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7 Be is a cosmogenic radionucleide (half life 53.3 days) produced by galactic cosmic rays and solar energetic particles in the upper atmosphere and is a potentially useful tracer of the short-term atmospheric air mass motion. We have measured the surface 7 Be concentration in Tokyo (35N, 139E) since 2002 with a high-volume air sampler. The present data of surface Be-7 concentrations exhibit the enhancements in spring and autumn and the seasonal enhancements are not associated with scavenging by precipitation. In order to explain the measured enhancements, we propose the possibility of the downward and upward atmospheric flows in the troposphere caused by a pair of traveling anticyclone and extratropical cyclone that passes over Japan in spring and autumn with a period of a few days.

We calculate the 7Be production rate in the atmosphere assuming the galactic cosmic ray and solar proton spectra in 2002–2004. The global average production rate is 0.043 7Be/cm2 s that is in agreement with the previous ones within a factor of ∼2. Although intense protons associated with an extraordinary large solar event (X17/4B) on Oct. 28, 2003 produce 7Be in the polar region, the effect of solar protons is not significant because the solar proton spectrum is soft. The latitudinal production rate at geomagnetic latitude 20–30° (Japan) is 0.023 7Be/cm2 s, indicating ∼1% of cosmic-ray produced 7Be contributes to the surface 7Be radioactivity. The temporal variations in the surface 7Be radioactivity in Tokyo exhibit the enhancements in spring and autumn. We discuss the possibility of the stratospheric–tropospheric air mass exchange caused by a periodic passage of a pair of a traveling anticyclone and extratropical cyclone in spring and autumn.

The energy content of nonthermal particles in solar flares is shared between accelerated electrons and ions. It isimportant for understanding the particle acceleration mechanism in solar flares. Yohkoh observed a few intense flares which produced both strong gamma-ray lines and electron bremsstrahlung continuum. We analyze energy spectra of X-class solar flares on October 27, 1991(X6.1), November 6, 1997 (X9.4), July 14, 2000 (X5.7) and November 24, 2000 (X2.3). The accelerated electron and proton spectra are derived from a spectral analysis of their high-energy photon emission and the energy contents in >1 MeV electrons and >10 MeV protons are estimated to be 6×l0 28 – 4×10 30 and 2×10 28 – 5×10 29 erg, respectively. We study the flare to flare variation in the energy content of >1 MeV electrons and >10 MeV protons for the four Yohkoh gamma-ray flares. Ratios of >1 MeV electron energy content to >10 MeV proton energy content are roughly within an order of magnitude.

Be-7 radioactive nuclei with a half-life of 53.3 days result from spallation reactions of galactic cosmic rays(GCR) and solar energetic particles (SEP) with N and O nuclei in the Earth's atmosphere. We calculate the average global production of Be-7 in the atmosphere by GCR and SEP The result indicates that an intense SEP event produces a large amount of Be-7 in the polar stratosphere and part of them could be transported to the surface at lower latitudes. The ground-level measurement of Be-7 in Japan exhibits the possibility of enhancement in the Be-7 radioactivity associated with the intense SEP event on July 14, 2000. In addition, the present experiment shows seasonal variations in the surface Be-7 concentration which peaks in spring and autumn. We discuss the possible air mass mixing between the stratosphere and troposphere to explain the measured seasonal variations. The surface concentration of Pb-210 nuclei indicates a similar trend to that of Be-7 and we suggest two possible explanations.

Solar are emission was measured at 212 GHz in the submillimeter range by the Submillimeter Solar Telescope in the 1.2-18 GHz microwave range by the Owens Valley Solar Array and in the gamma-ray energy range (continuum) by experiments on board the Yohkoh ( > 1. 2 MeV) and Shenzhou 2 ( > 0.2 MeV) satellites. At the burst onset, the submillimeter and microwave time profiles were well correlated with gamma rays to the limit of the temporal resolution (less than or equal to10 s). At 212 GHz, fast pulses ( 1. 2 MeV), attaining nearly 50 pulses per minute at the maximum. These results suggest that gamma rays might be the response to multiple rapid pulses at 212 GHz and might be produced at different sites within the flaring region.

