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Interstitial photodynamic therapy (I-PDT) is a promising therapy considered for patients with locally advanced cancer. In I-PDT, laser fibers are inserted into the tumor for effective illumination and activation of the photosensitizer in a large tumor. The intratumoral light irradiance and fluence are critical parameters that affect the response to I-PDT. In vivo animal models are required to conduct light dose studies, to define optimal irradiance and fluence for I-PDT. Here we describe two animal models with locally advanced tumors that can be used to evaluate the response to I-PDT. One model is the C3H mouse bearing large subcutaneous SCCVII carcinoma (400–600 mm(3)). Using this murine model, multiple light regimens with one or two optical fibers with cylindrical diffuser ends (cylindrical diffuser fiber, CDF) can be used to study tumor response to I-PDT. However, tissue heating may occur when 630 nm therapeutic light is delivered through CDF at an intensity ≥60 mW/cm and energy ≥100 J/cm. These thermal effects can impact tumor response while treating locally advanced mice tumors. Magnetic resonance imaging and thermometry can be used to study these thermal effects. A larger animal model, New Zealand White rabbit with VX2 carcinoma (~5000 mm(3)) implanted in either the sternomastoid (neck implantation model) or the biceps femoris muscle (thigh implantation model), can be used to study I-PDT with image-based pretreatment planning using computed tomography. In the VX2 model, the light delivery can include the use of multiple laser fibers to test light dosimetry and delivery that are relevant for clinical use of I-PDT.

Additional file 1.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the usefulness of photoacoustic imaging (PAI) for spatiotemporal mapping of tumor hemodynamics in a rabbit model of head and neck carcinoma. Shope cottontail rabbit papilloma virus associated VX2 carcinomas were established in adult male New Zealand White rabbits (n = 9) by surgical transplantation of tumor tissue in the neck. Noninvasive PAI with co-registered ultrasound (US) was performed to longitudinally monitor tumor growth, oxygen saturation (%sO2), and hemoglobin concentration (HbT). PAI findings were validated with Doppler sonography measures of percent vascularity (PV). Differences in tumor volumes, %sO2, HbT, and PV values over time were analyzed using repeated-measures analysis of variance with multiple comparisons. Two-tailed Spearman correlation analysis was performed to determine the correlation coefficient (r) for comparisons between %sO2, HbT, and tumor volume. US revealed a significant (P < .0001) increase in tumor volume over the 3-week period from 549 ± 260 mm3 on day 7 to 5055 ± 438 mm3 at 21 days postimplantation. Consistent with this aggressive tumor growth, PAI revealed a significant (P < .05) and progressive reduction in %sO2 from day 7 (37.6 ± 7.4%) to day 21 (9.5 ± 2.1%). Corresponding Doppler images also showed a decrease in PV over time. PAI revealed considerable intratumoral spatial heterogeneity with the tumor rim showing two- to three-fold higher %sO2 values compared to the core. Noninvasive PAI based on endogenous contrast provides a label-free method for longitudinal monitoring of temporal changes and spatial heterogeneity in thick head and neck tumors.

Figure S1. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining for apoptosis detection. Panel A to C show the representative images of TYNEL staining of rat coronary vessels in myocardial sections. Apoptotic endothelial cells are not identified on Tunnel staining. Panel A: Non-radiated baseline control; Panel B: Radiation; and Panel C: Radiation + Ac-SDKP treated rat. Panel D: Positive control (arrow pointed to show apoptotic myocyte nucleus). N = 8–10, Scale bar: 20 μm, magnification × 400. (DOCX 609 kb)

Figure S2. Effects of radiation and Ac-SDKP therapy on the mRNA expression of tight-junction molecules: Post-radiation rat heart tissue were used for mRNA analysis of common tight junction genes including claudin-3 and 5, occludin and ZO-1. Radiation exposure significantly reduced the gene expression of claudin-3 and ZO-1 in rat cardiac tissues (*, p

In considering a strategy for research development in prosthetics in the National Centre for Prosthetics and Orthotics, the importance of making involvement in sport more accessible to those athletically inclined became apparent. In preparation for the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, there was also a clear need to herald a renewed focus on sport for those with mobility challenges and empower those who might never have participated to become involved1. There was a desire to build an enhanced national profile in terms of expertise and research in sporting prostheses and to promote our field of prosthetics. SPEEAD continues to have two aims: - To build the level and nature of expertise and research capacity in the wider prosthetics practitioner community - To address a postgraduate instructional course need in the UK prosthetics practitioner community

The review aims to determine how head shape is measured and describes the use of orthoses in the management of deformational plagiocephaly. A systematic review was conducted and papers published in English up to and including 2006 were sourced from nine databases. Initial screening of papers retrieved was conducted and consensus for inclusion reached according to specified criiteria. Twenty papers were included; three literature reviews and 17 original papers. Of the original papers, eight concerned the method of head shape measurement. Measurements are important in determining clinical classification and treatment modality of deformational plagiocephaly. All studies were appraised and assigned a level of evidence according to the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network. Methodological quality was inadequate. Publications involving the use of cranial orthoses used convenience samples, were not blinded, and used different measurement techniques. No control groups were included and participants were not randomised. Evidence suggests that conservative treatments might reduce skull deformity although the quality is poor. Clinical studies investigating the use of cranial orthoses reported beneficial effects. Further research of appropriate design is required to identify the efficacy of cranial orthoses in the treatment of deformational plagiocephaly based on a standardised measurement technique to facilitate classification of deformational plagiocephaly.