Effective collision strengths for election impact excitation of Cl III

Effective collision strengths for electron-impact excitation of the phosphorus-like ion Cl III are presented for all fine-structure transitions among the levels arising from the lowest 23 LS states. The collisional cross sections are computed in the multichannel close-coupling R-matrix approximation, where sophisticated configuration-interaction wave functions are used to represent the target states. The 23 LS states are formed from the basis configurations 3s²3p³, 3s3p⁴, 3s²3p²3d, and 3s²3p²4s, and correspond to 49 fine-structure levels, leading to a total possible 1176 fine-structure transitions. The effective collision strengths, obtained by averaging the electron collision strengths over a Maxwellian distribution of electron velocities, are tabulated in this paper for all 1176 transitions and for electron temperatures in the ranges T(K)=7500-25,000 and log T(K)=4.4-5.4. The former range encompasses the temperatures of particular importance for application to gaseous nebulae, while the latter range is more applicable to the study of solar and laboratory-type plasmas. © 2001 Academic Press.

Effective collision strengths for forbidden transitions among the 3s23p3 fine-structure levels of Cl III

Effective collision strengths for the 10 astrophysically important fine-structure forbidden transitions among the ⁴S^o, ²D^o and ²P^o levels in the 3s²3p³ configuration of Cl III are presented. The calculation employs the multichannel R-matrix method to compute the electron-impact excitation collision strengths in a close-coupling expansion, which incorporates the lowest 23 LS target eigenstates of Cl III. These states are formed from the 3s²3p³, 3s3p⁴, 3s²3p²3d and 3s²3p²4s configurations. The Maxwellian-averaged effective collision strengths are presented graphically for all 10 fine-structure transitions over a wide range of electron temperatures appropriate for astrophysical applications [log T(K) = 3.3 - log T(K) = 5.9]. Comparisons are made with the earlier seven-state close-coupling calculation of Butler & Zeippen, and in general excellent agreement is found in the low-temperature region where a comparison is possible [log T(K) = 3.3 - log T(K) = 4.7]. However, discrepancies of up to 30 per cent are found to occur for the forbidden transitions which involve the ⁴S^o ground state level, particularly for the lowest temperatures considered. At the higher temperatures, the present data are the only reliable results currently available.

Electron impact excitation of the Fe-peak ions Ni III and Ni IV

Accurate determination of electron excitation rates for the Fe-peak elements is complicated by the presence of an open 3d-shell in the description of the target ion, which can lead to hundreds of target state energy levels. Furthermore, the low energy scattering region is dominated by series of Rydberg resonances, which require a very fine energy mesh for their delineation. These problems have prompted the development of a suite of parallel R-matrix codes. In this work we report recent applications of these codes to the study of electron impact excitation of Ni III and Ni IV.

Protocol for the isotoxic intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC): a feasibility study.

Introduction The majority of stage III patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are unsuitable for concurrent chemoradiotherapy, the non-surgical gold standard of care. As the alternative treatment options of sequential chemoradiotherapy and radiotherapy alone are associated with high local failure rates, various intensification strategies have been employed. There is evidence to suggest that altered fractionation using hyperfractionation, acceleration, dose escalation, and individualisation may be of benefit. The MAASTRO group have pioneered the concept of ‘isotoxic’ radiotherapy allowing for individualised dose escalation using hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy based on predefined normal tissue constraints. This study aims to evaluate whether delivering isotoxic radiotherapy using intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) is achievable.

Methods and analysis Isotoxic IMRT is a multicentre feasibility study. From June 2014, a total of 35 patients from 7 UK centres, with a proven histological or cytological diagnosis of inoperable NSCLC, unsuitable for concurrent chemoradiotherapy will be recruited. A minimum of 2 cycles of induction chemotherapy is mandated before starting isotoxic radiotherapy. The dose of radiation will be increased until one or more of the organs at risk tolerance or the maximum dose of 79.2 Gy is reached. The primary end point is feasibility, with accrual rates, local control and overall survival our secondary end points. Patients will be followed up for 5 years.

Ethics and dissemination The study has received ethical approval (REC reference: 13/NW/0480) from the National Research Ethics Service (NRES) Committee North West—Greater Manchester South. The trial is conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and Good Clinical Practice (GCP). The trial results will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and presented internationally.

Trial registration number NCT01836692; Pre-results.

Utility of US Norms for the Bayley Scales of Infant Development (III) in UK and Irish Children

The aim of this paper is to explore the utility of the United States norms for United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland populations. The Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID III) is a globally used developmental assessment for typically developing and clinical samples of children aged 1 to 42 months. A UK norming exercise (REF) confirmed the suitability of US norms for UK based research and practice. However, debate has continued concerning the utility of the US norms in other countries. This paper further explores the utility of the US norms for the UK and ROI populations using BSID III developmental outcome data from two samples of over one thousand typically developing children.

Immune-derived PD-L1 gene expression defines a subgroup of stage II/III colorectal cancer patients with favorable prognosis that may be harmed by adjuvant chemotherapy

A recent phase 2 study of metastatic colorectal carcinoma (CRC) patients showed that mismatch repair gene status was predictive of clinical response to PD-1-targeting immune checkpoint blockade. Further examination revealed strong correlation between PD-L1 protein expression and microsatellite instability (MSI) in stage IV CRC, suggesting that the amount of PD-L1 protein expression could identify late stage patients who may benefit from immunotherapy. To assess whether the clinical associations between PD-L1 gene expression and MSI identified in metastatic CRC are also present in stage II/III CRC, we used in silico analysis to elucidate the cell types expressing the PD-L1 gene. We found a significant association of PD-L1 gene expression with MSI in early stage CRC (P < 0.001) and show that unlike in non-CRC tumors, PD-L1 is derived predominantly from the immune infiltrate. We demonstrate that PD-L1 gene expression has positive prognostic value in the adjuvant disease setting (PD-L1low v PD-L1high HR = 9.09; CI, 2.11-39.10). PD-L1 gene expression had predictive value, as patients with high PD-L1 expression appear to be harmed by standard-of-care treatment (HR = 4.95; CI,1.10-22.35). Building on the promising results from the metastatic CRC PD-1-targeting trial, we provide compelling evidence that PD-L1high/MSI/immunehigh stage II/III CRC patients should not receive standard chemotherapy. This conclusion supports the rationale to clinically evaluate this patient subgroup for PD-1 blockade treatment.