Sexual Functioning of Gynecological Cancer Patients: A Literature Review

Background: According to the World Health Organization, cervical, uterine and ovarian cancers were the third, sixth and eighth most common cancers in women worldwide. Unlike other physiological side effects of cancer treatment, sexual problems in gynecological cancer survivors do not tend to resolve after first few years of cancer treatment. However, women who experience sexual dysfunction do not discuss the problem openly with their healthcare professionals.Objective: The objectives of this literature review are to identify, summarize and critically appraise current literatures investigating the sexual functioning and sexual health needs of gynecological cancer patients, as well as to identify the communication between gynecological cancer patients and healthcare professionals.Design: A thorough analysis of the literatures on the topic of sexual functioning of gynecological cancer patients.Data sources: EBSCO host (Medline, CINAL Plus and Academic Search Alumni Edition) and Ovid Technology (British Nursing Index).Review methods: A comprehensive search was conducted in the named data sources from 2003 to 2014 to identify English articles with the keywords “ovarian cancerâ€, “uterine cancerâ€, “cervical cancerâ€, “gynecological cancerâ€, “sexual functioningâ€, “sexuality†and “sexual health needsâ€. Two authors assessed all identified articles independently for inclusion in the review.Results: A total of eight studies were included in the review. All studies focused on the sexual functioning of gynecological cancer patients. Four of them assessed their sexual health needs and one evaluated the communication between the patients and healthcare professionals. The findings indicated that gynecological cancer patients experienced sexual dysfunction after the diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Uncertainty of the side-effects of cancer treatment on bodily functions led to misunderstanding and misconceptions on sexual functioning. Communication, in general, was found to be insufficient between gynecological cancer patients and healthcare professionals.Conclusion: Sexual functioning after the diagnosis and treatment of gynecological cancer requires special attention and care. Appropriate interventions should be developed to meet the patients’ needs. As most of the studies investigating the sexual functioning of gynecological cancer patients were carried out in Western countries, implications for research on this issue in different cultural background is suggested

Effects of Aggressive Ammonium Nitrate on Durability Properties of Concrete using Sandstone and Granite Aggregates

The storage of chemical fertilizers in concrete building often leads to durability problems due to chemical attack. The damage of concrete is mostly caused by certain ammonium salts. The main purpose of the research is to investigate the durability properties of concrete being exposed to ammonium nitrate solution. In this investigation, experiments are conducted on concrete type G50 and G60. The leaching process is achieved by the use of 20% concentration solution of ammonium nitrate. The durability properties investigated are water absorption, volume of permeable voids, and sorptivity. Compressive strength, pH value, and degradation depth are measured after a certain period of leaching. A decrease in compressive strength and an increase in porosity are found through the conducted experiments. Apart from that, the experimental data shows that pH value decreases with increased leaching time while the degradation depth of concrete increases with leaching time. By comparing concrete type G50 and G60, concrete type G60 is more resistant to ammonium nitrate attack

A Peer-reviewed Newspaper About_ Research Values

An interrogation of value and values in contemporary media and digital culture. Publication resulting from research workshop at Brandenburg Center for Media Studies – ZeM, Potsdam, organised in collaboration with Brandenburg Center for Media Studies – ZeM, Potsdam, and transmediale festival for art and digital culture, Berlin

First-in-class Microbial Ecosystem Therapeutic 4 (MET4) in combination with immune checkpoint inhibitors in patients with advanced solid tumors (MET4-IO trial)

