Il divino e le monete : iconografia, contesti sacri e usi rituali

Solo gli Stati possono battere moneta, ora come nel passato (non i privati che potevano semmai produrre soltanto medaglie che non circolavano): l\u2019iconografia, testo e immagine sui due lati della moneta, permetteva, allora come ora, di identificare l\u2019autorit\ue0 emittente e garantire allo stesso tempo la bont\ue0 del metallo e del peso. Le divinit\ue0 sono sempre state presenti su uno dei due lati delle monete: Zeus o Apollo sulle monete greche; Giove, Venere, Ercole, Diana, Sol Invictus e tanti altri su quelle romane; le personificazioni divinizzate di Atena o Roma sulle monete delle due citt\ue0. Cos\uec fu anche nel medioevo e nell\u2019et\ue0 moderna, con i santi patroni delle citt\ue0 (san Giovani Battista a Firenze o sant\u2019Ambrogio a Milano) e perfino san Francesco d\u2019Assisi, lui che odiava il denaro!L\u2019identificazione tra Stato e moneta portava anche ad un forte rapporto identitario tra chi usava le monete e le sentiva proprie: alcune monete straniere ritrovate in contesti sacri medievali (santuari o tombe di santi) possono essere interpretate come casi di offerte personali da parte di pellegrini che venivano da luoghi lontani e volevano lasciare una \u2018memoria\u2019 di s\ue9. Gli usi delle monete si estendevano quindi oltre la sfera economica \u2018terrena\u2019 fino ad un scambio economico con l\u2019Aldil\ue0: monete in tombe, in fondazioni di edifici ed anche monete reliquie conservate in alcune chiese

Les fronti\ue8res de l\u2019\ue9ternit\ue9? le cas d\u2019un nom de monnaie : santalene

This contribution examines written and numismatic evidence related to coins known in medieval Italy as ''coins of St Helena''; such coins can be identified as Byzantine coins whose images were wrongly read by medieval devout people as images of Constantine and Helena, venerated like saints. The role of Late Roman and Byzantine coins as ''icons'' continued well into the 16th century, and here the author offers a full comment of a papal bull issued by Pope Sixtus V tranforming into relics the gold Byzantine coins of the 'Lateran hoard' discovered in 1586 (specimens of which are still preserved in a number of Italian churches as ''coins of St Helena'')

Mariticide in Milan between 1990 and 2017 : a criminological and medico-legal analysis

Most murder victims in a romantic relationship are women but sometimes they will kill their husbands or partners (mariticide). This paper focuses on these rarer cases using a sample taken from the autopsy reports of the Department of Legal Medicine of the University of Milan whose territory includes the municipality of Milan and part of the province of Milan and Monza \u2013 approximately four million inhabitants

Positron emission tomography in the diagnostic work-up of screening-detected lung nodules

Low-dose computed tomography (CT) screening for lung cancer can reduce lung cancer mortality, but overdiagnosis, false positives and invasive procedures for benign nodules are worrying. We evaluated the utility of positron emission tomography (PET)-CT in characterising indeterminate screeningdetected lung nodules. 383 nodules, examined by PET-CT over the first 6 years of the COSMOS (Continuous Observation of Smoking Subjects) study to diagnose primary lung cancer, were reviewed and compared with pathological findings (surgically-treated patients) or follow-up (negative CT for â\u89¥2 years, considered negative); 196 nodules were malignant. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of PET-CT for differentially diagnosing malignant nodules were, respectively, 64%, 89% and 76% overall, and 82%, 92% and 88% for baseline-detected nodules. Performance was lower for nodules found at repeat annual scans, with sensitivity ranging from 22% for nonsolid to 79% for solid nodules (p=0.0001). Sensitivity (87%) and specificity (73%) were high for nodules â\u89¥15 mm, better (sensitivity 98%) for solid nodules â\u89¥15 mm. PET-CT was highly sensitive for the differential diagnosis of indeterminate nodules detected at baseline, nodules â\u89¥15 mm and solid nodules. Sensitivity was low for sub-solid nodules and nodules discovered after baseline for which other methods, e.g. volume doubling time, should be used

Intensified ChlVPP/ABVVP chemotherapy regimen and pegfilgrastim support in advanced Hodgkin lymphoma