Yohkoh observed a large solar flare (X9/2B) on November 6, 1997. The flare showed strong gamma-ray emission between 11:52 and 11:56 UT (peak phase) and several gamma-ray lines were detected. After 11:56 UT a weak and extended gamma-ray emission was measured. The ratio of Mg+Si+Fe to C+O+Ne line fluxes was enhanced by a factor of about three in the extended phase. The Oriented Scintillation Spectrometer Experiment (OSSE) on board the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory (CGRO) detected significant neutrons associated with the flare between 12:08 and 12:30 UT. The observed neutron count-rate time profile suggests that neutrons originated in interactions that occurred in both peak and extended phases.

Yohkoh observed strong gamma-ray emission from a flare (X9.4/2B) on November 6, 1997. The emission was impulsive and lasted for about 4 min (11:52–11:56 UT). The spectrum exhibits gamma-ray lines and extends up to a few tens of MeV. The Oriented Scintillation Spectrometer Experiment (OSSE) on board the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory (CGRO) missed the peak phase of gamma-ray flare but detected significant solar neutrons between 12:08 and 12:28 UT. In order to explain the OSSE neutron time profile, we propose an extended neutron production. We find a continued gamma-ray production after the peak phase from the Yohkoh result, supporting our proposal. We discuss the possibility that particle acceleration is associated with a magnetic reconnection and its site moves up with time.

We study characteristics of the Yohkoh X-ray flares and the ACE/SEPICA charge states of SEP Fe ions for two types of solar events. (1) The 1998 September 9 event was an impulsive hard X-ray flare and CME was not observed. The SEP data showed a low flux with short duration and the mean charge of Fe ions 〈Q〉 was 17.4+/−0.8 at 0.18–0.44 MeV/n. It indicates the characteristics of a flare-associated impulsive SEP event. (2) The 1997 November 6 event emitted intense gamma rays impulsively and strong CME was measured. The SEP observations showed a significantly high flux with a long duration and hard energy spectra. The charge distribution of Fe ions peaks at 11.0+/−0.4 with a tail extending to about 20 at 0.18–0.26 MeV/n. This event seems to exhibit both characteristics of CME-related gradual and flare-related impulsive SEP events. We discuss potential implications of X-ray flares, plasma tempratures and SEP acceleration processes on the basis of Yohkoh and ACE/SEPICA observations.

The HXS and GRS detectors on Yohkoh observed the 14 July 2000, X5.7 flare, beginning at ∼ 10:20 UT, ∼ 4 min before the peak in soft X-rays. The hard X-rays and γ-rays peaked ∼ 3 min later at ∼ 10:27 UT. Solar γ-ray emission lasted until ∼ 10:40 UT. Impact of high-energy ions at the Sun is revealed by the γ-ray lines from neutron capture, annihilation radiation and de-excitation that are visible above the bremsstrahlung continuum. From measurement of these lines we find that the flare-averaged spectrum of accelerated protons is consistent with a power law ge10 MeV with index 3.14±0.15 and flux 1.1×1032 protons MeV−1 at 10 MeV. We estimate that there were ∼1.5×1030 erg in accelerated ions if the power law extended without a break down to 1 MeV; this is about 1% of the energy in electrons > 20 keV from measurements of the hard X-rays. We find no evidence for spectral hardening in the hard X-rays that has been suggested as a predictor for the occurrence of solar energetic particle (SEP) events. This was the third largest proton event above 10 MeV since 1976. The GRS and HXS also observed γ-ray lines and continuum produced by the impact of SEP on the Earth's atmosphere beginning about 13 UT on 14 July. These measurements show that the SEP spectrum softened considerably over the next 24 hours. We compare these measurements with proton measurements in space.

