Linking flow-stream variability to grain size distribution of suspended sediment from a satellite-based analysis of the Tiber River plume (Tyrrhenian Sea).

Several coastal regions on Earth have been increasingly affected by intense, often catastrophic, flash floods that deliver significant amounts of sediment along shorelines. One of the critical questions related to the impact of these impulsive runoffs is "are flash floods more efficient in delivering non-cohesive sandy sediment along the coasts?" Here we relate flow stages (i.e., from erratic to persistent) to the grain size distribution of the suspended load, by performing a synergic analysis of in-situ river discharge and satellite-retrieved grain size distribution, from 2002 to 2014, covering the 2012 Tiber River (Italy) exceptional flood event. Our analysis shows novel and promising results regarding the capability of remote sensing in characterizing suspended sediment in terms of grain size distribution and reveals that erratic stages favour delivering of non-cohesive sandy sediment more than the persistent stages. This conclusion is supported by numerical simulations and is consistent with previous studies on suspended sediment rating curves.

Absorption correction and phase function shape effects on the closure of apparent optical properties.

We present a closure experiment between new inherent optical properties (IOPs: absorption a, scattering b, backscattering bb) and apparent optical properties (AOPs: remote-sensing reflectance Rrs, irradiance reflectance R, and anisotropic factor at nadir Qn) data of Ionian and Adriatic seawaters, from very clear to turbid waters, ranging across one order of magnitude in Rrs. The internal consistency of the IOP-AOP matchups was investigated though radiative transfer closure. Using the in situ IOPs, we predicted the AOPs with the commercial radiative transfer solver Hydrolight. Closure was limited by two unresolved issues, one regarding processing of in situ data and the other related to radiative transfer modeling. First, different correction methods of the absorption data measured by the Wetlabs ac-s produced high variations in simulated reflectances, reaching 40% for the highest reflectances in our dataset. Second, the lack of detailed volume scattering function measurements forces us to adopt analytical functions that are consistent with a given particle backscattering ratio. The analytical phase functions named Fournier-Forand and two-term Kopelevich presented reasonable angular shapes with respect to measurements at a few backward angles. Between these phase functions, induced changes were within 4% for Rrs, within 11% for R, and within 10% for Qn. Additionally, closure of Qn was generally not successful considering radiometric uncertainties. Simulated Qn overestimated low values and underestimated high values, especially at 665 nm, where Hydrolight was unable to predict measured Qn values greater than 6 sr. The physical nature of Qn makes this mismatch almost independent of the measured IOPs, thus precluding Qn tuning by varying the former. The non-closure of Qn might be caused by an inaccurate phase function and, to a lesser extent, by the modeling of the incoming radiance. For the future, this remains the task of accurate absorption and phase function measurements, especially at red wavelengths.

Mapping water quality and substrate cover in optically complex coastal and reef waters: an integrated approach.

Sustainable management of coastal and coral reef environments requires regular collection of accurate information on recognized ecosystem health indicators. Satellite image data and derived maps of water column and substrate biophysical properties provide an opportunity to develop baseline mapping and monitoring programs for coastal and coral reef ecosystem health indicators. A significant challenge for satellite image data in coastal and coral reef water bodies is the mixture of both clear and turbid waters. A new approach is presented in this paper to enable production of water quality and substrate cover type maps, linked to a field based coastal ecosystem health indicator monitoring program, for use in turbid to clear coastal and coral reef waters. An optimized optical domain method was applied to map selected water quality (Secchi depth, Kd PAR, tripton, CDOM) and substrate cover type (seagrass, algae, sand) parameters. The approach is demonstrated using commercially available Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper image data over a coastal embayment exhibiting the range of substrate cover types and water quality conditions commonly found in sub-tropical and tropical coastal environments. Spatially extensive and quantitative maps of selected water quality and substrate cover parameters were produced for the study site. These map products were refined by interactions with management agencies to suit the information requirements of their monitoring and management programs.

Chemotherapy for recurrent salivary gland malignancies: experience of the ENT Department of Turin University.

Twenty-seven patients (17 males, 10 females; median age 59 years) with recurrent high-grade malignancies of major (22 cases) and minor (5 cases) salivary gland origin (10 adenoid cystic carcinomas, 9 adenocarcinomas, 4 poorly differentiated carcinomas, 1 mixed malignant tumor, 3 mucoepidermoid carcinomas) were treated by monochemotherapy--cisplatin (CDDP) in 8 cases, or adriamycin in 5 cases--or polychemotherapy--CDDP + epirubicin + 5-fluorouracil/cyclophosphamide in 9 cases or CDDP + 5-fluorouracil in 3 cases with mucoepidermoid carcinomas. In adenocarcinoma-like tumors, patients treated by polychemotherapy showed a better response (9.1% CR, 36.3% PR) than patients treated with monochemotherapy (no CR, 23% PR). Patients with local recurrence and adenocarcinoma exhibited a better response. Median response duration: 7.5 months after poly- and 4 after monochemotherapy. Median overall survival time was 8+ months (responders: 14+) in the polychemotherapy group and 5.5 (responders: 8) in the monochemotherapy group. In the 3 cases with mucoepidermoid carcinoma 1 patient achieved a PR (33.3%) and in 2 there was no change.

Small bowel metastasis from squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx. A case report.

Small bowel metastases from squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck are relatively rare and in some cases asymptomatic. In the case herein reported, small bowel metastasis from a laryngeal carcinoma caused a life-threatening complication. The surgical approach was effective in saving the patient's life. Death occurred for neck tumor progression without abdominal signs of secondary lesions. A review of the previously reported cases is provided.

