Frequency, Predictors, and Clinical Impact of Valvular and Perivalvular Thrombus After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement

BACKGROUND

Subclinical aortic valve complex (valvular and perivalvular) thrombus is not rare after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). The risk factors and clinical implications of these findings remain uncertain.

OBJECTIVES

This study sought to evaluate the frequency, predictors, and clinical outcome of aortic valve complex thrombus after TAVR.

METHODS

In the ADAPT-TAVR (Anticoagulation Versus Dual Antiplatelet Therapy for Prevention of Leaflet Thrombosis and Cerebral Embolization After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement) trial comparing edoxaban vs dual antiplatelet therapy in TAVR patients without an indication for chronic anticoagulation, the frequency of valvular (subclinical leaflet thrombus) and perivalvular (supravalvular, subvalvular, and sinus of Valsalva) thrombus was evaluated by 4-dimensional computed tomography at 6 months. The association of these phenomena with new cerebral thromboembolism on brain magnetic resonance imaging, neurologic and neurocognitive dysfunction, and clinical outcomes was assessed.

RESULTS

Among 211 patients with 6-month computed tomography evaluations, 91 patients (43.1%) had thrombus at any aortic valve complex, 30 (14.2%) patients had leaflet thrombus, and 78 (37.0%) patients had perivalvular thrombus. A small maximum diameter of the stent at the valve level and low body surface area were independent predictors of aortic valve complex and perivalvular thrombus, and decreased renal function was an independent predictor of leaflet thrombus. No significant differences were observed in new cerebral lesions, neurologic or neurocognitive functions, or clinical outcomes among patients with or without valvular or perivalvular thrombus.

CONCLUSIONS

Subclinical aortic valve complex (valvular and perivalvular) thrombus was common in patients who had undergone successful TAVR. However, these imaging phenomena were not associated with new cerebral thromboembolism, neurologic or neurocognitive dysfunction, or adverse clinical outcomes. (Anticoagulation Versus Dual Antiplatelet Therapy for Prevention of Leaflet Thrombosis and Cerebral Embolization After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement [ADAPT-TAVR]; NCT03284827).

Impact of leaflet thrombosis on valve haemodynamic status after transcatheter aortic valve replacement

OBJECTIVES

The effect of subclinical leaflet thrombosis, characterised by hypoattenuated leaflet thickening (HALT), on the valve haemodynamic function and durability of the bioprosthetic valve, is not yet determined. We determined the impact of HALT on valve haemodynamics after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and the predictors of haemodynamic structural valve deterioration (SVD).

METHODS

The Anticoagulation vs Dual Antiplatelet Therapy for Prevention of Leaflet Thrombosis and Cerebral Embolization after Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement(ADAPT-TAVR) trial is a multicenter, randomised trial that compared edoxaban and dual antiplatelet therapy in patients who had undergone successful TAVR. The presence of HALT was evaluated by four-dimensional CT at 6 months and serial echocardiography performed at baseline, immediately post-TAVR and after 6 months. SVD was defined as at least one of the following: (1) mean transprosthetic gradient ≥20 mm Hg, (2) change in the mean gradient ≥10 mm Hg from baseline, or (3) new or increase in intraprosthetic aortic regurgitation of at least ≥1 grade, resulting in moderate or greater regurgitation.

RESULTS

At 6 months, HALT was found in 30 of 211 (14.2%) patients. The presence of HALT did not significantly affect aortic valve mean gradients (with vs without HALT; 14.0±4.8 mm Hg vs 13.7±5.5 mm Hg; p=0.74) at 6 months. SVD was reported in 30 of 206 patients (14.6%) at 6-month follow-up echocardiography. Older age (OR: 1.138; 95% CI: 1.019 to 1.293; p=0.033), use of aortic valve size ≤23 mm (OR: 6.254; 95% CI: 2.230 to 20.569; p=0.001) and mean post-TAVR pressure gradient (OR: 1.233; 95% CI: 1.123 to 1.371; p<0.001) were independent predictors of haemodynamic SVD; however, the presence of HALT was not identified as a predictor of SVD.

CONCLUSIONS

In patients who had undergone successful TAVR, aortic valve haemodynamic status was not influenced by the presence of HALT. Although HALT was not a predictor of haemodynamic SVD at 6 months, it warrants further longer-term follow-up to evaluate the effect on long-term valve durability.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

NCT03284827 (https://www.

CLINICALTRIALS

gov).

Assessment of the Influence of the Geometrical Shape of the Damper on the Efficiency of an Ultrasonic Operation Piezoelectric Transducer

The results of a study on the geometric shape of the damper on the efficiency of the ultrasonic piezoelectric transducer are presented. In particular, a damper in the form of a truncated cone is considered, the generatrix of which has an inclination angle α relative to the diameter of the piezoceramic plate. The shape of the damper in the form of a truncated cone is chosen based on the a priori assumption that this helps to increase the path of the wave in the damper material due to numerous reflections in it. A criterion for the efficiency of damper operation is proposed. The optimal (from the point of view of the damper efficiency) value of the angle α was determined theoretically and experimentally. The technology of its production is described. Satisfactory agreement between the results of theoretical and experimental studies was noted.

Effects of vitamin E and selenium administration on transportation stress in pregnant dairy heifers

We investigated the effects of road transportation and administration of the vitamin E and selenium (ESe) on circulating cortisol, haptoglobin, blood metabolites, oxidative biomarkers, white blood cell profiles, and behaviors in pregnant dairy heifers. Forty pregnant Holstein heifers were randomly assigned to one of 4 treatments: no transportation and no ESe administration, no transportation and ESe administration, transportation and no administration, and transportation and ESe administration. The ESe (70 IU/kg dry matter feed of dl-α-tocopheryl acetate and 0.3 mg/kg dry matter feed of sodium selenite) was orally delivered once a day from 7 d before transportation to 3 d after transportation. The heifers were transported in trucks designed for cattle transportation. Blood was collected 1 h before transportation, immediately after transportation (IAT), and at 6, 24, and 48 h after transportation. Behaviors were recorded using a video camera for 2 consecutive days after transportation. Transported/non-ESe-administered heifers had greater cortisol at IAT, haptoglobin at 6 and 24 h after transportation, total oxidative status at 6 h after transportation, and nonesterified fatty acid levels, white blood cell numbers, and neutrophil percentages at IAT and 6 h after transportation in the blood than nontransported heifers. Transported/non-ESe-administered heifers had lower total antioxidative status levels at 48 h after transportation and lymphocyte percentages at IAT and 6 h after transportation than nontransported heifers. Lying time was shorter in transported heifers than nontransported/non-ESe-administered heifers. Transported/ESe-administered heifers had lower cortisol, total oxidative status, nonesterified fatty acid levels at IAT, and haptoglobin concentrations at 6 and 24 h after transportation than transported/non-ESe-administered heifers. Transported/ESe-administered heifers had greater total antioxidative status levels at 48 h after transportation than transported/non-ESe-administered heifers. No ESe administration effects were observed for white blood cell number and neutrophil and lymphocyte percentages and lying time. In conclusion, road transportation caused temporary oxidative stress. Administrating ESe partially alleviated the stress, suggesting that ESe administration could be a viable strategy to reduce stress in transported pregnant heifers, providing a novel role of vitamin E and selenium for improving animal welfare.

Search for Boosted Dark Matter in COSINE-100

We search for energetic electron recoil signals induced by boosted dark matter (BDM) from the galactic center using the COSINE-100 array of NaI(Tl) crystal detectors at the Yangyang Underground Laboratory. The signal would be an excess of events with energies above 4 MeV over the well-understood background. Because no excess of events are observed in a 97.7  kg·yr exposure, we set limits on BDM interactions under a variety of hypotheses. Notably, we explored the dark photon parameter space, leading to competitive limits compared to direct dark photon search experiments, particularly for dark photon masses below 4 MeV and considering the invisible decay mode. Furthermore, by comparing our results with a previous BDM search conducted by the Super-Kamionkande experiment, we found that the COSINE-100 detector has advantages in searching for low-mass dark matter. This analysis demonstrates the potential of the COSINE-100 detector to search for MeV electron recoil signals produced by the dark sector particle interactions.

Phase I dose escalation and expansion study of golidocitinib, a highly selective JAK1 inhibitor, in relapsed or refractory peripheral T-cell lymphomas

BACKGROUND

Relapsed or refractory peripheral T-cell lymphomas (r/r PTCLs) are a group of rare and aggressive diseases that lack effective therapies. Constitutive activation of the Janus kinase (JAK)/signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) pathway is reported to be associated with PTCLs. Golidocitinib is an oral, potent JAK1 selective inhibitor evaluated in a phase I/II multinational study in patients with r/r PTCLs.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Patients with r/r PTCLs were eligible. The primary objectives were to assess safety and tolerability of golidocitinib and to define its recommended phase II dose (RP2D). The secondary objectives were to evaluate its antitumor activity and pharmacokinetics (PK).

RESULTS

A total of 51 patients were enrolled and received golidocitinib treatment at 150 or 250 mg once daily (QD). The median prior lines of therapies were 2 (range: 1-8). Golidocitinib was tolerated at both doses tested, while a higher incidence of serious adverse events and dose modifications at 250 mg were observed. The most common grade ≥3 drug-related treatment-emergent adverse events were neutropenia (27.5%) and thrombocytopenia (11.8%). An objective response rate of 39.2% and a complete response rate of 21.6% were observed. With median follow-up time of 14.7 and 15.9 months, the median duration of response (DoR) and progression-free survival were 8.0 and 3.3 months, respectively. Based on these data, 150 mg QD was defined as the RP2D. Golidocitinib demonstrated a favorable PK profile as an oral agent. Biomarker analysis suggested a potential correlation between JAK/STAT pathway aberrations and clinical activity of golidocitinib.

CONCLUSIONS

In this phase I study, golidocitinib demonstrated an acceptable safety profile and encouraging antitumor efficacy in heavily pretreated patients with r/r PTCLs. These results support the initiation of the multinational pivotal study in patients with r/r PTCLs.

Measurement of the top quark mass using a profile likelihood approach with the lepton + jets final states in proton-proton collisions at s=13TeV

The mass of the top quark is measured in 36.3fb - 1 of LHC proton-proton collision data collected with the CMS detector at s = 13 Te V . The measurement uses a sample of top quark pair candidate events containing one isolated electron or muon and at least four jets in the final state. For each event, the mass is reconstructed from a kinematic fit of the decay products to a top quark pair hypothesis. A profile likelihood method is applied using up to four observables per event to extract the top quark mass. The top quark mass is measured to be 171.77 ± 0.37 Ge V . This approach significantly improves the precision over previous measurements.

Optical Coherence Tomography-Guided or Intravascular Ultrasound-Guided Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: The OCTIVUS Randomized Clinical Trial

BACKGROUND

Intravascular imaging-guided percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) or optical coherence tomography (OCT) showed superior clinical outcomes compared with angiography-guided PCI. However, the comparative effectiveness of OCT-guided and IVUS-guided PCI regarding clinical outcomes is unknown.

METHODS

In this prospective, multicenter, open-label, pragmatic trial, we randomly assigned 2008 patients with significant coronary artery lesions undergoing PCI in a 1:1 ratio to undergo either an OCT-guided or IVUS-guided PCI. The primary end point was a composite of death from cardiac causes, target vessel-related myocardial infarction, or ischemia-driven target-vessel revascularization at 1 year, which was powered for noninferiority of the OCT group compared with the IVUS group. Safety outcomes were also assessed.

RESULTS

At 1 year, primary end point events occurred in 25 of 1005 patients (Kaplan-Meier estimate, 2.5%) in the OCT group and in 31 of 1003 patients (Kaplan-Meier estimate, 3.1%) in the IVUS group (absolute difference, -0.6 percentage points; upper boundary of one-sided 97.5% CI, 0.97 percentage points; P<0.001 for noninferiority). The incidence of contrast-induced nephropathy was similar (14 patients [1.4%] in the OCT group versus 15 patients [1.5%] in the IVUS group; P=0.85). The incidence of major procedural complications was lower in the OCT group than in the IVUS group (22 [2.2%] versus 37 [3.7%]; P=0.047), although imaging procedure-related complications were not observed.

CONCLUSIONS

In patients with significant coronary artery lesions, OCT-guided PCI was noninferior to IVUS-guided PCI with respect to the incidence of a composite of death from cardiac causes, target vessel-related myocardial infarction, or ischemia-driven target-vessel revascularization at 1 year. The selected study population and lower-than-expected event rates should be considered in interpreting the trial.

REGISTRATION

URL: https://www.

CLINICALTRIALS

gov; Unique number: NCT03394079.

