Body of Evidence

How neuropsychologists like Drs. Castellon, Meyers, and Correa apply certain measurement tools to help patients is just one snapshot of the process. How they use them to study post-chemo hrain is another. Independent investigations like theirs are moving science forward, providing us with new insights to how post-chemo deficits affect the mind. 

In a study reported two years after Wefel s, investigators tested forty-six breast cancer patients at similar timepoints as in the Wefel study. Of those participants, one group had received chemotherapy. Another had chemo plus tamoxifen. A third group with early non-invasive malignancy had undergone local therapy only. Patients in both chemo groups deteriorated in verbal memory performance. The women who also got tamoxifen further deteriorated in nonverbal memory. Those who received no adjuvant treatment actually improved their scores (consistent with practice effects).  

Specializing in geriatric oncology, Dr. Arti Hurria and her colleagues evaluated breast cancer patients over sixty-five years old. The participants completed full neurocognitive panels of tests prechemotherapy, and then again six months after completing chemo- 

But the neuropsychologic data actually revealed different conclusions that were not highlighted by the authors. Performance on an auditory verbal learning task ( AVLT supraspan ) demonstrated reliable decline at six months after initiation of chemotherapy in 15 percent of treated patients. It showed persistent deterioration, even at eighteen months after initiation of chemotherapy in 14 percent. In contrast, performance on this task by the end of the observation period had deteriorated in both control groups in only 5 to 6 percent of subjects. 

Most recently, in just a half-year preceding the time of this writing, investigators of prospective longitudinal studies have reported the following  

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Despite this overwhelming body of evidence, two-step mechanisms have been suggested for the Diels-Alder reaction, probably inspired by special cases, where highly substituted dienes and/or dienophiles have been found to react through zwitterionic or biradicalintermediates (Scheme 1.2). 

A substantial body of evidence indicates that allylic carbocations are more stable than simple alkyl cations For example the rate of solvolysis of a chlonde that is both tertiary and allylic is much faster than that of a typical tertiary alkyl chloride... 

An overwhelming body of evidence, starting with the earliest investigations (2), supports the contention that the rate of destmction of microorganisms is logarithmic, ie, first order with respect to the concentration of microorganisms. The process can be described by the following expression ... 

Isotopes. Toward the end of Mendeleev s life a growing body of evidence began to challenge his conception of the nature of tiie elements. Several revolutionary discoveries in physics showed that atoms were, in fact, reducible and that there was a sense in which all elements are composed of the same primary matter protons, neutrons, and electrons. Most alarmingly, there was even evidence to suggest that certain elements could be transformed into others through radioactivity. 

There is an increasing body of evidence that supports an apoptosis-necrosis cell death continuum. In this continuum, neuronal death can result from varying contributions of coexisting apoptotic and necrotic mechanisms [2]. Therefore the distinct designations... 

Despite the body of evidence in favor of the Mayo mechanism, the formation of diphenylcyclobutanes (90, 91) must still be accounted for. It is possible that they arise via the 1,4-diradical 94 and it is also conceivable that this diradical is an intermediate in the formation of the Diels-Alder adduct 95 (Scheme 3.64) and could provide a second (minor) source of initiation. Direct initiation by diradicals is suggested in the thermal polymerization of 2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorostyrene where transfer of a fluorine atom from Diels-Alder dimer to monomer seems highly unlikely (high C-F bond strength) and for derivatives which cannot form a Diels-Alder adduct. 

There is a considerable body of evidence (kinetic studies, chemical and NMR analysis) indicating that transfer to VAc monomer involves largely, if not exclusively, the acetate methyl hydrogen to give radical 111 (Scheme 6.29).171,172 This radical (111) initiates polymerization to yield a reactive macromonomer (112). 

Regulatory mechanisms. There is a large body of evidence which indicates that the contractile apparatus of smooth muscle is turned on as a result of the phospho-... 

There is controversy about the location of MLCK in the cell. The present body of evidence points to the conclusion that most of it is bound to actin filaments. If this is true, then given that there are perhaps 15 myosins for each MLCK molecule in a smooth muscle cell, there is a problem visualizing how more than a small fraction of myosins can be phosphorylated by a tethered MLCK. Obviously, if a significant fraction of MLCK is ultimately found to be soluble, this problem disappears. 

Saunders, S.R., Herring, D.A. and Boyce, G. 1995 Can skeletal samples accurately represent the living populations they come from The St. Thomas Cemetery Site, Belleville, Ontario. In Grauer, A.L., ed.. Bodies of Evidence. New York, John Wiley and Sons, Inc. 69-89. 

There is now a growing body of evidence to suggest that phytochemicals may have a protective role against a variety of chronic diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease. Part 1 reviews this body of evidence, its strengths and its weaknesses. Chapter 2 discusses the ways in which phenolic... 

Human chronic inflammatory diseases are characterized by populations of cells with altered regulation and function. A large body of evidence suggests that many of these cellular abnormalities may be linked to an increase in the production of free radicals and/or deficiencies of antioxidant defence systems. Oxygen free radicals attack cell structures, altering their function, and are cytotoxic. They have therefore been implicated in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis as well as many other human diseases (HaUiwell, 1991). 

There is now a considerable body of evidence to suggest that ROMs are involved in the pathophysiology of gastroduodenal damage. However, we await confirmation that antioxidants, such as allopurinol, are beneficial in human peptic ulcer disease. Salim (1990c) found... 

Outside the uterus, oxytocin has long been known to be essential for milk secretion. In recent years, however, there has also been a growing body of evidence that oxytocin plays a role in the brain in modulation of maternal, sexual and social behaviour. 

During this phase, chemokines and their receptors could play a very important role by promoting cellular encounters in lymphoid structures. Although a growing body of evidence supports the notion that DCs play a major role in the initiation and perpetuation of RA by presenting presumed arthritogenic... 

Another physical property that can affect the appearance, bioavailability, and chemical stability of pharmaceuticals is degree of crystallinity. Amorphous materials tend to be more hygroscopic than their crystalline counterparts. Also, there is a substantial body of evidence that indicates that the amorphous forms of drugs are less stable than their crystalline counterparts [62]. It has been reported, for example,... 

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