Sexual Consent: Perception of Ambiguous Sexual Encounters of LGBTQ+ and Cisgender, Heterosexual Individuals

The literature is lacking in information on the perception of sexual consent behaviors of people with non-dominant gender identities and sexual orientations. This study explored how sexual consent is perceived for people with diverse gender identities and sexual orientations. College students were recruited to participate in a survey in which they were asked to respond to a heterosexual version or a sexual minority version of vignettes featuring ambiguous sexual consent scenarios. The study findings indicate that 5 of the 16 vignette themes showed possible differences in participant perception. The statistically significant research findings show that participants perceived the retraction of sexual consent theme differently between the cisgender, heterosexual and sexual minority vignette version, in that the sexual minority characters (gay) were perceived to have consented more than the cisgender, heterosexual characters. In looking at the characters in the aggressor role in the vignettes, the cisgender, heterosexual characters were perceived to have consented to the sexual scenarios at a higher degree than characters of sexual minority groups in the emotional dysregulation (male to female transgender), retraction of sexual consent (gay), bribe or blackmail (lesbian), and rape fantasy (queer) themes. In looking at the characters in the victim role in the vignettes, the character of a sexual minority group (questioning sexual orientation) in the consensual theme was perceived to have consented more than the cisgender, heterosexual character. Implications and future recommendations are discussed

Radiolabeled neurotensin analog, 99mTc-NT-XI, evaluated in ductal pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients

The study aim was to assess the safety, biodistribution, tissue kinetics, and tumor uptake of the (99m)Tc-labeled neurotensin (NT) analog NT-XI. METHODS: Four patients presenting ductal pancreatic adenocarcinoma were studied with (99m)Tc-NT-XI. Patients were followed by scintigraphy up to 4 h and by continued blood and urinary sampling until surgery 18-22 h after injection. Surgical tissue samples were analyzed for radioactivity uptake and NT receptor expression. RESULTS: No side effects were observed on injection of (99m)Tc-NT-XI. Blood biologic half-lives alpha and beta were 35 min (range, 17-62 min) and 230 min (range, 107-383 min), respectively. Repeated whole-body scintigraphy performed in 2 patients showed a single exponential decrease of whole-body activity with half-lives of 101 and 232 min. Tracer elimination was mainly renal, with 92% and 98% of activity counted in urine in the first 20 h. Kidney, liver, spleen, and bone marrow activity uptake was observed in all patients. Tumor was not visualized in the first 3 patients but could be localized by tomoscintigraphy in the pancreas head region of patient 4. In vitro tissue analysis showed high expression of NT receptor in the tumor of patient 4, correlated with the highest tumor radioactivity uptake and the highest tumor-to-fat radioactivity ratio. In vitro receptor expression was also positive in a second patient having a tumor characterized by very low cellularity; however, the remaining 2 tumors lacked NT receptor expression. CONCLUSION: Injection of (99m)Tc-NT-XI was well tolerated. The in vivo tumor uptake appeared specific as it was observed in the 1 patient with a pancreatic tumor that expressed high amounts of NT receptor. The results are compatible with preclinical animal results and in favor of further development of radiolabeled NT analogs for diagnosis or therapy of cancer

[Br-76]bromodeoxyuridine PET in tumor-bearing animals

5-bromodeoxyuridine (BUdR) provides in vitro measures of tumor cell proliferation. We used positron emission tomography to study tissue and plasma kinetics of [Br-76]BUdR in tumor-bearing animals. In order to account for the slow washout of the major plasma metabolite, [Br-76]bromide, a mathematical correction for the distribution volume of [Br-76]bromide was applied. However, following correction specific tumor tracer retention was low or even zero and did not correlate with independent measures of proliferation. The kinetic characteristics of [Br-76]BUdR make this tracer unsuitable for proliferation imaging. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved