1. A method of predicting the relative rate of growth of at least one first malignancy of an unknown or known type of malignancy comprising:
comparing a Replikin Count of the at least one first malignancy with a Replikin Count of at least one second malignancy of an unknown type or of a different type of malignancy than the at least one first malignancy; and
predicting the at least one first malignancy to have a relative rate of growth that is faster than the relative rate of growth of the at least one second malignancy if the Replikin Count of the at least one first malignancy is greater than the Replikin Count of the at least one second malignancy.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: determining the Replikin Count of the at least one first malignancy and the Replikin Count of the at least one second malignancy before the comparing step.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein said at least one first malignancy is a metastasis of said at least one second malignancy, is a malignancy of unknown type or unknown origin in a subject suffering from said at least one second malignancy, or is a malignant cell of the same malignancy as said at least one second malignancy, or wherein said at least one first malignancy and at least one second malignancy are metastases of a third malignancy.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the Replikin Count of said at least one first malignancy is the Replikin Count of a Replikin Peak Gene of the at least one first malignancy and the Replikin Count of said at least one second malignancy is a Replikin Count of a Replikin Peak Gene of said at least one second malignancy.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein (1) said Replikin Count of said at least one second malignancy is a mean Replikin Count of a plurality of malignancies or a mean Replikin Count of a plurality of cells of the at least one second malignancy; (2) said Replikin Count of said at least one first malignancy is a mean Replikin Count of a plurality of malignancies or a mean Replikin Count of a plurality of cells of the at least one first malignancy; or (3) both said Replikin Count of said at least one second malignancy is a mean Replikin Count of a plurality of malignancies or a mean Replikin Count of a plurality of cells of the at least one second malignancy, and said Replikin Count of said at least one first malignancy is a mean Replikin Count of a plurality of malignancies or a mean Replikin Count of a plurality of cells of the at least one first malignancy.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein said Replikin Count of said at least one second malignancy is a mean, median, or other average Replikin Count of a plurality of malignancies, wherein said plurality of malignancies represents a survey of malignancies.
7. The method of claim 5, wherein the Replikin Count of said at least one first malignancy or the mean Replikin Count of said at least one first malignancy is greater than a mean Replikin Count of said at least one second malignancy plus the standard deviation of the mean Replikin Count of said at least one second malignancy.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein said relative rate of growth correlates with a relative lethality.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein said Replikin Count of said at least one first malignancy is a Replikin Count of an expressed protein, protein fragment or peptide isolated from a cell of said at least one first malignancy or a Replikin Count of the genome, a gene, a gene fragment, or any other nucleic acid sequence isolated from a cell of said at least one first malignancy; and wherein said Replikin Count of said at least one second malignancy is a Replikin Count of an expressed protein, protein fragment or peptide isolated from a cell of said at least one second malignancy or a Replikin Count of the genome, a gene, a gene fragment, or any other nucleic acid sequence isolated from a cell of said at least one second malignancy.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein said Replikin Count of said at least one first malignancy is the highest Replikin Count among a plurality of Replikin Counts of a first plurality of malignancies of a first type, and said Replikin Count of said at least one second malignancy is the highest Replikin Count among a plurality of Replikin Counts of a second plurality of malignancies of a second type.
11. The method of claim 10, further comprising: comparing a Replikin Count of the Replikin Peak Gene of the malignancy having the highest Replikin Count among a plurality of Replikin Counts of said malignancies of the first type to the Replikin Count of the Replikin Peak Gene of the malignancy having the highest Replikin Count among a plurality of Replikin Counts of said malignancies of the second type; and if said malignancies of the first type has a higher Replikin Count of said Replikin Peak Gene than said malignancies of the second type, then said malignancies of the first type is predicted to have a greater lethality than said malignancies of the second type.