We present feasibility, toxicity and efficacy results of an intensified six-cycle ChlVPP/ABVVP regimen in advanced Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). From February 2004 to August 2007, 82 consecutive eligible patients were enrolled. According to the Hasenclever index, 64 patients (78%) were considered at low risk, 15 (18%) at intermediate and 3 (4%) at high risk. The most relevant toxicity was haematological: grade 3–4 neutropenia occurred in 32% of patients, grade 3–4 anaemia in 26% of patients. Severe infections and febrile neutropenia were observed in 8% of patients. With a median follow-up of 35 months (range 12–55), the three-year freedom from treatment failure (FFTF) and overall survival (OS) were 75% (95% CI 65%–86%) and 94% (95% CI 87%–99%), respectively. The intensified ChlVPP/ABVVP regimen in advanced HL is effective, does not seem to differ from standard regimens in terms of FFTF and OS and showed a favourable toxicity profile

Roles of computed tomography and [(18)F]fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography in the characterization of multiple solitary solid lung nodules

The purpose of this study is to compare the performance of multidetector computed tomography (CT) and positron emission tomography/CT (PET/CT) with [(18)F]fluorodeoxyglucose in the diagnosis of multiple solitary lung nodules in 14 consecutive patients with suspicious lung cancer. CT and PET/CT findings were reviewed by a radiologist and nuclear medicine physician, respectively, blinded to the pathological diagnoses of lung cancer, considering nodule size, shape, and location (CT) and maximum standardized uptake value normalized to body weight (SUVbw max). Nodules were judged malignant or benign. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of the two techniques were compared. CT had a sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 93.7, 86.7, and 90.3%, respectively, whereas PET/CT had a sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 75, 100, and 87.1%, respectively. Clinical management would have been erroneous in two patients by CT alone and in four patients by PET/CT alone. In one patient, the two techniques misdiagnosed the nodules (2 CT and 1 PET/CT). CT and PET/CT have complimentary roles in characterization of multiple solitary pulmonary nodules. Small nodules are poorly characterized by CT, and small-sized low-SUV malignant nodules are difficult to detect with PET/CT

Does a 6-point scale approach to post-treatment 18F-FDG PET-CT allow to improve response assessment in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma? A multicenter study

Abstract Purpose Response assessment to definitive non-surgical treatment for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is centered on the role of 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET-CT) 12 weeks after treatment. The 5-point Hopkins score is the only qualitative system available for standardized reporting, albeit limited by suboptimal positive predictive value (PPV). The aim of our study was to explore the feasibility and assess the diagnostic accuracy of an experimental 6-point scale ("Cuneo score"). Methods We performed a retrospective, multicenter study on HNSCC patients who received a curatively-intended, radiation-based treatment. A centralized, independent qualitative evaluation of post-treatment FDG-PET/CT scans was undertaken by 3 experienced nuclear medicine physicians who were blinded to patients' information, clinical data, and all other imaging examinations. Response to treatment was evaluated according to Hopkins, Cuneo, and Deauville criteria. The primary endpoint of the study was to evaluate the PPV of Cuneo score in assessing locoregional control (LRC). We also correlated semi-quantitative metabolic factors as included in PERCIST and EORTC criteria with disease outcome. Results Out of a total sample of 350 patients from 11 centers, 119 subjects (oropharynx, 57.1%; HPV negative, 73.1%) had baseline and post-treatment FDG-PET/CT scans fully compliant with EANM 1.0 guidelines and were therefore included in our analysis. At a median follow-up of 42 months (range 5-98), the median locoregional control was 35 months (95% CI, 32-43), with a 74.5% 3-year rate. Cuneo score had the highest diagnostic accuracy (76.5%), with a positive predictive value for primary tumor (Tref), nodal disease (Nref), and composite TNref of 42.9%, 100%, and 50%, respectively. A Cuneo score of 5-6 (indicative of residual disease) was associated with poor overall survival at multivariate analysis (HR 6.0; 95% CI, 1.88-19.18; p = 0.002). In addition, nodal progressive disease according to PERCIST criteria was associated with worse LRC (OR for LR failure, 5.65; 95% CI, 1.26-25.46; p = 0.024) and overall survival (OR for death, 4.81; 1.07-21.53; p = 0.04). Conclusions In the frame of a strictly blinded methodology for response assessment, the feasibility of Cuneo score was preliminarily validated. Prospective investigations are warranted to further evaluate its reproducibility and diagnostic accuracy