MRI of the Rectum: A Decade into DISTANCE, Moving to DISTANCED.

Over the past decade, advancements in rectal cancer research have reshaped treatment paradigms. Historically, treatment for locally advanced rectal cancer has focused on neoadjuvant long-course chemoradiotherapy, followed by total mesorectal excision. Interest in organ preservation strategies has been strengthened by the introduction of total neoadjuvant therapy with improved rates of complete clinical response.

Radiation-induced Bystander Effect in Starfish (Patiria pectinifera) Oocytes.

Although multiple studies suggest that ionizing radiation can induce bystander effects (radiation-induced bystander effect, RIBE) in cultured cell lines, it is still unclear whether RIBE is evolutionarily conserved in invertebrates. In this study, we investigated the frequency of cell death of unirradiated starfish (Patiria pectinifera) oocytes co-cultured with oocytes irradiated with X rays (0, 2 and 4 Gy). We observed increased frequencies of cell death determined by morphological abnormality and TUNEL-positive cells in unirradiated oocytes co-cultured with oocytes irradiated with 2 Gy or 4 Gy oocytes.

Potential radiosensitive germline biomarkers in the testes of wild mice after the Fukushima accident.

We investigated potential germline-specific radiosensitive biomarkers in the testes of large Japanese field mice (Apodemus speciosus) exposed to low-dose-rate (LDR) radiation after the Fukushima accident. Fukushima wild mice testes were analysed via RNA-sequencing to identify genes differentially expressed in the breeding and non-breeding seasons when compared to controls. Results revealed significant changes during the breeding season, with Lsp1 showing a considerable upregulation, while Ptprk and Tspear exhibited significant reductions.

An efficient and simple method for enriching metaphase cells for dicentric chromosome assay.

As compared to peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) culture, a lower mitotic index (MI) is seen in whole blood (WB) culture, but WB can be directly used for culture in dicentric chromosome assay (DCA). The purpose of this study is to develop a simple protocol for metaphase enrichment to improve the metaphase frequency of WB culture. Fixed cells were obtained after performing WB and PBMC cultures for DCA after conventional fixation.

3D distortion-free, reduced FOV diffusion-prepared gradient echo at 3 T.

Purpose: To develop a 3D distortion-free reduced-FOV diffusion-prepared gradient-echo sequence and demonstrate its application in vivo for diffusion imaging of the spinal cord in healthy volunteers.

Methods: A 3D multi-shot reduced-FOV diffusion-prepared gradient-echo acquisition is achieved using a slice-selective tip-down pulse in the phase-encoding direction in the diffusion preparation, combined with magnitude stabilizers, centric k-space encoding, and 2D phase navigators to correct for intershot phase errors. The accuracy of the ADC values obtained using the proposed approach was evaluated in a diffusion phantom and compared to the tabulated reference ADC values and to the ADC values obtained using a standard spin echo diffusion-weighted single-shot EPI sequence (DW-SS-EPI).

Temporary treatment cessation compared with continuation of tyrosine kinase inhibitors for adults with renal cancer: the STAR non-inferiority RCT.

Background: There is interest in using treatment breaks in oncology, to reduce toxicity without compromising efficacy.

Trial Design: A Phase II/III multicentre, open-label, parallel-group, randomised controlled non-inferiority trial assessing treatment breaks in patients with renal cell carcinoma.

Methods: Patients with locally advanced or metastatic renal cell carcinoma, starting tyrosine kinase inhibitor as first-line treatment at United Kingdom National Health Service hospitals.

Advanced imaging for earlier diagnosis and morbidity prevention in multiple myeloma: A British Society of Haematology and UK Myeloma Society Good Practice Paper.

This Good Practice Paper provides recommendations for the use of advanced imaging for earlier diagnosis and morbidity prevention in multiple myeloma. It describes how advanced imaging contributes to optimal healthcare resource utilisation by in newly diagnosed and relapsed myeloma, and provides a perspective on future directions of myeloma imaging, including machine learning assisted reporting.

Evaluation of three alternative methods to the plaque reduction neutralizing assay for measuring neutralizing antibodies to dengue virus serotype 2.

Background: Dengue is a global public health challenge which requires accurate diagnostic methods for surveillance and control. The gold standard for detecting dengue neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) is the plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT), which is both labor-intensive and time-consuming. This study aims to evaluate three alternative approaches, namely, the MTT-based (or (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) microneutralization assay, the xCELLigence real-time cell analysis (RTCA), and the immuno-plaque assay-focus reduction neutralization test (iPA-FRNT).