12. The method of claim 1, wherein said at least one first malignancy is a thyroid malignancy, a prostate malignancy, a breast malignancy, a urinary bladder malignancy, a uterine corpus malignancy, a uterine cervix malignancy, a colon malignancy, an ovarian malignancy, a malignancy of the oral cavity, a lymphocytic leukemia malignancy, a multiple myeloma malignancy, a gastric malignancy, a non-small cell lung carcinoma malignancy, or a glioblastoma malignancy.
13. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is performed by a processor and wherein at least one Replikin Count or at least one representation of said prediction of the relative rate of growth of said at least one first malignancy is outputted to a user or display.
14. A machine-readable storage medium having stored thereon executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to provide sufficient data to a user, a display, or a printout such that said user or a user of said display or said printout may predict the relative rate of growth of the at least one first malignancy according to the method of claim 1.
15. A computer system, comprising: a processor coupled to a network; a memory coupled to the processor, the memory containing a plurality of instructions to perform the method described by claim 1.
16. A method of making a composition comprising at least one component of at least one first malignancy, wherein said at least one first malignancy is predicted, according to the method of claim 1, to have a relative rate of growth faster than the relative rate of growth of the at least one second malignancy, wherein said method comprises including the at least one component in a composition.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein said at least one component of said at least one first malignancy is at least one Replikin peptide or at least one Replikin Peak Gene identified within or isolated from said at least one first malignancy.
18. The method of claim 16, wherein said composition is an immunogenic composition.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein said immunogenic composition is a vaccine.
20. The method of claim 16, further comprising: combining a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, or adjuvant, or both with the at least one component of said at least one first malignancy.
21. The method of claim 17, further comprising: isolating or synthesizing said at least one Replikin peptide or said at least one Replikin Peak Gene.
22. Use of at least one component of a cell of at least one first malignancy predicted, according to the method of claim 1, to have a relative rate of growth that is faster than the relative rate of growth of the at least one second malignancy for the treatment of said at least one first or second malignancy or for the treatment of a metastatic malignancy related to said at least one first or second malignancy.
23. Use of at least one component of a cell of at least one first malignancy predicted, according to the method of claim 1, to have a relative rate of growth that is faster than the relative rate of growth of the at least one second malignancy in the manufacture of a medicament for the treatment of malignancy.
24. The use of claim 23, wherein said treatment of malignancy is the treatment of said at least one first malignancy or said at least one second malignancy or a metastatic malignancy of said at least one first malignancy or said at least one second malignancy.
25. The use of claim 22, wherein said at least one component of said cell is at least one Replikin peptide or at least one Replikin Peak Gene isolated from or identified in said cell.
26. The use of claim 23, wherein said at least one component of said cell is at least one Replikin peptide or at least one Replikin Peak Gene isolated from or identified in said cell.
27. The use of claim 24, wherein said at least one component of said cell is at least one Replikin peptide or at least one Replikin Peak Gene isolated from or identified in said cell.
28. A method of treating a malignancy comprising administering to a subject at least one component of a cell of at least one first malignancy predicted, according to the method of claim 1, to have a relative rate of growth that is faster than the relative rate of growth of at least one second malignancy.
29. A method of stimulating the immune system of a subject comprising administering to said subject, at least one component of a cell of at least one first malignancy predicted, according to the method of claim 1, to have a relative rate of growth that is faster than the relative rate of growth of at least one second malignancy.
30. A method of making an antibody or an antibody fragment that binds to at least one component of a cell of at least one first malignancy, wherein said at least one first malignancy is predicted, according to the method of claim 1, to have a relative rate of growth that is faster than the relative rate of growth of at least one second malignancy comprising identifying said at least one Replikin peptide or said at least one Replikin Peak Gene and making an antibody or antibody fragment that binds to said at least one Replikin peptide or said at least one Replikin Peak Gene.
31. The method of claim 28, wherein said at least one component of said cell is at least one Replikin peptide or at least one Replikin Peak Gene isolated from or identified in said cell.
32. The method of claim 29, wherein said at least one component of said cell is at least one Replikin peptide or at least one Replikin Peak Gene isolated from or identified in said cell.
