Developing an individualized survival prediction model for rectal cancer

This work presents a survivability prediction model for rectal cancer patients developed through machine learning techniques. The model was based on the most complete worldwide cancer dataset known, the SEER dataset. After preprocessing, the training data consisted of 12,818 records of rectal cancer patients. Six features were extracted from a feature selection process, finding the most relevant characteristics which affect the survivability of rectal cancer. The model constructed with six features was compared with another one with 18 features indicated by a physician. The results show that the performance of the six-feature model is close to that of the model using 18 features, which indicates that the first may be a good compromise between usability and performance.FCT - Fuel Cell Technologies Program (SFRH/BD/85291/2012)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A personal assistant for health care professionals based on clinical protocols

Current tools to operationalize Computer-Interpretable Guidelines focus mainly on displaying recommendations rather than assisting health care professionals in their daily activities. Furthermore, their underlying models have limitations at the level of temporal representation that hinder the accurate depiction of clinical protocols in a few specific situations. This work identifies such situations and proposes a comprehensive temporal model based on OntologyWeb Language (OWL), along with a web-based tool that provides an alternative way to deploy and view clinical protocols. This is evaluated through a case study featuring a clinical protocol for the treatment of colon cancer. It was possible to observe that the model was able to represent the majority of temporal patterns, specially those with periodic events and temporal restrictions about the state of a patient.This work has been supported by FCT Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia within the Project Scope UID/CEC/00319/2013. The work of Tiago Oliveira is supported by a FCT grant with the reference SFRH/BD/85291/2012.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Envelhecimento e saúde: Escala de Autoeficácia para a Autodireção na Saúde

OBJETIVO Validar a Escala de Autoeficácia para a Autodireção no domínio da Saúde (EAAS). MÉTODOS Estudo quantitativo não experimental de validação da EAAS, por meio de análises fatoriais confirmatórias, avaliando amostra de 508 seniores e idosos provenientes das regiões Norte e Centro de Portugal com média etária de 71.67 (51 a 96 anos), a quem foram aplicadas a Escala de Autoeficácia para a Autodireção na Saúde, a Escala de Autoestima de Rosenberg, a Escala de Afeto Positivo e Afeto Negativo, a Escala de Satisfação Com a Vida e a escala de Atividades Instrumentais da Vida Diária. A EAAS foi desenvolvida a partir dos construtos teóricos da autoeficácia e da aprendizagem autodirigida no âmbito do projeto europeu PALADIN, visando constituir um instrumento apto a avaliar até que ponto os seniores cuidam bem da sua saúde. RESULTADOS A consistência interna encontrada foi de 0.87 (alfa de Cronbach) e as análises fatoriais confirmatórias permitiram encontrar um modelo próximo ao proposto teoricamente, indicando uma estrutura constituída por quatro dimensões: exercício físico, alimentação saudável, envolvimento em aprendizagens relativas à saúde e visitas a profissionais de saúde. Do ponto de vista psicométrico, o modelo em quatro fatores mostrou indicadores de ajustamento bastante satisfatórios. CONCLUSÕES A Escala de Autoeficácia para a Autodireção na Saúde, com 16 itens, é adequada para avaliar em que medida os seniores têm confiança na sua capacidade para tomar conta da própria saúde, com elevado grau de autonomia.OBJECTIVE To validate the Escala de Autoeficácia para a Autodireção na Saúde (EAAS – Self-efficacy for Self-direction in Health Scale). METHODS Non-experimental quantitative study of EAAS validation, by confirmatory factorial analyses, evaluating a sample of 508 older adults from the north and the center of Portugal with mean age of 71.67 (from 51 to 96 years), to whom the Self-efficacy for Self-direction in Health Scale, the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale were applied. The EAAS was developed from the theoretical constructs of self-efficacy and from self-directed learning within the PALADIN European project framework, aiming to develop an instrument able to assess the extent to which older adults take good care of their health. RESULTS The internal consistency was 0.87 (Cronbach’s alpha) and confirmatory factorial analyses enabled to find a model near the one theoretically proposed, indicating a structure consisting of four dimensions: physical exercise, healthy diet, engaging in health-related learning, and visits to health professionals. From the psychometric point of view, the model in four factors showed quite satisfactory fit indicators. CONCLUSIONS The Self-efficacy for Self-direction in Health Scale, with 16 items, is adequate to evaluate to what extent older adults have confidence in their ability to take care of their own health, with high degree of autonomy

A mobile and evolving tool to predict colorectal cancer survivability

In this work, a tool for the survivability prediction of patients with colon or rectal cancer, up to five years after diagnosis and treatment, is presented. Indeed, an accurate survivability prediction is a difficult task for health care professionals and of high concern to patients, so that they can make the most of the rest of their lives. The distinguishing features of the tool include a balance between the number of necessary inputs and prediction performance, being mobile-friendly, and featuring an online learning component that enables the automatic evolution of the prediction models upon the addition of new cases.This work has been supported by FCT - Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia within the Project Scope UID/CEC/00319/2013. The work of Tiago Oliveira is supported by a FCT grant with the reference SFRH/BD/85291/2012.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

