222 Rn emanation measurements for the XENON1T experiment

The selection of low-radioactive construction materials is of utmost importance for the success of low-energy rare event search experiments. Besides radioactive contaminants in the bulk, the emanation of radioactive radon atoms from material surfaces attains increasing relevance in the effort to further reduce the background of such experiments. In this work, we present the 222 Rn emanation measurements performed for the XENON1T dark matter experiment. Together with the bulk impurity screening campaign, the results enabled us to select the radio-purest construction materials, targeting a 222 Rn activity concentration of 10 μ Bq / kg in 3.2 t of xenon. The knowledge of the distribution of the 222 Rn sources allowed us to selectively eliminate problematic components in the course of the experiment. The predictions from the emanation measurements were compared to data of the 222 Rn activity concentration in XENON1T. The final 222 Rn activity concentration of ( 4.5 ± 0.1 ) μ Bq / kg in the target of XENON1T is the lowest ever achieved in a xenon dark matter experiment.

Search for Coherent Elastic Scattering of Solar ^{8}B Neutrinos in the XENON1T Dark Matter Experiment

We report on a search for nuclear recoil signals from solar ^{8}B neutrinos elastically scattering off xenon nuclei in XENON1T data, lowering the energy threshold from 2.6 to 1.6  keV. We develop a variety of novel techniques to limit the resulting increase in backgrounds near the threshold. No significant ^{8}B neutrinolike excess is found in an exposure of 0.6  t×y. For the first time, we use the nondetection of solar neutrinos to constrain the light yield from 1-2 keV nuclear recoils in liquid xenon, as well as nonstandard neutrino-quark interactions. Finally, we improve upon world-leading constraints on dark matter-nucleus interactions for dark matter masses between 3 and 11  GeV c^{-2} by as much as an order of magnitude.

MICROSURGICAL LYMPHATIC VASCULAR GRAFTING AND SECONDARY LIPOSUCTION: RESULTS OF COMBINATION TREATMENT IN SECONDARY LYMPHEDEMA

Surgical treatment of lymphedema with liposuction typically requires subsequent compression therapy. Here we describe an approach where secondary arm lymphedemas are initially treated by autologous lymphatic grafting to bypass the axilla and restore lymphatic flow. In the presence of excess adipose tissue, liposuction is then performed in a second procedure. To assess outcomes, the authors evaluated 28 consecutive adult patients who had undergone secondary liposuction following lymphatic grafting. Arm volumes were measured prior to lymphatic grafting and after the secondary liposuction. The necessity for additional treatment by compression garment and manual lymphatic drainage was assessed prior to lymphatic grafting and after the secondary liposuction following the direct postoperative regimen. The mean arm volumes were reduced significantly (p<0.001) from a mean of 3417±171 (SEM) cm3 prior to lymphatic grafting to 3020±125 cm3 after reconstruction of the lymphatic vascular system and finally to 2516±104 cm3 after the secondary liposuction (SLS). All 28 adult patients underwent continuous compression and manual lymph-drainage (MLD) prior to the reconstructive surgery. All 28 patients were evaluated regarding necessity of any additional therapy more than 6 months after SLS with a median follow up period of 37 months (range, 7-160 months). 18 of 28 patients did not require any supportive therapy beyond 6 months after SLS to maintain the results. Three patients continued to utilize manual lymphatic drainage, 4 used a combination of MLD and compression therapy and 3 used elastic compression therapy (one patient only while at work). These results indicate that microsurgical restoration of lymphatic outflow followed by SLS eliminates the need for additional treatment in more than two thirds of patients.

Microsurgical lymphatic vascular grafting and secondary liposuction: Results of combination treatment in secondary lymphedema

Surgical treatment of lymphedema with liposuction typically requires subsequent compression therapy. Here we describe an approach where secondary arm lymphedemas are initially treated by autologous lymphatic grafting to bypass the axilla and restore lymphatic flow. In the presence of excess adipose tissue, liposuction is then performed in a second procedure. To assess outcomes, the authors evaluated 28 consecutive adult patients who had undergone secondary liposuction following lymphatic grafting. Arm volumes were measured prior to lymphatic grafting and after the secondary liposuction. The necessity for additional treatment by compression garment and manual lymphatic drainage was assessed prior to lymphatic grafting and after the secondary liposuction following the direct postoperative regimen. The mean arm volumes were reduced significantly (p<0.001) from a mean of 3417± 171 (SEM) cm3 prior to lymphatic grafting to 3020±125 cm3 after reconstruction of the lymphatic vascular system and finally to 2516±104 cm3 after the secondary liposuction (SLS). All 28 adult patients underwent continuous compression and manual lymph-drainage (MLD) prior to the reconstructive surgery. All 28 patients were evaluated regarding necessity of any additional therapy more than 6 months after SLS with a median follow up period of 37 months (range, 7-160 months). 18 of 28 patients did not require any supportive therapy beyond 6 months after SLS to maintain the results. Three patients continued to utilize manual lymphatic drainage, 4 used a combination of MLD and compression therapy and 3 used elastic compression therapy (one patient only while at work). These results indicate that microsurgical restoration of lymphatic outflow followed by SLS eliminates the need for additional treatment in more than two thirds of patients.

