1,721,046 research outputs found
Treatment Results of the Tpog-Nhl92 Protocols for Childhood Non-Hodgkin's Lymphomas in Taiwan: A Report from the Taiwan Pediatric Oncology Group ( Tpog)
No full textA nation-wide chemotherapeutic trial for childhood non- Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) was conducted by the Taiwan Pediatric Oncology Group (TPOG) . Four TPOG-NHL92 protocols based on stage and histology were activated in 1992: TPOG-92 LD (treatment duration: 8 months) was used for localized ( stages I/II) NHL with any histology, 92LB (2 years), 92SNC ( 5 months), and 92LC (1 year) for advanced (stages III/IV) lymphoblastic (LB), small non-cleaved cell (SNC), and large cell (LC) lymphoma, respectively. From January 1992 through June 1998, 200 children with newly diagnosed NHL from 13 member hospitals of TPOG were enrolled. There were 140 boys and 60 girls. Their ages at diagnosis ranged from 2.4 months to 18.3 years with a median of 8.2 years. There were 54 (27 .3%) patients with LB, 94 (47.5%) with SNC including B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL), and 50 (25 .2%) with LC . Stages I, II, III, and IV (including B-ALL) of the disease comprised 5%, 10%, 43%, and 42% of cases, respectively. There were 176 patients eligible for evaluation of treatment results. The remission rate of induction was 82.4%, induction failed in 22 (12.5%) patients, and nine patients died during induction. As of August 31, 1999, 26 patients relapsed, six died during remission, one patient developed secondary acute myelomonocytic leukemia, and 105 patients remained in continuous remission with a median remission duration of 49 months. The event-free survival (EFS) at 7 years was 63.5%, 61.5% and 65% for LB, SNC, and LC groups (P = 0.8298). The 7-year EFS for stages I/II, III, and IV of the disease was 73%, 68.9%, and 50.3% (P = 0.0212), respectively. We concluded that following the strategy of stratification of therapy, only disease stages had prognostic significance in this study. More efforts are needed to improve our treatment results
Nephromegaly and Elevated Plasma Hepatocyte Growth Factor-Transforming Growth Factor-Beta 1 Ratio in Infants with Fulminant Hepatitis or Biliary Atresia
No full textNephromegaly, assessed by calculating kidney volume using renal ultrasound, was studied in infants with biliary atresia, neonatal hepatitis, or fulminant hepatitis. We evaluated kidney volume in 29 patients with biliary atresia, 17 patients with neonatal hepatitis, and 10 patients with fulminant hepatitis, as well as 32 healthy infants. Levels of plasma hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) were measured in all infants. Levels of plasma transforming growth factor- beta1 (TGF-beta1) were also measured in diseased infants and 20 healthy infants. Significant nephromegaly was found in infants with biliary atresia compared with healthy infants ( P < 0.001 by analysis of covariance). Marked nephromegaly was also noted in all infants with fulminant hepatitis and 35 % of infants with neonatal hepatitis. No nephromegaly was found in infants at 2 months of age with biliary atresia or neonatal hepatitis despite mildly elevated plasma HGF levels . Regardless of the duration of HGF exposure and healthy renal growth by a certain age, a positive correlation existed between plasma HGF level and kidney volume (r = 0. 529; P < 0.001 ), but an inverse correlation was found between plasma TGF-beta1 level and nephromegaly (r = -0.505; P < 0.001) in all diseased infants. There was a stronger positive correlation between plasma HGF-TGF-beta1 ratio and kidney volume (r = 0.666; P < 0.001) and degree of nephromegaly (r = 0.717 ; P < 0.001). These results confirm the presence of large kidneys not only in patients with biliary atresia but also in patients with fulminant hepatitis, which suggests the possible pathogenic role of HGF and manifests as elevated HGF-TGF-beta1 ratios in patients with such conditions. Nephromegaly in patients with severe or chronic liver dysfunction may provide a new in vivo model to study the mechanisms of renal growth
Langerhans氏細胞組織球增生以動脈邊病灶及心衰竭表現
