NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines Prostate Cancer Early Detection, Version 2.2015

Prostate cancer represents a spectrum of disease that ranges from nonaggressive, slow-growing disease that may not require treatment to aggressive, fast-growing disease that does. The NCCN Guidelines for Prostate Cancer Early Detection provide a set of sequential recommendations detailing a screening and evaluation strategy for maximizing the detection of prostate cancer that is potentially curable and that, if left undetected, represents a risk to the patient. The guidelines were developed for healthy men who have elected to participate in the early detection of prostate cancer, and they focus on minimizing unnecessary procedures and limiting the detection of indolent disease.

NCCN Guidelines Insights: Prostate Cancer Early Detection, Version 2.2016

The NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) for Prostate Cancer Early Detection provide recommendations for prostate cancer screening in healthy men who have elected to participate in an early detection program. The NCCN Guidelines focus on minimizing unnecessary procedures and limiting the detection of indolent disease. These NCCN Guidelines Insights summarize the NCCN Prostate Cancer Early Detection Panel's most significant discussions for the 2016 guideline update, which included issues surrounding screening in high-risk populations (ie, African Americans, BRCA1/2 mutation carriers), approaches to refine patient selection for initial and repeat biopsies, and approaches to improve biopsy specificity.

Prostate cancer early detection, version 1.2014. Featured updates to the NCCN Guidelines

The NCCN Guidelines for Prostate Cancer Early Detection provide recommendations for men choosing to participate in an early detection program for prostate cancer. These NCCN Guidelines Insights highlight notable recent updates. Overall, the 2014 update represents a more streamlined and concise set of recommendations. The panel stratified the age ranges at which initiating testing for prostate cancer should be considered. Indications for biopsy include both a cutpoint and the use of multiple risk variables in combination. In addition to other biomarkers of specificity, the Prostate Health Index has been included to aid biopsy decisions in certain men, given recent FDA approvals.

Vitrification of High-Level Radioactive Waste by Sintering Under Pressure

Sintered silicate glass waste forms with a continuous glass phase and embedded but not completely dissolved waste particles were prepared by powder technology. We used a typical defense waste compositions, containing 38 wt.% of ZrO2 and prepared sinter glass samples with 30, 35, and 40 wt.% waste loading at 830°C and 27.6 MPa, by hot isostatic pressing. The glass former was amorphous silica powder. Simulated waste was added as calcine. Samples were characterized using scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The results show that extensive sintering took place, particularly with the 40 wt.% samples. Waste components, such as Na2O, CaO, MnO2, La203, Fe2O3, NiO, Cr2O3, and P2O5, dissolved completely in the continuous glass phase. ZrO2 was partly dissolved and occurred as aggregates of tiny baddeleyite crystals. The porosity of the samples was 2-3%, indicating that the optimum sintering conditions have not been met to reach porosities <1%.

Chemical durability tests were carried out with sintered glass with 35 wt.% waste loading in deionized water at 90°C under static conditions, showing that the glass is at least as chemically durable as a borosilicate glass with 31 wt.% melted at 1350°C.

Lupus anticoagulant testing with optical end point automation

The dilute Russell viper venom time and kaolin clotting time (KCT) are very sensitive screening tests for lupus anticoagulant activity. However, due to the high turbidity of the kaolin reagent it is difficult to accommodate the KCT on the optical end point automation of today. We evaluated five recently reported screening tests (the silica clotting time, the Textarin/Ecarin ratio, the Taipan venom time, the factor V ratio, and a kaolin clotting time using low-turbidity kaolin) as potential alternatives to the KCT. The sensitivity and specificity of the silica clotting time compared well to KCT, detecting 10/12 KCT positive samples and showing equal sensitivity to dilution of lupus positive plasma. In addition, the silica clotting time allows for a confirmatory phospholipid correction procedure. False-positive results were seen in 2 of 15 warfarinised samples. A second assay utilising the ratio of extrinsic/intrinsic factor V assays was not affected by either warfarin or heparin. This assay also gave positive results with 3 of 23 samples previously screened as lupus negative but exhibiting anticardiolipin positivity. It was therefore concluded that a combination of the silica clotting time and dilute Russell viper venom time met the requirements of lupus sensitivity with demonstration of phospholipid dependence and optical end point compatibility. The factor V ratio is a useful second-line screen for both anticoagulated patients and anticardiolipin antibody-positive samples.