Diffusion studies in uranium carbide systems

Imperial Users onl

Knowledge and Anxiety Related to Hereditary Ovarian Cancer in Serous Ovarian Cancer Patients

PURPOSE: The awareness of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC) and BRCA testing is increasing in Korea. Compared to the sizable research on HBOC knowledge among breast cancer women, studies in the ovarian cancer population are limited. This paper aimed to investigate the level of knowledge of hereditary ovarian cancer and anxiety in women diagnosed with serous ovarian cancer in Korea and determine differences in the knowledge and anxiety according to whether genetic testing was undertaken and whether BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations were present. METHODS: Using a descriptive research design, a cross-sectional survey was conducted on 100 women diagnosed with serous ovarian cancer at N hospital in Gyeonggi-do, Korea, from July to November 2018. The collected data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, independent t-tests, one-way analysis of variance, and Pearson's correlation coefficient using the SPSS 21.0 program. RESULTS: The hereditary ovarian cancer-related knowledge score was mid-level (mean score 8.90±3.29 out of a total of 17), as was the state anxiety level was mid-level (mean score 47.96±3.26 out of possible score range of 20–80). Genetic knowledge of hereditary ovarian cancer was associated with age, education, occupation, genetic counseling, and BRCA mutations. There were no statistically significant factors related to anxiety and there were no statistically significant correlations between knowledge level and anxiety. CONCLUSION: More comprehensive education on gene-related cancer is needed for ovarian cancer patients, especially for items with low knowledge scores. A genetic counseling protocol should be developed to allow more patients to alleviate their anxiety through genetic counseling

Primary Intramedullary Neuroblastoma in Adult

Primary neuroblastoma in the central nervous system(CNS) is unusual tumor in adult, and primary intramedullary neuroblastoma is extremely rare. The authors report a case of 36-year-old woman presenting with pain in the right anterior chest wall and weakness of the right lower extremity. An upper thoracic intraspinal mass was revealed on magnetic resonance image. On operation, the demarcation plane of the tumor was good and enabled a total removal of the subpially located intramedullary mass. Histopathological examination revealed neuroblastoma. After surgery with whole spinal irradiation, the patient was followed up for one year. There was no evidence of local recurrence radiologically and clinically. However fifteen months after the surgery, multiple metastases to the breast, lung, Iioer and brain occurred

Psychometric Properties of the Hypomania Checklist-32 in Korean Patients with Mood Disorders

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to examine the validity of the Korean version of the Hypomania Checklist-32, second revision (HCL-32-R2) in mood disorder patients. METHODS A total of 454 patients who diagnosed as mood disorder according to Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders, clinician version (SCID-CV) (bipolar disorder [BD] I, n=190; BD-II, n=72; and major depressive disorder [MDD], n=192) completed the Korean module of the HCL-32-R2 (KHCL-32-R2). RESULTS The KHCL-32-R2 showed a three-factorial structure (eigenvalue ＞2) that accounted for 43.26% of the total variance. Factor 1 was labeled "active/elated" and included 16 items; factor 2, "irritable/distractible" and included 9 items; and factor 3 was labeled "risk-taking/indulging" and included 9 items. A score of 16 or more on the KHCL-32-R2 total scale score distinguished between BD and MDD, which yielded a sensitivity of 70% and a specificity of 70%. MDD and BD-II also could be differentiated at a cut-off of 15 with maximized sensitivity (0.67) and specificity (0.66). Cronbach's alpha of KHCL-32-R2 and its subsets (factors 1, 2, and 3) were 0.91, 0.89, 0.81 and 0.79, respectively. Correlations between KHCL-32-R2 and Montgomery- Asberg Depression Rating Scale, Young Mania Rating Scale and Korean version of Mood Disorder Questionnaire were -0.66 (p=0.41), -0.14 (p=0.9), and 0.61 (p＜0.001), respectively. CONCLUSION The KHCL-32-R2 may be a useful tool in distinguishing between bipolar and depressive patients in clinical settings

Acute Fibrinous and Organizing Pneumonia Following Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

A 60-year-old man presented with cough, sputum, and dyspnea. He had a history of acute myeloid leukemia and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation with chronic renal failure. Chest CT scans showed miliary nodules and patchy consolidations. Histological examination revealed numerous fibrin balls within the alveoli and thickening of the alveolar septum, both of which are typical pathological features of acute fibrinous and organizing pneumonia (AFOP). We report the first case of AFOP following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Trends of Presentation and Clinical Outcome of Treated Renal Angiomyolipoma