Scoring Cercospora Leaf Spot on Sugar Beet: Comparison of UGV and UAV Phenotyping Systems

Selection of sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) cultivars that are resistant to Cercospora Leaf Spot (CLS) disease is critical to increase yield. Such selection requires an automatic, fast, and objective method to assess CLS severity on thousands of cultivars in the field. For this purpose, we compare the use of submillimeter scale RGB imagery acquired from an Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) under active illumination and centimeter scale multispectral imagery acquired from an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) under passive illumination. Several variables are extracted from the images (spot density and spot size for UGV, green fraction for UGV and UAV) and related to visual scores assessed by an expert. Results show that spot density and green fraction are critical variables to assess low and high CLS severities, respectively, which emphasizes the importance of having submillimeter images to early detect CLS in field conditions. Genotype sensitivity to CLS can then be accurately retrieved based on time integrals of UGV- and UAV-derived scores. While UGV shows the best estimation performance, UAV can show accurate estimates of cultivar sensitivity if the data are properly acquired. Advantages and limitations of UGV, UAV, and visual scoring methods are finally discussed in the perspective of high-throughput phenotyping.

Adjuvant bevacizumab for melanoma patients at high risk of recurrence: survival analysis of the AVAST-M trial

Background

Bevacizumab is a recombinant humanised monoclonal antibody to vascular endothelial growth factor shown to improve survival in advanced solid cancers. We evaluated the role of adjuvant bevacizumab in melanoma patients at high risk of recurrence.

Patients and methods

Patients with resected AJCC stage IIB, IIC and III cutaneous melanoma were randomised to receive either adjuvant bevacizumab (7.5 mg/kg i.v. 3 weekly for 1 year) or standard observation. The primary end point was detection of an 8% difference in 5-year overall survival (OS) rate; secondary end points included disease-free interval (DFI) and distant metastasis-free interval (DMFI). Tumour and blood were analysed for prognostic and predictive markers.

Results

Patients (n=1343) recruited between 2007 and 2012 were predominantly stage III (73%), with median age 56 years (range 18–88 years). With 6.4-year median follow-up, 515 (38%) patients had died [254 (38%) bevacizumab; 261 (39%) observation]; 707 (53%) patients had disease recurrence [336 (50%) bevacizumab, 371 (55%) observation]. OS at 5 years was 64% for both groups [hazard ratio (HR) 0.98; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.82–1.16, P = 0.78). At 5 years, 51% were disease free on bevacizumab versus 45% on observation (HR 0.85; 95% CI 0.74–0.99, P = 0.03), 58% were distant metastasis free on bevacizumab versus 54% on observation (HR 0.91; 95% CI 0.78–1.07, P = 0.25). Forty four percent of 682 melanomas assessed had a BRAF^V600 mutation. In the observation arm, BRAF mutant patients had a trend towards poorer OS compared with BRAF wild-type patients (P = 0.06). BRAF mutation positivity trended towards better OS with bevacizumab (P = 0.21).

Conclusions

Adjuvant bevacizumab after resection of high-risk melanoma improves DFI, but not OS. BRAF mutation status may predict for poorer OS untreated and potential benefit from bevacizumab.

Clinical Trial Information

ISRCTN 81261306; EudraCT Number: 2006-005505-64

Evaluation of a novel flow-controlled syringe infusion pump for precise and continuous drug delivery at low flow rates: a laboratory study

Syringe infusion pumps are used for the administration of short-acting drugs in anaesthesia and critical care medicine, but are prone to flow irregularities at low flow rates. A flow-controlled syringe infusion pump using an integrated flow sensor for feedback control represents a new approach to overcoming these limitations. This study compares the performance of a prototype flow-controlled syringe pump both at start-up, and during vertical displacement manoeuvres, with that of a standard infusion syringe pump. The novel pump almost completely eliminated delays at start-up and flow irregularities during hydrostatic pressure changes. Related fluctuations in plasma drug concentration were minimised and the known disadvantages of standard syringe infusion pumps currently used in clinical practice were reduced. Besides providing fast start-up to steady-state flow and precise continuous drug delivery at low flow rates during hydrostatic pressure changes, the new pump offers the potential for the development of target-controlled infusion algorithms for short-acting cardiovascular and other drugs.

