Approximately 50% of bladder cancer incidence in the United States has been attributed to known carcinogens, mainly from cigarette smoking. Following the identification of this important causative factor, many investigators have attempted to identify other major causes of bladder cancer in the environment. Genetic and epigenetic alterations related to carcinogenesis in the bladder have been linked to environmental and occupational factors unrelated to cigarette smoking and may account for a significant portion of bladder cancer cases in non-smokers. The interaction between genetics and exposures may modulate bladder cancer risk and influence the differing incidence, progression, and mortality of this disease in different genders and races. Comparative molecular studies are underway to measure the relative effects of environment and inheritance to account for observed differences in the epidemiology of bladder cancer. The use of geospatial tools and population-based data will offer further insight into the environmentally-linked causes of bladder cancer.

Flow coefficients v_{n} for n=2, 3, 4, characterizing the anisotropic collective flow in Au+Au collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=200  GeV, are measured relative to event planes Ψ_{n}, determined at large rapidity. We report v_{n} as a function of transverse momentum and collision centrality, and study the correlations among the event planes of different order n. The v_{n} are well described by hydrodynamic models which employ a Glauber Monte Carlo initial state geometry with fluctuations, providing additional constraining power on the interplay between initial conditions and the effects of viscosity as the system evolves. This new constraint can serve to improve the precision of the extracted shear viscosity to entropy density ratio η/s.

We present measurements of J/ψ yields in d+Au collisions at sqrt[s(NN)]=200  GeV recorded by the PHENIX experiment and compare them with yields in p+p collisions at the same energy per nucleon-nucleon collision. The measurements cover a large kinematic range in J/ψ rapidity (-2.2<y<2.4) with high statistical precision and are compared with two theoretical models: one with nuclear shadowing combined with final state breakup and one with coherent gluon saturation effects. In order to remove model dependent systematic uncertainties we also compare the data to a simple geometric model. The forward rapidity data are inconsistent with nuclear modifications that are linear or exponential in the density weighted longitudinal thickness, such as those from the final state breakup of the bound state.

Abstract Background and Purpose: Patients who are undergoing laparoscopic ablative therapy (LAT) are often older with more comorbidities in comparison with patients who are undergoing laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (LPN). A matched control study was performed to compare the surgical and functional outcomes of LPN and LAT. Patients and Methods: A prospectively maintained database of 250 patients who underwent nephron-sparing surgery was explored. Fifty-one LAT patients (21 and 30 laparoscopic radiofrequency and cryoablation, respectively) were matched with 51 LPN patients. A comparison of preoperative, operative, and postoperative outcomes was performed. Results: The groups were similar in age, sex, body mass index, preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), number of comorbidities and tumor size. Patients who were undergoing LAT had a lower incidence of endophytic tumor and higher incidence of upper pole and midpolar tumors. Hilar vessels clamping was performed in LPN (47/51 patients). Mean estimated blood loss and operative time were higher in those undergoing LPN (P<0.01). There was no significant difference in transfusion rate and hospital stay, however. Mean follow-up was 27 and 18 months in LAT and LPN, respectively (P<0.01). The mean percent decline of eGFR at the last follow-up was 10 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 4-15) and 7.5 (95% CI: 4-11), respectively (P<0.43). In comparison with baseline, eGFR declined significantly (P<0. 01), but there was no difference between the groups. Conclusion: Despite renal ischemia, longer operative time, and higher blood loss associated with LPN, the hospital stay and long-term functional outcomes are similar to those of LAT in a matched control study.

Abstract Objective: The objective of this study was to compare the outcomes of patients >/=70 years of age undergoing laparoscopic partial nephrectomy (LPN), laparoscopic radical nephrectomy (LRN), and laparoscopic ablative techniques (LAT) for small renal masses. Methods: From a prospectively maintained database we identified 19 (LRN), 28 (LPN), and 19 (LAT) patients aged >/=70 who underwent surgery for cT1aN0M0 lesions. Perioperative, surgical, and functional outcomes were compared. Results: The three groups were similar in age, race, body mass index, and estimated creatinine clearance. In the LRN group, mean tumor diameter was larger (3.3 vs. 2.4 cm [LPN] and 2.7 cm [LAT]; p = 0.0005) and there was a higher percentage of central tumors (73.7% vs. 25.0% and 5.3%; p < 0.0005) when compared with the LPN and LAT groups, respectively. Although intraoperative and postoperative complication rates were similar, mean estimated blood loss and operative time were highest in the LPN group (p < 0.05). Moreover, 42.1%, 39.3%, and 42.1% of patients had preoperative stage 3 chronic kidney disease in the LRN, LPN, and LAT groups, respectively. Patients who underwent LRN had a lower follow-up estimated creatinine clearance (43.4 vs. 61.4 mL/min [LPN] and 59.2 [LAT]; p < 0.01) and a higher likelihood of developing stage 3 chronic kidney disease after treatment (100% vs. 25.0%[LPN] vs. 18.2 [LAT]; p < 0.0005). Conclusions: Impaired renal function is common in elderly patients presenting with renal masses. LPN and LAT provide superior preservation of renal function when compared with LRN in this population. In appropriately selected patients >/=70 years of age presenting with T1a renal lesions, laparoscopic nephron-sparing approaches should be considered.

