Neuroanatomical changes seen in MRI in patients with cerebral metastasized breast cancer after radiotherapy

PURPOSE To quantify neuroanatomical changes using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with cerebral metastasized breast cancer after brain radiotherapy (RT). METHODS Fifteen patients with breast cancer with brain metastases who underwent whole brain RT (WBR), radiosurgery (RS), and/or hypofractionated stereotactic treatment (STX) were examined at four time points (TPs). A total of 48 MRIs were available: prior to RT (TP1), 5-8 months after RT (TP2), 9-11 months after RT (TP3), and >20 months after RT (TP4). Using automatic segmentation, 25 subcortical structures were analyzed. Patients were split into three groups: STX (receiving STX and RS), RS (receiving RS only), and WBR (receiving WBR at least once). After testing for a normal distribution for all values using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, a two-sided paired t test was used to analyze volumetric changes. For those values that were not normally distributed, the nonparametric Mann-Whitney test was employed. RESULTS The left cerebellum white matter (p = 0.028), the right pallidum (p = 0.038), and the left thalamus (p = 0.039) significantly increased at TP2 compared to TP1. The third ventricle increased at all TPs (p = 0.034-0.046). The left choroid plexus increased at TP3 (p = 0.037) compared to TP1. The left lateral ventricle increased at TP3 (p = 0.012) and TP4 (p = 0.027). Total gray matter showed a trend of volume decline in STX and WBR groups. CONCLUSIONS These findings indicate that alterations in the volume of subcortical structures may act as a sensitive parameter when evaluating neuroanatomical changes and brain atrophy due to radiotherapy. Differences observed for patients who received STX and WBR, but not those treated with RS, need to be validated further

Neuroanatomical changes seen in MRI in patients with cerebral metastasized breast cancer after radiotherapy

Purpose: To quantify neuroanatomical changes using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with cerebral metastasized breast cancer after brain radiotherapy (RT). Methods: Fifteen patients with breast cancer with brain metastases who underwent whole brain RT (WBR), radiosurgery (RS), and/or hypofractionated stereotactic treatment (STX) were examined at four time points (TPs). A total of 48 MRIs were available: prior to RT (TP1), 5–8 months after RT (TP2), 9–11 months after RT (TP3), and >20 months after RT (TP4). Using automatic segmentation, 25 subcortical structures were analyzed. Patients were split into three groups: STX (receiving STX and RS), RS (receiving RS only), and WBR (receiving WBR at least once). After testing for a normal distribution for all values using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, a two-sided paired t test was used to analyze volumetric changes. For those values that were not normally distributed, the nonparametric Mann-Whitney test was employed. Results: The left cerebellum white matter ( p = 0.028), the right pallidum ( p = 0.038), and the left thalamus ( p = 0.039) significantly increased at TP2 compared to TP1. The third ventricle increased at all TPs ( p = 0.034–0.046). The left choroid plexus increased at TP3 ( p = 0.037) compared to TP1. The left lateral ventricle increased at TP3 ( p = 0.012) and TP4 ( p = 0.027). Total gray matter showed a trend of volume decline in STX and WBR groups. Conclusions: These findings indicate that alterations in the volume of subcortical structures may act as a sensitive parameter when evaluating neuroanatomical changes and brain atrophy due to radiotherapy. Differences observed for patients who received STX and WBR, but not those treated with RS, need to be validated further

