Promoting electricity conservation through behavior change: A study protocol for a web-based multiple-arm parallel randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: As a part of the framework of the EU-funded Energy efficiency through Behavior CHANge Transition (ENCHANT) project, the present paper intends to provide a "Research Protocol" of a web-based trial to: (i) assess the effectiveness of behavioral intervention strategies--either single or in combination--on electricity saving, and (ii) unravel the psychological factors contributing to intervention effectiveness in households across Europe. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Six distinct interventions (i.e., information provision, collective vs. individual message framing, social norms, consumption feedback, competitive elements, and commitment strategies) targeting electricity saving in households from six European countries (i.e., Austria, Germany, Italy, Norway, Romania, and Türkiye) are evaluated, with an initial expected samples of about 1500 households per country randomly assigned to 12 intervention groups and two control groups, and data is collected through an ad-hoc online platform. The primary outcome is the weekly electricity consumption normalized to the last seven days before measurement per person per household. Secondary outcomes are the peak consumption during the last day before measurement and the self-reported implementation of electricity saving behaviors (e.g., deicing the refrigerator). The underlying psychological factors expected to mediate and/or moderate the intervention effects on these outcomes are intentions to save electricity, perceived difficulty of saving energy, attitudes to electricity saving, electricity saving habit strength, social norms to save electricity, personal norms, collective efficacy, emotional reaction to electricity consumption, and national identity. The intervention effectiveness will be evaluated by comparing psychological factors and consumption variables before and after the intervention, leading to a 14 (groups including 2 control groups) × 6 (time) mixed factorial design, with one factor between (group) and one factor within subjects (time)-6 measurements of the psychological factors and 6 readings of the electricity meters, which gives then 5 weeks of electricity consumption. RESULTS: Data collection for the present RCT started in January 2023, and by October 2023 data collection will conclude. DISCUSSION: Upon establishing feasibility and effectiveness, the outcomes of this study will assist policymakers, municipalities, NGOs, and other communal entities in identifying impactful interventions tailored to their unique circumstances and available resources. Researchers will benefit from a flexible, structured tool that allows the design, implementation and monitoring of complex interventions protocols. Crucially, the intervention participants will benefit from electricity saving strategies, fostering immediate effectiveness of the interventions in real-life contexts. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This trial was preregistered in the Open Science Framework: https://osf.io/9vtn4.

Distinct leukocyte populations and cytokine secretion profiles define tumoral and peritumoral areas in renal cell carcinoma.

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is a common malignancy frequently diagnosed at the metastatic stage. We performed a comprehensive analysis of the tumor immune microenvironment (TIME) in RCC patients, including the peritumoral tissue microenvironment, to characterize the phenotypic patterns and functional characteristics of infiltrating immune cells. T cells from various compartments (peripheral blood, tumor, peritumoral area, and adjacent healthy renal tissue) were assessed using flow cytometry and Luminex analyses, both before and after T cell-specific stimulation, to evaluate activation status and migratory potential. Our findings demonstrated that tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) exhibited heightened cytokine production compared to peritumoral T cells (pTILs), acting as the primary source of cytotoxic markers (IFN-γ, granzyme B, and FasL). CD8+ T cells primarily employed Fas Ligand for cytotoxicity, while CD4+ T cells relied on CD107a. In addition, a statistically significant negative correlation between patient mortality and the presence of CD4+CD107+ pTILs was demonstrated. The engagement with the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway was also more evident in CD4+ and CD8+ pTILs as opposed to TILs. PD-L1 expression in the non-leukocyte fraction of the tumor tissue was relatively lower than in their leukocytic counterparts and upon stimulation, peripheral blood T cells displayed much stronger responses to stimulation than TILs and pTILs. Our results suggest that tumor and peritumoral T cells exhibit limited responsiveness to additional activation signals, while peripheral T cells retain their capacity to respond to stimulatory signals.

Is environmental behavior related to economic risk preferences? An exploratory case by case analysis.

Do risk preferences play a role when deciding whether to act pro-environmentally? Looking at 28 different behaviors case by case - including recycling, waste reduction, energy and water conservation, consumer behavior, and environmental policy support - our data suggest no relation between most of the behaviors and economic risk preferences. However, economic risk preferences appear to have some relevance for travel mode choice and for specific consumer preferences (eco-friendly detergents, organic food, and single-use plastics), perhaps because people are better able to appreciate aspects of these behaviors related to risk (e.g., possibility of traffic accidents, health risks).

