-Yi Cheng,Mu-Hua Chien 한국기상학회 2019 Asia-Pacific Journal of Atmospheric Sciences Vol.55 No.4

In this study, we aim to evaluate the impact of fast land-atmosphere interactions on the afternoon thunderstorm in Taiwan through high-resolution meteorological simulations. For this purpose, the Noah land surface model (LSM) is implemented into the vector vorticity equation cloud-resolving model (VVM) with corresponding realistic land surface data of Taiwan into the coupling system, called TaiwanVVM. Two idealized experiments are conducted by giving the same surface forcing but one with direct land-atmosphere coupling from Noah LSM (called Coupled experiment) and the other with prescribed surface fluxes (called Prescribed experiment). Our results show that the fast land-atmosphere interaction over complex topography has a significant influence on rainfall intensity, especially in the heavy precipitating region where the interaction is strong.Without direct coupling between the land surface and the atmosphere in the Prescribed experiment, the diurnal intensity is suppressed by 50%over whole Taiwan and 70% for East Taiwan. Our findings demonstrate that the intensity of the afternoon thunderstorm is sensitive to fast land-atmosphere interactions by modifying local circulation in the mountainous region of Taiwan.

Treatment outcomes of patients with stage II pure endometrioid-type endometrial cancer: a Taiwanese Gynecologic Oncology Group (TGOG-2006) retrospective cohort study

Hung-Chun Fu,Jen-Ruei Chen,Min-Yu Chen,Keng-Fu Hsu,Wen-Fang Cheng,An Jen Chiang,Yu-Min Ke,Yu-Chieh Chen,Yin-Yi Chang,Chia-Yen Huang,Chieh-Yi Kang,Yuan-Yee Kan,Sheng-Mou Hsiao,Ming-Shyen Yen 대한부인종양학회 2018 Journal of Gynecologic Oncology Vol.29 No.5

Objective: Choice of hysterectomy and adjuvant treatment for International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) 2009 stage II endometrioid endometrial cancer (EEC) is still controversial. Aims of this study were to evaluate survival benefits and adverse effects of different hysterectomies with or without adjuvant radiotherapy (RT), and to identify prognostic factors. Methods: The patients at 14 member hospitals of the Taiwanese Gynecologic Oncology Group from 1992 to 2013 were retrospectively investigated. Patients were divided into simple hysterectomy (SH) alone, SH with RT, radical hysterectomy (RH) alone, and RH with RT groups. Endpoints were recurrence-free survival (RFS), overall survival (OS), disease-specific survival (DSS), adverse effects and prognostic factors for survival. Results: Total of 246 patients were enrolled. The 5-year RFS, OS, DSS and recurrence rates for the entire cohort were 89.5%, 94.3%, 96.2% and 10.2%, respectively. Patients receiving RH had more adverse effects including blood loss (p<0.001), recurrent urinary tract infections (p=0.013), and leg lymphedema (p=0.038). Age over 50-year (HR=9.2; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.2–70.9) and grade 3 histology (HR=7.28; 95% CI, 1.45–36.6) were independent predictors of OS. Grade 3 histology was an independent predictor of RFS (HR=5.13; 95% CI, 1.38–19.1) and DSS (HR=5.97; 95% CI, 1.06–58.7). Patients receiving adjuvant RT had lower locoregional recurrence (p=0.046), but no impact on survival. Conclusion: Different treatment modalities yield similar survival outcomes. Patients receiving SH with RT had lower locoregional recurrent with acceptable morbidity. Age and tumor grading remained significant predictors for survival among patients with FIGO 2009 stage II EEC.