On de Sitter string vacua from anti-d3-branes in the large volume scenario

We consider de Sitter vacua realised in concrete type IIB Calabi-Yau compactifications with an anti D3-brane at the tip of a warped throat of Klebanov-Strassler type. The Kähler moduli are stabilised together with the complex structure modulus of the warped throat. The volume is exponentially large as in the large volume scenario (LVS). We analyse the conditions on the parameters of the EFT such that they are in the region of validity of our approximations, there are no runaway problems and the vacua satisfy all consistency constraints, such as tadpole cancellation. We illustrate our results with an explicit Calabi-Yau orientifold with two Kähler moduli and one antibrane on top of an O3-plane in a warped throat, that has the goldstino as its only massless state. The moduli are stabilised with gs∼ 0.2 and volume V∼ 104 in string units, justifying the approximation used to derive the corresponding EFT. Although the model lacks chiral matter, it is presented as a proof of concept, chosen to be the simplest realisation of antibrane uplift

Trade, Finance and Endogenous Firm Heterogeneity

We study how financial frictions affect firm-level heterogeneity and trade. We build a model in which productivity differences across monopolistically competitive firms are endogenous and depend on investment decisions at the entry stage. By increasing entry costs, financial frictions lower the exit cutoff and hence the value of investing in bigger projects with more dispersed outcomes. As a result, financial frictions make firms smaller and more homogeneous, and hinder the volume of exports. Export opportunities, instead, shift expected profits to the tail and increase the value of technological heterogeneity. We test these predictions using comparable measures of sales dispersion within 365 manufacturing industries in 119 countries, built from highly disaggregated US import data. Consistent with the model, financial development increases sales dispersion, especially in more financially vulnerable industries; sales dispersion is also increasing in measures of comparative advantage. These results help explaining the effect of financial development and factor endowments on export sales.We acknowledge financial support from the Barcelona GSE, the Spanish Ministry of Economy, and Competitiveness (ECO2014-55555-P and ECO2014-59805-P), and the Catalan AGAUR (2014-SGR-546)

Guidance on the use of bisphosphonates in solid tumours: recommendations of an international expert panel

Bisphosphonates (BP) prevent, reduce, and delay cancer-related skeletal complications in patients, and have substantially decreased the prevalence of such events since their introduction. Today, a broad range of BP with differences in potency, efficacy, dosing, and administration as well as approved indications is available. In addition, results of clinical trials investigating the efficacy of BP in cancer treatment-induced bone loss (CTIBL) have been recently published. The purpose of this paper is to review the current evidence on the use of BP in solid tumours and provide clinical recommendations. An interdisciplinary expert panel of clinical oncologists and of specialists in metabolic bone diseases assessed the widespread evidence and information on the efficacy of BP in the metastatic and nonmetastatic setting, as well as ongoing research on the adjuvant use of BP. Based on available evidence, the panel recommends amino-bisphosphonates for patients with metastatic bone disease from breast cancer and zoledronic acid for patients with other solid tumours as primary disease. Dosing of BP should follow approved indications with adjustments if necessary. While i.v. administration is most often preferable, oral administration (clodronate, IBA) may be considered for breast cancer patients who cannot or do not need to attend regular hospital care. Early-stage cancer patients at risk of developing CTIBL should be considered for preventative BP treatment. The strongest evidence in this setting is now available for ZOL. Overall, BP are well-tolerated, and most common adverse events are influenza-like syndrome, arthralgia, and when used orally, gastrointestinal symptoms. The dose of BP may need to be adapted to renal function and initial creatinine clearance calculation is mandatory according to the panel for use of any BP. Subsequent monitoring is recommended for ZOL and PAM, as described by the regulatory authority guidelines. Patients scheduled to receive BP (mainly every 3-4 weeks i.v.) should have a dental examination and be advised on appropriate measures for reducing the risk of jaw osteonecrosis. BP are well established as supportive therapy to reduce the frequency and severity of skeletal complications in patients with bone metastases from different cancer

STELLAR: Final updated results of a phase II trial of TTFields with chemotherapy for unresectable malignant pleural mesothelioma

Background: Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields), an anti-mitotic, regional treatment approved for glioblastoma utilizes low intensity, alternating electric fields delivered non-invasively to the tumor using a portable medical device. In-vitro, human mesothelioma cells were highly susceptible to TTFields. Methods: The trial accrued 80 patients with unresectable, previously untreated mesothelioma. Patients were treated with continuous 150 kHz TTFields (>18h/day) in combination with pemetrexed and cisplatin or carboplatin. Inclusion criteria included ECOG PS of 0-1 and pathologically proven mesothelioma. The primary endpoint was overall survival (OS). A visual analog scale was used to assess EOCG performance status and cancer-related pain assessed until disease progression. The sample size provided 80% power with two-sided alpha of 0.05 to detect an increase in median OS of 5.5 months compared to historical controls (Vogelzang, JCO 2003). Results: All 80 patients had a minimum follow up of 12 months. Median age was 67 (range 27-78), 84% were male and 44% (35 patients) had an ECOG PS of 1. 66% (53 patients) had epithelioid histology, similar to the Vogelzang study. Median OS was 18.2 months (95% CI 12.1-25.8) versus 12.1 months in the historical control. Median OS for epithelioid patients was 21.2 months (95% CI 13.2-25.8). ECOG score was stable during the first year of follow up. Median time to deterioration in performance status was 13.1 months. Average score of pain was lower compared to baseline during the first 7 months of the treatment and was higher later on the study, with a median time to a clinical significant 33% increase in pain of 8.4 months. No device-related serious adverse events (AEs) were reported. Expected TTFields-related dermatitis was reported in 46% (37 patients). Four patients (5%) had grade 3 dermatitis. Conclusions: The study met primary endpoint of significant extension of overall survival in previously untreated mesothelioma patients. TTFields was not associated with a decrease in performance status or an increase in pain for the duration of TTFields use. TTFields in combinati

