Immune responses in primary and metastatic breast cancer

Abstract Breast Cancer is a heterogeneous disease, which affects one in ten women in the UK today. Developments in recent years have led to earlier diagnosis and improved treatments and survival. However, mortality is still high and metastatic disease remains incurable. The role of the immune system in breast cancer has been questioned for over 100 years and more recently has led to major developments most notably in the form of Herceptin. Current evidence suggests that the immune system is stimulated by tumours to manifest a response. Many breast cancers show evidence of this immune response in the form of tumour infiltrating lymphocytes. However contradictory opinions exist as to whether this response is favourable for the host or not. The significance of the findings of many of these studies is limited by several factors, including small patient numbers and the fact that qualitative rather than quantitative assessments of tumour infiltrating lymphocytes have been used. The aims of this study were twofold: Firstly, we set out to develop a practical and efficient method for quantifying immune responses in tissue specimens and secondly, the main aim was to establish the significance of this response, by quantifying the tumour infiltrating lymphocytes in a group of patients with breast cancer, using a well designed study. Our patient group was derived from the Greater Glasgow Health Board database, which was established in 1995 to keep a record of all patients diagnosed with breast cancer in greater Glasgow area. We designed a case-control study to include patients, who were matched on the basis of several factors, recognised as having prognostic significance in breast cancer. The hypothesis to be tested was that metastatic relapse would be less likely in women with breast cancers in which a significant immune infiltrate was present, than in women with cancers in which there was no significant immune-cell infiltrate. We established a reliable and efficient method for immune cell quantification, which will be of value in future studies looking at the immuno-phenotype of the cells that comprise the inflammatory cell infiltrate. Additionally we found that most breast cancers show evidence of an immune cell infiltrate and that this response is likely to be protective

Examining Video Self-Modeling in Promoting Food Acceptance in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in a School Setting

Children with autism spectrum disorder have a higher incident of feeding problems as compared with typical children and children with other developmental delays, with the feeding problems more often identified as learned or behavioral. Research into the effectiveness of antecedent- and consequence-based behavioral strategies continue to grow, with most research conducted within clinical settings. As educators we strive for less restrictive and empirically validated interventions within more naturalistic settings. Despite the growing body of research as to the effectiveness of video modeling to affect change across a number of areas, research using video modeling is sparse with respect to food acceptance in children with autism spectrum disorder. The current study investigated the effectiveness of video self-modeling in promoting food acceptance in children with autism spectrum disorder in a school setting. A multiple baseline design across 3 children was employed to determine treatment effects. While data did not show a discernable intervention effect, findings highlight the need for continued research into the potential influences of family eating preferences, the impact of the characteristics of autism on early feeding experiences, such as, deficits in communication, inflexibility and rigidity, and motivation, on the development of learning histories. Further recommendations are made for earlier intervention to include parent training and support using a multi-disciplinary team approach

An evaluation of exercises for the development of word recognition and word meaning in grade five

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

Developing an integrated and interdisciplinary information platform for volcanic hazard and risk data

In recent years, the volcanology community has begun to acknowledge the need to better organise and integrate their data to enable their research; however a key issue to resolve is how to integrate databases at a volcano or national scale in such a way that we can expand them to a regional and ultimately global scale and, through various tools, be able to share the data for effective research. By presenting examples of recent collaborations, we demonstrate the need to adopt common methodologies for data collation, integration and common vocabularies for QA procedures. Through the GVM network, we are moving towards an integrated and interdisciplinary information platform that brings together the multitude of volcanic datasets with data discovery, access and download tools for scientists. The ultimate goal is to enable linkages with other research data systems by providing programmable interfaces to extend data discoverability to regional and global scales for broader scientific research

An evaluation of exercises for the development of word recognition and word meaning in grade five

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

An annotation system for 3D fluid flow visualization

Annotation is a key activity of data analysis. However, current systems for data analysis focus almost exclusively on visualization. We propose a system which integrates annotations into a visualization system. Annotations are embedded in 3D data space, using the Post-it metaphor. This embedding allows contextual-based information storage and retrieval, and facilitates information sharing in collaborative environments. We provide a traditional database filter and a Magic Lens filter to create specialized views of the data. The system has been customized for fluid flow applications, with features which allow users to store parameters of visualization tools and sketch 3D volumes

What Person-Centred Medicine is and isn’t: temptations for the ‘soul’ of PCM

In their important discussion paper presenting person-centred medicine (PCM) as ‘an emergent model of modern clinical practice’ [1], Miles and Mezzich note a rather obvious comparison between the rhetoric of their own favoured ‘model’ and the rhetoric of the evidence-based medicine (EBM) movement. For all their differences, PCM and EBM have something in common. While we may disagree about what evidence is or indeed just not be sure what it is, we are generally agreed that we are in favour of it. A movement that is all about promoting the use of evidence in medicine sounds about as uncontroversial as it gets. I might be oblivious to scientific debates about the nature of evidence and have no idea how to define the term, but I know that I want anyone treating me to use evidence, all the same. I may wonder what else medical decisions should be based on, if not evidence? [2]. Similarly, it would make very little sense to be ‘against’ persons. I may have never given a moment’s thought to philosophical disputes about the nature of persons, but I know that however one defines persons, I am one of them and in reply to the question: ‘Should medicine care for persons or not?’ few would answer in the negative. Again, I might wonder: if medicine is not about caring for ‘the person’, then what is it about

The assumptions of ethical rationing: an unreasonable man's response to Magelssen et al.

Contributors to the debate on ethical rationing bring with them assumptions about the proper role of moral theories in practical discourse, which seem reasonable, realistic and pragmatic. These assumptions function to define the remit of bioethical discourse and to determine conceptions of proper methodology and causal reasoning in the area. However well intentioned, the desire to be realistic in this sense may lead us to judge the adequacy of a theory precisely with reference to its ability to deliver apparently determinate answers to questions that strike most practitioners and patients as morally arbitrary. By providing ethical solutions that work given the world as it is, work in clinical ethics may serve to endorse or protect from scrutiny the very structures that need to change if real moral progress is to be possible. Such work can help to foster the illusion that fundamentally arbitrary decisions are ‘grounded’ in objective, impartial reasoning, bestowing academic credibility on policies and processes, making it subsequently harder for others to criticise those processes. As theorists, we need to reflect on our political role and how best to foster virtuous, critical practice, if we are to avoid making contributions to the debate that not only do no good, but may even be harmful. A recent debate in this journal illustrates these issues effectively