M, Kveton A, Ayala E, Carrera Jarrin E, Abdelalim AA, Salama E, Abdullah Al-Mashad M, Mahmoud MA, Bhowmik S, Dewanjee RK, Ehataht K, Kadastik M, Lange T, Nandan S, Nielsen C, Pata J, Raidal M, Tani L, Veelken C, Eerola P, Kirschenmann H, Osterberg K, Voutilainen M, Bharthuar S, Brücken E, Garcia F, Havukainen J, Kim MS, Kinnunen R, Lampén T, Lassila-Perini K, Lehti S, Lindén T, Lotti M, Martikainen L, Myllymäki M, Rantanen MM, Siikonen H, Tuominen E, Tuominiemi J, Luukka P, Petrow H, Tuuva T, Amendola C, Besancon M, Couderc F, Dejardin M, Denegri D, Faure JL, Ferri F, Ganjour S, Gras P, Hamel de Monchenault G, Lohezic V, Malcles J, Rander J, Rosowsky A, Sahin M, Savoy-Navarro A, Simkina P, Titov M, Baldenegro Barrera C, Beaudette F, Buchot Perraguin A, Busson P, Cappati A, Charlot C, Damas F, Davignon O, Diab B, Falmagne G, Fontana Santos Alves BA, Ghosh S, Granier de Cassagnac R, Hakimi A, Harikrishnan B, Liu G, Motta J, Nguyen M, Ochando C, Portales L, Salerno R, Sarkar U, Sauvan JB, Sirois Y, Tarabini A, Vernazza E, Zabi A, Zghiche A, Agram JL, Andrea J, Apparu D, Bloch D, Bourgatte G, Brom JM, Chabert EC, Collard C, Darej D, Goerlach U, Grimault C, Le Bihan AC, Van Hove P, Beauceron S, Blancon B, Boudoul G, Carle A, Chanon N, Choi J, Contardo D, Depasse P, Dozen C, El Mamouni H, Fay J, Gascon S, Gouzevitch M, Grenier G, Ille B, Laktineh IB, Lethuillier M, Mirabito L, Perries S, Torterotot L, Vander Donckt M, Verdier P, Viret S, Lomidze D, Lomidze I, Tsamalaidze Z, Botta V, Feld L, Klein K, Lipinski M, Meuser D, Pauls A, Röwert N, Teroerde M, Diekmann S, Dodonova A, Eich N, Eliseev D, Erdmann M, Fackeldey P, Fasanella D, Fischer B, Hebbeker T, Hoepfner K, Ivone F, Lee MY, Mastrolorenzo L, Merschmeyer M, Meyer A, Mondal S, Mukherjee S, Noll D, Novak A, Nowotny F, Pozdnyakov A, Rath Y, Redjeb W, Rehm F, Reithler H, Schmidt A, Schuler SC, Sharma A, Stein A, Torres Da Silva De Araujo F, Vigilante L, Wiedenbeck S, Zaleski S, Dziwok C, Flügge G, Haj Ahmad W, Hlushchenko O, Kress T, Nowack A, Pooth O, Stahl A, Ziemons T, Zotz A, Petersen HA, Martin MA, Alimena J, Asmuss P, Baxter S, Bayatmakou M, Becerril Gonzalez H, Behnke O, Bhattacharya S, Blekman F, Borras K, Brunner D, Campbell A, Cardini A, Cheng C, Colombina F, Consuegra Rodríguez S, Silva GC, De Silva M, Eckerlin G, Eckstein D, Estevez Banos LI, Filatov O, Gallo E, Geiser A, Giraldi A, Greau G, Grohsjean A, Guglielmi V, Guthoff M, Jafari A, Jomhari NZ, Kaech B, Kasemann M, Kaveh H, Kleinwort C, Kogler R, Komm M, Krücker D, Lange W, Leyva Pernia D, Lipka K, Lohmann W, Mankel R, Melzer-Pellmann IA, Mendizabal Morentin M, Metwally J, Meyer AB, Milella G, Mormile M, Mussgiller A, Nürnberg A, Otarid Y, Pérez Adán D, Ranken E, Raspereza A, Ribeiro Lopes B, Rübenach J, Saggio A, Savitskyi M, Scham M, Scheurer V, Schnake S, Schütze P, Schwanenberger C, Shchedrolosiev M, Sosa Ricardo RE, Stafford D, Tonon N, Van De Klundert M, Vazzoler F, Ventura Barroso A, Walsh R, Walter D, Wang Q, Wen Y, Wichmann K, Wiens L, Wissing C, Wuchterl S, Yang Y, Zimermmane Castro Santos A, Albrecht A, Albrecht S, Antonello M, Bein S, Benato L, Bonanomi M, Connor P, De Leo K, Eich M, El Morabit K, Feindt F, Fröhlich A, Garbers C, Garutti E, Hajheidari M, Haller J, Hinzmann A, Jabusch HR, Kasieczka G, Keicher P, Klanner R, Korcari W, Kramer T, Kutzner V, Labe F, Lange J, Lobanov A, Matthies C, Mehta A, Moureaux L, Mrowietz M, Nigamova A, Nissan Y, Paasch A, Pena Rodriguez KJ, Quadfasel T, Rieger M, Savoiu D, Schindler J, Schleper P, Schröder M, Schwandt J, Sommerhalder M, Stadie H, Steinbrück G, Tews A, Wolf M, Brommer S, Burkart M, Butz E, Chwalek T, Dierlamm A, Droll A, Faltermann N, Giffels M, Gosewisch JO, Gottmann A, Hartmann F, Horzela M, Husemann U, Klute M, Koppenhöfer R, Link M, Lintuluoto A, Maier S, Mitra S, Müller T, Neukum M, Oh M, Quast G, Rabbertz K, Shvetsov I, Simonis H, Trevisani N, Ulrich R, van der Linden J, Von Cube RF, Wassmer M, Wieland S, Wolf R, Wozniewski S, Wunsch S, Zuo X, Anagnostou G, Assiouras P, Daskalakis G, Kyriakis A, Loukas D, Stakia A, Diamantopoulou M, Karasavvas D, Kontaxakis P, Manousakis-Katsikakis A, Panagiotou A, Papavergou I, Saoulidou N, Theofilatos K, Tziaferi E, Vellidis K, Zisopoulos I, Bakas G, Chatzistavrou T, Karapostoli G, Kousouris K, Papakrivopoulos I, Tsipolitis G, Zacharopoulou A, Adamidis K, Bestintzanos I, Evangelou I, Foudas C, Gianneios P, Kamtsikis C, Katsoulis P, Kokkas P, Kosmoglou Kioseoglou PG, Manthos N, Papadopoulos I, Strologas J, Csanád M, Farkas K, Gadallah MMA, Major P, Mandal K, Pásztor G, Rádl AJ, Surányi O, Veres GI, Bartók M, Bencze G, Hajdu C, Horvath D, Sikler F, Veszpremi V, Beni N, Czellar S, Karancsi J, Molnar J, Szillasi Z, Teyssier D, Raics P, Ujvari B, Zilizi G, Csorgo T, Nemes F, Novak T, Babbar J, Bansal S, Beri SB, Bhatnagar V, Chaudhary G, Chauhan S, Dhingra N, Gupta R, Kaur A, Kaur A, Kaur H, Kaur M, Kumar S, Kumari P, Meena M, Sandeep K, Sheokand T, Singh JB, Singla A, Ahmed A, Bhardwaj A, Chhetri A, Choudhary BC, Kumar A, Naimuddin M, Ranjan K, Saumya S, Baradia S, Barman S, Bhattacharya S, Bhowmik D, Dutta S, Dutta S, Gomber B, Maity M, Palit P, Saha G, Sahu B, Sarkar S, Behera PK, Behera SC, Chatterjee S, Kalbhor P, Komaragiri JR, Kumar D, Muhammad A, Panwar L, Pradhan R, Pujahari PR, Saha NR, Sharma A, Sikdar AK, Verma S, Naskar K, Aziz T, Das I, Dugad S, Kumar M, Mohanty GB, Suryadevara P, Banerjee S, Guchait M, Karmakar S, Kumar S, Majumder G, Mazumdar K, Mukherjee S, Thachayath A, Bahinipati S, Das AK, Kar C, Mal P, Mishra T, Muraleedharan Nair Bindhu VK, Nayak A, Saha P, Swain SK, Vats D, Alpana A, Dube S, Kansal B, Laha A, Pandey S, Rastogi A, Sharma S, Bakhshiansohi H, Khazaie E, Zeinali M, Chenarani S, Etesami SM, Khakzad M, Mohammadi Najafabadi M, Grunewald M, Abbrescia M, Aly R, Aruta C, Colaleo A, Creanza D, Cristella L, De Filippis N, De Palma M, Di Florio A, Elmetenawee W, Errico F, Fiore L, Iaselli G, Maggi G, Maggi M, Margjeka I, Mastrapasqua V, My S, Nuzzo S, Pellecchia A, Pompili A, Pugliese G, Radogna R, Ramos D, Ranieri A, Selvaggi G, Silvestris L, Simone FM, Sözbilir Ü, Stamerra A, Venditti R, Verwilligen P, Abbiendi G, Battilana C, Bonacorsi D, Borgonovi L, Brigliadori L, Campanini R, Capiluppi P, Castro A, Cavallo FR, Cuffiani M, Dallavalle GM, Diotalevi T, Fabbri F, Fanfani A, Giacomelli P, Giommi L, Grandi C, Guiducci L, Lo Meo S, Lunerti L, Marcellini S, Masetti G, Navarria FL, Perrotta A, Primavera F, Rossi AM, Rovelli T, Siroli GP, Costa S, Di Mattia A, Potenza R, Tricomi A, Tuve C, Barbagli G, Bardelli G, Camaiani B, Cassese A, Ceccarelli R, Ciulli V, Civinini C, D’Alessandro R, Focardi E, Latino G, Lenzi P, Lizzo M, Meschini M, Paoletti S, Sguazzoni G, Viliani L, Benussi L, Bianco S, Meola S, Piccolo D, Bozzo M, Chatagnon P, Ferro F, Robutti E, Tosi S, Benaglia A, Boldrini G, Brivio F, Cetorelli F, De Guio F, Dinardo ME, Dini P, Gennai S, Ghezzi A, Govoni P, Guzzi L, Lucchini MT, Malberti M, Malvezzi S, Massironi A, Menasce D, Moroni L, Paganoni M, Pedrini D, Pinolini BS, Ragazzi S, Redaelli N, Tabarelli de Fatis T, Zuolo D, Buontempo S, Carnevali F, Cavallo N, De Iorio A, Fabozzi F, Iorio AOM, Lista L, Paolucci P, Rossi B, Sciacca C, Azzi P, Bacchetta N, Bortignon P, Bragagnolo A, Carlin R, Checchia P, Dorigo T, Gasparini F, Gasparini U, Grosso G, Layer L, Lusiani E, Margoni M, Maron G, Meneguzzo AT, Pazzini J, Ronchese P, Rossin R, Simonetto F, Strong G, Tosi M, Yarar H, Zanetti M, Zotto P, Zucchetta A, Zumerle G, Zeid SA, Aimè C, Braghieri A, Calzaferri S, Fiorina D, Montagna P, Re V, Riccardi C, Salvini P, Vai I, Vitulo P, Asenov P, Bilei GM, Ciangottini D, Fanò L, Magherini M, Mantovani G, Mariani V, Menichelli M, Moscatelli F, Piccinelli A, Presilla M, Rossi A, Santocchia A, Spiga D, Tedeschi T, Azzurri P, Bagliesi G, Bertacchi V, Bhattacharya R, Bianchini L, Boccali T, Bossini E, Bruschini D, Castaldi R, Ciocci MA, D’Amante V, Dell’Orso R, Donato S, Giassi A, Ligabue F, Matos Figueiredo D, Messineo A, Musich M, Palla F, Parolia S, Ramirez-Sanchez G, Rizzi A, Rolandi G, Roy Chowdhury S, Sarkar T, Scribano A, Spagnolo P, Tenchini R, Tonelli G, Turini N, Venturi A, Verdini PG, Barria P, Campana M, Cavallari F, Del Re D, Di Marco E, Diemoz M, Longo E, Meridiani P, Organtini G, Pandolfi F, Paramatti R, Quaranta C, Rahatlou S, Rovelli C, Santanastasio F, Soffi L, Tramontano R, Amapane N, Arcidiacono R, Argiro S, Arneodo M, Bartosik N, Bellan R, Bellora A, Biino C, Cartiglia N, Costa M, Covarelli R, Demaria N, Grippo M, Kiani B, Legger F, Luongo F, Mariotti C, Maselli S, Mecca A, Migliore E, Monteno M, Mulargia R, Obertino MM, Ortona G, Pacher L, Pastrone N, Pelliccioni M, Ruspa M, Shchelina K, Siviero F, Sola V, Solano A, Soldi D, Staiano A, Tarricone C, Tornago M, Trocino D, Umoret G, Vagnerini A, Vlasov E, Belforte S, Candelise V, Casarsa M, Cossutti F, Della Ricca G, Sorrentino G, Dogra S, Huh C, Kim B, Kim DH, Kim GN, Kim J, Lee J, Lee SW, Moon CS, Oh YD, Pak SI, Ryu MS, Sekmen S, Yang YC, Kim H, Moon DH, Asilar E, Kim TJ, Park J, Choi S, Han S, Hong B, Lee K, Lee KS, Lim J, Park J, Park SK, Yoo J, Goh J, Kim HS, Kim Y, Lee S, Almond J, Bhyun JH, Choi J, Jeon S, Kim J, Kim JS, Ko S, Kwon H, Lee H, Lee S, Oh BH, Oh SB, Seo H, Yang UK, Yoon I, Jang W, Kang DY, Kang Y, Kim D, Kim S, Ko B, Lee JSH, Lee Y, Merlin JA, Park IC, Roh Y, Song D, Watson IJ, Yang S, Ha S, Yoo HD, Choi M, Kim MR, Lee H, Lee Y, Yu I, Beyrouthy T, Maghrbi Y, Dreimanis K, Pikurs G, Potrebko A, Seidel M, Veckalns V, Ambrozas M, Carvalho