НЕОБАНКІНГ ТА ЦИФРОВА ТРАНСФОРМАЦІЯ БАНКІВСЬКОЇ СИСТЕМИ УКРАЇНИ

In the article the main features of the digital transformation of the domestic banking system are highlighted. The analysis of the current state of penetration of innovative banking technologies is carried out. In particular, it shows an increase in non-cash payments, an increase in the issue of contactless and toned payment cards with their further integration into international payment applications and financial markets, especially cryptocurrency markets. The study also summarizes the strengths and weaknesses of the operation of neo-banks.As a result, the article includes proposals for the formation of the banking sector digital transformation priority goals in the context of digital economy development, and measures for their implementation. Primary, this is, the banking ecosystem creation that distinguishes the digital form of data as a key factor of added value and ensures effective interaction of the financial system participants, both within the country and with other countries. In consequence, the implementation of the concept of open banking should become an incentive for the development of a new type of banking system. Finally, we came to the opinion that, it is necessary to create an institutional environment for the creation and development of high-tech banking and increase competitiveness both in the field of individual banking services and the banking system as a whole. The creation of institutional and infrastructural environment should be facilitated by the creation of incubators and accelerators, as well as regulatory sandboxes, as they allow to test innovative proposals on the market with real consumers under the supervision of the regulator. All things considered, it willcontribute to the emergence of new financial startups, expanding the range of payment market participants and the development of new products and services. Obviously, it will allow consumers to get truly competitive and high-quality payment services and high protection of their rights. В статье выделены основные отличительные черты цифровой трансформации отечественной банковской системы. Проведен анализ современного состояния проникновения инновационных банковских технологий. Обобщены сильные и слабые стороны функционирования необанков. Выделены приоритетные цели цифровой трансформации банковского сектора в контексте развития цифровой экономики и предложены меры по их реализации.У статті визначено основні характерні риси цифрової трансформації вітчизняної банківської системи. Проведено аналіз сучасного стану проникнення інноваційних банківських технологій. Узагальнено сильні та слабкі сторони функціонування необанків. Окреслено пріоритетні цілі цифрової трансформації банківського сектору в контексті розбудови цифрової економіки та  запропоновано заходи, щодо їх реалізації

РОЛЬ БЮДЖЕТНОЇ БЕЗПЕКИ У ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННІ СТАБІЛЬНОСТІ ФІНАНСОВОЇ СИСТЕМИ УКРАЇНИ

One of the defining components of ensuring the stability of the financial system is the sphere of public finances, because problems with ensuring the filling and balancing of the budget can have a significant destabilizing effect on the socio-economic development of the country. The purpose of the study is to generalize existing approaches to determining budget security, as well as to assess its impact on the stability of the country’s financial system.Financial stability is the state of the financial system, in which it is able to properly perform its main functions, as well as withstand crisis phenomena. The article examines the theoretical aspects of the concept of "budgetary security", by which we understand the state of ensuring the solvency of the state, taking into account the balance of revenues and expenditures of the state and local budgets and the efficiency of the use of budget funds. The impact of budgetary security on the financial stability of the state is substantiated. The indicators that determine the level of budget security are singled out: the amount of revenues and expenditures of the consolidated budget, their structure, the size of the budget deficit and sources of coverage, the level of redistribution of GDP through the consolidated budget; the amount of payments for servicing the state debt incomparison with the revenues of the State Budget.An assessment of the level of the country’s budget security for 2019-2021 was carried out and conclusions were made about significant threats to the budget system, in particular: the deterioration of the dynamics of tax revenues as a result of military actions, compared to the planned indicators; growing budget revenue losses from tax incentives provided to stimulate the economy; deterioration of payment discipline and growth of taxpayers’ tax debt against the background of deterioration of business activity; increase in budget expenditures for defense measures; growth of the budget deficit and public debt beyond economically safe limits. Proposals have been made to increase the level of financial stability in the budgetary sphere. У статті узагальнено існуючі підходи до визначення стабільності фінансової системи. Досліджено теоретичні аспекти поняття «бюджетна безпека». Обґрунтовано вплив бюджетної безпеки на фінансову стабільність держави. Встановлено ризики та загрози фінансовій стабільності. Виокремлено показники, які визначають рівень бюджетної безпеки. Проведено оцінку рівня бюджетної безпеки країни за 2019–2021 роки. Надано пропозиції щодо підвищення рівня фінансової стабільності в бюджетній сфері

The reporting quality of natural language processing studies - systematic review of studies of radiology reports

Abstract Background Automated language analysis of radiology reports using natural language processing (NLP) can provide valuable information on patients’ health and disease. With its rapid development, NLP studies should have transparent methodology to allow comparison of approaches and reproducibility. This systematic review aims to summarise the characteristics and reporting quality of studies applying NLP to radiology reports. Methods We searched Google Scholar for studies published in English that applied NLP to radiology reports of any imaging modality between January 2015 and October 2019. At least two reviewers independently performed screening and completed data extraction. We specified 15 criteria relating to data source, datasets, ground truth, outcomes, and reproducibility for quality assessment. The primary NLP performance measures were precision, recall and F1 score. Results Of the 4,836 records retrieved, we included 164 studies that used NLP on radiology reports. The commonest clinical applications of NLP were disease information or classification (28%) and diagnostic surveillance (27.4%). Most studies used English radiology reports (86%). Reports from mixed imaging modalities were used in 28% of the studies. Oncology (24%) was the most frequent disease area. Most studies had dataset size > 200 (85.4%) but the proportion of studies that described their annotated, training, validation, and test set were 67.1%, 63.4%, 45.7%, and 67.7% respectively. About half of the studies reported precision (48.8%) and recall (53.7%). Few studies reported external validation performed (10.8%), data availability (8.5%) and code availability (9.1%). There was no pattern of performance associated with the overall reporting quality. Conclusions There is a range of potential clinical applications for NLP of radiology reports in health services and research. However, we found suboptimal reporting quality that precludes comparison, reproducibility, and replication. Our results support the need for development of reporting standards specific to clinical NLP studies

