Preliminary Results Of Feasibility Research Articles

Online Adaptive Magnetic Resonance-guided Radiation Therapy for Gynaecological Cancers: Preliminary Results of Feasibility and Outcome

AimsTo present the preliminary results on the clinical utilisation of an online daily adaptive magnetic resonance-guided radiation therapy (MRgRT) for various gynaecological cancers. Materials and methodsTwelve patients treated between September 2018 and June 2022 were included. Six patients (50%) were treated with pelvic radiation therapy followed by MRgRT boost as brachytherapy boost was ineligible or unavailable, three patients (25%) were treated with pelvic MRgRT followed by high dose rate brachytherapy, two patients (16.7%) were treated with only MRgRT, one patient (8.3%) was treated with linear accelerator-based radiation therapy followed by MRgRT boost for bulky iliac lymph nodes. ResultsThe median age was 56.5 years (range 31–86 years). Eight patients (66.7%) had a complete response, three patients (25%) had a partial response and one patient (8.3%) died due to acute renal failure. The mean follow-up time was 11.2 months (range 3.1–42.6 months). The estimated 1-year overall survival was 88.9%. The median treatment time was 47 days (range 10–87 days). During external beam radiation therapy, 10 (83.3%) patients had concomitant chemoradiotherapy. Pelvic external beam radiation therapy doses for all cohorts were 45–50.4 Gy with a fraction dose of 1.8 Gy. The median magnetic resonance-guided boost dose was 32 Gy (range 20–50 Gy) and fraction doses ranged between 4 and 10 Gy. Three patients were treated with intracavitary high dose rate brachytherapy (26–28 Gy in four to five fractions). None of the patients had grade >3 late genitourinary toxicities. ConclusionMRgRT is reliable and clinically feasible for treating patients with gynaecological cancers alone or in combination with brachytherapy with an acceptable toxicity and outcome. MRgRT boost could be an option when brachytherapy is not available or ineligible.

6.23 A Telehealth Adaptation of Children’s Friendship Training in School-Age Children With ASD and ADHD: Preliminary Results of Feasibility, Acceptability, and Efficacy

6.23 A Telehealth Adaptation of Children’s Friendship Training in School-Age Children With ASD and ADHD: Preliminary Results of Feasibility, Acceptability, and Efficacy

Preliminary Results of Feasibility and Acceptability of Self-Collection for Cervical Screening in Italian Women.

Given the diagnostic accuracy of HPV-DNA tests in terms of self-collected samples, in order to implement self-sampling in cervical screening programs, the standardization of the pre-analytical phase, including decisions concerning the choice of medium, the volume of elution, and storage conditions, are necessary, in addition to understanding the potential factors involved in acceptability by women. On this basis, we carried out a cross-sectional study to assess (i) the stability of dry vaginal self-collected samples stored at room temperature for up to 4 weeks after elution in 2 mL of eNat® (Copan) medium, and (ii) the acceptability of self-collection in enrolled women. 185 women were enrolled in the LILT (Italian League Against Tumors) regional project. A self-sampling kit, including a dry FLOQSwab® (Copan), instructions for use, and a satisfaction questionnaire, were supplied for each woman and sent by mail to the laboratory. The HPV-DNA test was carried out using the Anyplex™ II HPV HR (Seegene) kit. To evaluate the specimen's stability, 185 dry vaginal swabs were eluted in eNat®, a lyses-based molecular medium and tested for HPV detection at two different time points (<6 days and 1 month after elution). The Cohen's Kappa coefficients and McNemar test were used to assess the agreement of HPV-DNA at different times. We found high agreement in terms of HPV-DNA results among the samples tested at two different time points (Cohen K = 0.98; p < 0.0001). Moreover, most of the women found it easy to use self-collection devices and the pictorial instructions clear to understand. Approximately half of the enrolled women declared preferring self-sampling to clinician-collected methods. Our results display the high reliability and accuracy of HPV-DNA tests using dry vaginal self-collection FLOQSwabs® devices eluted in 2 mL of molecular medium. The analysis of the questionnaire showed a high acceptability of self-collection among women, although a high percentage preferred standard collection devices. Overall, our preliminary results support the adoption of self-collection in screening programs, even though further analyses should be performed to optimize and standardize protocols for HPV tests on self-samples, and educational campaigns are needed to adequately inform and increase responsiveness in a target population.

