J M Liu

National Health Research Institutes, Miaoli, Taiwan, Taiwan

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Publications (48)128.71 Total impact

  • Article: Topoisomerase 2alpha plays a pivotal role in the tumor biology of stage IV thymic neoplasia.
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    ABSTRACT: Microsatellite studies in histologic types B3 and C thymic neoplasia detected gains on chromosome 17q, which contains the Her-2/neu and its juxtaposed topoisomerase 2alpha (T2alpha) genes. The study aimed to evaluate their impact on tumor biology and survival of advanced thymic neoplasia patients. From 1991 to 2005, 36 consecutive stage IV thymic carcinoma patients were treated, 18 men and 18 women, aged 11 to 84 years. There were 22 thymic carcinoma, 13 type B3, and 1 type B2 thymoma. Patients received treatment consisting of surgical resection, combination chemotherapy with the CAP (cyclophosphamide, Adriamycin, cisplatin) regimen, or radiation therapy potentiated by high-dose weekly 5-fluorouracil infusion. Permutations of these 3 treatment modalities were prescribed as necessary. T2alpha gene amplification was detected in 4 of 14 thymic carcinoma and 1 of 15 type B3 thymoma. Three thymic carcinoma patients had Her-2/neu coamplification and these 3 patients had rapidly growing tumor and extensive disease at initial diagnosis. CAP was prescribed in 28 patients and 20 patients responded (response rate, 71.4%, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 52.8% to 85%); all responders overexpressed (> or = 10% nuclei positive) the T2alpha protein, whereas 4 nonresponders had very low expression. T2alpha overexpression predicts CAP response, and its absence predicts resistance (P = .001). Overall survival was significantly prolonged if the tumor was resectable (P = .001), of type B3 histology (P = .0039), and had no Her-2 gene amplification (P = .0081). T2alpha and Her-2/neu genes play a pivotal role in the tumor biology, CAP response, and survival of advanced thymic neoplasia patients.
    Cancer 02/2007; 109(3):502-9. · 4.77 Impact Factor
  • Article: Pulmonary embolism after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization.
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    ABSTRACT: Metastatic hepatic tumours can be treated with hepatic transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). Common complications associated with TACE include hepatic insufficiency, fever, and pain. However, pulmonary embolism is rarely documented as a fatal adverse effect. We report a case of pulmonary embolism following TACE in a renal cell carcinoma patient with liver metastases. Total recovery is noted after the effective treatment.
    European Journal of Cancer Care 01/2006; 14(5):440-2. · 1.17 Impact Factor
  • Article: Non-surgical treatment for afferent loop syndrome in recurrent gastric cancer complicated by peritoneal carcinomatosis: percutaneous transhepatic duodenal drainage followed by 24-hour infusion of high-dose fluorouracil and leucovorin.
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    ABSTRACT: Afferent loop syndrome (ALS) is a debilitating complication of recurrent gastric cancer. Surgical intervention is usually not feasible in the face of poor general performance, presence of advanced peritoneal carcinomatosis and limited survival of the patients. Non-surgical approaches include internal drainage by stenting at the stenotic or anastomotic site and external drainage via the percutaneous routes. Percutaneous transhepatic duodenal drainage (PTDD) has been shown to provide effective palliation for ALS, but long-term catheterization is usually inevitable. We hereby present two cases of recurrent gastric cancer whose ALS was successfully treated with PTDD followed by weekly 24-h infusion of high-dose 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin (HDFL). PTDD rapidly ameliorated the incapacitating symptoms of ALS, and the effective, low-toxicity chemotherapy subsequently led to tumor regression, restoration of bowel patency and removal of the drainage tube. At present, both patients have remained ALS-free and drainage-free for 16 and 17 months, respectively. Our results indicate that this non-surgical approach with PTDD followed by weekly HDFL could serve as a safe and effective treatment for ALS in recurrent gastric cancer complicated by peritoneal carcinomatosis.
    Annals of Oncology 08/2002; 13(7):1151-5. · 6.43 Impact Factor
  • Article: Cytokine release in febrile non-haemolytic red cell transfusion reactions.
