IMRT in oral cavity cancer

BACKGROUND: Except for early T1,2 N0 stages, the prognosis for patients with oral cavity cancer (OCC) is reported to be worse than for carcinoma in other sites of the head and neck (HNC). The aim of this work was to assess disease outcome in OCC following IMRT. Between January 2002 and January 2007, 346 HNC patients have been treated with curative intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) at the Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital Zurich. Fifty eight of these (16%) were referred for postoperative (28) or definitive (30) radiation therapy of OCC. 40 of the 58 OCC patients (69%) presented with locally advanced T3/4 or recurred lesions. Doses between 60 and 70 Gy were applied, combined with simultaneous cisplatin based chemotherapy in 78%. Outcome analyses were performed using Kaplan Meier curves. In addition, comparisons were performed between this IMRT OCC cohort and historic in-house cohorts of 33 conventionally irradiated (3DCRT) and 30 surgery only patients treated over the last 10 years. RESULTS: OCC patients treated with postoperative IMRT showed the highest local control (LC) rate of all assessed treatment sequence subgroups (92% LC at 2 years). Historic postoperative 3DCRT patients and patients treated with surgery alone reached LC rates of ~70–80%. Definitively irradiated patients revealed poorest LC rates with ~30 and 40% following 3DCRT and IMRT, respectively. T1 stage resulted in an expectedly significantly higher LC rate (95%, n = 19, p < 0.05) than T2-4 and recurred stages (LC ~50–60%, n = 102). Analyses according to the diagnosis revealed significantly lower LC in OCC following definitive IMRT than that in pharyngeal tumors treated with definitive IMRT in the same time period (43% vs 82% at 2 years, p < 0.0001), while the LC rate of OCC following postoperative IMRT was as high as in pharyngeal tumors treated with postoperative IMRT (>90% at 2 years). CONCLUSION: Postoperative IMRT of OCC resulted in the highest local control rate of the assessed treatment subgroups. In conclusion, generous indication for IMRT following surgical treatment is recommended in OCC cases with unfavourable features like tight surgical margin, nodal involvement, primary tumor stage >T1N0, or already recurred disease, respectively. Loco-regional outcome of OCC following definitive IMRT remained unsatisfactory, comparable to that following definitive 3DCRT

Peculiarities of inventory management strategies of Lithuanian manufacturing companies

Inventory management and the related problems in manufacturing companies will always be a topical issue. In light of the fact that the manufacturing process must be continuous, there is an emerging need to build up inventories or to solve the issue of assurance of sufficient inventories by other means. Choosing an appropriate inventory management strategy is important in pursuit of this goal. This article examines peculiarities of inventory management strategies employed by Lithuanian manufacturing companies. The purpose is to investigate, what kind of strategies and for what reasons companies are using. This purpose was achieved during the conducted study based on the application of sophisticated questionnaire. Conducted research revealed that the applicability of JIT and 3PL inventory management strategies in Lithuania is limited

CREATIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN ADVERTISING DESIGN

The purpose of this article was analyses the existing methodological approaches to art, culture, design, advertising for the further effective designing of advertising products, increasing its positive value orientations and aesthetic level. The research area is the visualization of advertising ideas taking into account of regional specificity and ethno-cultural identification. Scientific study of cultural-aesthetic component in advertising design has the aim to systematize visual means of information and make a complex definition of their functional specifics in contemporary society, which is much wider than thirty years ago. The advertising graphics presented as visual art, visual culture and visual communication. On examples, we considered the creative advertising technologies: metaphors, hyperbole, associations, allegories and metonymies using colour-graphic imaginative means. Orientation of products to regional consumer groups, significant change of market policy presupposed cardinal change in tasks and character of advertising: socio-psychological, cultural and art-aesthetical indices become actual. Definition of imagery as specific tool of creativity on the point of view different aesthetic ideals is a key to understanding the process of art projecting. So, our comprehensive research summarizes stylistics of advertising graphics in the context of cross-cultural communications from posters to new advertisings forms – digital media. Santrauka Šio straipsnio tikslas – išanalizuoti esamas metodologines meno, kultūros, dizaino, reklamos prieigas, siekiant sukurti efektyvų reklamos produktų dizainą, didinant teigiamą orientacinę jo vertę ir keliant estetinį lygį. Tyrimo sritis – reklamos idėjų vizualizavimas, atsižvelgiant į regiono specifiką ir etnokultūrinį tapatinimąsi. Kultūrinio-estetinio reklamos dizaino komponento mokslinio tyrimo tikslas – susisteminti vizualines informacijos priemones ir suformuluoti kompleksinę jų funkcinių charakteristikų apibrėžtį, kuri šiuolaikinėje visuomenėje yra gerokai platesnė nei prieš trisdešimt metų. Reklamos grafika pristatoma kaip vizualusis menas, vizualinė kultūra ir vizualinė komunikacija. Pavyzdžiui, naudodamiesi spalvinėmis grafinėmis vaizdinėmis priemonėmis, aptarėme kūrybines reklamos technologijas: metaforas, hiperbolę, asociacijas, alegorijas ir metonimijas. Produktų orientavimas į regioninių vartotojų grupes, reikšmingas rinkos politikos pokytis paskatino radikalų reklamos uždavinių ir pobūdžio pasikeitimą: tapo aktualūs sociopsichologiniai, kultūriniai ir meniniai-estetiniai rodikliai. Vaizduotės kaip ypatingos kūrybiškumo priemonės apibrėžtis skirtingų estetinių idealų požiūriu – tai pagrindas, leidžiantis suprasti meno projektavimo procesą. Šiame išsamiame tyrime apibendrinama reklamos grafikos stilistika tarpkultūrinės komunikacijos kontekste, pradedant plakatais ir baigiant naujomis reklamos formomis – skaitmeninėmis medijomis. Reikšminiai žodžiai: reklamos dizainas, reklamos grafika, meninė vaizduotė, plakatas, skaitmeninės medijos, vizualinė estetika