Personal exercise training in patients with gliomas: Preliminary results of feasibility and effectiveness

Gliomas are the most common primary brain tumors in adults. Physical activity is proposed as an associated care in multiple cancers with proven benefits but has not been often and specifically evaluated for gliomas. The main objective of our study was to assess the feasibility and the potential effectiveness of exercise training in patients with high and low-grade gliomas. Twenty-eight patients (mean age 49 years, 16 high grades and 12 low-grades, minimal Karnofksy Performance Status at 70%) were addressed by the neuro-oncology for fatigue complaint. They were first screened by a physiatrist and then included a program of individual exercise training. A Six-Minute-Walking-Test was realized before and after the training. On the 17 patients included, 14 finished the program (7 high grade and 7 low-grade gliomas). Only 2 patients were excluded for a clinical degradation and only 1 patient did not finish it for a reason linked to his tumor. Mean number of sessions was 8; no major sides effects were reported. After the program, a statistically significant increase of the 6-Minute-Test was found ( P = 0.0007). In this population, this kind of program seems to be feasible and efficient. However, our results cannot be extended to all gliomas patients due to the good general state of our population and the inner limits of the Six-Minute-Walking-Test. Further studies are needed to assess the possible benefits in larger sample.

Percutaneous internal fixation with Y-STRUT\xae device to prevent both osteoporotic and pathological hip fractures: a prospective pilot study

BackgroundWe studied Y-STRUT® (Hyprevention, France), a new percutaneous internal fixation device, in combination with bone cementoplasty to prevent hip fracture.MethodsBetween February 2013 and February 2015, a total of 16 femoral necks in 4 osteoporotic and 12 oncologic patients have been considered for prophylactic consolidation in this prospective multicentre pilot study involving 4 different hospitals. These consolidations were performed percutaneously under fluoroscopic guidance using Y-STRUT®, a dedicated internal fixation device. For osteoporotic patients, orthopaedic surgeons performed the prophylactic consolidations immediately after surgical treatment of a hip fracture (same anaesthesia) in the opposite side. For oncologic patients, without current hip fracture but considered at risk (Mirels score ≥8), interventional radiologists performed the procedures. We report the preliminary results of feasibility, safety and tolerance of these preventive consolidations using Y-STRUT®.ResultsFour patients (mean 83 years old) had prophylactic consolidation because of a severe osteoporosis (mean T-score −3.30) resulting in first hip fractures. Ten patients (mean 61 years old) were treated because of impending pathological fractures (mean Mirels score 9) related to femoral neck osteolytic metastases. All the procedures were performed with success. Wound healing was achieved in all cases with no access site complication. Radiographic exams performed at 3 months follow-up revealed that Y-STRUT® was well integrated in the bone. For the osteoporotic cohort, mean pain was 0.9 ± 0.7 at 3 weeks. For the oncologic cohort, it decreases from 3.6 ± 2.9 at baseline to 2.4 ± 0.9 at 2 months.ConclusionsPreliminary results demonstrate the feasibility and safety of Y-STRUT® implantation as well as the tolerance of the device.

Preliminary Results of Feasibility and Toxicities in Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy With Gemcitabine and S-1 for Pancreatic Cancer

Preliminary Results of Feasibility and Toxicities in Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy With Gemcitabine and S-1 for Pancreatic Cancer

Abstract 85: A Pilot Population-Based Outcomes Study using a Health Information Exchange: Preliminary Feasibility Results

Introduction: Post-stroke outcomes are traditionally determined by direct, follow-up interview of stroke victims. This approach is expensive, time consuming and can lead to a biased cohort, all of which limit the ability to conduct population-based outcomes studies. We evaluated the feasibility of facilitating outcomes assessment using a Health Information Exchange (HIE), a regional network for sharing healthcare data among providers. We hypothesized that HIE-facilitated cohort identification with phone-call follow-up would enable more efficient population-based outcomes determination compared to traditional approaches. Methods: We identified all regional ischemic strokes during 2010 by screening ER/hospital admissions for stroke cases, first using a computerized algorithm that filtered by selected key words and zipcodes for potential strokes, then using human-screening of those records to identify actual stroke cases. Cases were then enrolled into one of two cohorts in a non-random fashion. First, 500 cases were assigned for “hot pursuit” and in-person interview (traditional cohort). Those cases not enrolled in the traditional cohort for logistical reasons were assigned to have outcomes assessment by HIE-data review and phone call interview (HIE cohort) at 3 months only. The feasibility of contacting patients and assessing outcomes were the primary endpoints of interest for the HIE cohort; time spent and cost were also assessed but will not be discussed herein. Results: There were 17,671,258 HIE messages about 1,967,415 unique patients seeking care at hospitals within the study region in 2010. The computerized algorithm identified 5,082 potential strokes for human review. In-person interviews were attempted on 793 subjects; 104 died or entered hospice; 173 refused and 516 agreed to participate in the traditional cohort. Immediate cooperation rate was 75%. Of 516 participants, 408 completed a 3-month follow-up interview. For the HIE cohort, 581 subjects were identified for potential phone interviews. 491 calls were placed, and 320 were reached; 204 completed the interview while 116 refused. For 3 month phone calls, the cooperation rate was 52% and the completion rate was 64%. Data sufficient to determine outcomes were similar using both approaches. Conclusions: These results suggest that using HIE-data and phone-call follow-up for outcomes determination is feasible and comparable to hot-pursuit and in-person interviewing. The use of the HIE greatly facilitated both processes. While basic data collected appear similar, further study is needed to: 1.) fully assess for any differences in the quality of outcomes determination, and 2.) determine the feasibility of performing a truly population-based outcomes study using either approach or a combination of the two.