Yohkoh observed strong γ-ray emission from a flare ( X9 2B ) at 11:52 UT on November 6, 1997. We found that fluxes of narrow lines from elements with similar FIPs correlated with one another during the flare, while there is a temporal variation of a ratio of low-FIP (Mg, Si and Fe) to high-FIP (C, N, O and Ne) narrow line fluxes. The ratio measured for the decay phase was enhanced by about factor of 3 compared to those for the rise and peak phases. It suggests two possibilities: (1) the low-FIP/high-FIP elemental abundance ratio at the γ-ray emission site was increased in the decay phase or (2) the location of the γ-ray production site could have changed with time, progressing from the chromosphere-photosphere toward the corona.

The Solar X-Ray/Cosmic Gamma-Ray Burst Experiment aboard the interplanetary spacecraft Ulysses has provided extensive observations of solar hard X-ray flares from a variety of angles with respect to the Sun-Earth line. During the period 1991 October-1993 June, Ulysses observed 13 flares that were also observed by the X-ray instruments aboard the Japanese satellite Yohkoh located near Earth. At least 12 flares were in full view of both the spacecraft. Eight flares, for which hard X-ray spectra were available, are examined to determine the directivity of the 20-125 keV hard X-ray sources in solar flares. They include one flare for which the view angles of Ulysses and Yohkoh were 80° and 25°, respectively. No evidence of systematic directivity was found within the uncertainty (a factor of ~2) of these measurements. These and other observations of directivity at higher energies are consistent with a nearly isotropic distribution of energetic electrons in most solar flares.

In the last solar maximum, gamma-rays associated with solar flares were observed with GRANAT, GAMMA-1, CGRO and YOHKOH. The gamma-ray energies ranged from 100 keV to a few GeV. We obtained several new findings of gamma-ray emission on the Sun: (1) Gamma-ray production in the corona, (2) GeV gamma-ray production in very long duration flares, (3) Electron-rich flares, (4) Gamma-ray lines and solar atmospheric abundances and (5) Possible location of gamma-ray emission. We present the observations of these new findings and discuss high energy phenomena relating to particle acceleration and gamma-ray production during solar flares.

The Yohkoh satellite has registered X-ray spectra of two solar flares with a linelike feature in the region 400-500 keV. Analysis shows that this feature can be interpreted as gamma-ray lines from excited 7Li and 7Be produced from α+ α reactions. The 7Li production rate in the solar atmosphere is estimated from these observations. The lower limit on the flare-produced 7Li abundance on the Sun is determined. This value is several times less than that obtained from optical observations of the solar atmospheric 7Li.

The importance of climate model evaluation using paleoclimate simulations for better future climate projections has been recognized by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. In recent years, Earth System Models (ESMs) were developed to investigate carbon-cycle climate feedback, as well as to project the future climate. Paleoclimate events, especially those associated with the variations in atmospheric CO2 level or land vegetation, provide suitable benchmarks to evaluate ESMs. Here we present implementations of the paleoclimate experiments proposed by the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 5/Paleoclimate Modelling Intercomparison Project phase 3 (CMIP5/PMIP3) using an Earth System Model, MIROC-ESM. In this paper, experimental settings and procedures of the mid-Holocene, the Last Glacial Maximum, and the Last Millennium experiments are explained. The first two experiments are time slice experiments and the last one is a transient experiment. The complexity of the model requires various steps to correctly configure the experiments. Several basic outputs are also shown.