CITED2 and the modulation of the hypoxic response in cancer

CITED2 (CBP/p300-interacting transactivator with Glu/Asp-rich C-terminal domain, 2) is a ubiquitously expressed protein exhibiting a high affinity for the CH1 domain of the transcriptional co-activators CBP/p300, for which it competes with hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs). CITED2 is particularly efficient in the inhibition of HIF-1α-dependent transcription in different contexts, ranging from organ development and metabolic homeostasis to tissue regeneration and immunity, being also potentially involved in various other physiological processes. In addition, CITED2 plays an important role in inhibiting HIF in some diseases, including kidney and heart diseases and type 2-diabetes. In the particular case of cancer, CITED2 either functions by promoting or suppressing cancer development depending on the context and type of tumors. For instance, CITED2 overexpression promotes breast and prostate cancers, as well as acute myeloid leukemia, while its expression is downregulated to sustain colorectal cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma. In addition, the role of CITED2 in the maintenance of cancer stem cells reveals its potential as a target in non-small cell lung carcinoma and acute myeloid leukemia, for example. But besides the wide body of evidence linking both CITED2 and HIF signaling to carcinogenesis, little data is available regarding CITED2 role as a negative regulator of HIF-1α specifically in cancer. Therefore, comprehensive studies exploring further the interactions of these two important mediators in cancer-specific models are sorely needed and this can potentially lead to the development of novel targeted therapies.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Accidental Diagnosis of Isolated Persistent Left Superior Vena Cava After an Elective Central Venous Access Procedure for Chronic Hemodialysis: Clinical Implications and Precautions From a Case Report

Persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) is the most frequent thoracic venous anatomical variant in the general population. Isolated PLSVC, without formation of the right superior vena cava, is described in 10% of cases of PLSVC only. While it can be associated with congenital heart disease, arrhythmias, and premature death, adult patients with PLSVC are mostly asymptomatic, and the diagnosis is usually accidental. We present the case of a 72-year-old male with end-stage renal disease who was started on urgent hemodialysis through a temporary non-tunneled femoral central venous catheter (CVC) in the SLED (slow low-efficiency dialysis) modality and later remained dependent on hemodialysis. At this stage, placement of a tunneled CVC in the right internal jugular vein was necessary and fluoroscopy guidance was not available. There were no complications during the procedure, but postoperative conventional chest radiography revealed an inadequate positioning of the CVC tip in the left hemithorax, crossing the midline. Subsequently, the diagnosis of PLSVC was obtained by performing a thoracic angio-CT scan, confirming CVC tip positioning inside the PLSVC, and also excluded the presence of cardiac defects or additional anatomical variations of the great vessels of the thorax. Early evaluation for the creation of autologous vascular access was started under our care, and there were no mechanical or other complications associated with hemodialysis sessions during early follow-up after discharge.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Health survey among people living near an abandoned mine. A case study: Jales mine, Portugal

Campo de Jales is a village surrounding the abandoned Jales mine. The area is heavily contaminated with heavy metals and dusts from large tailings piles as result of centuries of mining operations. The aim of this study is to investigate potential health threats associated with site contamination. The population studied comprised two groups: people living in Campo de Jales (n = 229) and a control group – people living in Vilar de Macada (n = 234). Lead and cadmium exposure and symptoms survey were carried out. The results showed a significant higher levels of blood lead and cadmium between the Campo de Jales residents (lead: 9.5 microgr/dl versus 7.7 microgr/dl; cadmium: 0.84 microgr/dl versus 0,65 microgr/dl) as well as to a higher prevalence of respiratory and irritation symptoms and great concern about his own health. In conclusion: community is the scene of long-term health problems resulting from the site environmental contamination

Pool-Type Fishway Design for a Potamodromous Cyprinid in the Iberian Peninsula: The Iberian Barbel—Synthesis and Future Directions

M.B., J.R.R., and J.P. would like to acknowledge support from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad) (Ref. CGL2012-34688) and thank the CITEEC (Centro de Innovación Tecnolóxica en Edificación e Enxeñería Civil) of the University of A Coruña and the Center for Hydrographic Studies of CEDEX for their ongoing collaboration in this research field. Finally, the authors want to thank the three anonymous reviewers for their comments and suggestions that improved this manuscript.The Iberian barbel (Luciobarbus bocagei) is one of the most common cyprinids in the Iberian Peninsula, whose migratory routes are often hampered by anthropogenic barriers. Fishways might be an effective mitigation measure if they integrate designed operational characteristics that account for the biomechanical requirements of this species. Understanding the flow conditions inside the fishway, and how barbel responds to the hydrodynamics of the flow is imperative to improve free migratory routes with minimum energetic cost associated. Herein, we analyze and synthesize the main findings of research on pool-type fishways for upstream passage of the Iberian barbel and derive recommendations of design criteria for pool-type fishways for this species and others of similar biomechanics capacities. Ultimately, we identify research needs to improve upstream passage of this species.A.T.S. was supported by the Norwegian Research Centre for Hydropower Technology—HydroCen (Project No. 257588); M.B. was funded from EU’s Horizon 2020 Programme under Marie Sklodowska-Curie Grant Agreement 754446 and UGR Research and Knowledge Transfer Fund—Athenea3i; and J.M.S. was supported by national funds via FCT under the CEEC Institucional 2018 (Ref. 2/ISA/FCT/2018). Forest Research Centre (CEF) is a research unit funded by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia I.P. (FCT), Portugal (UIDB/00239/2020)