Bullying and Victimization in Overweight and Obese Outpatient Children and Adolescents: An Italian Multicentric Study

Objective Being overweight or obese is one of the most common reasons that children and adolescents are teased at school. We carried out a study in order to investigate: i) the relation between weight status and school bullying and ii) the relation between weight status categories and types of victimization and bullying in an outpatient sample of Italian children and adolescents with different degrees of overweight from minimal overweight up to severe obesity. Participants/Methods Nine-hundred-forty-seven outpatient children and adolescents (age range 6.0'14.0 years) were recruited in 14 hospitals distributed over the country of Italy. The participants were classified as normal-weight (N = 129), overweight (N = 126), moderately obese (N = 568), and severely obese (N = 124). The nature and extent of verbal, physical and relational bullying and victimization were assessed with an adapted version of the revised Olweus bully-victim questionnaire. Each participant was coded as bully, victim, bully-victim, or not involved. Results Normal-weight and overweight participants were less involved in bullying than obese participants; severely obese males were more involved in the double role of bully and victim. Severely obese children and adolescents suffered not only from verbal victimization but also from physical victimization and exclusion from group activities. Weight status categories were not directly related to bullying behaviour; however severely obese males perpetrated more bullying behaviour compared to severely obese females. Conclusions Obesity and bullying among children and adolescents are of ongoing concern worldwide and may be closely related. Common strategies of intervention are needed to cope with these two social health challenges

Malignancies in Prader-Willi syndrome: results from a large international cohort and literature review

CONTEXT: Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a complex disorder combining hypothalamic dysfunction, neurodevelopmental delay, hypotonia, and hyperphagia with risk of obesity and its complications. PWS is caused by the loss of expression of the PWS critical region, a cluster of paternally expressed genes on chromosome 15q11.2-q13. As life expectancy of patients with PWS increases, age-related diseases like malignancies might pose a new threat to health. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence and risk factors of malignancies in patients with PWS and to provide clinical recommendations for cancer screening. METHODS: We included 706 patients with PWS (160 children, 546 adults). We retrospectively collected data from medical records on past or current malignancies, the type of malignancy and risk factors for malignancy. Additionally, we searched the literature for information about the relationship between genes on chromosome 15q11.2-q13 and malignancies. RESULTS: Seven adults (age range 18-55 years old) had been diagnosed with a malignancy (acute lymphoblastic leukemia, intracranial hemangiopericytoma, melanoma, stomach adenocarcinoma, biliary cancer, parotid adenocarcinoma and colon cancer). All patients with a malignancy had a paternal 15q11-13 deletion. The literature review showed that several genes on chromosome 15q11.2-q13 are related to malignancies. CONCLUSION: Malignancies are rare in patients with PWS. Therefore, screening for malignancies is only indicated when clinically relevant symptoms are present such as unexplained weight loss, loss of appetite, symptoms suggestive of paraneoplastic syndrome, or localizing symptoms. Given the increased cancer risk associated with obesity, which is common in PWS, participation in national screening programs should be encouraged

Concomitant high gene copy number and protein overexpression of IGF1R and EGFR negatively affect disease-free survival of surgically resected non-small-cell-lung cancer patients

BACKGROUND: Insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R) represents a novel molecular target in non-small-cell-lung cancer (NSCLC). IGF1R and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) activation are essential to mediate tumor cell survival, proliferation, and invasion. This study investigates the prognostic role of IGF1R and EGFR in surgically resected NSCLC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: IGF1R and EGFR copy number gain (CNG) were tested by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and protein expression by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in 125 stage I-II-IIIA NSCLC patients. RESULTS: Fourty-six tumors (40.3 %) were IGF1R FISH-positive (FISH+), and 76 (67.2 %) were EGFR FISH+. Tumors with concomitant IGF1R/EGFR FISH+ were observed in 34 cases (30.1 %). IGF1R and EGFR FISH+ were associated with SCC histology (p = 0.01 and p = 0.04, respectively). IGF1R and EGFR protein over-expression (IHC+) were detected in 45 (36.0 %) and 69 (55.2 %) cases, respectively. Tumors with concomitant IGF1R/EGFR IHC+ were detected in 31 (24.8 %) patients. IGF1R/EGFR FISH+ and IGF1R/EGFR IHC+ were significantly associated (χ(2) = 4.02, p = 0.04). Patients with IGF1R/EGFR FISH+ and IGF1R/EGFR IHC+ were associated with shorter disease-free survival (DFS) (p = 0.05 and p = 0.05, respectively). Patients with concomitant IGF1R/EGFR FISH+/IHC+ had a worse DFS and overall survival (p = 0.005 and p = 0.01, respectively). The multivariate model confirmed that IGF1R/EGFR FISH+/IHC+ (hazard ratio (HR), 4.08; p = 0.01) and tumor stage (II-III vs I) (HR, 4.77; p = 0.003) were significantly associated with worse DFS. CONCLUSIONS: IGF1R/EGFR FISH+ correlates with IGF1R/EGFR IHC+. IGF1R/EGFR FISH+/IHC+ is an independent negative prognostic factor for DFS in early NSCLC. These features may have important implications for future anti-IGF1R therapeutic approaches

Preliminary efficacy and safety data of nivolumab in never smoker patients with advanced squamous NSCLC: Experience from Italian sites participating in the Expanded Access Programme (EAP)

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