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to set guidelines for the management of renal angiomyolipoma (AML), clinical prognosis according to tumor size, in association with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), multiplicity, radiographic finding, and treatment modality. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between March 1998 and October 2008, 129 out of 254 patients with AML who underwent surgical intervention or angioembolization were enrolled. Diagnosis of AML was determined by the presence of a low attenuated component on CT imaging or by pathological confirmation. Indications of treatment were intractable pain, hematuria, suspicion of malignancy, large tumor size, spontaneous rupture, and radiographically equivocal tumors in which a differential diagnosis was needed to rule out malignancy. Parameters including age, sex, tumor size, multiplicity, radiographic characteristics, association with TSC, and treatment modality were reviewed. RESULTS: Age at presentation was 50.6 years and mean tumor size was 3.5 cm. Presentation symptoms were flank pain, hematuria, spontaneous rupture, and fatigue. 97 (75.2%) patients were incidentally discovered. 100 (77.5%) were females. 68 (52.7%) underwent nephron-sparing surgery (NSS), 35 (27.1%) radical nephrectomy, and 26 (20.2%) angioembolization. TSC was accompanied in 12 (9.3%) patients. No patient developed renal function impairment during the mean follow-up period of 64.8 months. Patients with TSC presented at a younger age, along with larger, bilateral, and multiple lesions. CONCLUSION: Significant differences in clinical manifestations and treatment outcomes were noted in respect to tumor characteristics, association with TSC, and treatment modality. Considering the benign nature of AML, these parameters ought to be considered when deciding upon active surveillance or prophylactic intervention.ope

A placebo-controlled study comparing the efficacy of intra-articular injections of hyaluronic acid and a novel hyaluronic acid-platelet-rich plasma conjugate in a canine model of osteoarthritis

Background The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of intra-articular injections of hyaluronic acid (HA) and a novel, on-site conjugate of HA with autologous fibrinogen in platelet-rich plasma (HA-PRP) in a canine model of osteoarthritis (OA) Methods Twelve beagle dogs underwent a unilateral resection of the cranial cruciate ligament (CrCL) of the stifle joint. Clinical and radiographic signs of OA were confirmed in all dogs 8 weeks following CrCL resection and prior to treatment. The dogs were randomized into three groups: saline (n = 4), HA (n = 4), and HA-PRP (n = 4). Each dog received intra-articular injections of the respective substance into the affected joint at pre-determined time points. The dogs were assessed for adverse effects for 3 days after each injection and for lameness, pain, range of motion, kinetics, and radiographic OA severity prior to treatment and 3 months after injection. OA severity as determined by radiographic examination was not significantly different among the groups at any time point. The dogs were then humanely euthanatized and the stifle joint assessed by gross and histological examinations. Results Dogs treated with four weekly injections of HA or two biweekly injections of HA-PRP were significantly (p < 0.05) better than dogs treated with four weekly injections of saline at 2-, 4-, and 12-week time points based on a comfortable range of motion (CROM) and clinical lameness score. Gait analysis measuring symmetry and weight distribution on pressure sensor walkway showed significantly (p < 0.05) improved limb function for dogs treated with HA and HA-PRP compared with dogs treated with saline yet with better clinical outcome for the HA-PRP-treated group at 12 and 20 weeks follow-up. Gross and histological analysis of synovium and articular cartilage demonstrated significant (p < 0.05) improvement by both treatments groups compared to controls. There was however significantly (p < 0.05) less damage to the cartilage in the HA-PRP group compared to the HA-treated group. Conclusions These data suggest that while injection of HA and HA-PRP may be sufficient for short-term amelioration of the symptoms associated with OA, treatment with HA-PRP conjugates may be superior, providing significantly better long-term cartilage preservation.This study was supported by funding from the Green Cross Veterinary Products Co., Ltd

Safety and efficacy study of laparoscopic or robotic radical surgery using an endoscopic stapler for inhibiting tumour spillage of cervical malignant neoplasms evaluating survival (SOLUTION): a multi-centre, open-label, single-arm, phase II trial protocol

The Laparoscopic Approach to Cervical Cancer trial and Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program database study demonstrated that minimally invasive radical hysterectomy was inferior to abdominal radical hysterectomy in terms of disease recurrence and survival. Among risk factors related to poor prognosis after minimally invasive surgery (MIS), tumour spillage during intracorporeal colpotomy became a significant issue. Thus, we designed this trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of minimally invasive radical hysterectomy using an endoscopic stapler for early-stage cervical cancer. This trial is a prospective, multi-centre, open-label, single-arm, non-inferiority phase II study. The nine organisations will participate in this trial after the approval of the institutional review board. Major eligibility criteria include women aged 20 years or older with cervical cancer stage IB1 squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, or adenosquamous carcinoma according to the revised 2009 FIGO staging system who will undergo type B2 or C hysterectomy by MIS. The primary endpoint is the 4.5-year disease-free survival (DFS) rate between abdominal radical hysterectomy and MIS using an endoscopic stapler. For calculating the sample size, we hypothesised that the 4.5-year DFS rate after MIS using an endoscopic stapler is assumed to be the same after abdominal radical hysterectomy at 90.9%, and the non-inferiority margin was 7.2%. When we consider a three-year accrual and 4.5-year follow-up, at least 13 events must happen, requiring a total of 111 patients assuming a statistical power of 80% and the one-tailed test of 5% significance. A total of 124 patients is needed, considering a drop-out rate of 10%. We expect intracorporeal colpotomy using an endoscopic stapler may prevent tumour spillage during MIS for stage IB1 cervical cancer, showing a comparable prognosis with abdominal radical surgery.This study was supported by Johnson & Johnson. The funder has no role in study design, writing of the manuscript and the decision to submit the report for publication