Jeungwon Yoon

Effects of Sweet Bee Venom Pharmacopuncture Treatment for Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy A Case Series

Objective. This is a case series reporting safety and degree of response to 1 dose level of sweet bee venom pharmacopuncture (SBVP) or melittin as a symptom-control therapy for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). Setting. All treatments were conducted at the East West Cancer Center (EWCC), Dunsan Oriental Hospital, Daejeon University, Republic of Korea, an institution that uses complementary therapies for cancer patients. Methods. Five consecutive patients with CIPN were referred to the EWCC from March 20, 2010, to April 10, 2010. Patients with World Health Organization Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy (WHO CIPN) grade 2 or more were treated with SBVP for 3 treatment sessions over a 1-week period. Measures of efficacy and safety. Validated Visual Analog System (VAS) pain scale, WHO CIPN grade, and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–General (FACT-G) were compared before and after the 1-week course of treatment. To ensure the safety of SBVP, pretreatment skin response tests were given to patients to avoid any potential anaphylactic adverse effects. All patients were closely examined for any allergenic responses following each treatment session. Results. One patient discontinued treatment after the first session, and 4 patients completed all treatment sessions. Using each patient as their own comparator, marked improvements of VAS, WHO CIPN grade, and physical section scores of FACT-G were seen in 3 patients. Most important, there were no related adverse side effects found. Conclusion. This safety results of the SBVP therapy merits further investigations in a larger size trial for it to develop into a potential intervention for managing CIPN symptoms. This study will be extended to a dose–response evaluation to further establish safety and response, prior to a randomized trial.

Effect of Acupuncture for Radioactive-Iodine-Induced Anorexia in Thyroid Cancer Patients A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Sham-Controlled Pilot Study

Objective. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of acupuncture for radioactive iodine (RAI)–induced anorexia in thyroid cancer patients. Methods. Fourteen thyroid cancer patients with RAI-induced anorexia were randomized to a true acupuncture or sham acupuncture group. Both groups were given 6 true or sham acupuncture treatments in 2 weeks. Outcome measures included the change of the Functional Assessment of Anorexia and Cachexia Treatment (FAACT; Anorexia/Cachexia Subscale [ACS], Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–General [FACT-G]), Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), weight, body mass index (BMI), ACTH, and cortisol levels. Results. The mean FAACT ACS scores of the true and sham acupuncture groups increased from baseline to exit in intention-to-treat (ITT) and per protocol (PP) analyses; the true acupuncture group showed higher increase but with no statistical significance. Between groups, from baseline to the last treatment, statistically significant differences were found in ITT analysis of the Table of Index (TOI) score (P = .034) and in PP analysis of the TOI (P = .016), FACT-G (P = .045), FAACT (P = .037) scores. There was no significant difference in VAS, weight, BMI, ACTH, and cortisol level changes between groups. Conclusion. Although the current study is based on a small sample of participants, our findings support the safety and potential use of acupuncture for RAI-induced anorexia and quality of life in thyroid cancer patients.

Survival analysis of stage IV metastatic gastric cancer patients treated with HangAm-Plus

ObjectiveTo evaluate the efficacy of HangAm-Plus (HAP) on stage IV metastatic gastric cancer by analyzing the treated patients’ overall survival outcome.MethodsFollowing the study eligibility, overall survival and one year survival rate of 44 stage IV metastatic gastric cancer patients who visited East-West Cancer Center (EWCC) were analyzed. The study consisted of two arms: HAP treatment only (n=18) and combined treatment of concurrent conventional chemotherapy and HAP (n=26). Patient characteristics by gender, age, surgical intervention, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) score, treatment duration (< 4 weeks or ⩾4 weeks), and lines of the chemotherapy received were assessed. Treatment related side effects were also assessed.ResultsThe median survival of combined group was longer (10.0 months) than that of HAP group (5.1 months). One-year survival rate of combined treatment group and HAP group was 38.5%±9.5% and 33.3%±11.1%, respectively (P>0.05). One-year survival rate of those received more and less than 4-week treatment was 57.1%±18.7% and 8.3%±8.0%, respectively (P=0.001).ConclusionsThe study supports the safety and potential efficacy of HAP treatment in prevention of chemo-related side effects for stage IV metastatic gastric cancer treated with conventional chemotherapy. Further studies are needed to investigate and confirm the results before applying the treatment in clinical settings.