33. The method of claim 30, wherein said at least one component of said cell is at least one Replikin peptide or at least one Replikin Peak Gene isolated from or identified in said cell.
34. A method of making at least one siRNA comprising: identifying at least one Replikin peptide or at least one Replikin Peak Gene in at least one first malignancy predicted, according to the method of claim 1, to have a relative rate of growth that is faster than the relative rate of growth of at least one second malignancy; and making said at least one siRNA to be complementary to at least a portion of a nucleic acid that encodes said at least one Replikin peptide or said at least one Replikin Peak Gene.
35. A method of determining the relative rate of increase in the relative rate of growth of at least one first malignancy as compared to the relative rate of increase in the relative rate of growth of at least one second malignancy comprising: comparing the standard deviation of the mean Replikin Count of a plurality of cells of said at least one first malignancy to the standard deviation of the mean Replikin Count of a plurality of cells of said at least one second malignancy; and predicting that the relative increase in the relative rate of growth of said at least one first malignancy is greater than the relative rate of increase in the relative rate of growth of said at least one second malignancy if the standard deviation of the mean Replikin Count of the plurality of cells of said at least one first malignancy is greater than the standard deviation of the mean Replikin Count of a plurality of cells of said at least one second malignancy.
36. The method of claim 35, wherein said at least one first malignancy is a metastasis of said at least one second malignancy or wherein said at least one first malignancy is a malignancy of unknown origin or unknown type in a subject suffering from said at least one second malignancy.
37. The method of claim 35, wherein said at least one first malignancy and said at least one second malignancy are both metastases of a third malignancy.
38. The method of claim 35, wherein said at least one first malignancy is a plurality of malignancies differing from said at least one second malignancy, said at least one second malignancy is a plurality of malignancies differing from said at least one first malignancy, or said at least one first malignancy is a plurality of malignancies differing from said at least one second malignancy and said at least one second malignancy is a plurality of malignancies differing from said at least one first malignancy.
39. The method of claim 38, wherein said at least one first malignancy is a plurality of malignancies of a first type of malignancy and said at least one second malignancy is a plurality of malignancies of a second type of malignancy.
40. A method of predicting an expansion of a malignancy comprising:
determining a mean Replikin Count and a standard deviation of said mean Replikin Count for a plurality of cells of a first malignancy for a first time period in a first anatomic region or for a first plurality of malignancies;
determining a Replikin Count of at least one other cell of the first malignancy, at least one cell of a metastasis of the first malignancy, or at least one cell of a malignancy of unknown origin or unknown type in a subject suffering from the first malignancy at a second time period andor in a second anatomic region, wherein said second time period is different from said first time period andor said second anatomic region is different from said first anatomic region, or determining a Replikin Count of at least one cell of a second malignancy in a different subject; and
predicting an expansion of said first malignancy, said metastasis of said first malignancy, said malignancy of unknown origin or unknown type, or said second malignancy in a different subject if the Replikin Count of said at least one cell is greater than the mean Replikin Count of the plurality of cells of said malignancy from said first time period and from said first anatomic region plus one standard deviation of the mean Replikin Count of the plurality of cells of said malignancy from said first time period and from said first anatomic region or if the Replikin Count of said at least one cell is greater than the mean Replikin Count of the first plurality of malignancies plus one standard deviation of the mean Replikin Count of the first plurality of malignancies.
41. The method of claim 40, wherein said at least one other cell of the first malignancy, at least one cell of a metastasis of the first malignancy, or at least one cell of a malignancy of unknown origin or unknown type in a subject suffering from the first malignancy at a second time period andor in a second anatomic region, or said at least one cell of a second malignancy in a different subject is a plurality of cells from said second time period andor said second anatomic region or said second malignancy in a different subject, and the Replikin Count of each cell of the plurality of cells from said second time period andor second anatomic region or said second malignancy in a different subject is compared separately to said mean Replikin Count plus one standard deviation of said mean Replikin Count.