Huit cas de tumeurs insulaires (cinq insulinomes, deux gastrinomes et un glucagonome) ont ete diagnostiques au cours des onze dernieres annees au Centre National du Cancer a Tokyo. Un pancreatogramme a ete obtenu par CPRE dans quatre cas. Deux d’entre eux presentaient une interruption du canal pancreatique principal au niveau corporeal, un des patients avait une interruption et un aspect mouchete de la branche correspondant au processus incine. Un autre presentait, au niveau caudal, une dilatation irreguliere isolee du canal pancreatique. Les auteurs commentent les aspects caracteristiques des images pancreatographiques de ces tumeurs. Jusqu’a present, le diagnostic de ces tumeurs pancreatiques etait pose principalement sur base de donnees endocrinologiques et radiologiques. Neanmoins, a partir des donnees rapportees, il semble que dans la localisation des tumeurs insulaires, la CPRE presente une valeur diagnostique equivalente a celle de l’angiographie et de la tomodensitometrie computee.

The HESP (High Energy Solar Physics) group in Japan has plans to advance the understanding of high-energy solar flare physics from gamma-ray, energetic charged particle and neutron observations in the 22nd solar maximum. The gamma-rays, energetic charged paricles, and neutrons are observed with the SOLAR-A, GEOTAIL, and ground-based neutron monitor, respectively. The correlative studies of these high-energy photons and particles provide critically needed information for achieving a deep understanding of high-energy processes of particle acceleration, interaction, and transport in a complicated environment such as the turbulent and highly magnetized atmosphere of the flare region. The SOLAR-A gamma-ray spectrometer, GEOTAIL energetic particle instrument, and ground-based neutron momitor are outlined, and the scientific return expected from these correlative studies is described.

An X9.4/2B flare at 11:52 UT on 1997 November 6 is the most intense gamma-ray event Yohkoh has observed so far. Gamma-ray lines resulting from nuclear de-excitation, neutron-capture and positron annihilation and >10 MeV gamma-rays were observed. In addition, the Oriented Scintillation Spectrometer Experiment on Compton Gamma Ray Observatory (OSSE/CGRO) detected flare-associated neutrons after the strong gamma-ray emission was over, suggesting the possibility of extended high-energy proton production. We discuss the accelerated-proton spectrum, photospheric 3 He abundance, plasma temperature at the positron annihilation site and production processes of >10 MeV gamma-rays from Yohkoh and OSSE observations.

Since the experiment turn-on in October 1991, many flares have been observed with instruments aboard the Yohkoh satellite. The flare on 15 November 1991 (2238 UT) is of particular interest because, in addition to Yohkoh, it was observed also by hard X-ray/gamma-ray spectrometers aboard Ulysses, Pioneer Venus Orbiter, and Compton Observatory/GRO spacecraft. We present preliminary results obtained from an analysis of the spatial and spectral parameters for the soft X-ray source and the spectrum and directivity of the hard X-ray source.

Some hepatocellular carcinoma nodules do not show tumor stain by hepatic angiography or enhanced computed tomography. The aim of this study was to clarify the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma with no tumor stain treated by percutaneous ethanol injection.Twenty patients who had hepatocellular carcinoma with no tumor stain were treated by percutaneous ethanol injection between January 1990 and June 1998. No patients had received any anticancer treatments before percutaneous ethanol injection. Recurrence-free survival, predictive factors for recurrence and recurrent patterns were examined. Overall survival was also examined.Ten of the 20 patients showed intrahepatic recurrences in other parts of the treated lesions, although no local recurrence was observed. Median recurrence-free survival time, 1-, 3- and 5-year recurrence-free survival rates were 2.8 years, 66%, 43% and 22%, respectively. A serum alpha-fetoprotein level of 20 ng/mL or less was the only factor that was significantly associated with prolonged recurrence-free survival. Of the 12 recurrent nodules in 10 patients, 9 occurred in different segments of the treated lesion and 8 were histopathologically confirmed to be well-differentiated hepatocellular carcinoma. Overall survival rates 1, 3, and 5 years after percutaneous ethanol injection were 100%, 82%, and 75%, respectively.Percutaneous ethanol injection may be useful for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma with no tumor stain.

