The aim of the work included in this PhD thesis was to explore the diverse application possibility of using NIR fluorescent probes with specific properties to visualize and characterize cancer and... Show moreThe aim of the work included in this PhD thesis was to explore the diverse application possibility of using NIR fluorescent probes with specific properties to visualize and characterize cancer and cell death. In this thesis, we mainly focus on optical imaging and its application, both at microscopic and macroscopic level. Because we believe optical imaging in particular represents a technology that has unique potential to exploit further our knowledge in preclinical research. First, we imaged breast tumors and their metastases using combinations of four NIR fluorescent probes that possess different optical imaging properties. Then, we studied two different NIR fluorescent probes, PSVue and a heat shock protein-90 alkylator (NIR fluorescent conjugate of GSAO), which can be used to non-invasively imaging cell death with different optical modules in a mouse model of traumatic brain injury. Next, we employed the NIR fluorescently tagged GSAO as a biomarker for monitoring breast cancer cell death after chemotherapy. Moreover, we provides a general discussion about the advantages and the challenging that the state-of-art optical imaging is facing and shares some future prospective. This thesis ends with a summary that outlined the major findings of studies described in different chapters and explored the clinical implications. Show less
Heijer, M. den; Asperen, C.J. van; Harris, H.; Nippert, I.; Schmidtke, J.; Bouhnik, A.D.; ... ; Tibben, A. 2013
The primary aim of this thesis is to gain insight into which search facilities for spontaneously published stories facilitate breast cancer patients in finding stories by other patients in a... Show moreThe primary aim of this thesis is to gain insight into which search facilities for spontaneously published stories facilitate breast cancer patients in finding stories by other patients in a similar situation. According to the narrative approach, social comparison theory, and social cognitive theory, reading stories about similar others may have the most positive impact. The research followed a user-centred design: users of search facilities (i.e., patients who want to read stories written by others) were involved in every phase of the research so that the search facilities could be tailored to these users__ needs and preferences instead of forcing users to change their search behaviour to conform to search facilities that were developed without their involvement. We examined which breast cancer patients spontaneously publish their story online and which themes they write about in their stories, and how these stories are presented and disclosed on websites. We then examined which topics and writer characteristics patients prefer to search for and translated these preferences into search facilities. Finally, we examined which search facilities show the most positive effects on patient satisfaction and search success, and how patients actually search for stories written by others. The research was conducted from a clinical informatics perspective, using knowledge from the fields of information retrieval, human-computer interaction and psychology. Show less
Hezewijk, M. van; Bastiaannet, E.; Putter, H.; Scholten, A.N.; Liefers, G.J.; Rea, D.; ... ; Velde, C.J.H. van de 2013
