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Months ago, I was scheduled to talk with you all today about a subject that I'm very passionate about. The remarks were entitled 'Fair-Weather Originalism: Judges, Umpires, and the Fear [...]

Purpose Lung cancer remains the top cause of cancer morbidity and mortality in the world. Although the identification of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene mutations could predict efficacy of tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), testing for predictive biomarkers are not always possible due to tissue availability. The overall therapeutic decision remains a clinical one for a significant proportion of elderly patients with advanced stage lung cancer but no known EGFR mutation status. The purpose of this study was to compare the outcome of drug treatment modalities in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) for elderly with advanced-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and to identify clinical parameters that could predict treatment outcome. Methods Clinical records of patients aged 70 years or older with advanced-stage NSCLC who have received treatment were reviewed. A group of gender- and histology-matched subjects younger than age 70 years were identified as controls. Results Fifty-six elderly patients were included. The median age at diagnosis was 73 years; 60.7 % received only one line of treatment. Baseline performance status (PS) was the only predictor of improved PFS (p = 0.042) and OS (p = 0.002). There was no difference in survival between the upfront chemotherapy and the TKI groups Conclusions In elderly with advanced-stage NSCLC without known EGFR mutation status, use of EGFR-TKI and chemotherapy resulted in comparable survival benefits. Age was not predictive of worse treatment outcome. The baseline PS should be taken into consideration in the therapeutic decision in elderly with NSCLC where the EGFR mutation status is not known., Author(s): Terence Chi-Chun Tam[sup.1] , James Chung-Man Ho[sup.1] , Matthew King-Yan Wong[sup.1] , Wai-Mui Wong[sup.1] , Julie Kwan-Ling Wang[sup.1] , Jamie Chung-Mei Lam[sup.1] , Macy Mei-Sze Lui[sup.1] , Wah-Kit Lam[sup.1] [...]

Purpose Lung cancer remains the top cause of cancer morbidity and mortality in the world. Although the identification of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene mutations could predict efficacy of tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), testing for predictive biomarkers are not always possible due to tissue availability. The overall therapeutic decision remains a clinical one for a significant proportion of elderly patients with advanced stage lung cancer but no known EGFR mutation status. The purpose of this study was to compare the outcome of drug treatment modalities in progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) for elderly with advanced-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and to identify clinical parameters that could predict treatment outcome. Methods Clinical records of patients aged 70 years or older with advanced-stage NSCLC who have received treatment were reviewed. A group of gender--and histology-matched subjects younger than age 70 years were identified as controls. Results Fifty-six elderly patients were included. The median age at diagnosis was 73 years; 60.7% received only one line of treatment. Baseline performance status (PS) was the only predictor of improved PFS (p = 0.042) and OS (p = 0.002). There was no difference in survival between the upfront chemotherapy and the TKI groups Conclusions In elderly with advanced-stage NSCLC without known EGFR mutation status, use of EGFR-TKI and chemotherapy resulted in comparable survival benefits. Age was not predictive of worse treatment outcome. The baseline PS should be taken into consideration in the therapeutic decision in elderly with NSCLC where the EGFR mutation status is not known. Keywords: Lung cancer * Elderly * Treatment * Outcome, Introduction Lung cancer remains the top cause of cancer morbidity and mortality worldwide [1]. In Hong Kong, lung cancer ranks the top in cancer incidence and mortality [2]. In 2009, [...]

The damaged region of a semiconductor laser diode that failed in a vacuum environment is analyzed. The studies have shown that failure proceeded by pyrolysis of adsorbed hydrocarbons on the antireflective (AR) coating has contributed to carbothermal reduction of the AR coating.

Abstract. Although ciliary dysfunction and numerous ultrastructural defects have been described, and these could be etiologically important in the development of bronchiectasis, their correlation with relevant clinical parameters have not [...]

As Internet use continues to grow worldwide, its potential to facilitate e-commerce and international trade, especially among small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs), is well recognised. However, formidable barriers in language and word processing have to be overcome before significant uptake by SMEs can be realised. A pragmatic methodology to enable multilingual e-mail communication is introduced, in a prototype system called 'TigerTalk for SMEs'. This approach has been endorsed by the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) as the Multilingual International Trade Project. Communication needs in every link in the e-commerce value chain including contract negotiation, payment settlement, transportation logistics, custom declaration, customer services, etc. are analysed through a series of case studies. The goal is to provide a multilingual platform for end-to-end business transactions among SMEs worldwide. Progress in several key links is presented for practitioners contemplating international e-commerce., 1. The APEC Multilingual International Trade Project Governments worldwide are well aware of the significance of e-commerce to the future development of their economies. Most of them are allocating substantial [...]

1. INTRODUCTION Many problems arising in production scheduling, inventory planning, and dynamic traffic assignment can be modeled as multistage linear programs (LPs) of the form minimize [summation of] [c.sub.t][x.sub.t] where […]

The natural product pesticide rotenone was applied to Ohio River water in several locks during fish population and species diversity studies. An analytical method was developed to monitor the rotenone concentration for this and other potential applications. The analytical method development included sample preservation studies, liquid-solid extraction using [C.sub.18]-silica extraction disks, elution from the disks with acetonitrile-modified supercritical carbon dioxide, and liquid chromatography/particle beam mass spectrometry. Measured concentrations of rotenone in the lock water samples were in reasonable agreement with concentrations estimated from the dosing conditions. Upon release of lock water into the lower river, the rotenone concentration was reduced to below the analytical detection limits.