Serum Thymidine Kinase 1 - Potential Prostate Cancer Biomarker: A Clinical Study.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Serum thymidine kinase 1 (STK1) is a proliferation biomarker that has been used as a diagnostic marker of several malignant diseases. However, there are limited data for prostate cancer (PCa). PATIENTS AND METHODS: In this study, we retrospectively analysed serum samples from 169 patients with biopsy confirmed PCa, who had been indicated for radical prostatectomy (RP) between 2013-2016. The results were compared with those in serum samples from 39 healthy men. We used commercially available enzymatic immunoassay to determine the levels of STK1. The patients were divided into groups according to the Gleason score (GS) and risk factors for adjuvant radiotherapy (aRT), which were defined as GS 8-10, pT3, and a positive surgical margin. RESULTS: The median serum level of STK1 in PCa patients was 0.289 pmol/l. In the control group, the median value was 0.0116 pmol/l (p<0.001). By comparing the patients with GS≤6 vs. 7 vs. ≥8 (p=0.01), we found statistically significant differences. In the correlation of STK1 values with risk factors, we found statistically significant differences both in comparison of 0 vs. 1 vs. 2 vs. 3 risk factors (p=0.021), as well as ≤1 vs. 2≥ risk factors (p=0.009). CONCLUSION: The levels of STK1 are significantly higher in patients with PCa than those in healthy controls. Furthermore, STK1 values correlate with GS and predefined risk factors for aRT. Therefore, STK1 can be considered as a potential tumour marker of PCa diagnosis and risk stratification.

Norms, prices, and commitment: A comprehensive overview of field experiments in the energy domain and treatment effect moderators.

This paper provides a comprehensive overview of field experiments utilizing social norms, commitment and price-based interventions to promote energy conservation, load shifting, and energy efficiency behaviors. Treatment effects reported in the extant literature, as well as the factors that may strengthen or dampen these effects are reviewed. We find that social norm and incentive-based interventions mostly achieve small reductions in energy consumption, and that the effects of commitment-based interventions are essentially zero for the most part. Incentive effects on energy efficiency investments are mostly non-existent, safe for a few exceptions. One gap that we identify is the almost complete absence of field experiments leveraging social norms or commitment to promote energy efficiency investments. We discuss a broad range of (mostly under-researched) plausible moderators of the interventions' effects. Crucially, a more careful attention to moderators in future research can highlight instances in which interventions can be effective, notwithstanding their modest or non-existent average treatment effects. Our review offers a starting point in this regard.

Early prediction of prostate cancer biochemical recurrence and identification of disease persistence using PSA isoforms and human kallikrein-2.

BACKGROUND: The role of isoforms of prostate specific antigen (PSA) and other kallikrein-related markers in early detection of biochemical recurrence (BCR) after radical prostatectomy (RP) is not well known and serum PSA is currently used in preoperative risk nomograms. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this research was to study pre- and early postoperative levels of important PSA isoforms and human kallikrein-2 to determine their ability to predict BCR and identify disease persistence (DP). METHODS: This study included 128 consecutive patients who underwent RP for clinically localized prostate cancer. PSA, fPSA, %fPSA, [-2]proPSA, PHI and hK2 were measured preoperatively, at 1 and 3 months after RP. We determined the ability of these markers to predict BCR and identify DP. RESULTS: The DP and BCR rate were 11.7%and 20.3%respectively and the median follow up was 64 months (range 3-76 months). Preoperatively, the independent predictors of BCR were PSA (p-value 0.029), [-2]proPSA (p-value 0.002) and PHI (p-value 0.0003). Post-RP, PSA was the single marker correlating with BCR, both at one (p-value 0.0047) and 3 months (p-value 0.0004). PSA, fPSA, [-2]proPSA and PHI significantly correlated to DP at 1 and 3 months post-RP (p-value <  0.05), although PSA had the most significant existing correlation (p-value <  0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: [-2]proPSA and PHI are preoperative predictors of BCR and DP that outperform the currently used serum PSA. At the early postoperative period there is no additional benefit of the other markers tested.