Antunes De Oliveira A, Juodagalvis A, Rinkevicius A, Tamulaitis G, Norjoharuddeen NB, Hoh SY, Yusuff I, Zolkapli Z, Benitez JF, Castaneda Hernandez A, Encinas Acosta HA, Gallegos Maríñez LG, León Coello M, Murillo Quijada JA, Sehrawat A, Valencia Palomo L, Ayala G, Castilla-Valdez H, Heredia-De La Cruz I, Lopez-Fernandez R, Mondragon Herrera CA, Perez Navarro DA, Sánchez Hernández A, Oropeza Barrera C, Vazquez Valencia F, Pedraza I, Salazar Ibarguen HA, Uribe Estrada C, Bubanja I, Mijuskovic J, Raicevic N, Ahmad A, Asghar MI, Awais A, Awan MIM, Gul M, Hoorani HR, Khan WA, Avati V, Grzanka L, Malawski M, Bialkowska H, Bluj M, Boimska B, Górski M, Kazana M, Szleper M, Zalewski P, Bunkowski K, Doroba K, Kalinowski A, Konecki M, Krolikowski J, Araujo M, Bargassa P, Bastos D, Boletti A, Faccioli P, Gallinaro M, Hollar J, Leonardo N, Niknejad T, Pisano M, Seixas J, Varela J, Adzic P, Dordevic M, Milenovic P, Milosevic J, Aguilar-Benitez M, Alcaraz Maestre J, Barrio Luna M, Bedoya CF, Cepeda M, Cerrada M, Colino N, De La Cruz B, Delgado Peris A, Fernández Del Val D, Fernández Ramos JP, Flix J, Fouz MC, Gonzalez Lopez O, Lopez SG, Hernandez JM, Josa MI, León Holgado J, Moran D, Perez Dengra C, Pérez-Calero Yzquierdo A, Puerta Pelayo J, Redondo I, Redondo Ferrero DD, Romero L, Sánchez Navas S, Sastre J, Urda Gómez L, Vazquez Escobar J, Willmott C, de Trocóniz JF, Alvarez Gonzalez B, Cuevas J, Fernandez Menendez J, Folgueras S, Gonzalez Caballero I, González Fernández JR, Palencia Cortezon E, Ramón Álvarez C, Rodríguez Bouza V, Soto Rodríguez A, Trapote A, Vico Villalba C, Brochero Cifuentes JA, Cabrillo IJ, Calderon A, Duarte Campderros J, Fernandez M, Fernandez Madrazo C, García Alonso A, Gomez G, Lasaosa García C, Martinez Rivero C, Martinez Ruiz del Arbol P, Matorras F, Matorras Cuevas P, Piedra Gomez J, Prieels C, Scodellaro L, Vila I, Vizan Garcia JM, Jayananda MK, Kailasapathy B, Sonnadara DUJ, Wickramarathna DDC, Dharmaratna WGD, Liyanage K, Perera N, Wickramage N, Abbaneo D, Auffray E, Auzinger G, Baechler J, Baillon P, Barney D, Bendavid J, Bermúdez Martínez A, Bianco M, Bilin B, Bin Anuar AA, Bocci A, Brondolin E, Caillol C, Camporesi T, Cerminara G, Chernyavskaya N, Chhibra SS, Choudhury S, Cipriani M, d’Enterria D, Dabrowski A, David A, De Roeck A, Defranchis MM, Deile M, Dobson M, Dünser M, Dupont N, Fallavollita F, Florent A, Forthomme L, Franzoni G, Funk W, Ghosh S, Giani S, Gigi D, Gill K, Glege F, 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S, Paulini M, Roberts A, Sanchez A, Terrill W, Cumalat JP, Ford WT, Hassani A, Karathanasis G, MacDonald E, Marini F, Perloff A, Savard C, Schonbeck N, Stenson K, Ulmer KA, Wagner SR, Zipper N, Alexander J, Bright-Thonney S, Chen X, Cranshaw DJ, Fan J, Fan X, Gadkari D, Hogan S, Monroy J, Patterson JR, Reichert J, Reid M, Ryd A, Thom J, Wittich P, Zou R, Albrow M, Alyari M, Apollinari G, Apresyan A, Bauerdick LAT, Berry D, Berryhill J, Bhat PC, Burkett K, Butler JN, Canepa A, Cerati GB, Cheung HWK, Chlebana F, Di Petrillo KF, Dickinson J, Elvira VD, Feng Y, Freeman J, Gandrakota A, Gecse Z, Gray L, Green D, Grünendahl S, Guerrero D, Gutsche O, Harris RM, Heller R, Herwig TC, Hirschauer J, Horyn L, Jayatilaka B, Jindariani S, Johnson M, Joshi U, Klijnsma T, Klima B, Kwok KHM, Lammel S, Lincoln D, Lipton R, Liu T, Madrid C, Maeshima K, Mantilla C, Mason D, McBride P, Merkel P, Mrenna S, Nahn S, Ngadiuba J, Noonan D, Norberg S, Papadimitriou V, Pastika N, Pedro K, Pena C, Ravera F, Hall AR, Ristori L, Sexton-Kennedy E, Smith N, Soha A, Spiegel L, Strait J, Taylor L, Tkaczyk S, Tran NV, Uplegger L, Vaandering EW, Zoi I, Avery P, Bourilkov D, Cadamuro L, Chang P, Cherepanov V, Field RD, Koenig E, Kolosova M, Konigsberg J, Korytov A, Kuznetsova E, Lo KH, Matchev K, Menendez N, Mitselmakher G, Muthirakalayil Madhu A, Rawal N, Rosenzweig D, Rosenzweig S, Shi K, Wang J, Wu Z, Adams T, Askew A, Bower N, Habibullah R, Hagopian V, Kolberg T, Martinez G, Prosper H, Viazlo O, Wulansatiti M, Yohay R, Zhang J, Baarmand MM, Butalla S, Elkafrawy T, Hohlmann M, Kumar Verma R, Rahmani M, Yumiceva F, Adams MR, Cavanaugh R, Dittmer S, Evdokimov O, Gerber CE, Hofman DJ, Lemos DS, Merrit AH, Mills C, Oh G, Roy T, Rudrabhatla S, Tonjes MB, Varelas N, Wang X, Ye Z, Yoo J, Alhusseini M, Dilsiz K, Emediato L, Karaman G, Köseyan OK, Merlo JP, Mestvirishvili A, Nachtman J, Neogi O, Ogul H, Onel Y, Penzo A, Snyder C, Tiras E, Amram O, Blumenfeld B, Corcodilos L, Davis J, Gritsan AV, Kyriacou S, Maksimovic P, Roskes J, Sekhar S, Swartz M, Vámi T, Abreu A, Alcerro Alcerro LF, Anguiano J, Baringer P, Bean A, Flowers Z, King J, Krintiras G, Lazarovits M, Le Mahieu C, Lindsey C, Marquez J, Minafra N, Murray M, Nickel M, Rogan C, Royon C, Salvatico R, Sanders S, Smith C, Wang Q, Wilson G, Allmond B, Duric S, Ivanov A, Kaadze K, Kalogeropoulos A, Kim D, Maravin Y, Mitchell T, Modak A, Nam K, Roy D, Rebassoo F, Wright D, Adams E, Baden A, Baron O, Belloni A, Bethani A, Eno SC, Hadley NJ, Jabeen S, Kellogg RG, Koeth T, Lai Y, Lascio S, Mignerey AC, Nabili S, Palmer C, Papageorgakis C, Wang L, Wong K, Busza W, Cali IA, Chen Y, D’Alfonso M, Eysermans J, Freer C, Gomez-Ceballos G, Goncharov M, Harris P, Kovalskyi D, Krupa J, Lee YJ, Long K, Mironov C, Paus C, Rankin D, Roland C, Roland G, Shi Z, Stephans GSF, Wang J, Wang Z, Wyslouch B, Yang TJ, Chatterjee RM, Crossman B, Hiltbrand J, Joshi BM, Kapsiak C, Krohn M, Kubota Y, Mahon D, Mans J, Revering M, Rusack R, Saradhy R, Schroeder N, Strobbe N, Wadud MA, Cremaldi LM, Bloom K, Bryson M, Claes DR, Fangmeier C, Finco L, Golf F, Joo C, Kamalieddin R, Kravchenko I, Reed I, Siado JE, Snow GR, Tabb W, Wightman A, Yan F, Zecchinelli AG, Agarwal G, Bandyopadhyay H, Hay L, Iashvili I, Kharchilava A, McLean C, Morris M, Nguyen D, Pekkanen J, Rappoccio S, Williams A, Alverson G, Barberis E, Haddad Y, Han Y, Krishna A, Li J, Lidrych J, Madigan G, Marzocchi B, Morse DM, Nguyen V, Orimoto T, Parker A, Skinnari L, Tishelman-Charny A, Wamorkar T, Wang B, Wisecarver A, Wood D, Bhattacharya S, Bueghly J, Chen Z, Gilbert A, Hahn KA, Liu Y, Odell N, Schmitt MH, Velasco M, Band R, Bucci R, Cremonesi M, Das A, Goldouzian R, Hildreth M, Hurtado Anampa K, Jessop C, Lannon K, Lawrence J, Loukas N, Lutton L, Mariano J, Marinelli N, Mcalister I, McCauley T, Mcgrady C, Mohrman K, Moore C, Musienko Y, Ruchti R, Townsend A, Wayne M, Yockey H, Zarucki M, Zygala L, Bylsma B, Carrigan M, Durkin LS, Hill C, Joyce M, Lesauvage A, Nunez Ornelas M, Wei K, Winer BL, Yates BR, Addesa FM, Das P, Dezoort G, Elmer P, Frankenthal A, Greenberg B, Haubrich N, Higginbotham S, Kopp G, Kwan S, Lange D, Loeliger A, Marlow D, Ojalvo I, Olsen J, Stickland D, Tully C, Malik S, Bakshi AS, Barnes VE, Chawla R, Das S, Gutay L, Jones M, Jung AW, Kondratyev D, Koshy AM, Liu M, Negro G, Neumeister N, Paspalaki G, Piperov S, Purohit A, Schulte JF, Stojanovic M, Thieman J, Virdi AK, Wang F, Xiao R, Xie W, Dolen J, Parashar N, Acosta D, Baty A, Carnahan T, Dildick S, Ecklund KM, Fernández Manteca PJ, Freed S, Gardner P, Geurts FJM, Kumar A, Li W, Padley BP, Redjimi R, Rotter J, Yang S, Yigitbasi E, Zhang Y, Bodek A, de Barbaro P, Demina R, Dulemba JL, Fallon C, Garcia-Bellido A, Hindrichs O, Khukhunaishvili A, Parygin P, Popova E, Taus R, Van Onsem GP, Goulianos K, Chiarito B, Chou JP, Gershtein Y, Halkiadakis E, Hart A, Heindl M, Jaroslawski D, Karacheban O, Laflotte I, Lath A, Montalvo R, Nash K, Osherson M, Routray H, Salur S, Schnetzer S, Somalwar S, Stone R, Thayil SA, Thomas S, Wang H, Acharya H, Delannoy AG, Fiorendi S, Holmes T, Nibigira E, Spanier S, Bouhali O, Dalchenko M, Delgado A, Eusebi R, Gilmore J, Huang T, Kamon T, Kim H, Luo S, Malhotra S, Mueller R, Overton D, Rathjens D, Safonov A, Akchurin N, Damgov J, Hegde V, Lamichhane K, Lee SW, Mengke T, Muthumuni S, Peltola T, Volobouev I, Whitbeck A, Appelt E, Greene S, Gurrola A, Johns W, Melo A, Romeo F, Sheldon P, Tuo S, Velkovska J, Viinikainen J, Cardwell B, Cox B, Cummings G, Hakala J, Hirosky R, Ledovskoy A, Li A, Neu C, Perez Lara CE, Karchin PE, Aravind A, Banerjee S, Black K, Bose T, Dasu S, De Bruyn I, Everaerts P, Galloni C, He H, Herndon M, Herve A, Koraka CK, Lanaro A, Loveless R, Madhusudanan Sreekala J, Mallampalli A, Mohammadi A, Mondal S, Parida G, Pinna D, Savin A, Shang V, Sharma V, Smith WH, Teague D, Tsoi HF, Vetens W, Warden A, Afanasiev S, Andreev V, Andreev Y, Aushev T, Azarkin M, Babaev A, Belyaev A, Blinov V, Boos E, Borshch V, Budkouski D, Bunichev V, Chadeeva M, Chekhovsky V, Danilov M, Dermenev A, Dimova T, Dremin I, Dubinin M, Dudko L, Epshteyn V, Ershov A, Gavrilov G, Gavrilov V, Gninenko S, Golovtcov V, Golubev N, Golutvin I, Gorbunov I, Ivanov Y, Kachanov V, Kardapoltsev L, Karjavine V, Karneyeu A, Kim V, Kirakosyan M, Kirpichnikov D, Kirsanov M, Klyukhin V, Kodolova O, Konstantinov D, Korenkov V, Kozyrev A, Krasnikov N, Lanev A, Levchenko P, Litomin A, Lychkovskaya N, Makarenko V, Malakhov A, Matveev V, Murzin V, Nikitenko A, Obraztsov S, Oskin A, Ovtin I, Palichik V, Perelygin V, Perfilov M, Petrushanko S, Popov V, Radchenko O, Rusinov V, Savina M, Savrin V, Shalaev V, Shmatov S, Shulha S, Skovpen Y, Slabospitskii S, Smirnov V, Sosnov D, Sulimov V, Tcherniaev E, Terkulov A, Teryaev O, Tlisova I, Toropin A, Uvarov L, Uzunian A, Vorobyev A, Voytishin N, Yuldashev BS, Zarubin A, Zhizhin I, Zhokin A. A search for decays of the Higgs boson to invisible particles in events with a top-antitop quark pair or a vector boson in proton-proton collisions at s=13TeV

