The relationships between large-scale circulation and foehns observed during midsummer in Hokuriku district, located on the Japan Sea side of central Japan, are examined using Japanese long-term reanalysis project data, with additional data from the Japan Meteorological Agency climate data assimilation system. All foehn events are classified into two types: a tropical cyclone (TC)-induced foehn and an extratropical cyclone (EC)-induced foehn. The occurrence of the TC type is attributed to a combination of a typhoon and its induced teleconnection pattern, the Pacific-Japan (PJ) pattern, in the lower troposphere. Local intensification of the North Pacific high just east of Japan, accompanied by the dominance of the PJ pattern, can in turn force a typhoon track to shift westward. The northward migration of the typhoon along the western periphery of the locally enhanced high strengthens a zonal pressure gradient across central Japan, thus producing a foehn. In contrast, an upper-level teleconnection along the Asian jet serves as a prominent trigger of the occurrence of an EC-type foehn. Stationary Rossby wave packets propagating eastward along the upper-level Asian waveguide facilitate not only the westward development of the North Pacific high but also the development of an extratropical cyclone in the vicinity of the Japan Sea by leading to the equatorward advection of higher potential vorticity from high latitudes. Both developments are crucial for the reinforcement of a northwest-southeast pressure gradient in the lower troposphere around Japan, thus providing a favorable condition for a foehn event.

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Background The role and impact of radiation therapy (RT) on the development of herpes zoster (HZ) has not been well studied. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between RT and HZ. Methods A propensity score‐matched, retrospective cohort study was conducted using institutional cancer registry data and medical records from 2011 to 2015. The risk of developing HZ in the RT and non‐RT groups was compared using a Cox proportional hazards model. Associations also were explored between the RT field and the anatomic location of HZ in patients who developed HZ after RT. The expected number of HZ events within the radiation field was calculated according to the RT received by each patient; then, this number was compared with the observed number of in‐field events. Results Of 17,655 patients, propensity score matching yielded 4350 pairs; of these, 3891 pairs were eligible for comparison. The cumulative incidence of HZ in the RT group (vs the non‐RT group) during the first 5 years after the index date was 2.1% (vs 0.7%) at 1 year, 3.0% (vs 1.0%) at 2 years, 3.4% (vs 1.3%) at 3 years, 4.1% vs 1.7% at 4 years, and 4.4% vs 1.8% at 5 years. The RT group showed a significantly higher risk of HZ than the non‐RT group (hazard ratio, 2.59, 95% CI, 1.84‐3.66). In the 120 patients who developed HZ after RT, HZ events were observed significantly more frequently within the RT field than expected (74 vs 43.8 events; P < .001). Conclusions Patients with cancer who received RT showed a significantly higher risk of HZ, which was commonly observed within the radiation field.

Purpose:Although stereotactic body radiation therapy is one of the standard treatments for stage I nonsmall cell lung cancer, in the case of central tumors it carries the risk of severe adverse events for serial organs. Accelerated hypofractionated radiotherapy is considered a reasonable alternative to treat central tumors. We have been treating central tumors with accelerated hypofractionated radiotherapy using a 75 Gy/25 fr/5 weeks regimen, and we compared the results with those of stereotactic body radiation therapy using 48 Gy/4 fr/1 week.Methods:Patients with central tumors and/or unfit for 1-hour fixation were candidates for accelerated hypofractionated radiotherapy. Based on the proximity to the biologically effective dose at 10 Gy, above accelerated hypofractionated radiotherapy regimen was adopted.Results:From October 2003 to December 2010, 159 patients, who received either accelerated hypofractionated radiotherapy (103 cases) or stereotactic body radiation therapy (56 cases), were included in the analysis. In the accelerated hypofractionated radiotherapy group, 40 (39%) cases were central tumors, whereas all cases were peripheral tumors in the stereotactic body radiation therapy group. Overall 5-year local control and survival rates were 81.9% (95% confidence interval 73.6%-90.1%) and 46.5% (95% confidence interval 36.7%-56.2%), respectively for the accelerated hypofractionated radiotherapy group, and 75.4% (95% confidence interval 63.0%-87.8%) and 44.6% (95% confidence interval 31.6%-57.7%), respectively for the stereotactic body radiation therapy group (n.s.). Among central tumors, ultracentral tumors (21 cases) and the remaining central tumors (19 cases) were similar in both local control and survival. On multivariate analysis, hazard ratios for accelerated hypofractionated radiotherapy versus stereotactic body radiation therapy were <1 for both local control and survival. Pulmonary toxicity was similar in both groups. No serial organ toxicity was observed for central tumors.Conclusions:Accelerated hypofractionated radiotherapy with a 75 Gy/25 fr/5 weeks regimen is promising in that it can obtain similar local control and survival results to stereotactic body radiation therapy, and it can control both central and peripheral tumors without any serial organ toxicities. Based on these results, prospective multicenter trials are worth conducting, especially for ultracentral tumors.

Podcasting has become a popular medium for teaching and learning in modern universities and schools worldwide. Most often used podcasts are developed by instructors to broadcast content information for their students to access at leisure. This article explains how podcasts have been developed by students to support their learning and share with fellow learners. In addition, the students' podcasts are furthered by adding multimodal interactivity with text, quizzes, images and links to websites. This article details the development of the interactive podcasts and provides quantitative and qualitative evidence of their efficacy.