Psychological Predictors of Energy Saving Behavior: A Meta-Analytic Approach.

Understanding how psychological processes drive human energy choices is an urgent, and yet relatively under-investigated, need for contemporary society. A knowledge gap still persists on the links between psychological factors identified in earlier studies and people's behaviors in the energy domain. This research applies a meta-analytical procedure to assess the strength of the associations between five different classes of individual variables (i.e.,: attitudes, intentions, values, awareness, and emotions) and energy-saving behavioral intentions and behaviors (self-reported and actual). Based on a systematic review of studies published between 2007 and 2017, we estimate the average effect size of predictor-criterion relations, and we assess relevant moderators and publication bias, drawing on data obtained from 102 independent samples reported in 67 published studies (N = 59.948). Results from a series of five single meta-analyses reveal a pattern of significant positive associations between the selected psychological determinants and energy-saving indicators: associations between individual-level predictors and energy-saving outcomes are positive and moderate in size, ranging from large effects for emotions to small-moderate effects for pro-environmental values. Interestingly, moderation analysis reveals, among other things, that attitude-behavior links are not statistically significant when actual behavior is considered as an outcome. Implications for policy interventions are discussed.

Morbidity and mortality after open radical cystectomy and ileal diversion - 10 years experience and a comprehensive assessment in a single tertiary center.

Open radical cystectomy (ORC) remains the gold standard for the treatment of muscle-invasive and high-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer unsuitable for bladder preservation techniques. Despite improvements in operative technique and perioperative care, it continues to be associated with significant complications. We analyzed our series of prospectively collected data of patients who underwent ORC at a tertiary referral academic center and evaluated early and late postoperative complications and mortality. The records of 391 ORCs with ileal diversion performed at our institution between January 2008 and July 2018 for non-metastatic transitional bladder carcinoma and other distinct pathological types were analyzed. Perioperative mortality was determined and 30-day and 90-day complications were reported according to the Martin Criteria and the European Association of Urology and graded according to the five-grade Clavien-Dindo classification. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to evaluate predictors of complications and mortality. Gastrointestinal and infectious complications represented 41% and 43% of the total complications observed at 30 and 90 days after the surgery, respectively. The strongest predictor of infectious complications was the choice of ileal neobladder as the urinary diversion (p≤0.0001). Diabetes was a predictor of the overall, major and major infectious complications (p<0.05). The 30-day mortality rate was 1% while the 90-day mortality rate was 1.5%. Age ≥75 was the single predictor of mortality at both 30-days (p-value 0.003) and 90-days (p-value 0.01) in univariate and multivariate analyses. ORC is a morbid procedure, associated with a high mortality rate. Elderly patients should have proper counseling before the indication of this procedure. Gastrointestinal and infectious complications represent the most common and serious complications, and the study of their predictors is of the utmost importance.

The predictive value of the prostate health index vs. multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging for prostate cancer diagnosis in prostate biopsy.

PURPOSE: To compare the ability of Prostate Health Index (PHI) to diagnose csPCa, with that of total PSA, PSA density (PSAD) and the multiparametric magnetic resonance (mpMRI) of the prostate. METHODS: We analysed a group of 395 men planned for a prostate biopsy who underwent a mpMRI of the prostate evaluated using the PIRADS v1 criteria. All patients had their PHI measured before prostate biopsy. In patients with an mpMRI suspicious lesions, an mpMRI/ultrasound software fusion-guided biopsy was performed first, with 12 core systematic biopsy performed in all patients. A ROC analysis was performed for PCa detection for total PSA, PSAD, PIRADS score and PHI; with an AUC curve calculated for all criteria and a combination of PIRADS score and PHI. Subsequent sub-analyses included patients undergoing first and repeat biopsy. RESULTS: The AUC for predicting the presence of csPCa in all patients was 59.5 for total PSA, 69.7 for PHI, 64.9 for PSAD and 62.5 for PIRADS. In biopsy naive patients it was 61.6 for total PSA, 68.9 for PHI, 64.6 for PSAD and 63.1 for PIRADS. In patients with previous negative biopsy the AUC for total PSA, PHI, PSAD and PIRADS was 55.4, 71.2, 64.4 and 69.3, respectively. Adding of PHI to PIRADS increased significantly (p = 0.007) the accuracy for prediction of csPCa. CONCLUSION: Prostate Health Index could serve as a tool in predicting csPCa. When compared to the mpMRI, it shows comparable results. The PHI cannot, however, help us guide prostate biopsies in any way, and its main use may, therefore, be in pre-MRI or pre-biopsy triage.