42. The method of claim 41, wherein the expansion of said malignancy in said second time period andor said second anatomic region or the expansion of said second malignancy in a different subject is predicted if the number of Replikin Counts of said plurality of cells from said second period andor said second anatomic region or the number of Replikin Counts of said second malignancy in a different subject that is greater than said mean Replikin Count of the plurality of cells from said first time period in said first anatomic region or from said first plurality of malignancies plus one standard deviation of the mean of the Replikin Count is greater than the number of Replikin Counts of said plurality of cells from said second time period andor said second anatomic region or the number of Replikin Counts of said second malignancy in a different subject that is less than said mean Replikin Count of said plurality of cells from said first time period in said first anatomic region or from said first plurality of malignancies minus one standard deviation of the mean.
43. A kit for providing a prognosis of a patient suffering from a malignancy, said prognosis concerning the lethality of the malignancy, comprising a formula for determining the lethality of a malignancy based on a Replikin Count in at least one cell of the malignancy.
44. The kit of claim 43, wherein said formula is derived from a survey of a plurality of malignancies of a first type of malignancy.
45. The kit of claim 44 wherein the first type of malignancy is a glioblastoma.
46. A method of predicting the lethality of a first malignancy comprising:
determining a Replikin Count of a first malignancy;
performing a regression analysis with the Replikin Count of a plurality of second malignancies versus the lethality of said plurality of second malignancies; and
predicting the lethality of the first malignancy based on the regression analysis of the plurality of second malignancies.
47. The method of claim 46, wherein the regression analysis of the plurality of second malignancies is performed using the Replikin Count of each individual second malignancy of the plurality of second malignancies and a patient survival outcome for each individual second malignancy.
48. The method of claim 47, wherein the patient outcome is a length of survival of the patient following diagnosis of malignancy.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
What is claimed is:
1. An MR imaging technique comprising:
injecting a contrast bolus into a subject;
applying a pulse sequence with refocusing S signals from a train of RF pulses to a desired FOV in the patient;
acquiring an S SSFP mask image of the desired FOV;
acquiring an SSFP image of the desired FOV; and
subtracting the S SSFP mask image from the SSFP image.
2. The technique of claim 1 further comprising applying a scale factor to the S SSFP mask image before subtracting the S SSFP mask image from the SSFP image.
3. The technique of claim 1 wherein the acquisition of the S SSFP mask image is not time dependent on the injection of the contrast bolus.
4. The technique of claim 1 further comprising:
acquiring a second S SSFP mask image of the desired FOV;
selecting one of the first and second S SSFP mask images to minimize misregistration artifacts; and
subtracting the selected S SSFP mask image from the SSFP image.
5. The technique of claim 4 further comprising selecting a weighting for the selected S SSFP mask image and applying the weighting to the selected SSSFP mask image before the act of subtracting.
6. The technique of claim 1 wherein the acquisition of the S SSFP mask image is acquired either before or after the acquisition of the SSFP image and is not dependent on time elapsed from the injection of the contrast bolus.
7. The technique of claim 1 further comprising:
acquiring a pre-contrast mask image for arterial-only image generation before injecting the contrast bolus;
acquiring an arterial image a desired time after injecting the contrast bolus and before acquiring the SSFP and the S SSFP mask images; and
subtracting the pre-contrast mask image from the arterial image.
8. The technique of claim 1 for use in MR angiography and further including screening the patient for arterial and venous vascular disease.
9. The technique of claim 8 as used in MR angiography and wherein the desired FOV includes an area having a set of small vessels in a calf of the patient and further includes diagnosing a presence or absence of deep venous thrombosis.
10. The method of claim 8 as used in MR angiography and wherein the desired FOV includes an area having a region of the arterial vasculature and further comprises diagnosing for one of a suspected lesion and vessel obstruction.
11. The method of claim 8 as used in MR angiography and wherein the desired FOV includes an area having a region of the arterial vasculature and further comprises diagnosing for deep venous thrombosis and potential pulmonary embolisms.