A search for decays to invisible particles of Higgs bosons produced in association with a top-antitop quark pair or a vector boson, which both decay to a fully hadronic final state, has been performed using proton-proton collision data collected at s = 13 Te V by the CMS experiment at the LHC, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 138fb - 1 . The 95% confidence level upper limit set on the branching fraction of the 125Ge V Higgs boson to invisible particles, B ( H → inv ) , is 0.54 (0.39 expected), assuming standard model production cross sections. The results of this analysis are combined with previous B ( H → inv ) searches carried out at s = 7 , 8, and 13Te V in complementary production modes. The combined upper limit at 95% confidence level on B ( H → inv ) is 0.15 (0.08 expected).

Observation of τ Lepton Pair Production in Ultraperipheral Pb-Pb Collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=5.02 TeV

We present an observation of photon-photon production of τ lepton pairs in ultraperipheral lead-lead collisions. The measurement is based on a data sample with an integrated luminosity of 404  μb^{-1} collected by the CMS experiment at a center-of-mass energy per nucleon pair of sqrt[s_{NN}]=5.02  TeV. The γγ→τ^{+}τ^{-} process is observed for τ^{+}τ^{-} events with a muon and three charged hadrons in the final state. The measured fiducial cross section is σ(γγ→τ^{+}τ^{-})=4.8±0.6(stat)±0.5(syst)  μb, where the second (third) term corresponds to the statistical (systematic) uncertainty in σ(γγ→τ^{+}τ^{-}) in agreement with leading-order QED predictions. Using σ(γγ→τ^{+}τ^{-}), we estimate a model-dependent value of the anomalous magnetic moment of the τ lepton of a_{τ}=0.001_{-0.089}^{+0.055}.

Long-term follow-up of inpatients with traumatic fractures who received integrative Korean Medicine treatment: A retrospective analysis and questionnaire survey study

Previous studies have reported pain reduction after Korean medicine (KM) treatment in patients with fractures. However, these studies were limited by small sample sizes and short observation periods. To address these limitations, we aimed to analyze the outcomes of patients with traumatic fractures who received integrative KM treatment and investigate their long-term progress through follow-up observations. This study was a retrospective analysis and questionnaire survey conducted at a multi-center inpatient care setting in Korea. A total of 1150 patients who had traumatic fractures and received at least 5-day inpatient care at one of 5 KM hospitals. Finally, 339 patients completed the follow-up survey. The questionnaire survey was administered 3 months post discharge. The primary outcome was the difference in numeric rating scale (NRS) scores at admission and discharge for fracture-related pain. The secondary outcomes were EuroQol 5-Dimension 5-Level (EQ-5D-5L) score, Oswestry Disability Index, Neck Disability Index, Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index, Shoulder Pain and Disability Index, and Patient Global Impression of Change (PGIC) score. The follow-up questionnaire survey included questions on surgery and imaging before admission and after discharge and treatment within the past 3 months. The mean NRS score at follow-up showed a significant decrease of 4.41 points compared with that at admission (P < .001). The mean EQ-5D-5L score at follow-up showed a significant increase of 0.18 points compared with that at admission (P < .05). In the follow-up survey on PGIC, 307 participants (90.56%) were "minimally improved" or better. Integrative KM treatment can help improve pain, functional impairment, and long-term quality of life in patients with traumatic fractures.

Everolimus-Eluting Stents or Bypass Surgery for Multivessel Disease in Diabetics: The BEST Extended Follow-Up Study

BACKGROUND

Diabetes mellitus is associated with more complex coronary artery diseases. Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) is a preferred revascularization strategy over percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in diabetics with multivessel coronary artery disease (MVD).