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    ABSTRACT: The aim of this study was to elucidate the role and identity of cytokines involved in febrile non-haemolytic red cell transfusion reactions (FNHTRs). Eighty-one patients experiencing transfusion reactions after receiving packed red blood cells (RBCs) were divided into three groups, as follows, based on the reaction experienced: FNHTRs (n = 60); chills without fever (n = 8); and allergic reaction with urticaria (n = 13). The concentrations of interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-6, IL-8 and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha were measured in the packed transfused unit and patients' plasma by using enzyme immunoassays. Wilcoxon's matched-pairs signed test was used to compare the difference in cytokine levels in patients' plasma before and after transfusion. The Kruskal-Wallis test was used first, followed by the Mann-Whitney test, to compare the pretransfusion cytokine levels in patients' plasma between groups and to compare the cytokine levels in packed RBCs transfused to each group of patients. The age of the implicated packed RBC was 11.5 +/- 5.7 days. Significant increases were observed in IL-6 (P < 0.001) and IL-8 (P < 0.001) patients' plasma levels, but not in IL-1beta or TNF-alpha levels, in those patients exhibiting FNHTR. No changes were observed in the patients' plasma samples of the other groups. Cytokine levels in the RBC concentrate supernatants were not appreciably elevated. Transfusion of packed RBCs may significantly increase intravascular levels of IL-6 and IL-8 in patients with FNHTRs.
    Vox Sanguinis 04/2002; 82(3):156-60. · 2.86 Impact Factor
  • Article: Tumor invasiveness and liver metastasis of colon cancer cells correlated with cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression and inhibited by a COX-2-selective inhibitor, etodolac.
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    ABSTRACT: Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have been reported to reduce the risk and mortality of colorectal cancer (CRC). Although the exact mechanisms remain unclear, the inhibition of cyclooxygenase (COX) by NSAIDs appears to abort, if not prevent, CRC carcinogenesis or metastatic tumor progression. The aim of our study was to investigate the association between COX-2 expression and CRC tumor cell invasiveness. The differences in immunoblot-detectable COX-2 protein contents in primary CRCs, metastatic hepatic lesions and corresponding normal mucosa from the same individual were evaluated in 17 patients. Three different colon cancer cell lines, SW620, Lovo, HT-29 and a metastatic variant of HT-29, HT-29/Inv3, were employed to evaluate COX-2 expression and prostaglandin E(2) (PGE2) production in relation to their invasive abilities in vitro. The effects of a COX-2-selective inhibitor, etodolac, on cell proliferation and invasive activity were also determined. The results showed that 15 of 17 (88%) metastatic CRC cells from the liver and 14 of 17 (82%) primary CRC tissue exhibited much higher levels of COX-2 than corresponding adjacent normal mucosa from the same patient. Among those patients with relatively high COX-2 expression in the primary tumors, almost all exhibited even higher levels of COX-2 in their hepatic metastases. Among the 4 colon cancer cell lines, HT-29/Inv3 manifested the highest COX-2 expression, PGE2 production and in vitro invasive activity. The selective COX-2 inhibitor, etodolac, could especially exert cytotoxicity and markedly suppress the invasive property and PGE(2) production, although not the COX-2 protein level, in HT-29/Inv3 cells. Our results imply that COX-2 expression may be associated with the invasive and metastatic properties of CRC tumor cells.
    International Journal of Cancer 04/2001; 91(6):894-9. · 5.44 Impact Factor
  • Article: Intensive postremission chemotherapy in Taiwanese adults with acute myelogenous leukemia.
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    ABSTRACT: Intensive postremission chemotherapy has produced disease-free survival comparable to that of bone marrow transplantation in patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), but its efficacy was unknown in Taiwan. We assessed the efficacy of intensive postremission chemotherapy, consisting of high-dose arabinoside-C (HiDAC) with or without transplantation of peripheral blood stem cells, in 33 AML patients from a single institute in Taiwan. Toxic reactions, treatment outcome, prognostic factors, and the size of the peripheral blood stem-cell harvest after HiDAC were analyzed. After a median follow-up of 21 months, 18 patients remained in continuous complete remission. The actuarial leukemia-free survival at 4 years was 51%. Relapse occurred in 12 patients, at a median of 12 months after initial diagnosis. All 6 patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia remained disease free after HiDAC therapy. Age, sex, and number of remission-induction or intensive consolidation chemotherapy courses had no effect on the risk of relapse. Intensive postremission chemotherapy can effectively prolong the duration of remission in young (< 60 years of age) adults with AML.
