Esophageal cancer represents a major clinical challenge because of its poor prognosis. The aim of the SUDCAN collaborative study was to compare the net survival from esophageal cancer between six ...European Latin countries (Belgium, France, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland) and report the trends in net survival and the dynamics of excess mortality rates (EMRs) up to 5 years after diagnosis. The data were extracted from the EUROCARE-5 database. First, net survival was studied over the period 2000–2004 using the Pohar-Perme estimator. For trend analyses, the study period was specific to each country. The results were reported from 1992 to 2004 in France, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland and from 2000 to 2004 in Belgium and Portugal. These trend analyses were carried out using a flexible excess rate modeling strategy. There were some differences between countries in age-standardized net survival (2000–2004). The 5-year net survival ranged between 9 (Spain) and 21% (Belgium). The small increase in net survival from 1992 and 2004 was mostly observed at ages 55 and 65, but was less marked at age 75. There was a slight decrease in EMR between 1992 and 2004 until ~ 24 months after diagnosis. Beyond this period, the decrease in the EMR was moderate and the same in all countries irrespective of the year of diagnosis. Some improvement in the 5-year net survival was observed in all countries limited to the 24 months after diagnosis. However, survival differences between countries persisted. Further improvement is expected from innovative treatments.
The main objective of the SUDCAN study was to compare, for 15 cancer sites, the trends in net survival and excess mortality rates from cancer 5 years after diagnosis between six European Latin ...countries (Belgium, France, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland). The data were extracted from the EUROCARE-5 database. The study period ranged from 6 (Portugal, 2000–2005) to 18 years (Switzerland, 1989–2007). Trend analyses were carried out separately for each country and cancer site; the number of cases ranged from 1500 to 104 000 cases. We developed an original flexible excess rate modelling strategy that accounts for the continuous effects of age, year of diagnosis, time since diagnosis and their interactions. Nineteen models were constructed; they differed in the modelling of the effect of the year of diagnosis in terms of linearity, proportionality and interaction with age. The final model was chosen according to the Akaike Information Criterion. The fit was assessed graphically by comparing model estimates versus nonparametric (Pohar-Perme) net survival estimates. Out of the 90 analyses carried out, the effect of the year of diagnosis on the excess mortality rate depended on age in 61 and was nonproportional in 64; it was nonlinear in 27 out of the 75 analyses where this effect was considered. The model fit was overall satisfactory. We analysed successfully 15 cancer sites in six countries. The refined methodology proved necessary for detailed trend analyses. It is hoped that three-dimensional parametric modelling will be used more widely in net survival trend studies as it has major advantages over stratified analyses.
Plume height plays a vital role in wildfire smoke dispersion and the subsequent effects on air quality and human health. In this study, we assess the impact of different plume rise schemes on ...predicting the dispersion of wildfire air pollution and the exceedances of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for fine particulate matter (PM2.5) during the 2020 western United States wildfire season. Three widely used plume rise schemes (Briggs, 1969; Freitas et al., 2007; Sofiev et al., 2012) are compared within the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling framework. The plume heights simulated by these schemes are comparable to the aerosol height observed by the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) and Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO). The performance of the simulations with these schemes varies by fire case and weather conditions. On average, simulations with higher plume injection heights predict lower aerosol optical depth (AOD) and surface PM2.5 concentrations near the source region but higher AOD and PM2.5 in downwind regions due to the faster spread of the smoke plume once ejected. The 2-month mean AOD difference caused by different plume rise schemes is approximately 20 %–30 % near the source regions and 5 %–10 % in the downwind regions. Thick smoke blocks sunlight and suppresses photochemical reactions in areas with high AOD. The surface PM2.5 difference reaches 70 % on the West Coast of the USA, and the difference is lower than 15 % in the downwind regions. Moreover, the plume injection height affects pollution exceedance (>35 µg m−3) predictions. Higher plume heights generally produce larger downwind PM2.5 exceedance areas. The PM2.5 exceedance areas predicted by the three schemes largely overlap, suggesting that all schemes perform similarly during large wildfire events when the predicted concentrations are well above the exceedance threshold. At the edges of the smoke plumes, however, there are noticeable differences in the PM2.5 concentration and predicted PM2.5 exceedance region. For the whole period of study, the difference in the total number of exceedance days could be as large as 20 d in northern California and 4 d in the downwind regions. This disagreement among the PM2.5 exceedance forecasts may affect key decision-making regarding early warning of extreme air pollution episodes at local levels during large wildfire events.
