Predicting respiratory motion for real-time tumour tracking in radiotherapy

Purpose. Radiation therapy is a local treatment aimed at cells in and around a tumor. The goal of this study is to develop an algorithmic solution for predicting the position of a target in 3D in real time, aiming for the short fixed calibration time for each patient at the beginning of the procedure. Accurate predictions of lung tumor motion are expected to improve the precision of radiation treatment by controlling the position of a couch or a beam in order to compensate for respiratory motion during radiation treatment. Methods. For developing the algorithmic solution, data mining techniques are used. A model form from the family of exponential smoothing is assumed, and the model parameters are fitted by minimizing the absolute disposition error, and the fluctuations of the prediction signal (jitter). The predictive performance is evaluated retrospectively on clinical datasets capturing different behavior (being quiet, talking, laughing), and validated in real-time on a prototype system with respiratory motion imitation. Results. An algorithmic solution for respiratory motion prediction (called ExSmi) is designed. ExSmi achieves good accuracy of prediction (error $4-9$ mm/s) with acceptable jitter values (5-7 mm/s), as tested on out-of-sample data. The datasets, the code for algorithms and the experiments are openly available for research purposes on a dedicated website. Conclusions. The developed algorithmic solution performs well to be prototyped and deployed in applications of radiotherapy

Heated tobacco products for smoking cessation and reducing smoking prevalence

Objectives: This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of HTPs for smoking cessation and the impact of HTPs on smoking prevalence

Noticing education campaigns or public health messages about vaping among youth in the US, Canada, and England from 2018 to 2022

Purpose: Public health campaigns have the potential to correct vaping misperceptions. However, campaigns highlighting vaping harms to youth may increase misperceptions that vaping is equally/more harmful than smoking. Vaping campaigns have been implemented in the US and Canada since 2018, and in England since 2017, but with differing focus: youth vaping prevention (US/Canada) and smoking cessation (England). We therefore examined country differences and trends in noticing vaping campaigns among youth and, using 2022 data only, perceived valence of campaigns and associations with harm perceptions. Methods: Seven repeated cross-sectional surveys of 16–19-year-olds in US, Canada, England (2018-2022, N=92,339). Results: Over half of youth reported noticing vaping campaigns, and noticing increased from Aug’18-Feb’20 (US:55.2-74.6%,AOR=1.21,95%CI=1.18-1.24; Canada:52.6-64.5%,AOR=1.13,1.11-1.16; England:48.0-53.0%,AOR=1.05,1.02-1.08) before decreasing (Canada) or plateauing (England/US) to Aug’22. Increases were most pronounced in the US, then Canada. Noticing was most common on websites/social media, school, and television/radio. In 2022 only, most campaigns were perceived to negatively portray vaping and this was associated with accurately perceiving vaping as less harmful than smoking among youth who exclusively vaped (AOR=1.46,1.09-1.97). Conclusion: Consistent with implementation of youth vaping prevention campaigns in the US and Canada, most youth reported noticing vaping campaigns/messages, and most were perceived to negatively portray vaping

CD248 expression on mesenchymal stromal cells is required for post-natal and infection-dependent thymus remodelling and regeneration

The role of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) in regulating immune responses in the thymus is currently unclear. Here we report the existence and role of a MSC population in the thymus that expresses the pericyte and MSC marker CD248 (endosialin). We show using a CD248-deficient mouse model, that CD248 expression on these cells is required for full post-natal thymus development and regeneration post-Salmonella infection. In CD248 -/- mice the thymus is hypocellular and regeneration is poorer, with significant loss of all thymocyte populations. This identifies the requirement of CD248 to maintain optimal thymic cellularity post-partum and infection