Background: Oncolytic adenoviruses are promising therapies for the treatment of gliomas. However, untargeted viral replication and the paucity of coxsackie-adenovirus receptors (CARs) on tumor cells are major stumbling blocks for adenovirus-based treatment. We studied the antiglioma activity of the tumor-selective Delta-24 adenovirus, which encompasses an early 1 A adenoviral (E1A) deletion in the retinoblastoma (Rb) protein-binding region, and of the Delta-24-RGD adenovirus.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlthough no optimal treatment is currently available for malignant brain tumors, as the molecular mechanisms underlying brain tumor development have been delineated, new chemotherapeutic agents that act directly on specific molecular targets have become available. Defining a specific molecular target raises the possibility that the molecular effects of a given agent can be analyzed in patients in a clinical trial. Specifically, whereas standard phase I and II clinical trials classically determine the safety and efficacy of agents by using indirect global end points, these new biological agents afford the opportunity to incorporate molecular end points into phase I and II clinical trials to determine whether the agent under investigation is actually doing what it was intended to do.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Two main forms of cell death are encountered in biology: apoptosis (i.e., programmed cell death) and necrosis (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe planning target volume (PTV) includes the clinical target volume (CTV) to be irradiated and a margin to account for uncertainties in the treatment process. Uncertainties in miniature multileaf collimator (mMLC) leaf positioning, CT scanner spatial localization, CT-MRI image fusion spatial localization, and Gill-Thomas-Cosman (GTC) relocatable head frame repositioning were quantified for the purpose of determining a minimum PTV margin that still delivers a satisfactory CTV dose. The measured uncertainties were then incorporated into a simple Monte Carlo calculation for evaluation of various margin and fraction combinations.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlthough clinical syndromes of visual-spatial neglect have been well described in adults, clinical features of neglect associated with subcortical dysfunction are infrequently reported in children and have not been described in detail. Unilateral visual-spatial neglect in a 7-year-old male following removal of a right subcortical juvenile pilocytic astrocytoma is reported. Preoperative baseline neurocognitive assessment of the patient established intact attentional and intellectual functioning.
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