13 research outputs found

    Clinical impact of PSMA PET/CT in primary prostate cancer compared to conventional nodal and distant staging: a retrospective single center study

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    BACKGROUND: To evaluate the impact of Gallium-68 [68Ga] labeled prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA) positron emission tomography (PET)/X-ray computed tomography (CT) compared with conventional imaging on staging and clinical management of men evaluated for primary prostate cancer (PCa). METHODS: Men with newly diagnosed biopsy-proven PCa who had been staged with a conventional staging protocol including bone scintigraphy (BS) and additionally underwent [68Ga]PSMA PET/CT, were evaluated retrospectively. Imaging findings from BS, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and/or CT were categorized regarding locoregional nodal (N) and distant metastasis (M) status as negative, positive or equivocal before and after addition of the information of PET/CT. Also, the imaging-based level of confidence (LoC) in correct assessment of N and M status was scored. Impact of PET/CT on clinical management was evaluated by the percentage of treatment category changes after PET/CT as determined in the multidisciplinary tumour board. RESULTS: Sixty-four men with intermediate and high-risk PCa were evaluated. With additional information of PET/CT, N status was upstaged in 23%, and downstaged in 9%. M status was upstaged in 13%, and downstaged in 23%. A net increase in LoC of 20% was noted, mainly regarding M status. Treatment category changed from palliative to curative in 9%, and from curative to palliative in 3%. An undecided treatment plan changed to curative in 14%, as well as to palliative in another 9%. In total, a 36% treatment category change was noted. High negative predictive value of PET/CT for M status was indicated by 27 patients that underwent robot-assisted radical prostatectomy and reached postoperative biochemical disease-free status or had a likely other site of disease recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: PSMA PET/CT can cause considerable changes in N and M staging, as well as in management compared to conventional staging. Findings of this study support the replacement of BS and CT by PSMA PET/CT in staging primary PCa

    Batch Adsorption of Ammonium Ions from Synthetic Wastewater using Local Cameroonian Clay and ZnCl2 Activated Carbon

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    Local Cameroonian clay and ZnCl2 activated carbon were used for the adsorption of NH4+ ions from synthetic wastewater. The Batch adsorption experiments were conducted and optimal conditions were established to better understand the effects of solution pH, initial ammonium ions concentration, adsorbents dose and contact time. The time-dependent experimental studies showed that, the adsorption quantity of ammonium ions increases with initial concentration and decrease with adsorbents dose. The ammonium ions uptake was very fast and reached equilibrium within 10 and 15 min with ZnCl2 activated carbon and Soukamna Clay. Both ZnCl2 activated carbon and Soukamna Clay gave best adsorption results at pH 2 and 6. FTIR, powder X-ray diffraction, chemical analysis, TGA and DSC analysis were used to characterize the Soukamna Clay. The adsorption equilibrium were confronted using Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin and DndashKndashR isotherm models and their applicability were judged by comparing the correlation coefficients and the experimental calculated quantities. The DndashKndashR, Temkin and Freundlich isotherms models best #64257tted to the experimental data for Soukamna Clay while the DndashKndashR isotherm model fitted well with ZnCl2 #821 AC. The adsorption mechanism was analyzed using the pseudo-#64257rst order, pseudo-second order, the Elovich kinetic and intra-particle diffusion models. The pseudo-second order kinetic model correlates better the experimental and calculated data than the other three kinetic models which suggests that, chemisorption was more dominant with both adsorbents. Soukamna Clay and ZnCl2 #821 AC used successfully as a low-cost adsorbent for the removal of NH4+ ions from aqueous solution can have promising application in industrial wastewater treatment
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