The role of thymine loops and nicks in enhancing the stability of double helical DNA was examined based on an analysis of the helix-coil transition thermodynamics of unligated DNA dumbbells and their core duplexes and the interaction between these molecules and netropsin. Results revealed that the transitions were monophasic and that dumbbell melting occurred at strand concentration-independent temperatures. The transition temperatures of duplex melting, however, were strand-dependent. The loops were found to provide additional sites for netropsin, while nicks in the center of dumbbells were found to interrupt the molecule's cooperative melting.

Byline: James. Ho, John. Antrum Sir, I read with great interest this engaging and insightful study, the first of its kind from India, investigating the relationship between psoriatic severity in [...]

Byline: James. Ho, J. Henry. Antrum Sir, I read with great interest the recent case report regarding the serious yet under-recognized acute phenomenon of transfusion associated circulatory overload (TACO). [sup][1] [...]

Context.--Whole slide imaging (WSI) is now used for educational purposes, for consultation, and for archiving and quantitation of immunostains. However, it is not routinely used for the primary diagnosis of hematoxylineosin-stained tissue sections. Objective.--To compare WSI using the Aperio digital pathology system (Aperio Technologies, Inc, Vista, California) with optical microscopy (OM) for the interpretation of hematoxylin-eosin-stained tissue sections of breast lesions. Design.--The study was conducted at 3 clinical sites; 3 breast pathologists interpreted 150 hematoxylin-eosin-stained slides at each site, 3 times each by WSI and 3 times each by OM. For WSI, slides were scanned using an Aperio ScanScope and interpreted on a computer monitor using Aperio ImageScope software and Aperio Spectrum data management software. Pathologic interpretations were recorded using the College of American Pathologists breast checklist. WSI diagnoses were compared with OM diagnoses for accuracy, precision (interpathologist variation), and reproducibility (intrapathologist variation). Results were considered accurate only if the interpretation matched exactly between WSI and OM. The proportion of accurate results reported by each pathologist was expressed as a percentage for the comparison of the 2 platforms. Results.--The accuracy of WSI for classifying lesions as not carcinoma or as noninvasive (ductal or lobular) or invasive (ductal, lobular, or other) carcinoma was 90.5%. The accuracy of OM was 92.1%. The precision and reproducibility of WSI and OM were determined on the basis of pairwise comparisons (3 comparisons for each slide, resulting in 36 possible comparisons). The overall precision of WSI was 90.5% in comparison with 92.1% for OM; reproducibility of WSI was 91.6% in comparison with 94.5% for OM, respectively. Conclusions.--In this study, we demonstrated that WSI and OM have similar accuracy, precision, and reproducibility for interpreting hematoxylin-eosin-stained breast tissue sections. Further clinical studies using routine surgical pathology specimens would be useful to confirm these findings and facilitate the incorporation of WSI into diagnostic practice. (Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2013; 137:1733-1739; doi: 10.5858/arpa.2012-0437-OA), The practice of surgical pathology relies on image-based light microscopy diagnosis, which enables the detailed evaluation of the cytologic and architectural features of hematoxylin-eosin (H&E)-stained tissue sections. Significant recent technological [...]

Byline: James K. Ho A viewpoint to demonstrate the synergy between the disciplines of information systems (IS) and operations management (OM) is presented. It serves not only to answer frequently asked questions from students as well as administrators as to why IS and OM are put under the same department. It can help enlighten prospective employers of our students why such synergy holds the key to competitive advantage for business in the Information Age.

Byline: James K. Ho, Yi Chen Project management skills are in high demand in all types of business, industry, as well as government and non-profit organisations. At the undergraduate or MBA level, it is important that a course in this topic provides a stimulating, challenging, and comprehensive learning experience, in contrast to professional training and certification programs that focus on procedural templates. While a term-wide project calling for all aspects of the syllabus is obviously desirable, it must not be overly involved to become a 'projects course' rather than a course in project management. The intricate issue is then to design such assignments as meaningful and interesting projects, without their actual implementation. A case in 3D navigation of Olympic Games venues is presented. It fits the academic requirements and is well received and appreciated by students.

The stability and melting behavior of DNA secondary structures of the physical properties of nuclei acids is carried out by a thermodynamic investigation of all possible bulges and mismatches in the hairpin molecule. The result suggests that the inclusion of bulges and mismatches immobilizes additional structural water while the addition of a W-C pair immobilizes electrostricted water.

Crystallographic control in biomineralized inorganic nanostructures was achieved by employing a form of molecular imprinting using a synthetic, biomolecular template comprised of anionic and cationic components. The use of strong electrostatic interactions in this context has the potential to lead to new possibilities in supramolecular self-assembly and nanocrystal engineering.