Abstract There has been considerable interest in understanding the biological consequence and therapeutic implications of aberrant tryptophan metabolism brain tumors neurodegenerative diseases. An overwhelming majority this work focused on first-step (kynurenine); however, yet to result clinical application. Using global metabolomic profiling >100 patient-derived tumors, we identified a ...

The objective of this paper is to present our experience in the commissioning and quality assurance (QA) for intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) using dynamic multileaf collimator (dMLC), sliding window technique. Using Varian equipment solution, the connectivity and operation between all IMRT chain components was checked. Then the following test were done: stability of leaf positioning and...

PURPOSE To investigate various issues for clinical implementation of aSi EPID panels for IMRT/VMAT QA. METHODS Six linacs are used in our clinic for EPID-based plan QA; two Varian Truebeams, two Varian 2100 series, two Elekta Infiniti series. Multiple corrections must be accounted for in the calibration of each panel for dosimetric use. Varian aSi panels are calibrated with standard dark fiel...

BACKGROUND While it is widely accepted that vascular access (VA) haemodynamic surveillance should be performed, its real benefit has not yet been established. In addition, controversy still reigns over pre-emptive angioplasty of detected significant VA stenosis. This pilot study was designed to question the rationale of our decision-making process in VA management. METHODS All 12 adult patien...

Although gamma analysis is still a widely accepted quantitative tool to analyze and report patient-specific QA for intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT), the correlation between the 2D percentage gamma passing rate (%GP), and the clinical dosimetric difference for IMRT and VMAT has been questioned. The purpose of this study was to investigate the fe...

CONTEXT Specific regulation of laboratories performing molecular genetic tests may be needed to ensure standards and quality assurance (QA) and safeguard patient rights to informed consent and confidentiality. However, comprehensive analysis of current practices of such laboratories, important for assessing the need for regulation and its impact on access to testing, has not been conducted. O...

Purpose: To validate a locally fabricated phantom of Imatrixx-2D Array by comparing its results with ArcCheck phantom and comparing portal dosimetry measurements with the two phantom studies. Materials and Methods: Electronic Portal Imaging Devices and Epiqa software were used for portal dosimetry. An Imatrixx-2D array with a locally fabricated phantom and ArcCheck cylindrical phantom were used...

Analysis of Semantic Classes: Toward Non-Factoid Question Answering Yun Niu Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of Computer Science University of Toronto 2007 The task of question answering (QA) is to find the accurate and precise answer to a natural language question in some predefined text. Most existing QA systems handle fact-based questions that usually take named entities as the answe...

Quinoxaline antibiotics are chromopeptide lactones embracing the two families of triostins and quinomycins, each having characteristic sulfur-containing cross-bridges. Interest in these compounds stems from their antineoplastic activities and their specific binding to DNA via bifunctional intercalation of the twin chromophores represented by quinoxaline-2-carboxylic acid (QA). Enzymatic analysi...