Preoperative prostate health index predicts adverse pathology and Gleason score upgrading after radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to explore the utility of prostate specific antigen (PSA) isoform [- 2] proPSA and its derivatives for prediction of pathological outcome after radical prostatectomy (RP). METHODS: Preoperative blood samples were prospectively and consecutivelyanalyzed from 472 patients treated with RP for clinically localized prostate cancerat four medical centers. Measured parameters were PSA, free PSA (fPSA), fPSA/PSA ratio, [- 2] proPSA (p2PSA), p2PSA/fPSA ratio and Prostate Health Index (PHI)(p2PSA/fPSA)*√PSA]. Logistic regression models were fitted to determine the accuracy of markers for prediction of pathological Gleason score (GS) ≥7, Gleason score upgrading, extracapsular extension of the tumor (pT3) and the presence of positive surgical margin (PSM). The accuracy of predictive models was compared using area under the receiver operating curve (AUC). RESULTS: Of 472 patients undergoing RP, 339 (72%) were found to have pathologic GS ≥ 7, out of them 178 (53%) experienced an upgrade from their preoperative GS = 6. The findings of pT3 and PSM were present in 132 (28%) and 133 (28%) cases, respectively. At univariable analysis of all the preoperative parameters, PHI was the most accurate predictor of pathological GS ≥7 (OR 1.02, 95% CI 1.01-1.03, p<0.001), GS upgrading (OR 1.02, 95% CI 1.01-1.03, p<0.003), pT3 disease (OR 1.01, 95% CI 1.00-1.02, p<0.007) and the presence of PSM (OR 1.01, 95% CI 1.00-1.02, p<0.002). Adding of PHI into the base multivariable model increased significantly the accuracy for prediction of pathological GS by 4.4% to AUC = 66.6 (p = 0.015) and GS upgrading by 5.0% to AUC = 65.9 (p = 0.025), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Preoperative PHI levels may contribute significantly to prediction of prostate cancer aggressiveness and expansion of the tumor detected at final pathology.

Social Desirability in Environmental Psychology Research: Three Meta-Analyses.

That social desirability might be a confounder of people's survey responses regarding environmental actions has been discussed for a long time. To produce evidence for or against this assumption, we conducted meta-analyses of correlations between social desirability scales and self-reports of environmentally relevant behaviors, intentions, and (broadly defined) attitudes, based on data from 29 previously published papers. The pooled correlations with social desirability are generally small, ranging from 0.06 to 0.11 (0.08-0.13 when correcting for measurement error attenuation). However, our results do not lead to the conclusion that social desirability can be completely disregarded by environmental psychologists as a potential confounder. For example, we found evidence of substantial heterogeneity across studies, so the effect of social desirability may be more pronounced in specific cases. Continued attention to social desirability bias is needed to fully understand its possible subtle effects.

Diagnostic benefits of mindin as a prostate cancer biomarker: Dijagnosticke prednosti mindina kao biomarkera raka prostate.

BACKGROUND: It has been shown that decreased expression and activity of extracellular matrix protein mindin correlate with various types of cancers including breast, colon and lung cancers. The aim of the presented study was to investigate the serum mindin levels in prostate cancer. METHODS: Mindin concentrations in serum were measured in 56 patients with prostate cancer (mean age 68 years) and in control group of 29 healthy men (mean age 64 years) using commercially available enzymatic immunoassay (Cusabio, WuHan, China). The patients were divided with respect to the severity of the disease into two groups according to the EAU guidelines (stage 1, 2 - less severe tumours, stage 3, 4 - severe tumours). RESULTS: Serum mindin concentrations were significantly elevated in the group of healthy individuals unlike in the patients with prostate cancer (2.12 ng/mL vs 0.78 ng/mL, with P=0.0007, AUC=0.705). Patients with less severe tumours (stage 1, 2) and severe tumours (stage 3, 4) had significantly decreased levels of S-mindin as well (P=0.0037), although the difference in serum mindin concentrations between the patients with less severe and severe tumours was not significant. CONCLUSIONS: Concentrations of mindin were decreased in patients with prostate cancer and reduced in patients with less severe prostate cancer as well. Mindin appears to be a promising diagnostic marker useful in the diagnosis of prostate cancer.