Sequential administration with methotrexate and 5-fluorouracil (sequential MTX/5-FU) has synergistic cytotoxic activity for several malignant diseases, but its activity in pancreatic cancer has not been fully evaluated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antitumor activity and toxicity of sequential MTX/5-FU in metastatic pancreatic cancer.All patients were required to have a pathologic diagnosis of pancreatic adenocarcinoma with measurable metastatic lesions, and no prior chemotherapy. Sequential MTX/5-FU was administered weekly as followed; MTX 100 mg/m2 intravenous bolus infusion was given, followed 3 h later by 5-fluorouracil 600 mg/m2 intravenous infusion over 30 min.Thirty-one patients were enrolled and assessable for response and toxicity. There were no complete responses, 4 partial responses, 10 no change and 17 progressive disease. The response rate was 12.9% (95% confidence interval: 1.1-24.7%) and the duration of response was 7.1 months (range: 5.5-9.1 months). The median survival was 4.0 months. Chemotherapy was well tolerated, although grade 3-4 toxicities such as neutropenia and diarrhea were seen infrequently.The sequential MTX/5-FU had marginal antitumor activity with mild toxicity against metastatic pancreatic cancer.

The prognosis of patients with advanced pancreatic cancer is extremely poor. To improve their prognosis, providing effective chemotherapy is necessary. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-tumor activity and toxicity of combined chemotherapy (FP therapy) using 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin in Japanese chemo-naive patients with advanced pancreatic cancer.Thirty-seven previously untreated patients with histologically proven pancreatic adenocarcinoma were treated with FP therapy. 5-fluorouracil was administered at 500 mg/m2/day by continuous intravenous infusion for 5 days and cisplatin was administered at 80 mg/m2 intravenously on the 1st day. Therapy was repeated every 4 weeks until there was evidence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity.Three patients achieved partial responses, whereas none exhibited a complete response. The overall response rate was 8% (95% confidence interval, 2-22%) and the response durations were 6, 9 and 12 months, respectively. The median survival time of patients was 5 months. Toxicities were generally mild and acceptable, although nausea/vomiting was the most commonly observed toxicity.FP therapy on this schedule had limited anti-tumor activity for pancreatic cancer, indicating that, practically, it should not be performed in Japanese patients with advanced pancreatic cancer.

An intense solar event was observed on 6 November 1997 with Yohkoh and solar energetic particle (SEP) satellites. The Yohkoh gamma-ray spectrum and soft/hard X-ray images exhibit a characteristic of an impulsive event, while the SEP energy spectra, elemental abundances and charge states indicate features of a mixed-gradual event. These observations suggest that two different types of particle populations were produced during this event. We discuss possibilities of particle acceleration processes for these two populations. For the gamma-ray producing-particles and impulsive SEPs stochastic acceleration through cascading Alfven waves and Fermi stochastic acceleration at fast shocks have been proposed. These plasma waves are generated at a magnetic reconnection site above a top of the flaring loop. On the other hand, for the gradual SEPs a large amount of coronal particles and solar wind are accelerated by a coronal and CME-driven shocks in the higher corona and interplanetary space.

There is more potential for misclassification of adenocarcinoma of the pancreas than for many other cancers because of the difficulty of accurate diagnosis.We analyzed the clinicopathological features of 105 patients who were suspected of having unresectable adenocarcinoma of the pancreas on their 1st visit to our outpatient clinic.Ten of 105 patients (10%) had been misdiagnosed as having pancreatic carcinoma. The final diagnoses were made mainly using dynamic computed tomography (CT) and/or histologic examination. The incidence of weight loss (or = 7% of total-body weight, within 6 months before diagnosis) in the misdiagnosed patients was significantly lower than that in pancreatic carcinoma patients (30% vs. 67%, p=0.02). Serum CA19-9 abnormality (100 U/ml) was observed less frequently in the misdiagnosed patients than in the patients with pancreatic carcinoma (40% vs. 77%, p=0.01). The detection of a dilated main pancreatic duct and/or pancreatic mass by imaging modalities was less frequent in the misdiagnosed patients (p0.01).Dynamic CT and/or histologic examination may be essential when making a definite diagnosis of advanced pancreatic carcinoma. In addition, weight loss, serum CA19-9 abnormality, detection of a dilated main pancreatic duct and/or pancreatic mass may also be useful in making a differential diagnosis of this disease.

