Histogram-based models on non-thin section chest CT predict invasiveness of primary lung adenocarcinoma subsolid nodules.

109 pathologically proven subsolid nodules (SSN) were segmented by 2 readers on non-thin section chest CT with a lung nodule analysis software followed by extraction of CT attenuation histogram and geometric features. Functional data analysis of histograms provided data driven features (FPC1,2,3) used in further model building. Nodules were classified as pre-invasive (P1, atypical adenomatous hyperplasia and adenocarcinoma in situ), minimally invasive (P2) and invasive adenocarcinomas (P3). P1 and P2 were grouped together (T1) versus P3 (T2). Various combinations of features were compared in predictive models for binary nodule classification (T1/T2), using multiple logistic regression and non-linear classifiers. Area under ROC curve (AUC) was used as diagnostic performance criteria. Inter-reader variability was assessed using Cohen's Kappa and intra-class coefficient (ICC). Three models predicting invasiveness of SSN were selected based on AUC. First model included 87.5 percentile of CT lesion attenuation (Q.875), interquartile range (IQR), volume and maximum/minimum diameter ratio (AUC:0.89, 95%CI:[0.75 1]). Second model included FPC1, volume and diameter ratio (AUC:0.91, 95%CI:[0.77 1]). Third model included FPC1, FPC2 and volume (AUC:0.89, 95%CI:[0.73 1]). Inter-reader variability was excellent (Kappa:0.95, ICC:0.98). Parsimonious models using histogram and geometric features differentiated invasive from minimally invasive/pre-invasive SSN with good predictive performance in non-thin section CT

Multimodality Imaging in the Evaluation of Cardiovascular Manifestations of Malignancy

Up to one third of the population will die as a direct result of cancer. Accurate and timely diagnosis of disease often requires multiple different approaches including the use of modern imaging techniques. Prompt recognition of adverse consequences of some anti-cancer therapies also requires a knowledge of the optimum imaging strategy for the problem at hand. The purpose of this article is to review not only some of the commoner cardiovascular manifestations of malignancy but also to discuss the strengths, weaknesses and appropriate use of cardiovascular imaging modalities

Assessing invasiveness of subsolid lung adenocarcinomas with combined attenuation and geometric feature models

The aim of this study was to develop and test multiclass predictive models for assessing the invasiveness of individual lung adenocarcinomas presenting as subsolid nodules on computed tomography (CT). 227 lung adenocarcinomas were included: 31 atypical adenomatous hyperplasia and adenocarcinomas in situ (class H1), 64 minimally invasive adenocarcinomas (class H2) and 132 invasive adenocarcinomas (class H3). Nodules were segmented, and geometric and CT attenuation features including functional principal component analysis features (FPC1 and FPC2) were extracted. After a feature selection step, two predictive models were built with ordinal regression: Model 1 based on volume (log) (logarithm of the nodule volume) and FPC1, and Model 2 based on volume (log) and Q.875 (CT attenuation value at the 87.5% percentile). Using the 200-repeats Monte-Carlo cross-validation method, these models provided a multiclass classification of invasiveness with discriminative power AUCs of 0.83 to 0.87 and predicted the class probabilities with less than a 10% average error. The predictive modelling approach adopted in this paper provides a detailed insight on how the value of the main predictors contribute to the probability of nodule invasiveness and underlines the role of nodule CT attenuation features in the nodule invasiveness classification

Surveillance, Diversity and Vegetative Compatibility Groups of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. vasinfectum Collected in Cotton Fields in Australia (2017 to 2022)

Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) is a billion-dollar crop in regional New South Wales (NSW) and Queensland, Australia. Fusarium wilt (FW) caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. vasinfectum (Fov) is an economically important disease. Initial disease losses of up to 90% when the disease was first detected resulted in fields being taken out of cotton production. The disease is now well-managed due to the adoption of highly resistant varieties. However, annual disease surveys recently revealed that the disease dynamic has changed in the past few seasons. With relatively mild and wet weather conditions during the 2021/22 growing season, FW was detected in eight surveyed valleys in NSW and Queensland, with the disease incidence as high as 44.5% and 98.5% in individual fields in early and late seasons, respectively. Fov is genetically distinct and evolved from local Fusarium oxysporum strains. Additionally, the pathogen was reported to evolve rapidly under continuous cotton cropping pressure. However, our knowledge of the genetic composition of the prevailing population is limited. Sequences of the translation elongation factor alpha 1 (TEF1) revealed that 94% of Fusarium isolates recovered from FW-infected cotton were clustered together with known Australian Fov and relatively distant related to overseas Fov races. All these isolates, except for nine, were further confirmed positive with a specific marker based on the Secreted in Xylem 6 (SIX6) effector gene. Vegetative compatibility group (VCG) analyses of 166 arbitrarily selected isolates revealed a predominance of VCG01111. There was only one detection of VCG01112 in the Border Rivers valley where it was first described. In this study, the exotic Californian Fov race 4 strain was not detected using a specific marker based on the unique Tfo1 insertion in the phosphate (PHO) gene. This study indicated that the prevalence and abundance of Fov across NSW and Queensland in the past five seasons was probably independent of its genetic diversity

Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Complicated by Pulmonary Edema in the Postpartum Period

We report the case of a 42-year-old patient with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) who presented to the emergency department with severe shortness of breath one week following uneventful cesarean delivery. Thoracic CT ruled out pulmonary embolus and confirmed pulmonary edema. Asymmetric interventricular septal thickening was clearly identified, demonstrating that the heart may be evaluated even on a non-ECG gated study. Acute pulmonary edema in the postpartum period is an unusual clinical presentation of HCM