    Advances in Therapy 01/2001; 18(2):67-74. · 2.11 Impact Factor
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    Article: Prognostic role of pericardial fluid cytology in cardiac tamponade associated with non-small cell lung cancer.
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    ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND ANd Cardiac tamponade is a life-threatening complication of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Malignant pericardial effusion signifies advanced disease, but the significance of a negative pericardial fluid cytology in patients with advanced lung cancer is still controversial. The differential diagnosis of cytology-negative pericardial effusion is difficult and sometimes impossible. The purpose of this study is to determine the prognostic role of pericardial fluid cytology in patients with NSCLC and cardiac tamponade. Retrospective review of patients with concurrent NSCLC and cardiac tamponade over a 10-year period. Eighty-two patients were included in this study. Pericardial fluid cytology was positive in 60 patients and negative in 22 patients. The overall median survival was 74.5 days, and 1-year survival was 7.3%, with no survival difference between the two groups (p = 0.2506). However, there was a significant survival difference after different treatment strategies. Patients receiving systemic chemotherapy survived longer than those receiving local therapy (p<0.001), and these patients, in turn, survived longer than those receiving supportive treatment (p<0.001). When patients have concurrent advanced NSCLC and cardiac tamponade, the most likely cause of the pericardial effusion is the cancer itself, regardless of the results of the cytologic examination. Our results suggest that systemic chemotherapy might prolong survival in such patients, but further prospective, randomized study is necessary.
    Chest 09/2000; 118(3):744-9. · 5.25 Impact Factor
  • Article: Combination chemotherapy with tamoxifen, ifosfamide, epirubicin and cisplatin in extensive-disease small-cell lung cancer.
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    ABSTRACT: A study of tamoxifen, ifosfamide, epirubicin and cisplatin (TIEP) chemotherapy was conducted in patients with extensive-disease, small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) to assess response and toxicity. From November, 1997, to February, 1999, 11 patients were treated, including six chemo-naïve patients and five patients previously treated with cisplatin plus etoposide (EP). The treatment regimen included tamoxifen 60 mg twice daily orally on days 1 to 3, ifosfamide 3 g/m2 intravenous (i.v.) infusion for 60 minutes with mesna on day 2, epirubicin 50 mg/m2 i.v. bolus on day 2 and cisplatin 60 mg/m2 i.v. for 60 minutes on day 2, every 4 weeks for up to six cycles. All patients were evaluated for toxicity and response rate. As expected, the major toxicity was myelosuppression. Grade 3 or 4 leukopenia or neutropenia occurred in all patients during treatment. Two patients (18.2%) experienced fever in association with the neutropenia, one of whom died of sepsis. Grade 3 anemia occurred in two patients (18.2%) during treatment. Toxicities other than neutropenia and anemia were limited. After two cycles of treatment, five of six chemo-naïve patients (83%), and one of five previously treated patients (20%) attained a partial response (overall 54.5%, 95% confidence interval 25%-83.9%). Median survival time was 8.5 and 6 months in chemo-naïve and previously EP-treated patients, respectively. The response rate and median survival time in chemo-naïve patients did not improve compared with a previous study of ifosfamide plus etoposide undertaken 4 years earlier. Although TIEP is an active combination regimen with an acceptable toxicity profile in Chinese patients with extensive-disease SCLC, it showed no remarkable benefit compared with other regimens used in chemo-naïve patients. The 20% response rate and median survival of 6 months in EP-treated patients deserve further study.
    Zhonghua yi xue za zhi = Chinese medical journal; Free China ed 09/2000; 63(8):605-11.
  • Article: Integration of computer-assembled digital images and text data as evidence for the oncological record.