12. The technique of claim 1 further comprising generating maximum intensity projection (MIP) image according to:
MIPSSFP(SSSFP)
where is a weighting factor, SSFP is the SSFP image and S SSFP is the SSSFP mask image.
13. An MRI apparatus to acquire MRA images comprising:
a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system having a plurality of gradient coils positioned about the bore of a magnet to impress a polarizing magnet field and an RF transceiver system and an RF switch controlled by a pulse module to transmit RF signals to an RF coil assembly to acquire MR images; and
a computer programmed to:
acquire an SSFP image and an S SSFP image, one after another and in either order;
subtract the S SSFP image from the SSFP image; and
reconstruct an image with high contrast from the subtracted images.
14. The MRI apparatus of claim 13 wherein the computer is programmed to acquire the S SSFP and SSFP images with minimal time separation therebetween.
15. The MRI apparatus of claim 13 wherein the computer is further programmed to apply a pulse sequence with refocusing S signals in order to acquire the S SSFP image.
16. The MRI apparatus of claim 13 wherein the computer is further programmed to reconstruct a MIP image showing a 3-D image of vessels within a FOV.
17. The MRI apparatus of claim 13 wherein the computer is further programmed to apply a scaling factor to the S SSFP image before the subtraction.
18. The MRI apparatus of claim 17 wherein the computer is further programmed to allow user input to adjust the scaling factor for improved background suppression and highest contrast.
19. The MRI apparatus of claim 13 wherein the computer is further programmed to acquire a second S SSFP image and allow selection of a SSSFP image that minimizes mis-registration artifacts.
20. The MRI apparatus of claim 13 wherein the computer is further programmed to:
acquire a pre-contrast mask image for arterial-only image generation;
receive a contrast input indicative of a contrast bolus injection into a patient;
acquire an arterial image within a specified time of receipt of the contrast input; and
reconstruct an arterial-only contrast image.
21. The MRI apparatus of claim 16 as used in MR angiography and wherein the desired FOV includes an area having a set of small vessels in a calf of the patient and further includes diagnosing a presence or absence of deep venous thrombosis.
22. The MRI apparatus of claim 16 as used in MR angiography and wherein the desired FOV includes an area having a region of the arterial vasculature suspected as having at least one of a lesion and a vessel obstruction.
23. A computer program for use with an MRI scanner having a computer programmed by the computer program to:
apply an SSFP pulse sequence and acquire an SSFP data set;
apply an S SSFP pulse sequence and acquire an S SSFP data set;
subtract the SSFP data set and the S SSFP data set; and
reconstruct an image with high background suppression and significant contrast between blood vessels and other soft tissue.
24. The computer program of claim 23 to further:
apply a weighting factor to the S SSFP data set; and
reconstruct a MIP image to display a 3-D image of vessel structure.
25. The computer program of claim 23 to further:
acquire a second S SSFP image; and
select a desired S SSFP image for use in the subtraction.
26. The computer program of claim 23 wherein the application of the SSFP pulse sequence occurs before the S SSFP pulse sequence.
27. The computer program of claim 23 wherein the application of both the S SSFP and SSFP pulse sequences are not timed to a contrast bolus injection.
28. The computer program of claim 23 wherein the SSFP and S SSFP images are acquired with minimal time separation to minimize motion artifacts.
29. The computer program of claim 23 wherein the S SSFP pulse sequence includes a refocusing RF signal.
30. The computer program of claim 23 to further:
acquire a pre-contrast mask image for arterial-only image generation;
receive a contrast input indicative of a contrast bolus injection into a patient;
acquire an arterial image within a specified time from the contrast input; and
reconstruct an arterial-only contrast image.
31. The computer program of claim 23 for use with MR angiography wherein the reconstructed image includes data for screening for venous vascular disease.
32. The computer program of claim 23 for use in MR angiography and wherein the desired FOV includes an area having a region of the arterial vasculature suspected of having a lesion or vessel obstruction.