Thymidine Kinase-1 as Additional Diagnostic Marker of Prostate Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Thymidine kinase-1 (TK-1) is associated with proliferation and malignancy and has been extensively studied as a diagnostic biomarker for a variety of tumors, but there are limited data for prostate cancer. METHODS: TK-1 concentrations in serum were measured in 59 patients with prostate cancer (mean age 68 years) and in the control group of 28 healthy men (mean age 63 years) using commercially available enzymatic immunoassay (LSBio, Inc., Seattle, WA, USA). The patients were divided with respect to the severity of the disease into two groups according to the European Association of Urology (EAU) guidelines (Stage 1, 2 - less severe tumors, stage 3 - severe tumors). RESULTS: Serum thymidine kinase-1 concentrations were significantly elevated in the group of the patients with prostate cancer compared to the healthy individuals (0.204 pmol/L vs. 0.072 pmol/L, with p < 0.0001). Diagnostic efficiency of serum TK-1 concentrations was 0.792 with the specificity of 53.6% and sensitivity of 94.9%. Patients with less severe tumors (Stage 1, 2) and severe tumors (Stage 3) had significantly increased levels of TK-1 as well (p < 0.0001). Combination of TK-1 and PSA investigation in patients with PCa improve the diagnostic validity of TK-1 (AUC = 0.87). CONCLUSIONS: Concentrations of thymidine kinase 1 are increased in all patients with prostate cancer and even more in patients with severe prostate cancer. Thymidine kinase 1 appears to be a promising additional diagnostic marker promising in patients with prostate cancer.

Is Engrailed-2 (EN2) a truly promising biomarker in prostate cancer detection?

Purpose: Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is a sensitive but unspecific marker for prostate cancer (PC) detection, which may result in harms including overdiagnosis and overtreatment. Therefore, the development of new markers is of absolute value. The urinary level of engrailed-2 (EN2) protein has been recently suggested as a promising PC biomarker, correlating with tumour volume and stage. This study evaluated EN2 and its potential use in clinical practice.Materials and methods: Urinary EN2 was assessed by different commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. The study sample included 90 patients with clinically localized PC compared to 30 healthy controls, and a group of 40 patients indicated for prostate biopsy due to an elevated PSA level where both pre- and post-digital rectal examination urine samples were collected.Results: No statistical difference between the patient group and the control group was obtained in all measured variables. There was no significant correlation between urinary EN2 and serum PSA, tumour staging and grading. Attentive DRE did not lead to significant changes of urinary EN2 or impact on its predictive power.Conclusions: Our results show that EN2 as a PC biomarker brings no additional value to the current use of PSA in clinical practice.

NK and T cells with a cytotoxic/migratory phenotype accumulate in peritumoral tissue of patients with clear cell renal carcinoma.

OBJECTIVES: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most lethal urologic malignancy with increasing incidence worldwide. The conventional treatment strategies for advanced or recurrent RCC are not efficient and show considerable toxicities. Adoptive cell transfer (ACT) has become a promising treatment option for multiple cancers, particularly in combination with other therapeutic approaches. ACT often utilizes extensively in vitro expanded tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs). However, TILs are a very heterogeneous mix of cell populations and only those populations that have a cytotoxic and migratory potential are thought to deliver a therapeutic impact in ACT. The identification and localization of these therapeutically potent populations are therefore needed. METHODS AND MATERIALS: A total number of 57 tissue samples from 19 RCC patients who underwent radical nephrectomy was analyzed. The tissue samples were obtained from the tumor, peritumoral tissue, and the adjacent healthy renal tissue. The tissues were sliced, enzymatically dissociated into single cell suspensions and the obtained cells further analyzed by flow cytometry for the expression of markers of lymphocyte cytotoxicity - TRAIL and FasL, and a surrogate marker of lymphocyte migratory activity - PECAM-1. The analyzed data were next correlated with the clinical and histopathological data. RESULTS: Non-clear cell RCC (non-ccRCC) tumors showed a significantly decreased tumor infiltration with TRAIL+FasL+ NK cells but elevated infiltration with FasL+PECAM-1+ T cells as compared with clear cell RCC (ccRCC) tumors. Further analyses revealed that the peritumoral tissue of ccRCC patients is a reservoir of TRAIL+FasL+, TRAIL+PECAM-1+, or FasL+PECAM-1+ NK and T cells. CONCLUSIONS: The cytotoxic/migratory lymphocytes were identified in tumors of ccRCC patients. These lymphocytes became excluded from the tumor and accumulated in the patient's peritumoral tissue.