No full textLangerhans' cell histiocytosis (LCH) is an uncommon disease with variable manifestations. We report a case of LCH with the unusual initial presentations of chest pain and progressive heart failure in a 5-year-old boy. Chest radiography revealed a wide mediastinum with cardiomegaly. Electrocardiography showed first-degree atrioventricular block and an inverted T wave over V4-V6. Echocardiography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging of the chest all showed an infiltrating lesion that enveloped the entire heart, great vessels, and coronary arteries. Pathologic examination of the biopsy specimen revealed LCH. Chemotherapy, which included prednisolone, vincristine, methotrexate, and 6- mercaptopurine, had only a minimal effect on the tumor. After the addition of etoposide, the lesion decreased in size, and the symptoms and signs of heart failure and chest pain were ameliorated
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Occurring as a Second Malignant Neoplasm in a Child
No full textThe effective treatment of childhood malignancies has increased the importance of early detection and treatment of second malignant neoplasms. Anticancer drugs may also be leukemogenic agents, by the same mechanisms that kill cancer cells. We report the case of a 10-year-old boy who had received radiotherapy and chemotherapy for the treatment of Ewing's sarcoma and developed acute lymphoblastic leukemia 22 months after the diagnosis of primary malignancy. Although chemtherapy is well known to potentiate the development of second acute nonlymphocytic leukemia, the pathogenic factors leading to second acute lymphoblastic leukemia remain obscure
Retrospective Analysis of the Renal Outcome of Pediatric Lupus Nephritis
No full textThe aim of this study was to analyze the renal outcome of pediatric lupus nephritis in the past two decades. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients who fulfilled the 1987 American Rheumatism Association revised criteria for systemic lupus erythematosus who were followed up at the National Taiwan University Hospital between 1980 and 2001. All new patients who were under 18 years of age at the time of diagnosis were enrolled and were followed up until death, loss to follow- up, or till the end of 2002. The response to the treatment and renal outcome were analyzed. Seventy-two children (64 girls and 8 boys) were enrolled in the study. The mean age at diagnosis was 13.93+/-0.35 years( mean +/- SEM). The mean duration of follow-up was 7.12+/-0. 51 years. The 5-year renal survival rate (survival without dialysis or transplantation) was 63.13% and the 10-year survival rate was 53.54%. It was significantly better in patients receiving cyclophosphamide (CYC) pulse therapy. The 5- year survival rate for these patients was 87.82% and the 10-year survival rate was 81.06%. The renal survival curve was better in the CYC pulse therapy group than in the no CYC pulse therapy group, with p=0.0022. The duration between the diagnosis of lupus nephritis and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) was significantly longer in the CYC group (9.66+/-1. 32 yrs ) than in the no CYC group (3.24+/-0.94 yers), p=0.036 . In the multivariate analysis, risk factors of developing ESRD were failure to achieve complete remission, higher serum creatinine at the initiation of treatment, and not receiving CYC pulse therapy. The renal survival was significantly better in the CYC pulse therapy group. The CYC pulse therapy was recommended in pediatric lupus nephritis patients and every effort should be made to achieve complete remission
Successful treatment of disseminated mixed invasive fungal infection after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for severe aplastic anemia
No full textConcomitant infections are frequent and usually the causes of death in patients with severe AA. HSCT can restore hematopoiesis in AA, but it is usually life threatening when patients simultaneously have an IFI. Mixed IFIs have been reported on rare occasions. The exact diagnosis of IFIs is difficult because of low fungus culture rate, difficultly obtaining tissue specimens in severely immunocompromised patients or those with bleeding tendencies. Otherwise, treatment with anti-fungal drugs alone for DMIFI was always lethal in previous reports. Surgical resection is crucial for invasive zygomycosis, but severe pancytopenia and bleeding tendency make therapy difficult. Herein, we report that with a combination of aggressive anti-fungal drugs, HSCT, and surgery, we successfully treated a 10-yr-old boy with severe AA and pulmonary zygomycosis before HSCT and disseminated mixed invasive zygomycosis and aspergillosis after HSCT
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