Deep-inelastic positron-proton scattering events at low photon virtuality,
Q
2
, with a forward jet, produced at small angles with respect to the proton beam, are measured with the H1 detector at ...HERA. A subsample of events with an additional jet in the central region is also studied. For both samples, differential cross sections and normalised distributions are measured as a function of the azimuthal angle difference, Δ
ϕ
, between the forward jet and the scattered positron in bins of the rapidity distance,
Y
, between them. The data are compared to predictions of Monte Carlo generators based on different evolution approaches as well as to next-to-leading order calculations in order to test the sensitivity to QCD evolution mechanisms.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Measurements are presented of diffractive open charm production at HERA. The event topology is given by ep→eXY where the system X contains at least one charmed hadron and is well separated by a large ...rapidity gap from a leading low-mass proton remnant system Y. Two analysis techniques are used for the cross section measurements. In the first, the charm quark is tagged by the reconstruction of a D*±(2010) meson. This technique is used in deep-inelastic scattering (DIS) and photoproduction (γp). In the second, a method based on the displacement of tracks from the primary vertex is used to measure the open charm contribution to the inclusive diffractive cross section in DIS. The measurements are compared with next-to-leading order QCD predictions based on diffractive parton density functions previously obtained from a QCD analysis of the inclusive diffractive cross section at H1. A good agreement is observed in the full kinematic regime, which supports the validity of QCD factorization for open charm production in diffractive DIS and γp.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A2 (PAPP-A2) is a novel homolog of PAPP-A in the metzincin superfamily. However, compared with the accumulating data on PAPP-A, very little is known about PAPP-A2. ...In this study, we determined the tissue expression pattern of PAPP-A2 mRNA in wild-type (WT) mice and characterized the phenotype of mice with global PAPP-A2 deficiency. Tissues expressing PAPP-A2 in WT mice were more limited than those expressing PAPP-A. The highest PAPP-A2 mRNA expression was found in the placenta, with abundant expression in fetal, skeletal, and reproductive tissues. Heterozygous breeding produced the expected Mendelian distribution for the pappa2 gene and viable homozygous PAPP-A2 knockout (KO) mice that were normal size at birth. The most striking phenotype of the PAPP-A2 KO mouse was postnatal growth retardation. Male and female PAPP-A2 KO mice had 10 and 25–30% lower body weight, respectively, than WT littermates. Adult femur and body length were also reduced in PAPP-A2 KO mice, but without significant effects on bone mineral density. PAPP-A2 KO mice were fertile, but with compromised fecundity. PAPP-A expression was not altered to compensate for the loss of PAPP-A2 expression, and proteolysis of PAPP-A2's primary substrate, IGF-binding protein-5, was not altered in fibroblasts from PAPP-A2 KO embryos. In conclusion, tissue expression patterns and biological consequences of gene KO indicate distinct physiological roles for PAPP-A2 and PAPP-A in mice.
Rectal cancer is a common and serious disease. The aim of the SUDCAN collaborative study was to compare the net survival from rectal cancer between six European Latin countries (Belgium, France, ...Italy, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland) and provide trends in net survival and dynamics of excess mortality rates up to 5 years after diagnosis. The data were extracted from the EUROCARE-5 database. First, net survival was studied over the period 2000–2004 using the Pohar-Perme estimator. For trend analyses, the study-period was specific to each country. The results are reported from 1992 to 2004 in France, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland and from 2000 to 2004 in Belgium and Portugal. These analyses were carried out using a flexible excess rate modeling strategy. There were some differences between countries in age-standardized net survivals (2000–2004). The 5-year survival ranged from 55% (Portugal) to 62% (Belgium). There was an increase in age-standardized survival rates between 1992 and 2004 as observed at 1 and 5 years. This increase was observed in the 60 and 70-year age groups, but was less marked in the 80-year age group. This was related to a decrease in the excess mortality rates between 1992 and 2004, until ~ 24 months after diagnosis in France and Switzerland, whereas it was continuous over the entire study period in Italy and Spain. Considerable improvements in survival from rectal cancer have been achieved. Further improvements are expected through better adherence to the guidelines and the implementation of mass screening.
Pancreatic cancer represents a real clinical challenge. The aim of the SUDCAN collaborative study was to compare the net survival from pancreatic cancer between six European Latin countries (Belgium, ...France, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland) and provide trends in net survival and dynamics of excess mortality rates up to 5 years after diagnosis. The data were extracted from the EUROCARE-5 database. First, net survival was studied over the period 2000–2004 using the Pohar-Perme estimator. For trend analyses, the study period was specific to each country. Results were reported from 1992 to 2004 in France, Italy, Spain and Switzerland and from 2000 to 2004 in Belgium and Portugal. These analyses were carried out using a flexible excess rate modelling strategy. There were little differences between countries in age-standardized net survivals (2000–2004). The 5-year net survival was poor (range: 6–10%). The changes in net survival from 1992 to 2004 were mostly related to early survival and patients aged 60 years. A slight decrease in the excess mortality rate between 1992 and 2004 was observed, limited to the 18 months after diagnosis. This study confirmed that, despite some improvement, survival from pancreatic cancer is still poor throughout European Latin countries. The major improvements in clinical imaging did not result in improvements in prognosis. Development of truly innovative treatments is highly needed to improve prognosis.
The process of charm quark fragmentation is studied using
D
* ±
meson production in deep-inelastic scattering as measured by the H1 detector at HERA. The parameters of fragmentation functions are ...extracted for QCD models based on leading order matrix elements and DGLAP or CCFM evolution of partons together with string fragmentation and particle decays. Additionally, they are determined for a next-to-leading order QCD calculation in the fixed flavour number scheme using the independent fragmentation of charm quarks to
D
* ±
mesons. Two different regions of phase space are investigated defined by the presence or absence of a jet containing the
D
* ±
meson in the event. The fragmentation parameters extracted for the two phase space regions are found to be different.
Measurements of cross sections for events with charm and beauty jets in deep inelastic scattering at HERA are presented. Events with jets of transverse energy
GeV and pseudorapidity −1.0<
η
jet
<1.5 ...in the laboratory frame are selected in the kinematic region of photon virtuality
Q
2
>6 GeV
2
and inelasticity variable 0.07<
y
<0.625. Measurements are also made requiring a jet in the Breit frame with
GeV. The data were collected with the H1 detector in the years 2006 and 2007 corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 189 pb
−1
. The numbers of charm and beauty jets are determined using variables reconstructed using the H1 vertex detector with which the impact parameters of the tracks to the primary vertex and the position of secondary vertices are measured. The measurements are compared with QCD predictions and with previous measurements where heavy flavours are identified using muons.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
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