Abstract OT3-01-02: PARTNERING / PARTNER : Phase II sub-study to establish if the addition of combinations of new agents (olaparib, cell cycle and immune checkpoint inhibitors) can improve the rate of pathological complete response (pCR) and minimal residual disease (MRD) in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) and / or germline BRCA mutated (gBRCAm) patients with evidence of residual disease after PARTNER therapy

Background:

In patients with TNBC, following standard neoadjuvant chemotherapy, residual disease (RD) is correlated with poor prognosis and 50% relapse within 5 years [1]. PARTNER is a neoadjuvant clinical trial which randomises TNBC and gBRCAm patients to carboplatin and paclitaxel +/- olaparib followed by anthracycline-based chemotherapy. Patients with RD after neoadjuvant treatment in this trial also face poorer survival outcomes, due to the paucity of treatment options. PARTNERING, develops a new strategy using novel agent combinations as an alternative pathway for patients with RD within the PARTNER trial.

Methods: PARTNERING is a phase II open label, sub-study with a two-stage Simon design with biomarker guided treatment cohorts open only to patients in the PARTNER trial. A maximum of 15 patients will be included in each cohort. Patients with RD &gt; 10% tumour cellularity (TC) on biopsy after neoadjuvant therapy will be eligible. Patients who have no tumour cells or &lt; 10% TC, and those with progressive disease will be excluded. Allocation of patients into the cohorts will be based on tumour infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) expression either on diagnostic or post treatment biopsy. Patients with tumours with TILs score ≤20% are considered “non-immunogenic” They will be stratified according to HRD status and allocated to receive a cell cycle checkpoint inhibitor + olaparib. Patients with a TILs score &gt;20% are considered “immunogenic” and will be allocated to receive an immune checkpoint inhibitor with olaparib or a cell cycle checkpoint inhibitor.

Primary outcome measure is pCR / MRD rate at surgery after the administration of 2 cycles / 8 weeks of a combination of new agents. The rate of conversion to pCR/MRD will be correlated with TC, TILs, BRCA and homologous recombination deficiency (HRD) status, Ki67% and previous olaparib treatment.

Progress: The PARTNERING pathway in the PARTNER trial will be open late 2018.

Citation Format: Abraham JE, Vallier A-L, Qian W, Machin A, Grybowicz L, Thomas S, Weiss M, Harvey C, McAdam K, Hughes-Davies L, Roberts A, Provenzano E, Pinilla K, Roylance R, Copson E, Armstrong A, McMurtry E, Tischkowitz M, Earl HM. PARTNERING / PARTNER : Phase II sub-study to establish if the addition of combinations of new agents (olaparib, cell cycle and immune checkpoint inhibitors) can improve the rate of pathological complete response (pCR) and minimal residual disease (MRD) in triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) and / or germline BRCA mutated (gBRCAm) patients with evidence of residual disease after PARTNER therapy [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2018 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2018 Dec 4-8; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(4 Suppl):Abstract nr OT3-01-02.

Abstract OT3-03-03: PARTNER: Randomised, phase II/III trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the addition of olaparib to platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy in triple negative and/or germline BRCA mutated breast cancer patients

Background: No specific targeted therapies are available for Triple Negative Breast Cancers (TNBC), an aggressive and diverse subgroup. The basal TNBC sub-group share some phenotypic and molecular similarities with germline BRCA (gBRCA) tumours. In gBRCA patients, and potentially other homologous recombination deficiencies, these already compromised pathways may allow drugs called PARP inhibitors (Olaparib) to work more effectively. Aims: To establish if the addition of olaparib to neoadjuvant platinum based chemotherapy for basal TNBC and/or gBRCA breast cancer is safe and improves efficacy (pathological complete response (pCR)).

Methods: Trial design: 3-stage open label randomised phase II/III trial of neoadjuvant paclitaxel and carboplatin +/- olaparib, followed by clinicians' choice of anthracycline regimen. Stage 1 and 2: Randomisation (1:1:1) to either control (3 weekly carboplatin AUC5/weekly paclitaxel 80mg/m2 for 4 cycles) or one of two research arms with the same chemotherapy regimen but with two different schedules of olaparib 150mg BD for 12 days. Stage 3: Patients are randomised (1:1) to either control arm or to the research arm selected in stage 2. End-points: Stage 1: Safety; Stage 2: Schedule selection using pCR rate and completion rate of olaparib using a “pick-the-winner” design. Stage 3: pCR rate. Enrichment design is applied with an overall significance level 0.05(α) and 80% power. A total of 527 patients will be included to detect an absolute improvement of 15% (all patients) and 20% (gBRCA patients) by adding olaparib to platinum based chemotherapy.