Best Case Series Program Supportive Cases of Cordyceps militaris– and Panax notoginseng–Based Anticancer Herbal Formula

Objective. The major aim of this study was to present 2 cancer cases treated with anticancer herbal formula Panax notoginseng and Cordyceps militaris. Methods. Two patients, with pancreatic adenocarcinoma and mucosa-associated lymphatic tissue type lymphoma, respectively, were treated with P notoginseng and C militaris herbal formula without conventional treatments. Their tumor masses were compared using computed tomography during early and later periods of herbal formula treatment. Results. On computed tomography, reduction in tumor mass in both patients after 17 and 13 months of herbal treatments was noted, and the patients maintained stable disease and good quality of life until the last contact in November 2008. Conclusion. C militaris and P notoginseng are potential anticancer herbal prescriptions for adenocarcinoma and mucosa-associated lymphatic tissue type lymphoma.

A Toxicological Study of HangAmDan-B in Mice

The aim of the study was to define the toxicity of HangAmDan-B (HAD-B) in mice over the short and long term. HAD-B was studied in 1-week single and 5-week repeated oral dose toxicity tests on male Imprinting Control Region mice. Doses used in 1 week single oral dose toxicity tests were 0, 0.2, 1, 5, and 25 g/kg/day and those of repeated toxicity test were 0, 0.04, 0.2, 1, and 2 g/kg/day. Blood and urine samples were assayed and their morphology observed. Numerical data were compared using Mann-Whitney U test and analysis of variance. Significantly decreased red blood cell levels in mice from S2-HAD-B, S3-HAD-B, S4-HAD-B, and S5-HAD-B groups were observed in single oral dose toxicity tests. Hemoglobin, hematocrit, and mean cell hemoglobin values in mice from the S4-HAD-B and S5-HAD-B groups were also significantly decreased. No mortalities or significant differences in all factors were observed during the dosing period of the repeated dose toxicity test. Administering 2 g/kg/day of HAD-B in mice over a 5-week period showed no significant hematological changes. However, risk of anemia with more than 5 g/kg/ day administration of HAD-B was found. In general, HAD-B appears to be safe and nontoxic, and a no observed adverse effect level in mice was established at 2 g/kg/ day. This data serves as satisfactory preclinical evidence for the safety of HAD-B should a future clinical trial for HAD-B be launched. Further studies are required to confirm these safety results and to carry out a safety trial in humans.

An overview of current oriental medicine herbal cancer research in Korea

Cancer is the number one cause of death in Korea with annual mortalities of 69 780. Research suggests one in every four Koreans will end up getting cancer at some point in their life time. With these persistent threats, strive for cancer cure is continued. Ten years of Korea’s oriental medicine herbal research on cancer have been reviewed. Researches between the years of 2000 and 2010 are analyzed in terms of their published year, study types, tested subjects, testing measures, cancer types, and institutions. In the past ten years, cancer researches have blossomed from null to full in Korean peninsula, and further development is much anticipated in the next ten years to come.

