BACKGROUND: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the value of discussing rectal cancer patients in a multidisciplinary team (MDT).METHODS: All treated rectal cancer patients (>T1M0) diagnosed in 2006-2008 were included. According to the national guidelines, neoadjuvant (chemo)radiotherapy should be given to all rectal cancer patients. Patients were scored as "discussed" (MDT+) only if

BACKGROUND: Understanding the molecular biology of colorectal cancer (CRC) provides opportunities for effective personalised patient management. We evaluated whether chromosomal aberrations, mutations in the PI(3)K signalling pathway and the CpG-island methylator phenotype (CIMP) in primary colorectal tumours can predict liver metastases.METHODS: Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded material from prim

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Failure to respond to systemic chemotherapy is considered an exclusion criterion by some institutions for treatment with cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC). However, it is unknown if these patients benefit from HIPEC treatment. This study aimed to report on outcomes of HIPEC in patients who failed to respond to adjuvant systemic c

BACKGROUND: Capecitabine is an attractive radiosensitizer. In this study acute toxicity and surgical complications were evaluated in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer following total mesorectal excision (TME) after preoperative chemoradiotherapy (CRT) with capecitabine.METHODS: Between 2004 and 2008, consecutive patients with clinical tumour category (cT) 3-4 (with a threatened circumfe

BACKGROUND: Delayed gastric emptying (DGE) is a main complication with unknown origin after a cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intra-peritoneal chemotherapy (CRS-HIPEC). The aim of this study was to investigate if preservation of the right gastro-epiploic artery (GEA) during standard omentectomy would have a positive effect on gastric emptying after CRS-HIPEC.METHODS: Forty-two patients subj

BACKGROUND: Accurate staging of colorectal cancer (CRC) with clinicopathological parameters is important for predicting prognosis and guiding treatment but provides no information about organ site of metastases. Patterns of genomic aberrations in primary colorectal tumors may reveal a chromosomal signature for organ specific metastases.METHODS: Array Comparative Genomic Hybridization (aCGH) was em

OBJECTIVE: The late revelation of ovarian cancer ensures it as the leading cause of death among gynecologic cancers. Cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and intravenous (i.v.) chemotherapy have been the cornerstone for a long time to treat this disease. More recently, the modality of intraperitoneal administration of chemotherapy under hyperthermic conditions (HIPEC) has been added. This review surveys th

BACKGROUND: The incidence of ovarian metastases at the time of peritoneal carcinomatosis, and the influence of such metastases on survival after cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC), are unknown.METHODS: This retrospective analysis included 194 women subjected to CRS and HIPEC since 2001. The incidence of ovarian metastases, disease-free survival and di

The aim of our study was to provide population-based data on incidence and prognosis of synchronous peritoneal carcinomatosis and to evaluate predictors for its development. Diagnosed in 1995-2008, 18,738 cases of primary colorectal cancer were included. Predictors of peritoneal carcinomatosis were analysed by multivariable logistic regression analysis. Median survival in months was calculated by

OBJECTIVE: To predict clinical outcome by classification of peritoneal metastases (PM) of colorectal or appendiceal origin.BACKGROUND: This study investigates whether standardized histological classification can predict outcome for PM of colorectal or appendiceal origin treated with cytoreduction and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC).METHODS: Histology of PM (n = 269) was evaluated

BACKGROUND: The aims of this study were to determine which consent procedure patients prefer for use of stored tissue for research purposes and what the effects of consent procedures on actual consenting behaviour are.METHODS: We offered 264 cancer patients three different consent procedures: 'one-time general consent' (asked written informed consent), 'opt-out plus' (had the opportunity to opt ou

The increasing pressure within developing countries to focus on other national objectives has led to declining fiscal transfers for conservation. This paper assesses the potential for a typical large African park such as the Kruger National Park to generate additional revenue through an entrance fee hike in order to finance park operations. This is investigated by estimating international tourists

National park agencies in Africa often lack incentives to maximize revenue, despite the decline in conservation subsidies from the State. We explore the potential of pricing policy to generate funds for extensive conservation. We estimate recreation demand by international tourists for a popular South African park, calculate the consumer surplus and find the revenue-maximizing entrance fee. Our re

Should the economic recovery from the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) be green? The current crisis is so severe that we should not take the answer for granted. It requires serious thought and we start by reviewing some arguments for and against a green approach. A crucial element is of course to see how different industries fare in the current crisis. Our empirical contribution is to exa

Presently, the mountain gorilla in Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo is endangered mainly by poaching and habitat loss. This paper sets out to investigate the possible resolution of poaching involving the local community by using benefit sharing schemes with local communities. Using a bioeconomic model, the paper demonstrates that the current revenue sharing scheme yields subopt

An increasing proportion of penicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (PSSA) has been reported over the last years. The aim of this retrospective study was to compare penicillin G with cloxacillin in the treatment of PSSA bloodstream infections. The primary outcome was the mortality rate after 90 days and the secondary outcome was the development of treatment complications of varying severity.

Extreme ultraviolet (XUV) laser radiation is commonly produced via high-harmonic generation (HHG) in gases. The lasers that drive this process typically operate at low pulse repetition rates (10 MHz) necessary. Unfortunately, at high repetition rates, plasma accumulates in the XUV generation region and prevents phase-matching, resulting in low HHG efficiency. We use high-temperature gas mixtures t

The ESS elliptical superconducting Linac consists of two types of 704.42 MHz cavities, medium and high beta, to accelerate the beam from 216 MeV (spoke cavity Linac) up to the final energy at 2 GeV. The last Linac optimization, called Optimus+[1], has been carried out taking into account the limitations of SRF cavity performance (field emission). The medium and high-beta parts of the Linac are com

This paper is based on the work done for the 2017 AIAA Student Design Competition-Human Spaceflight: Phobos Base. One of humanity's major challenges when travelling to Mars is represented by the existence of an atmosphere around the red planet. In fact, even though the Martian atmospheric density is only about 1% of that of Earth, the entry, descent and landing (EDL) procedure for large payloads i