OBJECTIVES

This study sought to examine the different prognostic effects of revascularization strategies according to the diabetes status from the randomized BEST (Randomized Comparison of Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery and Everolimus-Eluting Stent Implantation in the Treatment of Patients With Multivessel Coronary Artery Disease) trial.

METHODS

Patients (n = 880) with MVD were randomly assigned to undergo PCI with an everolimus-eluting stent vs CABG stratified by diabetics (n = 363) and nondiabetics (n = 517). The primary endpoint was the composite of death, myocardial infarction, or target vessel revascularization during a median follow-up of 11.8 years (IQR: 10.6-12.5 years).

RESULTS

In diabetics, the primary endpoint rate was significantly higher in the PCI group than in the CABG group (43% and 32%; HR: 1.53; 95% CI: 1.12-2.08; P = 0.008). However, in nondiabetics, no significant difference was found between the groups (PCI group, 29%; CABG group, 29%; HR: 0.97; 95% CI: 0.67-1.39; P = 0.86; Pinteraction= 0.009). Irrespective of the presence of diabetes, no significant between-group differences were found in the rate of a safety composite of death, myocardial infarction, or stroke and mortality rate. However, the rate of any repeat revascularization was significantly higher in the PCI group than in the CABG group.

CONCLUSIONS

In diabetics with MVD, CABG was associated with better clinical outcomes than PCI. However, the mortality rate was similar between PCI and CABG irrespective of diabetes status during an extended follow-up. (Ten-Year Outcomes of Randomized Comparison of Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery and Everolimus-Eluting Stent Implantation in the Treatment of Patients With Multivessel Coronary Artery Disease [BEST Extended], NCT05125367; Randomized Comparison of Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery and Everolimus-Eluting Stent Implantation in the Treatment of Patients With Multivessel Coronary Artery Disease [BEST], NCT00997828).

Radiation Therapy in the Management of Primary Gastric Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphomas: Long-Term Outcomes of 82 Patients

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Our group has recently published its long-term experience treating gastric MALT lymphomas with involved site radiation therapy (ISRT) and supported the use of RT alone as standard of care for H pylori independent MALT. For primary gastric (PG) diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCL), R-CHOP is the mainstay of therapy, but RT to the stomach primarily as consolidation has rarely been analyzed. In this study, we focus on pts with PG DLBCL who received combined modality therapy.

MATERIALS/METHODS

Two hundred eighty-five consecutive pts with PG lymphomas treated with RT between January 2000 and January 2021 at our institution were retrospectively identified. Baseline characteristics and follow-up data were abstracted. Overall response rate (ORR) was assessed with Lugano PET criteria and endoscopy. Overall survival (OS) was calculated using Kaplan-Meier. Toxicity was assessed with CTCAE version 4.0.

RESULTS

Of 285 pts, 203 (71%) had PG MALT and 82 (29%) PG DLBCL. Baseline characteristics are summarized in Table 1. In the DLBCL pts, 74 (90%) received consolidation RT after limited (3-4 cycles) or full (6 cycles) chemoimmunotherapy (CT), 4 (5%) received RT after 2 lines of CT, 2 (3%) received first line RT followed by CT, 1 (1%) had 3 lines of CT and RT, and 1 (1%) was treated with surgery, 2 lines of CT, and RT. In the 74 pts who received CT+RT as first line treatment, the median RT dose was 3060 cGy (range 1620-3600). Based on post-chemo pre-RT EGD and PET, 61 (82%) pts were in CR, 7 (10%) had PR, 3 (4%) had SD and 3 (4%) pts were not assessed. Overall, 66 (89%) pts who received RT after CT achieved a CR. Of the remaining 8 (11%) pts who did not achieve a CR after RT, 4 had PR, 1 had SD, 1 was lost to FU, 1 started additional CT before response assessment and 1 pt died. The 2 pts in the DLBCL group who received first line RT achieved CR after RT. Side effects after RT were mild and limited to nausea and fatigue. The median follow-up time was 5.4 yrs (95% CI 0.4, 20.4) in DLBCL pts and 6.3 yrs (95% CI 0.3, 22.1) in MALT pts. The 5-yr OS was 80% (95% CI 71-90%) for DLBCL and 96% (95% CI 93-99%) for MALT.

CONCLUSION

Adding stomach RT following chemoimmunotherapy is feasible, well-tolerated and safe. More in depth analysis PG DLBCL is underway, with a plan to compare outcomes of patients treated with CT alone versus CT followed by RT, and further analyze treatment-related toxicities, progression-free survival, and patterns of recurrence.

Machine Parameter Optimization of a Clinical Linear Accelerator Using Deep Reinforcement Learning for Automatic Generation of Deliverable Prostate VMAT Plans

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Reinforcement learning (RL) is an artificial intelligence (AI) approach involving learning through trial and error which has demonstrated performance exceeding humans and existing algorithms in multiple domains. We hypothesized that machine parameter optimization using RL will produce deliverable treatment plans faster and with superior dosimetry compared to conventional inverse optimization, which was tested in the setting of VMAT for localized prostate cancer.

MATERIALS/METHODS

We included 151 previously treated prostate cancer patients, separated into training (n = 116) and testing (n = 35) cohorts. We used a policy gradient RL approach, where contours, dose distribution and machine parameters for the current control point are taken as input by a 3D convolutional neural network (CNN) and continuous machine parameters for the next control point are predicted, allowing the CNN to directly control the linear accelerator (Linac) model. Training was initialized using a subset of 20 training cases with plans produced in our clinical treatment planning system (TPS) prescribed 60 Gy in 20 fractions (denoted Training-TPS), but continued for all 116 training cases through trial and error-based RL. Following training, RL VMAT was applied to the initialization subset of 20 training cases (Training-RL) and 35 test cases (Test-RL), comparing resultant dosimetry.

RESULTS

Training was conducted for 10 days using 4 GPUs generating 22,000 plans for exploration, enabling dosimetric improvements compared to the TPS-based plans and generalization to all 116 training cases. Following training, mean ± SD RL execution time for automatic plan generation was 2.9 ± 0.6 seconds. Automatic gradient descent-based parameter rescaling was applied to enable quantitative comparison with the TPS-based plans, and final dose metrics are provided in Table 1. Overall dosimetry was comparable between the TPS and RL approaches in the training and test sets, although PTV coverage and maximum dose did not meet objectives in several RL-based plans.

CONCLUSION

To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of direct RL-based control of a 3D Linac model. Initial performance is promising, demonstrating model convergence in the training set with a small number of existing plans required for initialization. However, limitations exist in model generalizability which are under continued investigation through approaches made possible through RL including data augmentation.

Comparison of Early Outcomes of Stereotactic Accelerated Partial Breast Irradiation vs. Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy-Based FAST-FORWARD Whole Breast Irradiation for Breast Cancer

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Despite evidence supporting APBI from 8 published prospective randomized trials enrolling over 10,000 women, the uptake of APBI in clinical practice is surprisingly low. This is being exacerbated by a new, convenient, and safe shortened WBI schedule. Here, we report the dosimetric and early outcome analyses of the first >1000 patients treated at our institution since the first adoption of stereotactic APBI and the ultra-hypofractionated WBI regimen.

MATERIALS/METHODS

From 2016 to 2022, 801 women with breast cancers in the suitable or cautionary categories according to the ASTRO APBI consensus panel guidelines, received 30 Gy in 5 fractions (92%) either using a robotic stereotactic radiation system (83%) or stereotactic volumetric-based arc therapy (VMAT, 17%). Between 2020 and 2022, 468 women, who were not candidates for APBI and not undergoing any regional irradiation received 26 Gy in 5 fractions using VMAT to the whole breast with the addition of cardiac sparing technique in left-sided breast cancer patients. Tumor bed boosts were delivered in 99% of FF-WBI patients. We evaluated dose-volume histogram parameters for target volumes and organs-at-risk and radiation-related toxicities during RT or within 6 months after the end of RT.

RESULTS

Target volume coverage was acceptable in both groups, with mean 96% of the target volumes receiving 95% of the prescribed doses and 0 cm3 within target volumes exceeding 105% of the prescribed doses. S-APBI resulted in small, but statistically significant, reductions in the radiation dose delivered to the ipsilateral breast, contralateral breast, lungs, heart, and coronary artery compared with FF-WBI. Comparing WBI to APBI, the mean contralateral breast dose, ipsilateral lung V20 Gy, mean contralateral lung dose, and mean heart dose, were reduced by 89%, 78%, 73%, and 29%, respectively. With median follow-up periods of 32 months for s-APBI and 19 months for FF-WBI, acute toxicity was assessable in all patients. The risks of any grade acute toxicity were 21% for s-APBI and 25% for FF-WBI (p = .117). Among them, grade 2 rates were 1.3% in both groups and no severe toxicity has been reported.

CONCLUSION

We found s-APBI and VMAT-based FF WBI were associated with favorable dosimetric and acute toxicity profiles. However, considering significantly less irradiated volume in the breast, lungs, and heart, APBI with advanced available technique options should be considered over any WBI-based approach for patients at low risk for local recurrence.