Use of embedded strain gages for the in-vitro study of proximal tibial cancellous bone deformation during knee flexion-extension movement: development, reproducibility and preliminary results of feasibility after frontal low femoral osteotomy

BackgroundThis paper reports the development of an in-vitro technique allowing quantification of relative (not absolute) deformations measured at the level of the cancellous bone of the tibial proximal epiphysis (CBTPE) during knee flexion-extension. This method has been developed to allow a future study of the effects of low femoral osteotomies consequence on the CBTPE.MethodsSix strain gages were encapsulated in an epoxy resin solution to form, after resin polymerisation, six measurement elements (ME). The latter were inserted into the CBTPE of six unembalmed specimens, just below the tibial plateau. Knee motion data were collected by three-dimensional (3D) electrogoniometry during several cycles of knee flexion-extension. Intra- and inter-observer reproducibility was estimated on one specimen for all MEs. Intra-specimen repeatability was calculated to determine specimen's variability and the error of measurement. A varum and valgum chirurgical procedure was realised on another specimen to observed CBTPE deformation after these kind of procedure.ResultsAverage intra-observer variation of the deformation ranged from 8% to 9% (mean coefficient of variation, MCV) respectively for extension and flexion movement. The coefficient of multiple correlations (CMC) ranged from 0.93 to 0.96 for flexion and extension. No phase shift of maximum strain peaks was observed. Inter-observer MCV averaged 23% and 28% for flexion and extension. The CMC were 0.82 and 0.87 respectively for extension and flexion. For the intra-specimen repeatability, the average of mean RMS difference and the mean ICC were calculated only for flexion movement. The mean RMS variability ranged from 7 to 10% and the mean ICC was 0.98 (0.95 - 0.99). A Pearson's correlation coefficient was calculated showing that RMS was independent of signal intensity. For the chirurgical procedure, valgum and varum deviation seems be in agree with the frontal misalignment theory.ConclusionsResults show that the methodology is reproducible within a range of 10%. This method has been developed to allow analysis the indirect reflect of deformation variations in CBTPE before and after distal femoral osteotomies. The first results of the valgum and varum deformation show that our methodology allows this kind of measurement and are encourageant for latter studies. It will therefore allow quantification and enhance the understanding of the effects of this kind of surgery on the CBTPE loading.

Thermodynamic Insights on the Feasibility of Homogeneous Batch Extractive Distillation, 2. Low-Relative-Volatility Binary Mixtures with a Heavy Entrainer

All former studies reported that the separation of the low relative volatility binary mixture by using a heavy entrainer in a batch rectifier imposed the obligatory withdrawal of the most volatile original component. In this paper, we demonstrate that this does not always happen and that the product sequence can be unambiguously determined from the sole analysis of thermodynamic properties of residue curve maps and the occurrence of unidistribution lines and univolatility lines, following the general feasibility criterion enounced in part I for the separation of azeotropic mixtures using heavy or light entrainers. For low relative volatility mixtures, the original component having an intermediate boiling temperature can be also drawn as the first distillate product. Cases concerning 94% of statistically occuring zeotropic ternary mixtures are investigated, allowing to define the product sequence without any previous calculation of the liquid composition profile inside the column. Preliminary feasibility results are confirmed by computing maps of extractive and rectifying liquid composition profiles using a simplified mass balance. Final validation is done via rigourous simulation using ProSim Batch software.