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    ABSTRACT: Digitally created visual images of pertinent patient data have been integrated with text information to formulate a visual evaluation and summary sheet (VESS) using computer processing. The VESS incorporates images of a patient's physical appearance, radiological images, pharmacokinetic graphs, and text information into a 1-page document of the patient's condition. Thus, computer processing of digital images and other information helps to refine patient data presentation, analysis, interpretation, and communication. This form of data management is especially valuable in oncological research, where clinical trials demand rapid, ongoing assessment of results and analysis of large amounts of data. The VESS is an effective mechanism for monitoring both the progress of individual patients and the endpoints of the overall clinical trial.
    Journal of Digital Imaging 06/2000; 13(2):55-9. · 1.25 Impact Factor
  • Article: Steroid-induced mediastinal lipomatosis with radiographic features of pericardial effusion.
    Y M Hsu, N S Yao, J M Liu
    American Journal of Emergency Medicine 06/2000; 18(3):346-8. · 1.98 Impact Factor
  • Article: PIK3CA as an oncogene in cervical cancer.
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    ABSTRACT: Amplification of chromosome arm 3q is the most consistent aberration in cervical cancer, and is implicated in the progression of dysplastic uterine cervical cells into invasive cancer. The present study employed the 'positional candidate gene' strategy to determine the contribution of PIK3CA, which is located in 3q26.3, in cervical tumorigenesis. PIK3CA is known to be involved in the PI 3-kinase/AKT signaling pathway, which plays an important role in regulating cell growth and apoptosis. The results of comparative genomic hybridization show that the 3q26.3 amplification was the most consistent chromosomal aberration in primary tissues of cervical carcinoma, and a positive correlation between an increased copy number of PIK3CA (detected by competitive PCR) and 3q26.3 amplification was found in tumor tissues and in cervical cancer cell lines. In cervical cancer cell lines harboring amplified PIK3CA, the expression of gene product (p110alpha) of PIK3CA was increased, and was subsequently associated with high kinase activity. In addition, transformation phenotypes in these lines, including increased cell growth and decreased apoptosis, were found to be significantly affected by the treatment of specific PI 3-kinase inhibitor, suggesting that increased expression of PIK3CA in cervical cancer may result in promoting cell proliferation and reducing apoptosis. These evidences support that PIK3CA is an oncogene in cervical cancer and PIK3CA amplification may be linked to cervical tumorigenesis. Oncogene (2000).
    Oncogene 06/2000; 19(23):2739-44. · 6.37 Impact Factor
  • Article: A phase II trial of vinorelbine and cisplatin in previously untreated inoperable non--small-cell lung cancer.
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    ABSTRACT: Weekly vinorelbine injection with cisplatin had been used in treatment of non-small-cell lung cancer. We performed a phase II trial to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of a new schedule of vinorelbine and cisplatin in patients with previously untreated, inoperable (stage IIIB or stage IV) non-small-cell lung cancer. From April 1996 to May 1997, 52 patients were enrolled for study, and 50 patients were eligible and evaluable for both response and toxicity assessment. Therapy consisted of vinorelbine, 30 mg/m2, intravenously on days 1 and 5 of a 21-day cycle, and cisplatin 100 mg/m2 (reduced to 80 mg/m2 after the first seven patients) given on day 1. A total of 211 treatment courses were administered; the median number of cycles administered per patient was 4.5 (range: 1-6), the median dose intensity for vinorelbine was 16.9 mg/m2/week (84.4%), whereas that of cisplatin was 22.8 mg/m2/week (84.7%). Twenty-five patients responded to therapy for an overall response rate of 50%; one patient attained a complete response (2%). The main toxicities were vomiting, myelosuppression, and diarrhea, which included World Health Organization grade 3 or 4 nausea/vomiting (58% patients), anemia (41% patients), neutropenia (12% patients), and diarrhea (14%). The median duration of responses was 9 months. The median time to disease progression was 6.8 months (range 0.4-18.1 months). Median survival was 13 months, and 54% of patients were alive at 1 year. We conclude that this new schedule of vinorelbine and cisplatin achieves a high response with acceptable toxicity profile in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer.
    American Journal of Clinical Oncology 03/2000; 23(1):60-4. · 2.01 Impact Factor
  • Article: A phase II trial of tamoxifen, ifosfamide, epirubicin, and cisplatin combination chemotherapy for inoperable non-small-cell lung cancer.