The momentum distribution of electrons from semileptonic decays of charm and bottom quarks for midrapidity |y|<0.35 in p+p collisions at square root of s=200 GeV is measured by the PHENIX experiment at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider over the transverse momentum range 2<pT<7 GeV/c. The ratio of the yield of electrons from bottom to that from charm is presented. The ratio is determined using partial D/D-->e(+/-)K(-/+)X (K unidentified) reconstruction. It is found that the yield of electrons from bottom becomes significant above 4 GeV/c in pT. A fixed-order-plus-next-to-leading-log perturbative quantum chromodynamics calculation agrees with the data within the theoretical and experimental uncertainties. The extracted total bottom production cross section at this energy is sigma(bb)=3.2(-1.1)(+1.2)(stat)(-1.3)(+1.4)(syst)mub.

The double helicity asymmetry in neutral pion production for p_{T}=1 to 12 GeV/c was measured with the PHENIX experiment to access the gluon-spin contribution, DeltaG, to the proton spin. Measured asymmetries are consistent with zero, and at a theory scale of mu;{2}=4 GeV2 a next to leading order QCD analysis gives DeltaG;{[0.02,0.3]}=0.2, with a constraint of -0.7<DeltaG;{[0.02,0.3]}<0.5 at Deltachi;{2}=9 ( approximately 3sigma) for the sampled gluon momentum fraction (x) range, 0.02 to 0.3. The results are obtained using predictions for the measured asymmetries generated from four representative fits to polarized deep inelastic scattering data. We also consider the dependence of the DeltaG constraint on the choice of the theoretical scale, a dominant uncertainty in these predictions.

Neutral pion transverse momentum (p_{T}) spectra at midrapidity (|y| less, similar0.35) were measured in Cu+Cu collisions at sqrt[s_{NN}]=22.4, 62.4, and 200 GeV. Relative to pi;{0} yields in p+p collisions scaled by the number of inelastic nucleon-nucleon collisions (N_{coll}) the pi;{0} yields for p_{T} greater, similar2 GeV/c in central Cu+Cu collisions are suppressed at 62.4 and 200 GeV whereas an enhancement is observed at 22.4 GeV. A comparison with a jet-quenching model suggests that final state parton energy loss dominates in central Cu+Cu collisions at 62.4 and 200 GeV, while the enhancement at 22.4 GeV is consistent with nuclear modifications in the initial state alone.

The theory of quantum electrodynamics (QED) predicts that beta decay of the neutron into a proton, electron and antineutrino should be accompanied by a continuous spectrum of soft photons. While this inner bremsstrahlung branch has been previously measured in nuclear beta and electron capture decay, it has never been observed in free neutron decay. Recently, the photon energy spectrum and branching ratio for neutron radiative decay have been calculated using two approaches: a standard QED framework and heavy baryon chiral perturbation theory (an effective theory of hadrons based on the symmetries of quantum chromodynamics). The QED calculation treats the nucleons as point-like, whereas the latter approach includes the effect of nucleon structure in a systematic way. Here we observe the radiative decay mode of free neutrons, measuring photons in coincidence with both the emitted electron and proton. We determined a branching ratio of (3.13 +/- 0.34) x 10(-3)(68 per cent level of confidence) in the energy region between 15 and 340 keV, where the uncertainty is dominated by systematic effects. The value is consistent with the predictions of both theoretical approaches; the characteristic energy spectrum of the radiated photons, which differs from the uncorrelated background spectrum, is also consistent with the calculated spectrum. This result may provide opportunities for more detailed investigations of the weak interaction processes involved in neutron beta decay.