Trial Progress: PARTNER has been recruiting in UK since 27th May 2016. IDSMC recommended to continue the trial without change after reviewing the Stage 1 safety data. The recruitment of stage 2 was completed in April 2018 and results to be reviewed by the IDSMC in early 2019. The trial is open and enrolling patients to national and international sites.

Citation Format: Abraham J, Vallier A-L, Qian W, Machin A, Grybowicz L, Thomas S, Weiss M, Harvey C, McAdam K, Hughes-Davies L, Roberts A, Roylance R, Copson E, Pinilla K, Armstrong A, Provenzano E, Tischkowitz M, McMurty E, Earl H. PARTNER: Randomised, phase II/III trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the addition of olaparib to platinum-based neoadjuvant chemotherapy in triple negative and/or germline BRCA mutated breast cancer patients [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2018 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2018 Dec 4-8; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2019;79(4 Suppl):Abstract nr OT3-03-03.

Thermal effects of a novel electrosurgical device for focused preparation in breast surgery tested in a specified porcine tissue ex vivo breast model using infrared measurement

PURPOSE

This article investigates the qualities and thermal effects of a novel electrosurgical device (PT) which has been designed by ERBE Elektromedizin GmbH, Germany, for the preparation of critical locations such as in skin-sparing or nipple-sparing techniques and compares it to a standard device (SD) in a porcine ex vivo breast model using an heat map generated by infrared thermography.

METHODS

In total, 42 abdominal wall specimens of porcine tissue consisting of the skin and the underlying subcutaneous and muscle layer were alternately dissected using one of the devices and pre-settings. During the preparation with the two devices, the epicutaneous temperature was measured by an infrared camera (VarioCam, Jenoptik, Germany) and the maximum temperature as well as the slope of the temperature rise was analysed.

RESULTS

The use of PT shows significantly lower values for [Formula: see text] compared to SD. This effect was independent from the chosen mode. Using the same instrument in different modes, the use of AutoCut mode showed a significant reduction of [Formula: see text] at all indicated time points (SD: p < 0.0001 and PT: p < 0.0001). In summary, the combination of AutoCut + PT showed the lowest rise in temperature, whereas the combination of DryCut + SD led to the highest rise in temperature. The temperature difference between these two settings was 13.84 °C, which means a possible temperature reduction of 67% can be achieved by the right choice of device and its tailored mode.

CONCLUSIONS

The novel PT shows a significant reduction in epicutaneous temperature and a significant reduction of the slope of temperature rise most probably by a more focused application of energy compared to SD.

Does the range of motion in the bovine interphalangeal joints change with flooring condition? A pilot study using biplane high-speed fluoroscopic kinematography

This study had 2 objectives. The first objective was to investigate motion patterns and the range of motion of the bovine proximal and distal interphalangeal joints on concrete during the stance phase. The second objective was to determine whether the range of motion and the locomotive stability of the interphalangeal joints differ on concrete and 3 different commercially available rubber mats (Karera, Kura, and Pedikura; Kraiburg Elastik GmbH & Co. KG, Tittmoning, Germany). Biplane high-speed fluoroscopic kinematography (72 ± 2.5 kV and 112.5 ± 12.5 mA, refresh rate 500 frames per second, shutter 0.5 ms) was applied to record 1 stance phase of the right forelimb of 2 Holstein Friesian heifers (15 mo old, 440 ± 10 kg; ± standard deviation) on each flooring. Three-dimensional digital animations were generated with a marker-supported manual animation technique based on the recordings and computer tomographic bone models. The mean maximum range of motion of each of the 4 interphalangeal joints in terms of flexion/extension, abduction/adduction, and internal/external rotation were calculated as well as the mean number of local extrema as a measure of stability during the stance phase. The main degree of freedom in all interphalangeal joints was flexion and extension with a range of motion of 17.7 to 25.9°. The second largest degree of freedom differed between abduction/adduction (7.7-10.0°) and internal/external rotation (6.5-9.6°) depending on the joint. Remarkably, although smaller, these extrasagittal directions still contribute to the overall motion to a considerable degree. In addition, the interphalangeal joints of the lateral digit showed a tendency to move less during the stance phase than their medial counterparts. Comparing concrete to the rubber mats, the interphalangeal joints tend to have to cover a larger range of motion on concrete with the exception of the distal interphalangeal joint in terms of flexion/extension. The unyielding surface of concrete seems to force the flexible parts of the animal-ground-interaction into extended motion. Furthermore, there tends to be more instability in all 3 degrees of freedom in all 4 joints on concrete, implying a greater effort of the soft tissues to achieve a balanced motion. Detailed biomechanical research contributes to the development of adequate flooring systems by evaluating the mechanical strain on claws and joints and working toward lameness prevention and thus animal welfare.