Radiation in a New Era of Multiple Myeloma Management: Patterns of Utilization, Clinical, Radiologic, and Biochemical Outcomes, and Possible Genomic Correlates of Response

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Systemic therapies for multiple myeloma (MM) have advanced considerably, improving patient outcomes. Yet, the use of radiotherapy (RT) has remained heterogeneous, and even controversial, due to minimal data on outcomes. With the ultimate goal of guiding the design of prospective trials incorporating RT, we initiated a study of our institutional experience treating MM with RT since 1/1/2000. Here we report a preliminary feasibility analysis of an initial sample cohort, identifying patterns of RT utilization, outcomes, and impact of RT on radiographic and biochemical markers, with genomic characterization for more recently treated patients.

MATERIALS/METHODS

Five hundred six pathologically confirmed MM patients who received RT to 1190 sites between January 1, 2000, and June 1, 2022, were identified. Patient, disease, and treatment characteristics were analyzed for 50 consecutive patients treated in 2019 and tested for association with local and distant failure (LF, DF) using univariable and multivariable analysis. Genomic data was obtained via next generation sequencing using an institutional targeted sequencing panel.

RESULTS

Amongthe 50 patients analyzed (median 63 years), 90 lesions were treated with RT, 33% with concurrent systemic therapy, to median dose of 20 Gy (8-46 Gy) over a median of 5 fractions (1-25). RT Indications were pain (56%), critical structure involvement (25%), peri-operative (9%), salvage/consolidation (8%), and bridging therapy (2%). Median size of RT-treated lesions was 4.2 cm (1.4-7.9) and included non-vertebral bones (62%), spine (24%), and extramedullary sites (14%). The median number of lines of pre-RT therapy was 7 (1-14) and 51% had >9 lesions on imaging, 47% involving both medullary and extramedullary sites. With median follow-up of 12.4 months (0.5-46), LF occurred in 5% of treated sites and 89% had DF, most commonly in both medullary + extramedullary (51.4%) sites. Absolute decreases 1-week to 1-month post-RT were observed in % of marrow plasma cell (median 4.0%), M spike (0.30 g/dL), total protein (0.3 g/dL), K:L ratio (0.01), lesion size (1.5cm), and lesion SUV (3.1) but in this limited sample, none were significantly associated with disease control. A cohort of 62 RT-treated MM patients from 2016-2022 had genomic data available; most common tumor mutations were in TP53 (35%), HIST1 (34%), NRAS (34%), and KRAS (23%).

CONCLUSION

In this pilot analysis of a sampling cohort of RT-treated MM, we report on patterns of utilization, outcomes, and biochemical and radiographic correlates. At the meeting, we will present the full analysis of the >500 MM patients and further analyze emerging genomic data. We aim to characterize the role of RT in the modern era of systemic therapy to guide the design of future prospective trials and to inform novel approaches for incorporating RT into the treatment paradigm.

Measurement-induced entanglement and teleportation on a noisy quantum processor

Measurement has a special role in quantum theory1: by collapsing the wavefunction, it can enable phenomena such as teleportation2 and thereby alter the 'arrow of time' that constrains unitary evolution. When integrated in many-body dynamics, measurements can lead to emergent patterns of quantum information in space-time3-10 that go beyond the established paradigms for characterizing phases, either in or out of equilibrium11-13. For present-day noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) processors14, the experimental realization of such physics can be problematic because of hardware limitations and the stochastic nature of quantum measurement. Here we address these experimental challenges and study measurement-induced quantum information phases on up to 70 superconducting qubits. By leveraging the interchangeability of space and time, we use a duality mapping9,15-17 to avoid mid-circuit measurement and access different manifestations of the underlying phases, from entanglement scaling3,4 to measurement-induced teleportation18. We obtain finite-sized signatures of a phase transition with a decoding protocol that correlates the experimental measurement with classical simulation data. The phases display remarkably different sensitivity to noise, and we use this disparity to turn an inherent hardware limitation into a useful diagnostic. Our work demonstrates an approach to realizing measurement-induced physics at scales that are at the limits of current NISQ processors.

Prostate Tumor Regression during Radiation Therapy in Relation to Image Derived Estimates of Fibrosis Using Ultrashort Echo Time MRI

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

An inflammatory response due to radiation injury can lead to the activation of fibroblasts and their transformation into myofibroblasts that produce organized collagen layers. We term these organized collagen layers "acute fibrosis" (FA). Small animal imaging has shown that accumulation of fibrosis is accelerated at a higher radiation dose with later remodeling of type III collagen into densely packed type I collagen structures, which later transform into what we term "chronic fibrosis" (FC). In prostate cancer (PCa) patients treated with EBRT, we evaluated image derived FA (IDFA) and FC (IDFC) estimates using non-contrast and late gadolinium contrast enhanced (LGE) IR UTE, respectively. We hypothesized that fibrosis changes during RT are associated to tumor regression.

MATERIALS/METHODS

Four PCa patients undergoing radiation and hormone suppression were included. 1.5T MR imaging was acquired at three time-points (TPs); pre-RT, on-RT (30-40 Gy), and post-RT (60-78 Gy). IDFA imaging: Stack of spirals dual echo (TE = 50, 2690µs, TI = 60ms) IR UTE research application. Subtracting the two echoes yielded short TE signal intensity (SI). IDFC imaging: stack of spirals dual echo IR UTE research application, TE = 50µs, TI = 200ms, acquired 15 minutes following Gadovist administration. Remnant tumor was contoured at each TP with T2, ADC, and DCE. Relative quantification; IDFA = IR UTE SI/Gluteal Muscle SI and IDFC = LGE IR UTE SI/Gluteal Muscle SI. The sum of normalized IDFA and IDFC SI within the remnant tumor at each TP was divided by the corresponding tumor volume yielding tumor intensity (TI) FA and FC accumulation estimates: TIFA and TIFC. Mean delivered dose within the treated volume to regions where post-RT IDFA and IDFC > 100% gluteal muscle SI was determined. Univariate relationships were evaluated using correlation coefficients (r).

RESULTS

The coefficients of variation for TIFA = 10% and TIFC = 11%. IDFA and IDFC were observed pre-RT on the prostate gland periphery, and on RT and post RT within the prostate gland. IDFA and IDFC mean doses were 74% and 85% of prescription, respectively. Tumor regression was incomplete by post-RT. Initial tumor burden was inversely correlated with pre-RT TIFC (r = -0.98, p = .01). Tumor volume change post RT was inversely correlated with larger on-RT TIFA (r = -0.76) and post-RT TIFC (r = -0.78).

CONCLUSION

In this small pilot study, results suggest that IDFA and IDFC may be associated with improved tumor regression. They also suggest higher delivered dose is related to regions of greater IDFC. Quantitative fibrosis may be an early marker of RT response. Caution must be taken when interpreting these results given the small sample size. Future work will include a larger cohort of patients and include post-RT imaging.

Florida-California Cancer Health Equity Center (CaRE2) Community Scientist Research Advocacy Program

The Community Scientist Program (CSP), a model connecting researchers with community members, is effective to inform and involve the general population in health-related clinical research. Given the existing cancer disparities among Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino/a populations, more models describing how cancer-related CSPs are designed, implemented, and evaluated are needed. The Florida-California Cancer Research, Education and Engagement (CaRE2) Health Equity Center is a tri-institutional, bicoastal center created to eliminate cancer health disparities among Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino/a populations living in California and in Florida. The CaRE2 Center created a Community Scientist Research Advocacy (CSRA) training program for community members to become cancer research advocates. The CSRA program is currently a 13-week program conducted 100% virtually with all materials provided in English and Spanish for participants to learn more about prostate, lung, and pancreas cancers, ongoing research at CaRE2, and ways to share cancer research throughout their communities. Participants attend didactic lectures on cancer research during weeks 1-5. In week 4, participants join CSRA self-selected groups based on cancer-related topics of interest. Each group presents their cancer-related advocacy project developed during weeks 5-12 at the final session. In this paper, we describe the CaRE2 Health Equity Center's CSRA program, share results, and discuss opportunities for improvement in future program evaluation as well as replication of this model in other communities.

Simultaneous relative cue reliance in speech-on-speech masking

Modern hearing research has identified the ability of listeners to segregate simultaneous speech streams with a reliance on three major voice cues, fundamental frequency, level, and location. Few of these studies evaluated reliance for these cues presented simultaneously as occurs in nature, and fewer still considered the listeners' relative reliance on these cues owing to the cues' different units of measure. In the present study trial-by-trial analyses were used to isolate the listener's simultaneous reliance on the three voice cues, with the behavior of an ideal observer [Green and Swets (1966). (Wiley, New York), pp.151-178] serving as a comparison standard for evaluating relative reliance. Listeners heard on each trial a pair of randomly selected, simultaneous recordings of naturally spoken sentences. One of the recordings was always from the same talker, a distracter, and the other, with equal probability, was from one of two target talkers differing in the three voice cues. The listener's task was to identify the target talker. Among 33 clinically normal-hearing adults only one relied predominantly on voice level, the remaining were split between voice fundamental frequency and/or location. The results are discussed regarding their implications for the common practice in studies of using target-distracter level as a dependent measure of speech-on-speech masking.

