The limitation of genetic testing in diagnosing patients suspected for congenital platelet defects

Thrombosis and Hemostasi

Clinical Usefulness of Tools to Support Decision-making for Palliative Treatment of Metastatic Colorectal Cancer: A Systematic Review

A systematic review of the literature was performed to provide a comprehensive overview of the available decision support tools for incurable metastatic colorectal cancer, and to assess their clinical usefulness. We identified 14 tools. The evidence regarding the quality of the information they provide is too limited to currently recommend their use to guide treatment decision-making. Background: Decision-making regarding palliative treatment for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) is complex and comprises numerous decisions. Decision-making should be guided by the premise of maintaining and/or improving patients' quality of life, by patient preference, and by the trade-off between treatment benefits and harm. Decision support systems (DSSs) for clinicians (eg, nomograms) can assist in this process. The present systematic review aimed to pro

The limitation of genetic testing in diagnosing patients suspected for congenital platelet defects

Thrombosis and Hemostasi

Connecting Binuclear Pd(III) and Mononuclear Pd(IV) Chemistry by Pd–Pd Bond Cleavage

Oxidation of binuclear Pd­(II) complexes with PhICl₂ or PhI­(OAc)₂ has previously been shown to afford binuclear Pd­(III) complexes featuring a Pd–Pd bond. In contrast, oxidation of binuclear Pd­(II) complexes with electrophilic trifluoromethylating (“CF₃⁺”) reagents has been reported to afford mononuclear Pd­(IV) complexes. Herein, we report experimental and computational studies of the oxidation of a binuclear Pd­(II) complex with “CF₃⁺” reagents. These studies suggest that a mononuclear Pd­(IV) complex is generated by an oxidation–fragmentation sequence proceeding via fragmentation of an initially formed, formally binuclear Pd­(III), intermediate. The observation that binuclear Pd­(III) and mononuclear Pd­(IV) complexes are accessible in the same reactions offers an opportunity for understanding the role of nuclearity in both oxidation and subsequent C–X bond-forming reactions

Clinical Usefulness of Tools to Support Decision-making for Palliative Treatment of Metastatic Colorectal Cancer: A Systematic Review

Decision-making regarding palliative treatment for patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) is complex and comprises numerous decisions. Decision-making should be guided by the premise of maintaining and/or improving patients' quality of life, by patient preference, and by the trade-off between treatment benefits and harm. Decision support systems (DSSs) for clinicians (eg, nomograms) can assist in this process. The present systematic review aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of the available DSSs for incurable mCRC and to assess their clinical usefulness. A systematic literature search was performed in PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library. We extracted information on the DSS characteristics and their discriminatory ability, calibration, and user-friendliness. From 5205 studies, we identified 14 DSSs for decisions regarding palliative resection of the primary tumor (n = 3), radiotherapy for metastases (n = 2), treatment type (invasive vs. symptomatic only; n = 7), and selection of chemotherapy (n = 2). The predictors varied greatly among the DSSs, and only 1 DSS incorporated a genetic marker (ie, UGT1A1). None of the DSSs included > 1 treatment option, nor did any DSS present estimates of treatment benefits and harms. Five tools had not been externally validated, two had only been validated in <35 patients, and the rest had only been validated in populations similar to the population used for their development. Discriminatory accuracy was generally moderate to poor. Calibration measures were only reported for 2 tools. A limited number of DSSs are available to support palliative treatment decisions for patients with mCRC, and the evidence regarding their discriminatory ability and calibration is too limited to recommend their use. New DSSs comparing multiple treatment options and presenting both treatment benefits and harms are neede

Inter-level Relations in Computer Science, Biology, and Psychology

Investigations into inter-level relations in computer science, biology and psychology call for an *empirical* turn in the philosophy of mind. Rather than concentrate on *a priori* discussions of inter-level relations between “completed” sciences, a case is made for the actual study of the way inter-level relations grow out of the developing sciences. Thus, philosophical inquiries will be made more relevant to the sciences, and, more importantly, philosophical accounts of inter-level relations will be testable by confronting them with what really happens in science. Hence, close observation of the ever-changing reduction relations in the developing sciences, and revision of philosophical positions based on these empirical observations, may, in the long run, be more conducive to an adequate understanding of inter-level relations than a traditional *a priori* approach.