The European Urology Residents Education Programme Hands-on Training Format: 4 Years of Hands-on Training Improvements from the European School of Urology.

BACKGROUND: The European School of Urology (ESU) started the European Urology Residents Education Programme (EUREP) in 2003 for final year urology residents, with hands-on training (HOT) added later in 2007. OBJECTIVE: To assess the geographical reach of EUREP, trainee demographics, and individual quality feedback in relation to annual methodology improvements in HOT. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: From September 2014 to October 2017 (four EUREP courses) several new features have been applied to the HOT format of the EUREP course: 1:1 training sessions (2015), fixed 60-min time slots (2016), and standardised teaching methodology (2017). The resulting EUREP HOT format was verified by collecting and prospectively analysing the following data: total number of participants attending different HOT courses; participants' age; country of origin; and feedback obtained annually. RESULTS AND LIMITATIONS: A total of 796 participants from 54 countries participated in 1450 HOT sessions over the last 4 yr. This included 294 (20%) ureteroscopy (URS) sessions, 237 (16.5%) transurethral resection (TUR) sessions, 840 (58%) basic laparoscopic sessions, and 79 (5.5%) intermediate laparoscopic sessions. While 712 residents (89%) were from Europe, 84 (11%) were from non-European nations. Of the European residents, most came from Italy (16%), Germany (15%), Spain (15%), and Romania (8%). Feedback for the basic laparoscopic session showed a constant improvement in scores over the last 4 yr, with the highest scores achieved last year. This included feedback on improvements in tutor rating (p=0.017), organisation (p<0.001), and personal experience with EUREP (p<0.001). Limitations lie in the difficulties associated with the use of an advanced training curriculum with wet laboratory or cadaveric courses in this format, although these could be performed in other training centres in conjunction with EUREP. CONCLUSIONS: The EUREP trainee demographics show that the purpose of the course is being achieved, with excellent feedback reported. While European trainees dominate the demographics, participation from a number of non-European countries suggests continued ESU collaboration with other national societies and wider dissemination of simulation training worldwide. PATIENT SUMMARY: In this paper we look at methodological improvements and feedback for the European Urology Residents Education Programme hands-on-training over the last 4 yr.

Differences in Urinary Amino Acid Patterns in Individuals with Different Types of Urological Tumor Urinary Amino Acid Patterns as Markers of Urological Tumors.

BACKGROUND: Insufficient specificity and invasiveness of currently used diagnostic methods raises the need for new markers of urological tumors. The aim of this study was to find a link between the urinary excretion of amino acids and the presence of urological tumors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using ion-exchange chromatography, we tested urine samples of patients with prostate cancer (n=30), urinary bladder cancer (n=28), renal cell carcinoma (n=16) and healthy volunteers (control group; n=21). RESULTS: In each category, we found a group of amino acids which differed in concentration compared to the control group. These differences were most significant in sarcosine in patients with prostate cancer; leucine, phenylalanine and arginine in those with bladder cancer; and sarcosine, glutamic acid, glycine, tyrosine and arginine in the those with renal cell carcinoma. CONCLUSION: Results of our research imply a possible connection between the occurrence of specific types of amino acids in the urine and the presence of urological tumors.