Background: The intestinal microbiome has been associated with response to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in humans and causally implicated in ICI responsiveness in animal models. Two recent human trials demonstrated that fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) from ICI responders can rescue ICI responses in refractory melanoma, but FMT has specific limitations to scaled use.Patients and methods: We conducted an early-phase clinical trial of a cultivated, orally delivered 30-species microbial consortium (Microbial Ecosystem Therapeutic 4, MET4) designed for co-administration with ICIs as an alternative to FMT and assessed safety, tolerability and ecological responses in patients with advanced solid tumors.Results: The trial achieved its primary safety and tolerability outcomes. There were no statistically significant differences in the primary ecological outcomes; however, differences in MET4 species relative abundance were evident after randomization that varied by patient and species. Increases in the relative abundance of several MET4 taxa, including Enterococcus and Bifidobacterium, taxa previously associated with ICI responsiveness, were observed and MET4 engraftment was associated with decreases in plasma and stool primary bile acids.Conclusions: This trial is the first report of the use of a microbial consortium as an alternative to FMT in advanced cancer patients receiving ICI and the results justify the further development of microbial consortia as a therapeutic co-intervention for ICI treatment in cancer

The mitochondrial genome of the thermal dimorphic fungus Penicillium marneffei is more closely related to those of molds than yeasts

AbstractWe report the complete sequence of the mitochondrial genome of Penicillium marneffei, the first complete mitochondrial DNA sequence of a thermal dimorphic fungus. This 35 kb mitochondrial genome contains the genes encoding ATP synthase subunits 6, 8, and 9 (atp6, atp8, and atp9), cytochrome oxidase subunits I, II, and III (cox1, cox2, and cox3), apocytochrome b (cob), reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide ubiquinone oxireductase subunits (nad1, nad2, nad3, nad4, nad4L, nad5, and nad6), ribosomal protein of the small ribosomal subunit (rps), 28 tRNAs, and small and large ribosomal RNAs. Analysis of gene contents, gene orders, and gene sequences revealed that the mitochondrial genome of P. marneffei is more closely related to those of molds than yeasts

New insights into bacterial chemoreceptor array structure and assembly from electron cryotomography

FWN – Publicaties zonder aanstelling Universiteit Leide

The PHENIX Experiment at RHIC

The physics emphases of the PHENIX collaboration and the design and current status of the PHENIX detector are discussed. The plan of the collaboration for making the most effective use of the available luminosity in the first years of RHIC operation is also presented.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure. Further details of the PHENIX physics program available at http://www.rhic.bnl.gov/phenix

A systematic review of the effects of exercise interventions on body composition in HIV+ adults

Over the years, physical activity and exercise have been used to positively impact the health and quality of life of persons infected with HIV and, more recently, has been associated with a spectrum of body composition changes. The aim of this review was to examine the effects of various exercise interventions on body composition in HIV positive adults, using a search strategy of randomized, controlled trials (RCTs). A systematic review was performed by five independent reviewers using a predetermined protocol adapted from previous research for assessing the articles for inclusion, the extracted data, and methodological quality. Eight RCTs involving 430 (26% female) HIV positive adults performing exercise a minimum of thrice weekly for at least six weeks were finally selected: Four were progressive resistance training (PRT) studies, three were aerobic training (AT) studies, and one involved yoga. In the PRT studies, there were significant increases in three anthropometric measures, namely, body mass, sum of skinfolds and sum of limb girths. In the AT studies, significant decreases were found in seven anthropometric measures, namely, body mass index, waist-hip ratio, body mass, triceps skinfold, waist circumference and sum of skinfolds. With yoga, the changes were nonsignificant. Exercise contributes to improved body composition and, when applied safely, appears to be beneficial for adults living with HIV/AIDS. However, these findings should be interpreted cautiously due to the relatively few RCTs published to date. Future studies would benefit from increased attention to sample size, female participants, participant follow-up, complete statistical analysis and intention-to-treat analysis.Scopu

Search for direct production of charginos and neutralinos in events with three leptons and missing transverse momentum in √s = 7 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for the direct production of charginos and neutralinos in final states with three electrons or muons and missing transverse momentum is presented. The analysis is based on 4.7 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data delivered by the Large Hadron Collider and recorded with the ATLAS detector. Observations are consistent with Standard Model expectations in three signal regions that are either depleted or enriched in Z-boson decays. Upper limits at 95% confidence level are set in R-parity conserving phenomenological minimal supersymmetric models and in simplified models, significantly extending previous results