Nishtam Niwiipitan (My First Teeth): Oral Health Digital Stories from Urban Indigenous Parents

PURPOSE

To develop oral health-related digital story videos through interviews with Indigenous parents who shared their experiences in dealing with early childhood caries (ECC) in their children.

METHODS

Indigenous parents in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, were recruited from community programs from October to December 2019 as part of the Nishtam Niwiipitan (My First Teeth), a community-based participatory research study that builds on an ECC intervention. A twofold qualitative narrative approach to data collection was used: 1) interviewing participants and creating digital stories and 2) taking part in the postfilming feedback interviews. Participants were interviewed via video in a semistructured format sharing their experiences and attitudes about caring for children with ECC and the challenges faced seeking dental care for the disease. The stories were drawn from parents in 3 predetermined groups: those with 1) children who had undergone dental surgery under general anesthesia, 2) children who had received silver diamine fluoride as an alternative to surgery to manage ECC, and 3) caries-free children. Prior to editing, the narrated stories were transcribed verbatim and analyzed thematically. The postfilming interview transcripts were also analyzed and coded for key themes.

RESULTS

Six parents and 1 grandparent, all of whom self-identified as Indigenous (First Nations or Métis) and cared for children aged <6 y, created the digital stories. Three key themes emerged from the postfilming interviews: ability to share, ability to help, and ability to change. Participants felt important, optimistic, and motivated throughout the process of making their digital stories.

CONCLUSION

Digital storytelling offered First Nations and Métis parents a unique opportunity to share their experiences caring for children with ECC with the wider public. These videos can be incorporated into oral health promotion and ECC intervention programs as a culturally appropriate method for reaching Indigenous families.

KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER STATEMENT

The use and development of digital storytelling for oral health promotion have great potential for spreading awareness and sharing knowledge with Indigenous parents/caregivers about their children's oral health and care practices. This health promotion tool is congruent with Indigenous ways of knowing, as Indigenous communities have a long tradition of oral history. The videos produced for this study will assist with oral health promotion efforts to address the high rates of early childhood caries in Indigenous communities in Canada.

BLZ8 activates a plastidial peroxiredoxin and a ferredoxin to protect Chlamydomonas reinhardtii against oxidative stress

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) cause damage to various cellular processes in almost all organisms, in particular photosynthetic organisms that depend on the electron transfer chain for CO2 fixation. However, the detoxifying process to mitigate ROS damage has not been studied intensively in microalgae. Here, we characterized the ROS detoxifying role of a bZIP transcription factor, BLZ8, in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. To identify downstream targets of BLZ8, we carried out comparative genome-wide transcriptomic profiling of BLZ8 OX and its parental CC-4533 under oxidative stress conditions. Luciferase reporter activity assays and RT-qPCR were performed to test whether BLZ8 regulates downstream genes. We performed an in silico functional gene network analysis and an in vivo immunoprecipitation assay to identify the interaction between downstream targets of BLZ8. Comparative transcriptomic analysis and RT-qPCR revealed that overexpression of BLZ8 increased the expression levels of plastid peroxiredoxin1 (PRX1) and ferredoxin-5 (FDX5) under oxidative stress conditions. BLZ8 alone could activate the transcriptional activity of FDX5 and required bZIP2 to activate transcriptional activity of PRX1. Functional gene network analysis using FDX5 and PRX1 orthologs in A. thaliana suggested that these two genes were functionally associated. Indeed, our immunoprecipitation assay revealed the physical interaction between PRX1 and FDX5. Furthermore, the complemented strain, fdx5 (FDX5), recovered growth retardation of the fdx5 mutant under oxidative stress conditions, indicating that FDX5 contributes to oxidative stress tolerance. These results suggest that BLZ8 activates PRX1 and FDX5 expression, resulting in the detoxification of ROS to confer oxidative stress tolerance in microalgae.

Image Derived Estimates of Fibrosis Using Ultrashort Echo Time MRI in Gynecologic Cancer

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Fibrosis forms during and after radiation therapy (RT) due to wound-healing and cell death. In gynecologic cancer patients treated with EBRT and HDR, we evaluated image derived (ID) acute fibrosis (IDFA) and chronic fibrosis (IDFC) estimates using non-contrast and late gadolinium contrast enhanced (LGE) inversion recovery ultrashort echo time (IR UTE) MRI, respectively. We hypothesized that that ID markers can quantify FA and FC within tumor as a result of response to RT and that fibrosis changes over the course of RT are associated with tumor regression.

MATERIALS/METHODS

Subjects: Three subjects with cervical squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), 1 subject with cervical adenocarcinoma, and 2 subjects with vaginal SCC undergoing RT were included. Image Acquisition & Analysis: 1.5T MR imaging at four time-points (TPs): pre-RT, on-RT, post-RT, and post 3mo RT. IDFA imaging: Stack of spirals dual echo (TE = 50, 2690µs), TI = 60ms IR UTE research application. Subtracting the two echoes yielded short TE signal intensity (SI). IDFC imaging: stack of spirals dual echo IR UTE research application, TE = 50µs, TI = 200ms, acquired 15 minutes following contrast. Remnant tumor was contoured at each TP with T2, ADC, and DCE. Relative IDFA, IDFC quantification: voxel-wise IR UTE and LGE IR UTE signal intensity (SI) normalized to gluteal muscle SI. The sum of normalized IDFA and IDFC SI within the remnant tumor at each TP was divided by the corresponding tumor volume yielding tumor intensity (TI) TIFA and TIFC fibrosis accumulation estimates.

STATISTICS

The coefficients of variation (COV) for TIFA and TIFC were calculated by varying tumor margins and re-computing TIFA and TIFC. Univariate relationships were evaluated using linear regression.

RESULTS

The COVs for TIFA = 13% and TIFC = 7%. IDFA and IDFC were observed pre-RT on the tumor periphery, on-RT and post-RT within the tumor, with IDFA potentially transforming into IDFC. Table 1 shows that a greater decrease in tumor volume post RT was correlated with a larger pre-RT TIFA (r = -0.85, p = .03). Decrease in tumor volume was correlated with a larger TIFC post-RT (r = -0.79, p = .05). Post 3 month TIFC was associated with tumor reduction (r = 0.82, n = 4).

CONCLUSION

In this pilot study, we developed reproducible methods to quantify IDFA and IDFC within remnant tumor. Our results suggest that IDFA and IDFC may be associated with tumor response based on tumor volume.

Very Low Dose Radiation Therapy for Indolent Lymphomas: Comparing "Big Boom" (4 Gy x 1) vs. "Boom Boom" (2 Gy x 2)

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE(S)

Indolent lymphomas are exquisitely sensitive to radiation therapy (RT). Programs of 2 Gy x 2 were shown to be highly effective in controlling irradiated site(s). During the COVID-19 pandemic, the International Lymphoma Radiation Oncology Group (ILROG) proposed guidelines that offered substitution of the Boom Boom (BB) (2 Gy x 2) regimen with Big Boom (Big B) of 4 Gy x 1. This report compares our center's experience with both regimens.

MATERIALS/METHODS

We included patients with indolent lymphomas in this retrospective single institution study. After April 2020 both options of very low dose and choice of a standard full dose of 24 Gy were discussed with the patient. Patients were treated with a definitive or palliative intent depending on disease stage and prior therapy exposure. Patients treated with 24 Gy are not included in this report. Toxicity was reported as per CTCAE v4.0. Overall response rate (ORR) was assessed with Lugano PET criteria at the initial post-RT imaging. Differences between the two groups were examined using the Fisher's exact test and Mann-Whitney test.

RESULTS

We evaluated a total of 471 lesions in 386 patients, including 172 lesions (37%) treated with 4 Gy x 1 and 299 lesions (63%) treated with 2 Gy x 2. Table 1 summarizes the patient and treatment characteristics. Age at the time of RT and sex were not significantly different between the two groups. The BB cohort was more likely to have follicular lymphomas (FL) (66% vs 54%, p = 0.011), though the proportion of higher-grade FL was similar between cohorts. The ORR was similar (Big B = 86%, BB = 87%) at the first post-RT evaluation (median of 2.23 months from RT for both cohorts). There was no significant difference in the rate of complete response, partial response, stable disease, or progressive disease between the cohorts at initial post-RT imaging. For both regimens, no directly related short-term side effects were observed.

CONCLUSION

Both the 4 Gyx1 and 2 Gyx2 regimens demonstrated excellent ORR at the initial post-RT imaging assessment among patients with indolent lymphomas. While longer term follow-up is required to confirm durability of these findings, our initial experience suggests that 4 Gyx1 regimen recommended by ILROG during the pandemic is an effective treatment approach.