Stratification model based on early postprostatectomy prostate-specific antigen kinetics may help to reduce the risk of overtreatment in candidates for adjuvant radiotherapy.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to construct a stratification model based on early postoperative kinetics of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) to select the most suitable high-risk patients for early intervention after radical prostatectomy (RP). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study evaluated 205 men who had undergone RP without any adjuvant treatment. All of the patients had positive surgical margins, extracapsular extension and/or seminal vesicle invasion. The patients underwent multiple ultrasensitive PSA measurements on days 14, 30, 60 and 90 after RP, and subsequently at 3 month intervals. The ability of particular PSA measurements to predict biochemical recurrence (BCR) was assessed using the area under the curve (AUC). A sequential mathematical decision procedure was constructed to create a stratification model. RESULTS: During the median follow-up of 45.9 months, 106 patients (51%) experienced BCR. Prediction of BCR in terms of the AUC for PSA measurements on days 14, 30, 60 and 90 after the surgery was 0.61, 0.70, 0.80 and 0.82, respectively. In the multivariate analysis, only PSA after RP remained as a predictor of progression-free survival (p < 0.001). The stratification model based on calculated cut-off values for PSA on day 30 (0.068 ng/ml) and PSA on day 60 (0.015 ng/ml) reduced the potential overtreatment rate by 37%. CONCLUSIONS: The results imply that ultrasensitive PSA values obtained very early after RP correlate with the presence of recurrent disease in high-risk patients. Incorporating these readily available variables into risk stratification models may help to individualize the administration of adjuvant radiotherapy and thus to minimize overtreatment.

Predicting recycling behaviour: Comparison of a linear regression model and a fuzzy logic model.

In this paper we demonstrate that fuzzy logic can provide a better tool for predicting recycling behaviour than the customarily used linear regression. To show this, we take a set of empirical data on recycling behaviour (N=664), which we randomly divide into two halves. The first half is used to estimate a linear regression model of recycling behaviour, and to develop a fuzzy logic model of recycling behaviour. As the first comparison, the fit of both models to the data included in estimation of the models (N=332) is evaluated. As the second comparison, predictive accuracy of both models for "new" cases (hold-out data not included in building the models, N=332) is assessed. In both cases, the fuzzy logic model significantly outperforms the regression model in terms of fit. To conclude, when accurate predictions of recycling and possibly other environmental behaviours are needed, fuzzy logic modelling seems to be a promising technique.

Diagnostic Efficiency of Serum and Urine Procathepsin B and Cathepsin B in Patients with Carcinoma of the Urinary Bladder.

BACKGROUND: The aim of the study was to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of cathepsins B (cathepsin B and procathepsin B) in patients with transient cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder. METHODS: Serum and urine concentrations of cathepsin B and procathepsin B were measured by two commercially available enzymatic immunoassays in a group of 125 patients with bladder cell carcinoma without metastases and in a group of 72 healthy individuals. Concentrations in urine were adjusted to creatinine. RESULTS: Concentrations of both cathepsin B and procathepsin B in serum and urine were significantly elevated in patients with bladder cell carcinoma (p < 0.0001 for U-procathepsin B, U-procathepsin B/creatinine, and U-cathepsin B/creatinine, p = 0.0001 for U-cathepsin B, p = 0.0002 for S-procathepsin B and p = 0.02 for S-cathepsin B). Comparison of all diagnostic efficiencies of cathepsin B and procathepsin B in serum and in urine showed the best diagnostic accuracy for procathepsin B in urine (AUC = 0.81 vs. 0.50). The ratio of U-procathepsin B/creatinine was also more efficient than the ratio of U-cathepsin B/creatinine (AUC = 0.81 vs. AUC = 0.70). The diagnostic efficiencies of both parameters in serum were low (S-procathepsin B: AUC = 0.50, S-cathepsin B: AUC = 0.60). U-procathepsin B and U-procathepsin B/creatinine ratio show significantly better diagnostic efficiency in patients with invasive bladder tumors than other parameters (S-procathepsin B, S-cathepsin B, U-cathepsin B and U-Cathepsin B/creatinine; U-procathepsin B: AUC = 0.82, U-procathepsin B/creatinine: AUC = 0.86, S-procathepsin B and cathepsin B: AUC = 0.51 - 0.68). CONCLUSIONS: Procathepsin B concentration in urine is a valuable diagnostic marker in patients with bladder cell carcinoma.