Attitudes and beliefs of Argentinian medical oncologists regarding palliative care referral.

Introduction: Local evidence suggests insufficient access to palliative care (PC) for advanced cancer patients. The objective was to investigate the attitudes and beliefs of Argentinian medical oncologists regarding PC referral of their patients.

Methods: All medical oncologists listed in the main national Clinical Oncology Associations (N = 831) were invited to participate in a telephone survey.

Benefits and Trade-Offs of Dairy System Changes Aimed at Reducing Nitrate Leaching.

Between 2011 and 2016, small-scale farm trials were run across three dairy regions of New Zealand (Waikato, Canterbury, Otago) to compare the performance of typical regional farm systems with farm systems implementing a combination of mitigation options most suitable to the region. The trials ran for at least three consecutive years with detailed recording of milk production and input costs. Nitrate leaching per hectare of the milking platform (where lactating cows are kept) was estimated using either measurements (suction cups), models, or soil mineral nitrogen measurements.

The Effects of System Changes in Grazed Dairy Farmlet Trials on Greenhouse Gas Emissions.

An important challenge facing the New Zealand (NZ) dairy industry is development of production systems that can maintain or increase production and profitability, while reducing impacts on receiving environments including water and air. Using research 'farmlets' in Waikato, Canterbury, and Otago (32⁻200 animals per herd), we assessed if system changes aimed at reducing nitrate leaching can also reduce total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (methane and nitrous oxide) and emissions intensity (kg GHG per unit of product) by comparing current and potential 'improved' dairy systems. Annual average GHG emissions for each system were estimated for three or four years using calculations based on the New Zealand Agricultural Inventory Methodology, but included key farmlet-specific emission factors determined from regional experiments.

Bevacizumab biosimilar BEVZ92 versus reference bevacizumab in combination with FOLFOX or FOLFIRI as first-line treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer: a multicentre, open-label, randomised controlled trial.

Background: BEVZ92 is a proposed biosimilar to bevacizumab. The two molecules have similar physicochemical and functional properties in in-vitro and preclinical studies. In this clinical study, we compared the pharmacokinetic profile, efficacy, safety, and immunogenicity of BEVZ92 with reference bevacizumab as a first-line treatment in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer.

Combining field experiments and predictive models to assess potential for increased plant diversity to climate-proof intensive agriculture.

Agricultural production systems face increasing threats from more frequent and extreme weather fluctuations associated with global climate change. While there is mounting evidence that increased plant community diversity can reduce the variability of ecosystem functions (such as primary productivity) in the face of environmental fluctuation, there has been little work testing whether this is true for intensively managed agricultural systems. Using statistical modeling techniques to fit environment-productivity relationships offers an efficient means of leveraging hard-won experimental data to compare the potential variability of different mixtures across a wide range of environmental contexts.

Combining Restricted Grazing and Nitrification Inhibitors to Reduce Nitrogen Leaching on New Zealand Dairy Farms.

Intensification of pastoral dairy systems often means more nitrogen (N) leaching. A number of mitigation strategies have been proposed to reduce or reverse this trend. The main strategies focus on reducing the urinary N load onto pastures or reducing the rate of nitrification once the urine has been deposited.

Screening for diets that reduce urinary nitrogen excretion and methane emissions while maintaining or increasing production by dairy cows.

Farmers face complex decisions at the time to feed animals, trying to achieve production goals while contemplating social and environmental constraints. Our purpose was to facilitate such decision making for pastoral dairy farmers, aiming to reduce urinary N (UN) and methane emissions (CH4), while maintaining or increasing milk production (MP). There is a number of feeds the farmers can choose from and combine.

Environmental sampling of Ceratonia siliqua (carob) trees in Spain reveals the presence of the rare Cryptococcus gattii genotype AFLP7/VGIV.

Background: Cryptococcus gattii is a pathogenic basidiomycetous yeast that is emerging in temperate climate zones worldwide. C. gattii has repetitively been isolated from numerous tree species.

Cost-effective mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions from different dairy systems in the Waikato region of New Zealand.

The New Zealand dairy industry produces approximately 17% of this country's total greenhouse gas emissions (GHG-e) and it is also this nation's largest export industry. The industry needs to reduce GHG-e under proposed policy directives and for ongoing market security. Given these pressures, there is the need to identify cost-effective management strategies to reduce on-farm GHG-e.

An optimization model of a New Zealand dairy farm.

Optimization models are a key tool for the analysis of emerging policies, prices, and technologies within grazing systems. A detailed, nonlinear optimization model of a New Zealand dairy farming system is described. This framework is notable for its inclusion of pasture residual mass, pasture utilization, and intake regulation as key management decisions.