We present a case of pancreatic cancer demonstrating symptomatic improvement with systemic chemotherapy using 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin (FP therapy). A 43 year-old man had pancreatic cancer with para-aortic lymph node metastases. He received FP therapy and achieved a partial response. After the initiation of chemotherapy, his symptoms such as severe pain and fatigue improved remarkably. Serum interleukin-6 levels correlated with these symptoms; the level was high before chemotherapy, but the levels were decreased during the courses of FP therapy. It is important to achieve symptomatic improvement in patients with pancreatic cancer, and serum interleukin-6 levels may be useful to evaluate a symptomatic response to chemotherapy.

In the last solar maximum, gamma-rays associated with solar flares were observed with GRANAT, GAMMA-1, CGRO and YOHKOH. The gamma-ray energies ranged from 100 keV to a few GeV. We obtained several new findings of gamma-ray emission on the Sun: (1) Gamma-ray production in the corona, (2) GeV gamma-ray production in very long duration flares, (3) Electron-rich flares, (4) Gamma-ray lines and solar atmospheric abundances and (5) Possible location of gamma-ray emission. We present the observations of these new findings and discuss high energy phenomena relating to particle acceleration and gamma-ray production during solar flares.

There is no effective treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with extrahepatic metastases. This study investigated the survival and causes of death in HCC patients with extrahepatic metastases.We retrospectively analyzed 34 HCC patients with extrahepatic metastases who received systemic chemotherapy without other anticancer treatment except prior hepatectomy. We classified causes of death as cancer death and death from other causes, and subclassified cancer deaths into hepatic cause, extrahepatic cause and cachectic cause. Each cause of death was analyzed in the two subgroups comprised of 10 patients with bone metastases alone and 22 patients with metastatic lesions in sites other than bone.Thirty-two of the 34 patients had died at the time of analysis. The median survival time and the 1-year survival rate were 4.6 mo and 20.3%, respectively. Incidence of hepatic cause, extrahepatic cause, cachectic cause and death from other causes were 21 (66%), 7 (22%), 2 (6%) and 2 (6%), respectively. In the subgroup of 10 patients with bone metastases alone, nine (90%) died from hepatic causes, but none died from extrahepatic causes. In the group of 22 patients with metastatic lesions in sites other than bone, 7 (32%) patients died from extrahepatic causes.The causes of death in HCC patients with extrahepatic metastases depended on metastatic site at the time of diagnosis. The results of this study may be useful in the design and analysis of future clinical trials of the HCC therapy.

The characteristics of patients with multicentric hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) differ from those of patients with intrahepatic metastatic HCC. However, there are few reports regarding the long-term results in patients with HCC of multicentric occurrence. The purpose of this study was to clarify the prognosis of a group of patients with multicentric HCCs.We evaluated the outcome in 28 patients with multiple hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) suggestive of multicentric occurrence, all of whom underwent hepatic resection. The disease-free survival, recurrence pattern and survival were analyzed in the two subgroups of 12 patients with single advanced HCC (AdHCC) nodule and an early HCC (eHCC) or early advanced HCC (eAdHCC) nodule [Group A] and 16 patients with two AdHCC lesions [Group B]. These data were also compared with those of 58 patients with solitary AdHCC [Group C].Both the disease-free survival and survival periods for Groups A and C were significantly longer than those for Group B, while no significant difference was seen between Group A and C. No significant differences among the three groups were recognized in the incidence of various types of recurrence pattern.The long-term results in patients with multicentric HCC apparently vary depending on the pathological condition at the time of operation. Among patients with multicentric HCC, those with AdHCC combined with an eHCC or eAdHCC are likely to show improved prognosis as a result of hepatic resection.

