A study to assess prevalence of treatment default among lung cancer patients registered at a tertiary care hospital

Background: Lung cancer is among the five main types of cancer leading to overall cancer mortality contributing about 1.3 million deaths/year globally. Completion of treatment among lung cancer patients is one of key factor for the survival and longevity of patients. So, we have tried to find out prevalence of treatment default through this study.Methods: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study (including retrospective secondary and prospective primary data) using data base of patients of primary lung cancer diagnosed between 1st January 2006 to 31st December 2012 in indoor and outdoor of department of Respiratory Medicine, J.L.N. Medical College, Ajmer, a tertiary level hospital and teaching center.Results: Incidence of lung cancer is significantly higher among young female (10.23%) as compared to young male (8.74 %). Whereas in older group number of male suffering from lung cancer than female. Total 269 (20.7%) patients defaulted from planned treatment and most of them ultimately drop-out from chemotherapy cycles. Intercycle delay of 2 weeks-1m commonly seen.Conclusions: It provides future implication to researchers to explore reasons of these defaults and drop outs so that more evidences can be generated in this direction for the ultimate betterment of lung cancer patients

Pressure enhanced superconductivity at 10 K in La doped EuBiS2F

Polycrystalline Eu0.5La0.5BiS2F was synthesized by solid state reaction which crystallizes in the tetragonal CeOBiS2 structure (P4/nmm). We report here enhancement of Tc to 2.2 K in Eu0.5La0.5BiS2F (by electron doping in EuBiS2F with Tc ~ 0.3 K). Eu0.5La0.5BiS2F is semiconducting down to 3 K and an onset of superconductivity is seen at 2.2 K at ambient pressure. Upon application of pressure the Tc could be enhanced upto 10 K. Step like features are seen in the resistivity curves at intermediate pressures (0.5 - 1 GPa) which hints towards the possible existence of two phases with different Tc. At a pressure above 1.38GPa, the Tconset remains invariant at 10 K but the Tc(\r{ho}=0) is increased to above 8.2 K. There is a possible transformation from a low Tc phase to a high Tc phase by application of pressure.Comment: Accepted in Supercond. Sci. Technol. (Sept 2015

Inkjet- and flextrail-printing of silicon polymer-based inks for local passivating contacts

In this work innovative additive printing methods for formation of polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) and polycrystalline silicon carbide (poly-SiC) layers of local tunnel oxide passivating contacts (TOPCon) is evaluated. Replacement of conventional vacuum processes and vapor-phase deposition by additive printing of Si in fabrication process of high efficiency solar cells reduces processing complexity, and, hence manufacturing costs. Reliable inkjet- and FlexTrail-printing processes are developed for liquid-phase polysilane and organic polysilazane inks that are precursors of Si and SiC, respectively. FlexTrail is introduced as a potential technology to print uniform closed thin films of polysilane free of ruptures. Moreover, from inkjet-printing of the developed polysilane ink, homogenous, closed and crack free thin films of poly-Si are obtained after high temperature annealing. The polysilane ink is formulated considering evaluation of several solvents and photoinduced polymerization conditions. Inkjet-printing process development and optimization according to high frequency rheological characterization of organic polysilazane (OPSZ) is presented. Printed thin films are characterized after high temperature annealing (T = 950 °C, t = 60 min) to be uniform and free of micro cracks

Vision, challenges and opportunities for a Plant Cell Atlas

With growing populations and pressing environmental problems, future economies will be increasingly plant-based. Now is the time to reimagine plant science as a critical component of fundamental science, agriculture, environmental stewardship, energy, technology and healthcare. This effort requires a conceptual and technological framework to identify and map all cell types, and to comprehensively annotate the localization and organization of molecules at cellular and tissue levels. This framework, called the Plant Cell Atlas (PCA), will be critical for understanding and engineering plant development, physiology and environmental responses. A workshop was convened to discuss the purpose and utility of such an initiative, resulting in a roadmap that acknowledges the current knowledge gaps and technical challenges, and underscores how the PCA initiative can help to overcome them.</jats:p

Robotic-Assisted Abdomino-perineal Vesicourethral Anastomotic Reconstruction for 4.5 Centimeter Post-prostatectomy Stricture

We report surgical management of a disrupted radical prostatectomy vesicourethral anastomosis after bleeding from undiagnosed hemophilia that required re-exploration, pudendal artery embolization, and urinary diversion with nephrostomy and surgical drains. After referral, the 4.5 cm vesicourethral anastomotic defect was reconstructed with a robotic-assisted abdomino-perineal approach. Intra-abdominal robotic-assisted mobilization of the bladder and perineal mobilization of the urethra permitted a tension-free vesicourethral anastomosis while avoiding a pubectomy. Side docking of the Da Vinci Xi robot allows for simultaneous access to the perineum during pelvic minimally invasive surgery, enabling a novel approach to complex bladder neck reconstruction