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    ABSTRACT: A phase II trial of tamoxifen, ifosfamide, epirubicin, and cisplatin (TIEP) chemotherapy was conducted in patients with chemonaive inoperable non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) to assess response and toxicity. From October 1997 to August 1998, 19 patients were treated. The treatment schema included tamoxifen 60 mg twice daily by mouth on days 1 to 3, ifosfamide 3 g/m2 intravenous infusion (IV) 60 minutes with mesna on day 2, epirubicin 50 mg/m2 IV bolus on day 2, and cisplatin 60 mg/m2 IV 60 minutes on day 2 every 4 weeks for up to six cycles. All patients were evaluable for response and toxicity. The major toxicity was myelosuppression; grade 3 or 4 leukopenia or neutropenia occurred in 14 of 19 (73.7%) patients during treatment, and 6 patients (31.6%) experienced fever in association with the neutropenia; no toxic deaths occurred. Grade 3 anemia occurred in six patients (31.6%) during the treatment. Grade 3 or 4 nausea/vomiting occurred in only one patient. Toxicities other than neutropenia and anemia were minimal. After two cycles of treatment, 9 of 19 patients attained a partial response (47.4%, 95% confidence interval 24.9%-69.9%) in this study. The median time to disease progression was 6 months and median survival time was 12 months. We conclude that TIEP is an active combination regimen with an acceptable toxicity profile in Chinese patients with inoperable NSCLC.
    American Journal of Clinical Oncology 03/2000; 23(1):13-7. · 2.01 Impact Factor
  • Article: Risk and patterns of brain metastases in colorectal cancer: 27-year experience.
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    ABSTRACT: In patients with colorectal cancer, brain metastasis is infrequent. This study aims to elucidate the risk, pattern of occurrence, and survival time after different treatment modalities. A retrospective review of all patients with colorectal cancer admitted to the Veterans General Hospital-Taipei between 1970 and 1996 from our hospital was performed. Univariate analysis for survival determination was performed. Brain metastases developed subsequent to surgery for colorectal cancer in 53 well-documented patients, at a median of 36 months after surgery. Brain metastases were more commonly seen in rectal cancer and often occurred concurrently with lung metastases. Forty of these patients received active intervention in terms of surgery, chemotherapy, or radiotherapy, with surgical intervention achieving a significantly increased mean survival time (+/- standard deviation) compared with chemotherapy or radiotherapy or both of 86.6 +/-17.35 vs. 2.9 +/- 0.59 months (P < 0.05). Increased awareness of the possibility of brain metastases, early diagnosis, and aggressive therapy can provide increased survival time for patients with colorectal cancer with brain metastases.
    Diseases of the Colon & Rectum 11/1999; 42(11):1467-71. · 3.13 Impact Factor
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    Article: The status of the do-not-resuscitate order in Chinese clinical trial patients in a cancer centre.
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    ABSTRACT: To report and analyse the pattern of end-of-life decision making for terminal Chinese cancer patients. Retrospective descriptive study. A cancer clinical trials unit in a large teaching hospital. From April 1992 to August 1997, 177 consecutive deaths of cancer clinical trial patients were studied. Basic demographic data, patient status at the time of signing a DNR consent, or at the moment of returning home to die are documented, and circumstances surrounding these events evaluated. DNR orders were written for 64.4% of patients. Patients in pain (odds ratio 0.45, 95% CI 0.22-0.89), especially if requiring opioid analgesia (odds ratio 0.40, 95% CI 0.21-0.77), were factors associated with a higher probability of such an order. Thirty-five patients were taken home to die, a more likely occurrence if the patient was over 75 years (odds ratio 0.12, 95% CI 0.04-0.34), had children (odds ratio 0.14, 95% CI 0.02-0.79), had Taiwanese as a first language (odds ratio 6.74, 95% CI 3.04-14.93), or was unable to intake orally (odds ratio 2.73, 95% CI 1.26-5.92). CPR was performed in 30 patients, none survived to discharge. DNR orders are instituted in a large proportion of dying Chinese cancer patients in a cancer centre, however, the order is seldom signed by the patient personally. This study also illustrates that as many as 20% of dying patients are taken home to die, in accordance with local custom.