Combined chemotherapy for recurrent and metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

Thirty-two patients (24 males, 8 females; median age 54 yrs) with recurrent and/or metastatic undifferentiated carcinoma of the nasopharyngeal type were treated with chemotherapy. Remissions were observed in 17 of 32 (53.2%) with 5 complete (CR) (15.6%) and 12 partial responses (PR) (37.6%). A combination of cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil was the most effective regimen (CR + PR = 83.3%). Objective responses. (CR + PR) were 47% (CR = 11.7%) in schemes without cisplatin and 60% (CR = 20%) in cisplatin-based combinations. The median overall duration of response was 7.2 months. The median overall survival time was 10.3 months: 15.1 months for responders and 5.2 for non-responders. No important toxicity was observed.

Cisplatin, epirubicin and 5-fluorouracil combination chemotherapy for recurrent carcinoma of the salivary gland.

Nine patients (5 males, 4 females; median age, 62 years) with recurrent high-grade malignancies of major (7 cases) and minor (2 cases) salivary gland origin (4 adenoid cystic carcinomas, 2 adenocarcinomas, 2 poorly differentiated carcinomas, 1 mixed malignant tumor) were treated with cisplatin (60 mg/m2), epirubicin (50 mg/m2) and 5-fluorouracil (600 mg/m2) (CEF) by intravenous injections on the first day of a 21-day regimen. Previous therapy included surgery (1 case), radiotherapy (1 case), and surgery + radiotherapy (7 cases). There was 1 complete response (11.1%), 3 partial responses (33.3%), 2 unchanged lesions (22.2%) and 3 progressions (33.3%). Patients with local recurrence had a better response. Median remission duration was 7.5 months in CR + PR patients. Median overall survival was 8+ months; 14+ months for responders and 4 months for nonresponders. The major toxic effects were nausea/vomiting and alopecia; myelosuppression was less frequent and usually not severe.

Cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil in recurrent head and neck cancer: results of an outpatient schedule.

Thirty patients with recurrent squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck were treated with an outpatient schedule: cisplatin (100 mg/m2) day 1 and an 8-hour infusion of 5-fluorouracil (1000 mg/m2) on days 1-4 every 28 days. Twenty-eight patients were evaluable for response and toxicity: there were 5 complete responses (17.8%), 12 partial responses (42.8%), 6 stable disease (21.6%) and 5 progressions (17.8%). Patients with good performance status had a better response; patients who received prior chemotherapy had less positive responses. Median remission duration was 30+ weeks in patients who had a complete response, 25+ weeks in patients with a partial response. Median overall survival was 28+ weeks: 36+ weeks for responders and 14 weeks for non-responders. The major toxic effect was nausea/vomiting, while myelosuppression and stomatitis were less frequent and never severe.

Comparison of methotrexate and sequential methotrexate-5-fluorouracil for patients with recurrent squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity.

Forty-eight fully assessable previously treated patients with biopsy-proven recurrent squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity were randomized to receive either methotrexate (MTX), 40 mg/m2 iv push weekly, or sequential MTX and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) (MTX 150 mg/m2 iv for 1 h; 1 h after the end of MTX, 5-FU 600 mg/m2 iv for 2 h; 24 h later, leucovorin rescue 10 mg/m2 iv and the same dose was given orally every 6 h 4 times; the treatment was repeated every 10 days). There were 1 complete response (CR) and 5 partial responses (PR) in the MTX group; median remission duration = 84 days. There were 3 CR and 11 PR in the MTX-5-FU group (overall response 14/24, 58.3%--p less than 0.05); median remission duration = 125 days. Median survival was 6.2 months in the MTX group and 8.1 months in the MTX-5-FU group. There was no difference in mucositis between the two groups, and a prevalence of leukopenia and moderate gastro-intestinal toxicity in the MTX-5-FU group.

Combined chemotherapy, cryosurgery, and radiotherapy/surgery for oral cancer.

UNLABELLED: One hundred and twelve patients (95 males, 17 females) with untreated squamous-cell carcinoma of the oral cavity underwent a multidisciplinary treatment. FOLLOW-UP: 6-72 months (median 51 months). T1-4N0M0 lesions (tongue, 31 patients; floor, 31 patients; cheek, 17 patients; retromolar, 9 patients) were treated with cryosurgery (T1-2: 1-2 sessions, T3-4: 2-4 sessions) and contemporaneously with (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, fluorouracil)(CMF) (T1-2:2 courses; T3-4: 3 courses). The patients, 15-20 days after the end of cryo-chemotherapy, underwent TCT (T1: 50 Gy on tumour and lymph nodes; T2-3-4: same with an extra dose of 10-15 Gy on the primary lesion). T1-4N1-3M0 patients (tongue: 8, floor: 13, cheek: 2, retromolar: 1) received the same cryotherapy and chemotherapy, followed by surgery (16 widened suprahyoid dissections, 8 conservative laterocervical dissections, 1 radical neck dissection). Overall actuarial survival at six years was 61.9%: T1-4N0M0 (88 patients) 66.6% (T1-2 76.0%; T3-4 56.9%); T1-4N1-3M0 (24 patients) 44.4% (T1-2 66.6%; T3-4 33.3%). Six-year actuarial survival by site was: tongue (39 patients) 79.2% (N0 85.9%); floor (44 patients) 55.2% (N0 57.1%); cheek (19 patients) 74.2% (N0 68.9%); retromolar (10 patients) 0% (N0 0%). Complete remission was reached four months after treatment by 97 patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)