Changes in the Laboratory Data for Cancer Patients Treated with Korean-medicine-based Inpatient Care

Objectives: The study aimed to determine changes in laboratory data for cancer patients receiving Korean medicine (KM) care, with a focus on patients’ functional status, cancer-coagulation factors and cancer immunity. Methods: We conducted an observational study of various cancer patients in all stages admitted to the East-West Cancer Center (EWCC), Dunsan Korean Hospital of Daejeon University, from Mar. 2011 to Aug. 2011. All patients were under the center’s multi-modality Korean-medicine-based inpatient cancer care program. The hospitalization stay at EWCC ranged from 9 to 34 days. A total of 80 patients were followed in their routine hematologic laboratory screenings performed before and after hospitalization. Patients were divided into three groups depending on the status of their treatment: prevention of recurrence and metastasis group, Korean medicine (KM) treatment only group, and combination of conventional and KM treatment group. The lab reports included natural killer (NK) cell count (CD16 + CD56), fibrinogen, white blood cell (WBC), lymphocytes, monocytes, neutrophil, red blood cell (RBC), hemoglobin, platelet, Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR), and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status. Results: With a Focus on patients’ functional status, cancer-coagulation factors and cancer immunity, emphasis was placed on the NK cell count, fibrinogen count, and ECOG scores. Data generally revealed decreased fibrinogen count, fluctuating NK cell count and decreased ECOG, meaning improved performance status in all groups. The KM treatment only group showed the largest decrease in mean fibrinogen count and the largest increase in mean NK cell count. However, the group’s ECOG score showed the smallest decrease, which may be due to the concentration of late-cancer-stage patients in that particular group. Conclusions: Multi-modality KM inpatient care may have positive effect on lowering the cancer coagulation factor fibrinogen, but its correlation with the change in the NK cell count is not clear.

A Case Series of Survival Outcomes in Patients with Advanced-stage IIIb/IV Non-small-cell Lung Cancer Treated with HangAm-Plus

Background and Objectives: Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) represents approximately 80% of all lung cancers. Unfortunately, at their time of diagnosis, most patients have advanced to unresectable disease with a very poor prognosis. The oriental herbal medicine HangAm-Plus(HAP) has been developed for antitumor purposes, and several previous studies have reported its therapeutic effects. In this study, the efficacy of HAP was evaluated as a third-line treatment for advanced-stage IIIb/IV NSCLC. Methods: The study involved six patients treated at the East- West Cancer Center (EWCC) from April 2010 to October 2011. Inoperable advanced-stage IIIb/IV NSCLC patients received 3,000 or 6,000 mg of HAP on a daily basis over a 12-week period. Computed tomography (CT) scans were obtained from the patients at the time of the initial administration and after 12 weeks of treatment. We observed and analyzed the patients overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Results: Of the six patients, three expired during the study, and the three remaining patients were alive as of October 31, 2011. The OS ranged from 234 to 512 days, with a median survival of 397 days and a one-year survival rate of 66.7%. In the 12-week-interval chest CT assessment, three patients showed stable disease (SD), and the other three showed progressive disease (PD). The PFS of patients ranged from 88 to 512 days, the median PFS being 96 days. Longer OS and PFS were correlated with SD. Although not directly comparable, the OS and the PFS of this study were greater than those of the docetaxel or the best supportive care group in other studies. Conclusion: HAP may prolong the OS and the PFS of inoperable stage IIIb/IV NSCLC patients without significant adverse effects. In the future, more controlled clinical trials with larger samples from multi-centers should be conducted to evaluate the efficacy and the safety of HAP.

Effect of Egg White Combined with Chalcanthite on Lipopolysaccharide induced Inflammatory Cytokine Expression in RAW 264.7 cells.

Aim: Historically, mineral compound herbal medicines have long been used in treatments of immune-related diseases in Korea, China and other Asian countries. In this study, we investigated the anti-inflammatory effect of egg white combined with chalcanthite (IS4) on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. Methods: RAW 264.7 cells cultured with LPS and various concentrations of IS4 were analyzed to determine the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and mediators by using enzyme-linked immune sorbent assays (ELISAs). Results: IS4 concentration inhibited the production of interleukin-1beta (IL-1 β), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and granulocyte -macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) induced by LPS. IS4 at high concentrations (25 and 50㎍/ml) inhibited, in concentration-dependent manner, the expression of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF– α) stimulated by LPS. Conclusion: IS4 has shown an anti-inflammatory effect in RAW 264.7 cells.