Intrahepatic recurrence frequently occurs in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) even after successful percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI). This study investigated factors predicting recurrence after PEI for solitary HCC.The subjects were 31 patients with solitary HCC (10-29 mm) who received successful PEI. We investigated the relationship of pretreatment clinicopathological variables to recurrence-free survival including: age, gender, alcohol abuse, tumor size, tumor staining, tumor differentiation, serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) level, associated liver disease, and Child-Pugh classification. Differences in recurrence-free survival among subgroups classified by each factor were evaluated using log-rank tests.Median recurrence-free survival time, 1 and 2 years recurrence-free survival rates of all 31 patients were 1.57 years, 72.2% and 45.4%, respectively. Among the 9 variables evaluated, serum AFP level of 20 ng/ml or less (p0.005) and absence of cirrhosis (p = 0.025) were factors favoring longer recurrence-free survival significantly.These results indicate that HCC patients with higher serum AFP level or coexistent cirrhosis should be followed more closely even after successful PEI.

This study was conducted to clarify the effect of percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) in combination with transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) on prolonging the survival time of patients with postoperative recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).The subjects were 97 consecutive patients (pts) treated for postoperative recurrent HCC between February 1987 and March 1993. Of these, 25 pts received both TAE and PEI and 72 pts received TAE alone. In the TAEPEI group, treatment was selected according to the indications: 15 pts received TAE for multiple recurrences following PEI, and the other 10 pts received PEI for a new or residual lesion following TAE. Fourteen demographic, pathological, and clinical variables were evaluated to estimate the relative risk of pts treated with TAEPEI or with TAE alone.The 1-, 3- and 5- year survival rates in the TAEPEI group were 100%, 73.2% and 27.2%, respectively, and those in the TAE alone group were 88.9%, 30.2% and 5.5%, respectively. Based on multi-variate Cox regression analysis, the relative risk of cancer death in the TAEPEI group was 0.32 (95% confidence interval, 0.15 to 0.67).The combination of TAE and PEI had a positive palliative effect and increased survival time of patients with postoperative recurrent HCC, compared to results obtained by TAE alone.

The clinical value of radiotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (total tumor dose: 50-70 Gy) was evaluated in seven autopsied patients with nine tumors. A partial response as defined by the WHO criteria for chemotherapy was observed in three tumors (33%). Progressive and marked shrinkage of the noncancerous liver tissue within the irradiated field was also observed in all cases. Histological examination revealed viable cancer cells in all cases. These results indicate that local radiotherapy applying 50-70 Gy achieved some clinical benefit, but was not capable of curing hepatocellular carcinoma.

We compared tumor sizes determined by computed tomography (CT) with those of the resected specimens in 26 patients with pancreatic cancer in order to clarify whether or not the size of a pancreatic tumor can be accurately determined by CT. From the precontrast, postcontrast and arterial dominant phases of dynamic CT, the arterial dominant phase was found to yield the highest correlation between CT measured tumor size and that of the resected specimens (P0.01). The correlation coefficient was, however, not high (r = 0.67). CT alone may therefore be insufficient to determine tumor size in pancreatic cancer accurately.

We present a case of pancreatic leiomyosarcoma with liver metastasis diagnosed by liver tumor biopsy. A 66-year-old man had a pancreatic tumor and hepatic tumors, which were hypoechoic and mixed echoic on ultrasonography, respectively. They were stained in enhanced computed tomography and angiography. A fine needle aspiration biopsy of the liver tumor was performed, and the pathological examination of the biopsied specimen suggested the tumor cells to have originated from smooth muscle. Under a diagnosis of pancreatic leiomyosarcoma with liver metastasis, the patient was treated with several anticancer agents. The tumor, however, spread to multiple organs and he dies of the disease two years nine months after the start of treatment. The diagnosis of pancreatic leiomyosarcoma was confirmed by autopsy.

