Advancing interdisciplinary research in head and neck cancer through a multicenter longitudinal prospective cohort study: The NETherlands QUality of life and BIomedical Cohort (NET-QUBIC) data warehouse and biobank

Background: Worldwide, over 500,000 people are diagnosed with head and neck cancer each year, a disease with major impact on life expectancy and quality of life. The purpose of the Netherlands Quality of life and Biomedical Cohort study (NET-QUBIC) is to advance interdisciplinary research that aims to optimize diagnosis, treatment, and supportive care for head and neck cancer patients and their informal caregivers. Methods: Using an extensive assessment protocol (electronic clinical record form, patient reported outcome measures and fieldwork (interviews and physical tests)), clinical data and data on quality of life, demographic and personal factors, psychosocial (depression, anxiety, fatigue, pain, sleep, mental adjustment to cancer, posttraumatic stress), physical (speech, swallowing, oral function, malnutrition, physical fitness, neurocognitive function, sexual function), lifestyle (physical activity, nutrition, smoking, alcohol, drugs), and social factors (social function, social support, work, health care use, and costs) are collected and stored in the data warehouse. A longitudinal biobank is built with tumor tissue, blood and blood components, saliva samples, and oral rinses. An infrastructure for fieldwork and laboratory protocols is esta

Measuring spatial and temporal variation in surface moisture on a coastal beach with a near-infrared terrestrial laser scanner

Wind-alone predictions of aeolian sand deposition on the most seaward coastal dune ridge often exceed measured deposition substantially. Surface moisture is a major factor limiting aeolian transport on sandy beaches, but existing measurement techniques cannot adequately characterize the spatial and temporal distribution of surface moisture content. Here, we present a new method for detecting surface moisture at high temporal and spatial resolution using a near-infrared terrestrial laser scanner (TLS), the RIEGL VZ-400. Because this TLS operates at a wavelength (1550. nm) near a water absorption band, TLS reflectance is an accurate parameter to measure surface moisture over its full range. Five days of intensive laser scanning were performed on a Dutch beach to illustrate the applicability of the TLS. Gravimetric surface moisture samples were used to calibrate the relation between reflectance and surface moisture. Results reveal a robust negative relation for the full range of possible surface moisture contents (0%-25%), with a correlation-coefficient squared of 0.85 and a root-mean-square error of 2.7%. This relation holds between 20 and 60. m from the TLS. Within this distance the TLS typically produces O(106-107) data points, which we averaged into surface moisture maps with a 1. ×. 1. m resolution. This grid size largely removes small reflectance disturbances induced by, for example, footprints or tire tracks, while retaining larger scale moisture trends

Measuring spatial and temporal variation in surface moisture on a coastal beach with a near-infrared terrestrial laser scanner

Wind-alone predictions of aeolian sand deposition on the most seaward coastal dune ridge often exceed measured deposition substantially. Surface moisture is a major factor limiting aeolian transport on sandy beaches, but existing measurement techniques cannot adequately characterize the spatial and temporal distribution of surface moisture content. Here, we present a new method for detecting surface moisture at high temporal and spatial resolution using a near-infrared terrestrial laser scanner (TLS), the RIEGL VZ-400. Because this TLS operates at a wavelength (1550. nm) near a water absorption band, TLS reflectance is an accurate parameter to measure surface moisture over its full range. Five days of intensive laser scanning were performed on a Dutch beach to illustrate the applicability of the TLS. Gravimetric surface moisture samples were used to calibrate the relation between reflectance and surface moisture. Results reveal a robust negative relation for the full range of possible surface moisture contents (0%-25%), with a correlation-coefficient squared of 0.85 and a root-mean-square error of 2.7%. This relation holds between 20 and 60. m from the TLS. Within this distance the TLS typically produces O(106-107) data points, which we averaged into surface moisture maps with a 1. ×. 1. m resolution. This grid size largely removes small reflectance disturbances induced by, for example, footprints or tire tracks, while retaining larger scale moisture trends

Tide-induced variability in beach surface moisture: Observations and modelling

The moisture content ws of a beach surface strongly controls the availability of sand for aeolian transport. Our predictive capability of the spatiotemporal variability in ws, which depends to a large extent on water table depth, is, however, limited. Here we show that water table fluctuations and surface moisture content observed during a 10‐day period on a medium‐grained (365μm) planar (1:30) beach can be predicted well with the nonlinear Boussinesq equation extended to include run‐up infiltration and a soil–water retention curve under the assumption of hydrostatic equilibrium. On the intertidal part of the beach the water table is observed and predicted to continuously fall from the moment the beach surface emerges from the falling tide to just before it is submerged by the incoming tide. We find that on the lower 30% of the intertidal beach the water table remains within 0.1–0.2 m from the surface and that the sand is always saturated (ws≈20%, by mass). Higher up on the intertidal beach, the surface can dry to about 5% when the water table has fallen to 0.4–0.5 m beneath the surface. Above the high‐tide level the water table is always too deep (>0.5 m) to affect surface moisture and, without precipitation, the sand is dry (ws  <  5 − 8%). Because the water table depth on the emerged part of the intertidal beach increases with time irrespective of whether the (ocean) tide falls or rises, we find no need to include hysteresis (wetting and drying) effects in the surface‐moisture modelling. Model simulations suggest that at the present planar beach only the part well above mean sea level can dry sufficiently (ws  <  10%) for sand to become available for aeolian transport. ©2018 The Authors

Tide-induced variability in beach surface moisture: Observations and modelling

The moisture content ws of a beach surface strongly controls the availability of sand for aeolian transport. Our predictive capability of the spatiotemporal variability in ws, which depends to a large extent on water table depth, is, however, limited. Here we show that water table fluctuations and surface moisture content observed during a 10‐day period on a medium‐grained (365μm) planar (1:30) beach can be predicted well with the nonlinear Boussinesq equation extended to include run‐up infiltration and a soil–water retention curve under the assumption of hydrostatic equilibrium. On the intertidal part of the beach the water table is observed and predicted to continuously fall from the moment the beach surface emerges from the falling tide to just before it is submerged by the incoming tide. We find that on the lower 30% of the intertidal beach the water table remains within 0.1–0.2 m from the surface and that the sand is always saturated (ws≈20%, by mass). Higher up on the intertidal beach, the surface can dry to about 5% when the water table has fallen to 0.4–0.5 m beneath the surface. Above the high‐tide level the water table is always too deep (>0.5 m) to affect surface moisture and, without precipitation, the sand is dry (ws  <  5 − 8%). Because the water table depth on the emerged part of the intertidal beach increases with time irrespective of whether the (ocean) tide falls or rises, we find no need to include hysteresis (wetting and drying) effects in the surface‐moisture modelling. Model simulations suggest that at the present planar beach only the part well above mean sea level can dry sufficiently (ws  <  10%) for sand to become available for aeolian transport. ©2018 The Authors