    Journal of Medical Ethics 09/1999; 25(4):309-14. · 1.36 Impact Factor
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    Article: Fulminant hepatitis is significantly increased in hepatitis B carriers after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.
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    ABSTRACT: Bone marrow transplantation (BMT) is effective treatment for many hematologic disease, but performed in a population with a high endemic hepatitis B virus carrier rate, the incidence of liver function impairment and fulminant hepatitis (FH) is expected to be raised. Forty-three hepatitis B virus carriers received high-dose chemotherapy and BMT, 32 patients received an allogeneic graft, and 11 patients autologous marrow. Acute graft-versus-host disease prophylaxis consisted of methotrexate on day 1, 3, 6, and 11 and cyclosporine for 6 months. After a median follow-up period of 68 months (range: 1-11.5 years), 26 (81.3%) allogeneic BMT patients developed impaired liver function (LF), 5 progressed to FH on day 93, 169, 170, 180, and 468, respectively, and died after an average of 13.8 days (range: 1-45 days). Whereas only 4 (36.4%) autologous BMT patients developed impaired LF, and none FH. Impaired LF (P=0.026, chi-square), and FH (odds ratio=12.86, P=0.009 for coefficient) were significantly related to an allogeneic marrow graft, and the timing of liver function impairment coincided with cyclosporine withdrawal. Hepatitis B surface antigen (HbsAg) disappeared from the serum in 4/14 (28.6%) patients receiving a marrow graft from an HbsAg+ donor. HbsAg was not detected in the serum after BMT in 2/11 (18.2%) autologous BMT patients. Hepatitis B virus carriers receiving a marrow graft from an HbsAg+ donor have a significantly increased risk of FH.
    Transplantation 07/1999; 67(11):1425-33. · 4.00 Impact Factor
  • Article: Lung cancer mimicking acute myocardial infarction on electrocardiogram.
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    ABSTRACT: Myocardial involvement by malignant neoplasm is rare and often not clinically manifested. The diagnosis is usually made only at autopsy. A 71-year-old man with squamous cell lung cancer presented with chest discomfort. His electrocardiogram was diagnostic of acute myocardial infarction. However, because of the lack of classic symptoms and signs of acute myocardial infarction and normal serum levels of cardiac enzymes, an echocardiography was performed before initiation of thrombolytic therapy. The echocardiography showed a huge hyperechoic mass located in the posterolateral aspect of the left ventricle with myocardium invasion. Thrombolytic therapy was withheld. In patients with lung cancer, an electrocardiogram representative of acute myocardial infarction can rarely be induced by myocardial involvement with lung cancer.
    American Journal of Emergency Medicine 02/1999; 17(1):86-8. · 1.98 Impact Factor
  • Article: Ifosfamide-based chemotherapy for previously treated lung cancer patients.
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    ABSTRACT: Ifosfamide-based chemotherapy has already been the basis of three separate clinical trials. In this study, ifosfamide was administered to lung cancer patients who had failed to respond to previous chemotherapy, to assess its response rate and toxicity. From January 1993 to December 1996, 21 patients were treated, including eight patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and 13 with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Patients who had histocytologically confirmed lung cancer, were previously treated with chemotherapy, had a measurable lesion(s), were younger than 75 years of age, had an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0-3 and adequate marrow, renal and liver function were eligible for inclusion in this study. For SCLC patients, ifosfamide 2.4 g/m2 intravenous (i.v.) infusion was given over 30 minutes on days 1-3 every four weeks. For NSCLC two regimens were used: IFL (ifosfamide 2 g/m2, 5-fluorouracil (FU) 600 mg/m2 and leucovorin 50 mg/m2 i.v. infusion on days 1-3 every four weeks) and LIFE (leucovorin 50 mg/m2, ifosfamide 1 g/m2, 5-FU 400 mg/m2 and epirubicin 12 mg/m2 i.v. infusion on days 1-3 every four weeks). For NSCLC patients, IFL was used for the first two years of treatment and LIFE was used in the last two treatment years. All patients were evaluated for treatment response and toxicity. The major toxic effect, myelosuppression (grade 3 or 4 leukopenia), occurred in 62.5% of SCLC patients and 23.1% of NSCLC patients during treatment, and in 62.5% and 10% of SCLC and NSCLC patients, respectively, throughout the course. Only one SCLC and one NSCLC patient experienced febrile neutropenia. One toxic death, attributed to febrile neutropenia, was documented in a patient with SCLC. Alopecia was ubiquitous. Other toxicities were uncommon and mild. The overall response rate was 50% in SCLC and 7.7% in NSCLC. The median time to disease progression was 61 days in SCLC and 47 days in NSCLC. Median survival was 172 days in SCLC and 173 days in NSCLC. The study results suggest that ifosfamide chemotherapy is active with an acceptable toxicity profile in previously treated SCLC patients. However, it lacks efficacy in NSCLC patients who have been previously treated.