We present a case of liver abscess after percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) therapy for the treatment of recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The 56-year-old woman had a past history of cholecystoduodenostomy for cogenital dilatation of the bile duct, and pneumobilia was observed in the intrahepatic bile ducts prior to PEI. The abscess was successfully treated by percutaneous abscess drainage and antibiotic therapy. Klebsiella pneumonia, one of the most common causative organisms of biliary tract infection, was isolated from the abscess. Thus, biliary tract infection related to the previous biliary-enteric anastomosis operation may have been one of the causative factors in the liver abscess in this patient. The rare experience reported here suggests that a careful search for coexistent abscess at the time of PEI is important in HCC patients with biliary-enteric anastomosis, especially in those with pneumobilia.

Les observations, par le satellite Hinotori, de 8 eruptions solaires Rγ sont presentees. La forme spectrale et le nombre de protons acceleres de certaines de ces eruptions sont determines et compares a ceux observes dans l'espace interplanetaire. Intervention presentee au Second Workshop on Impulsive Solar Flares, a l'Universite de New Hampshire, du 26 au 28 septembre 1988.

The upper limits on an interstellar flux of low energy cosmic rays are derived from interpretations of the γ ray spectral feature at 473 ± 30 keV, the enhancement in the flux of galactic diffuse γ rays, the ionization rate of interstellar hydrogen, and the abundance ratios of stellar light elements. The derived upper limits are compared with the observed flux and the demodulated flux. Nuclear γ rays are emitted from excited nuclei which are produced by inelastic collisions between low energy cosmic rays and the interstellar gas. Fluxes of nuclear γ rays emitted from [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text] are evaluated and found to be of the order of 10−6 to 10−8 photons cm−2 s−1.

In recent years, the possibility has been discussed by various authors that solar neutrons and 2.2-MeV gamma rays are produced by the nuclear interactions of flare-accelerated particles with solar material. In this paper, it is emphasized that the ratio of neutrons to 2.2-MeV gamma rays depends significantly on the direction of motion of the flare-accelerated particles with respect to the solar atmosphere. For the direction of motion of flare-accelerated particles, we shall consider three cases: (a) isotropic motion, (b) upward-directed motion towards the corona, (c) downward-directed motion towards the photosphere. These flare-accelerated particles would interact with the solar atmosphere to produce neutrons with energies above several MeV. Some of the neutrons will escape into space through the corona, while some will be slowed down in the denser atmosphere and captured by the atmospheric protons with the emission of 2.2-MeV gamma rays.According to the calculations in this paper, the ratio of neutrons to 2.2-MeV gamma rays for case (b) is 10–20 times that for (a) or (c). The value for case (c) is twice that for case (a). For the expected solar neutron intensity, the values for (b) and (c) are ~10−6 and 4 × 10−2 of that for (a), respectively.

UFT was given to two patients with carcinoid tumor of the stomach and the effect of the drug was evaluated. The first patient was a 67-year-old female. She was admitted because of upper abdominal tumor. Exploratory laparotomy revealed gastric tumor and additional huge tumor with liver metastasis and peritoneal dissemination. Histology of biopsy specimens from gastric tumor and metastatic lesions was a composite type, of carcinoid tumor. Postoperatively UFT (600 mg/day) was given to the patient. During three months of the treatment the size of the large tumor reduced from 10 X 10 cm to 4 X 4cm. The second patient was a 55-year-old male. He was admitted because of severe diarrhea. Biopsy from gastric lesion and metastatic skin lesions revealed carcinoid tumor. After administration of UFT and Mitomycin C, metastatic skin lesions became smaller and some of the lesions disappeared. Two cases suggest a possibility that UFT may be effective for carcinoid tumor of the stomach.