Molecular biology of breast cancer metastasis: Inflammatory breast cancer: clinical syndrome and molecular determinants

Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is an aggressive form of locally advanced breast cancer (LABC) that effects approximately 5% of women with breast cancer annually in the USA. It is a clinically and pathologically distinct form of LABC that is particularly fast growing, invasive, and angiogenic. Nearly all women have lymph node involvement at the time of diagnosis, and approximately 36% have gross distant metastases. Despite recent advances in multimodality treatments, the prognosis of patients with IBC is poor, with a median disease-free survival of less than 2.5 years. Recent work on the genetic determinants that underlie the IBC phenotype has led to the identification of genes that are involved in the development and progression of this disease. This work has been aided by the establishment of primary human cell lines and animal models. These advances suggest novel targets for future interventions in the diagnosis and treatment of IBC

Impact of voice and communication deficits for individuals with cervical spinal cord injury living in the community

BackgroundPost-spinal cord injury (SCI), individuals may exhibit mild to moderate impairments in aspects of speech influenced by impaired respiratory support. However, limited research has been conducted into the impact of these impairments on activity and participation when living in the community

Experiences of communication changes following spinal cord injury: a qualitative analysis

Voice and communication changes can occur following cervical spinal cord injury due to dysfunction of the respiratory and phonatory subsystems. Few studies have explored the "lived experience" of communication changes post cervical spinal cord injury. Furthermore, the impacts of these changes on community activity/participation and requirements for psychosocial adjustment have not been well-elucidated. The current study explored the experience of communication changes in non-ventilated individuals following cervical spinal cord injury, using a biopsychosocial framework.Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 community-dwelling non-ventilated individuals with cervical spinal cord injury. Thematic analysis was undertaken using an inductive approach. Themes were subsequently coded against domains of the World Health Organization International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health model, using established linking rules.Four main themes were identified: (1) how communication has changed; (2) difficulties getting the message across, (3) the multifactorial impact of communication changes on everyday life; and (4) strategies/support to adjust to communication changes. Communication changes had multifaceted effects on participants' functioning, and were represented equally across the Body Functions (12 codes), Activities/Participation (12 codes), and Environmental Factors (11 codes) domains of the model.Individuals with cervical spinal cord injury perceive and experience meaningful changes on communication function post-injury, with salient impacts to daily-living and social participation. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION As a result of communication changes post-injury, individuals with cervical spinal cord injury experience several challenges across a variety of domains in daily life The current study highlights the benefit of using a biopsychosocial framework, such as The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), to consider the complex and diverse impact of communication changes on the functioning of individuals with cervical spinal cord injury, as well as the influence of environmental factors, on rehabilitation planning The current data demonstrates the need for increased involvement of speech-language pathologists as core members of the multidisciplinary team, and for acute awareness by all health professionals of the potential impact of communication changes on rehabilitation and psychosocial adjustment in individuals with cervical spinal cord injury

Methods for Measurement and Statistical Analysis of the Frangibility of Strengthened Glass

Chemically strengthened glass features a surface compression and a balancing central tension (CT) in the interior of the glass. A greater CT is usually associated with a higher level of stored elastic energy in the glass. During a fracture event, release of a greater amount of stored energy can lead to frangibility, i.e., shorter crack branching distances, smaller fragment size, and ejection of small fragments from the glass. In this paper, the frangibility and fragmentation behaviors of a series of chemically strengthened glass samples are studied using two different manual testing methods and an automated tester. Both immediate and delayed fracture events were observed. A statistical method is proposed to determine the probability of frangible fracture for glasses ion exchanged under a specific set of conditions, and analysis is performed to understand the dependence of frangibility probability on sample thickness, CT, and testing method. We also propose a more rigorous set of criteria for qualifying frangibility

Comparison between single saturating dose ligand binding assay and enzyme immunoassay for low-salt extractable oestrogen and progesterone receptors in breast cancer: a multicentre study

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