Self-Supervised Anomaly Detection from Anomalous Training Data via Iterative Latent Token Masking.

Anomaly detection and segmentation pose an important task across sectors ranging from medical imaging analysis to industry quality control. However, current unsupervised approaches require training data to not contain any anomalies, a requirement that can be especially challenging in many medical imaging scenarios. In this paper, we propose Iterative Latent Token Masking, a self-supervised framework derived from a robust statistics point of view, translating an iterative model fitting with M-estimators to the task of anomaly detection.

Comparison of dual-bolus versus dual-sequence techniques for determining myocardial blood flow and myocardial perfusion reserve by cardiac magnetic resonance stress perfusion: From the Automated Quantitative analysis of myocardial perfusion cardiac Magnetic Resonance Consortium.

Background: Quantitative stress cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) can be performed using the dual-sequence (DS) technique or dual-bolus (DB) method. It is unknown if DS and DB produce similar results for myocardial blood flow (MBF) and myocardial perfusion reserve (MPR). The study objective is to investigate if there are any differences between DB- and DS-derived MBF and MPR.

Magnetic resonance imaging evaluation of cochlear and vestibular nerve calibre: a case-control study in Ménière's disease and endolymphatic hydrops.

Purpose: To compare the calibre of the cochlear (CN), superior vestibular (SVN) and inferior vestibular (IVN) nerves on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), both between Ménière's Disease (MD) ears and clinical controls, and between inner ears with and without endolymphatic hydrops (EH) on MRI.

Methods: A retrospective case-control study evaluated patients undergoing MRI for suspected hydropic ear disease from 9/2017 to 8/2022. The CN, SVN, IVN and facial nerve (FN) diameters and cross-sectional areas (CSA) were measured on T2-weighted sequences whilst EH was evaluated on delayed post-gadolinium MRI.

Multivariable prognostic modelling to improve prediction of colorectal cancer recurrence: the PROSPeCT trial.

Objective: Improving prognostication to direct personalised therapy remains an unmet need. This study prospectively investigated promising CT, genetic, and immunohistochemical markers to improve the prediction of colorectal cancer recurrence.

Material And Methods: This multicentre trial (ISRCTN 95037515) recruited patients with primary colorectal cancer undergoing CT staging from 13 hospitals.

National myeloma patient survey shows continuing inappropriate imaging and geographical inequalities.

Objective: To evaluate the provision of imaging at diagnosis of myeloma from the service user perspective with a specific focus on how the experiences of patients align with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines (NG35, 2016) on first-line imaging practice for myeloma in the United Kingdom.

Methods: A national survey was performed to evaluate access to imaging from the patient's perspective. Patients with myeloma who received their diagnosis between 2017 and March 2022 were invited to participate.

Multicentre validation of CT grey-level co-occurrence matrix features for overall survival in primary oesophageal adenocarcinoma.

Background: Personalising management of primary oesophageal adenocarcinoma requires better risk stratification. Lack of independent validation of proposed imaging biomarkers has hampered clinical translation. We aimed to prospectively validate previously identified prognostic grey-level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM) CT features for 3-year overall survival.

Assessing oral health and the minimally important differences in oral health-related quality of life of non-diabetic and diabetic patients: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Non-diabetics and diabetics might have different oral health problems and impacts on their oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). Comparison of oral health status and coping strategies between these patients, and evaluation of factors associated with OHRQoL might facilitate better treatment planning for improved patient-centred outcome.

Methods: One hundred and eleven non-diabetics and 107 diabetics attending a public hospital were clinically examined and evaluated for coping strategies (abbreviated coping orientation to problems experienced) and OHRQoL [short-form oral health impact profile (OHIP-14S)].

The Image Biomarker Standardization Initiative: Standardized Convolutional Filters for Reproducible Radiomics and Enhanced Clinical Insights.

Filters are commonly used to enhance specific structures and patterns in images, such as vessels or peritumoral regions, to enable clinical insights beyond the visible image using radiomics. However, their lack of standardization restricts reproducibility and clinical translation of radiomics decision support tools. In this special report, teams of researchers who developed radiomics software participated in a three-phase study (September 2020 to December 2022) to establish a standardized set of filters.