One Europe, one neurologist?

Eur J Neurol. 2007 Mar;14(3):241-7. One Europe, one neurologist? Grisold W, Galvin R, Lisnic V, Lopes Lima J, Mueller E, Oberndorfer S, Vodusek DB; UEMS-EBN and EFNS Education Committee. Department of Neurology and Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Neurooncology , Kaiser Franz Josef Hospital of the City of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. [email protected] Abstract In recent years, there has been a major shift in emphasis within neurology from being a largely diagnostic discipline to one much more actively involved in treating disease. There have been major scientific advances leading to new and effective treatments. There is also a much greater awareness of the burden of neurological disease (Olesen J, Leonardi M. European Journal of Neurology 2003; 10: 471) and informed sufferers are requesting specific intervention. There is wide variation in the delivery of neurological services throughout Europe. This is reflected in manpower levels, the place of neurology related to other medical specialties and different mixes of hospital and private office practice. These differences have been thrown into sharper focus by the recent expansion of the European Union (EU). Initial training in neurology is given to undergraduate/pre-graduate students. Post-graduate education is delivered within a residency program leading to specialist qualification and certification. We now recognize that this is only the beginning of a life long program of continuous education and development (CME/CPD). National and international exchange programs facilitate the growth of knowledge and promote professional harmony and cooperation. The free migration of medical specialists has been an aspiration but remains limited by cultural, linguistic, personal, professional, political and economic factors. Two bodies, the European Board of Neurology (EBN-UEMS) http://www.uems-neuroboard.org (Union Européenne des Médecins Spécialistes) and the European Federation of Neurological Societies (EFNS) http://www.efns.org are actively involved in harmonising and developing neurology at the European level. PMID: 17355542 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLIN

Deep learning-assisted radiomics facilitates multimodal prognostication for personalized treatment strategies in low-grade glioma

Determining the optimal course of treatment for low grade glioma (LGG) patients is challenging and frequently reliant on subjective judgment and limited scientific evidence. Our objective was to develop a comprehensive deep learning assisted radiomics model for assessing not only overall survival in LGG, but also the likelihood of future malignancy and glioma growth velocity. Thus, we retrospectively included 349 LGG patients to develop a prediction model using clinical, anatomical, and preoperative MRI data. Before performing radiomics analysis, a U2-model for glioma segmentation was utilized to prevent bias, yielding a mean whole tumor Dice score of 0.837. Overall survival and time to malignancy were estimated using Cox proportional hazard models. In a postoperative model, we derived a C-index of 0.82 (CI 0.79-0.86) for the training cohort over 10 years and 0.74 (Cl 0.64-0.84) for the test cohort. Preoperative models showed a C-index of 0.77 (Cl 0.73-0.82) for training and 0.67 (Cl 0.57-0.80) test sets. Our findings suggest that we can reliably predict the survival of a heterogeneous population of glioma patients in both preoperative and postoperative scenarios. Further, we demonstrate the utility of radiomics in predicting biological tumor activity, such as the time to malignancy and the LGG growth rate

The term "carcinoid" is a misnomer: the evidence based on local invasion

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Since Oberndorfer proposed the term "carcinoid" in 1907, over 100 years have passed. This attractive term was initially proposed for 6 cases of his own experience with 12 submucosal lesions in the small intestine.</p> <p>Oberndorfer summarized the characteristic features of these lesions as follows: (1) small in size and often multiple, (2) histologically undifferentiated with a suggestion of gland-formation, (3) well-defined without any tendency to infiltrate the surroundings, (4) no metastases, and (5) apparently slow-growing reaching no significant size with a seemingly harmless nature.</p> <p>Review</p> <p>This article stresses the malignant nature of "carcinoid" on the basis of local invasion prior to metastases in the first two sessions, (1) with Oberndorfer's original diagram, and (2) with an experimental observation on extraglandular microcarcinoid in a form of "budding".</p> <p>Next, (3) a statistical comparison between a carcinoid group and a non-carcinoid ordinary carcinoma group is introduced on metastasis rates at an early stage with two prescribed factors of the depth of invasion restricted within the submucosa (sm-lesion) and a small tumor size category of 1 cm to 2 cm: the carcinoid group exhibited metastasis rates higher than those in the ordinary carcinoma group when calculated in the stomach and rectum.</p> <p>In the author's experience, "carcinoids" are malignant not only in the gastrointestinal tract but also in the other sites on the basis of local invasion.</p> <p>Lastly, (4) discussion on the terminology of "carcinoid" as a misnomer is carried out.</p> <p>Adequate terms referring to the entity of this malignant tumor group are discussed. One of the most adequate and brief terms for "carcinoid" that is included now in neuroendocrine tumor group would be "endocrinocarcinoma" as per the author's proposal, followed by NEC (neuroendocrinocarcinoma) or GEC (gut endocrinocarcinoma).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The term "carcinoid" is a misnomer that can be confirmed on the basis of local invasion prior to metastases. "No metastases without local invasion" is not of a negligible importance.</p

Authoritarian Neoliberalism and Democratic Backsliding in Turkey: Beyond the Narratives of Progress

Unpacking the core themes that are discussed in this collection, this article both offers a research agenda to re-analyse Turkey’s ‘authoritarian turn’ and mounts a methodological challenge to the conceptual frameworks that reinforce a strict analytical separation between the ‘economic’ and the ‘political’ factors. The paper problematises the temporal break in scholarly analyses of the AKP period and rejects the argument that the party’s methods of governance have shifted from an earlier ‘democratic’ model – defined by ‘hegemony’ – to an emergent ‘authoritarian’ one. In contrast, by retracing the mechanisms of the state-led reproduction of neoliberalism since 2003, the paper demonstrates that the party’s earlier ‘hegemonic’ activities were also shaped by authoritarian tendencies which manifested at various levels of governance

Clear cell carcinoid tumor of the distal common bile duct

BACKGROUND: Carcinoid tumors rarely arise in the extrahepatic bile duct and can be difficult to distinguish from carcinoma. There are no reports of clear cell carcinoid (CCC) tumors in the distal bile duct (DBD) to the best of our knowledge. Herein, we report a CCC tumor in the DBD and review the literature concerning extrahepatic bile duct carcinoid tumors. CASE PRESENTATION: A 73-old man presented with fever and occult obstructive jaundice. Ultrasonography, computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreaticography (MRCP) demonstrated a nodular tumor projection in the DBD without regional lymph node swelling. Under suspicion of carcinoma, we resected the head of the pancreas along with 2(nd )portion duodenectomy and a lymph node dissection. The surgical specimen showed a golden yellow polypoid tumor in the DBD (0.8 × 0.6 × 0.5 cm in size). The lesion was composed of clear polygonal cells arranged in nests and a trabecular pattern. The tumor invaded through the wall into the fibromuscular layer. Immunohistochemical stains showed that neoplastic cells were positive for neuron-specific enolase (NSE), chromogranin A, synaptophysin, and pancreatic polypeptide and negative for inhibin, keratin, CD56, serotonin, gastrin and somatostatin. The postoperative course was uneventful and he is living well without relapse 12 months after surgery. CONCLUSION: Given the preoperative difficulty in differentiating carcinoid from carcinoma, the pancreaticoduodenectomy is an appropriate treatment choice for carcinoid tumors located within the intra-pancreatic bile duct