    Zhonghua yi xue za zhi = Chinese medical journal; Free China ed 08/1998; 61(7):389-96.
  • Article: Continuous infusion cisplatin and etoposide chemotherapy for cancer of unknown primary site (CUPS) in Taiwan, a region with a high prevalence of endemic viral infections.
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    ABSTRACT: To evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of cisplatin/etoposide continuous infusion chemotherapy for cancer of unknown primary site in Taiwan, a region with a high prevalence of endemic viral infections. Between April 1994 and February 1996, 20 patients with a diagnosis of CUPS were treated, including 15 males and five females, of average age 63.3 years (range 41-83 years). Continuous intravenous infusion of etoposide 80 mg/m2 and cisplatin 25 mg/m2 was given for 3 days every 3 weeks. Pretreatment tumor marker and viral serology studies were performed for baseline evaluation. Nearly two-thirds of the patients had poorly differentiated carcinoma. The average number of metastatic sites was 2.65 (range 1-4), with liver and lymph node involvement predominating. The overall response rate was 25% (95% CI 17.7-32.3%); 30.7% for poorly differentiated cancers and 25% for well differentiated cancers. Median survival was 4 months (range 1-12 months), 4.8 months for patients attaining partial response. Toxicity was moderate, grade 3 and 4 neutropenia occurred in 55% and grade 3 and 4 thrombocytopenia in 40%; other toxicities were mild. CA125 and CA199 were elevated in more than 50% of patients. Viral serology studies were not significantly different from those of the indigenous population. Etoposide and cisplatin combination chemotherapy has modest activity in patients with extensive CUPS and, at the schedule and dosage given, it is associated with moderate toxicity.
    Japanese Journal of Clinical Oncology 08/1998; 28(7):431-5. · 1.78 Impact Factor
  • Article: Percutaneous transhepatic duodenal drainage as an alternative approach in afferent loop obstruction with secondary obstructive jaundice in recurrent gastric cancer.
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    ABSTRACT: Two cases are reported of chronic, partial afferent loop obstruction with resultant obstructive jaundice in recurrent gastric cancer. The diagnosis was made by characteristic clinical presentations, abdominal computed tomography, and cholescintigraphy. Percutaneous transhepatic duodenal drainage (PTDD) provided effective palliation for both afferent loop obstruction and biliary stasis. We conclude that cholescintigraphy is of value in making the diagnosis of partial afferent loop obstruction and in differentiating the cause of obstructive jaundice in such patients, and PTDD provides palliation for those patients in whom surgical intervention is not feasible.
    CardioVascular and Interventional Radiology 06/1998; 21(4):350-3. · 2.09 Impact Factor

Institutions

  • 1998–2007
    • National Health Research Institutes
      Miaoli, Taiwan, Taiwan
  • 2000
    • National Yang Ming University
      • School of Medicine
      Taipei, Taipei, Taiwan
  • 1995–2000
    • Taipei Veterans General Hospital
      • Division of Emergency Medicine
      Taipei, Taipei, Taiwan
  • 1995–1996
    • Academia Sinica
      • Institute of Biomedical Sciences
      Taipei, Taipei, Taiwan
  • 1970
    • National Taiwan University Hospital
      • Department of Internal Medicine
      Taipei, Taipei, Taiwan