Association of Blood Biomarkers With Acute Sport-Related Concussion in Collegiate Athletes: Findings From the NCAA and Department of Defense CARE Consortium

Importance: There is potential scientific and clinical value in validation of objective biomarkers for sport-related concussion (SRC). Objective: To investigate the association of acute-phase blood biomarker levels with SRC in collegiate athletes. Design, Setting, and Participants: This multicenter, prospective, case-control study was conducted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the US Department of Defense Concussion Assessment, Research, and Education (CARE) Consortium from February 20, 2015, to May 31, 2018, at 6 CARE Advanced Research Core sites. A total of 504 collegiate athletes with concussion, contact sport control athletes, and non-contact sport control athletes completed clinical testing and blood collection at preseason baseline, the acute postinjury period, 24 to 48 hours after injury, the point of reporting being asymptomatic, and 7 days after return to play. Data analysis was conducted from March 1 to November 30, 2019. Main Outcomes and Measures: Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase-L1 (UCH-L1), neurofilament light chain, and tau were quantified using the Quanterix Simoa multiplex assay. Clinical outcome measures included the Sport Concussion Assessment Tool-Third Edition (SCAT-3) symptom evaluation, Standardized Assessment of Concussion, Balance Error Scoring System, and Brief Symptom Inventory 18. Results: A total of 264 athletes with concussion (mean [SD] age, 19.08 [1.24] years; 211 [79.9%] male), 138 contact sport controls (mean [SD] age, 19.03 [1.27] years; 107 [77.5%] male), and 102 non-contact sport controls (mean [SD] age, 19.39 [1.25] years; 82 [80.4%] male) were included in the study. Athletes with concussion had significant elevation in GFAP (mean difference, 0.430 pg/mL; 95% CI, 0.339-0.521 pg/mL; P < .001), UCH-L1 (mean difference, 0.449 pg/mL; 95% CI, 0.167-0.732 pg/mL; P < .001), and tau levels (mean difference, 0.221 pg/mL; 95% CI, 0.046-0.396 pg/mL; P = .004) at the acute postinjury time point compared with preseason baseline. Longitudinally, a significant interaction (group × visit) was found for GFAP (F7,1507.36 = 16.18, P < .001), UCH-L1 (F7,1153.09 = 5.71, P < .001), and tau (F7,1480.55 = 6.81, P < .001); the interaction for neurofilament light chain was not significant (F7,1506.90 = 1.33, P = .23). The area under the curve for the combination of GFAP and UCH-L1 in differentiating athletes with concussion from contact sport controls at the acute postinjury period was 0.71 (95% CI, 0.64-0.78; P < .001); the acute postinjury area under the curve for all 4 biomarkers combined was 0.72 (95% CI, 0.65-0.79; P < .001). Beyond SCAT-3 symptom score, GFAP at the acute postinjury time point was associated with the classification of athletes with concussion from contact controls (β = 12.298; 95% CI, 2.776-54.481; P = .001) and non-contact sport controls (β = 5.438; 95% CI, 1.676-17.645; P = .005). Athletes with concussion with loss of consciousness or posttraumatic amnesia had significantly higher levels of GFAP than athletes with concussion with neither loss of consciousness nor posttraumatic amnesia at the acute postinjury time point (mean difference, 0.583 pg/mL; 95% CI, 0.369-0.797 pg/mL; P < .001). Conclusions and Relevance: The results suggest that blood biomarkers can be used as research tools to inform the underlying pathophysiological mechanism of concussion and provide additional support for future studies to optimize and validate biomarkers for potential clinical use in SRC