Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the U.S., and new approaches to control cancer are constantly sought. This dissertation is comprised of two parts: (i) improving the uptake and retention of gadolinium in tumors for potential gadoliniumneutron capture therapy (Gd-NCT) and (ii) integration of gemcitabine or...
This thesis describes evaluation of a novel self-sealing chewable sustained release tablet that can maintain controlled release of drug regardless of compaction, crushing, or chewing. The new formulation contains polyethylene oxide which produces a sealant effect for cracks produced in the polymer coating during compaction. Dissolution studies were conducted and...
This dissertation reviews the literature on the specialty area of dolphin assisted therapy (DAT), a subfield of animal assisted therapy (AAT). To date the literature on the effectiveness of DAT has been mixed although a majority of it is positive. The study was conducted with 40 parents whose children were...
The purpose of this manuscript style dissertation was to increase understanding of the experiences of counselor's with compassion fatigue as they participated in a yoga intervention. Compassion fatigue is a condition that creates both physical and psychological impairment as a result of working in the helping role. Yoga is an...
Ion therapy has long been investigated as a potential modality to improve cancer treatments beyond what is currently feasible with photon irradiations. Ions offer both a physical and biological advantage over photons. The physical advantages are well understood, ions deposit their maximum dose at defined penetration depths, allowing for minimal...
School garden programs have become increasingly popular for their diverse, positive benefits. School gardens are often promoted as a relatively low cost means to offer hands-on learning opportunities that may foster academic achievement, particularly in the sciences, however only six studies have been published on the impact of garden education...
Fiber-optic-coupled dosimeters (FOCDs) are a relatively new method in which to obtain in-vivo dose concomitant with radiation treatment. Accurate live dosing can be achieved virtually anywhere due to their small dimensions (0.2 mm) which can be accommodated by a catheter. The purpose of this experiment is to characterize the electron...
The distribution of anthocyanin pigments and polyphenolics of sweet (Prunus avium) and sour cherries (Prunus cerasus) were determined by Ultraviolet- Visible (UV-Visible) spectrophotometry and High Performance Liquid Chromatography with photodiode array detector (HPLC-DAD). Their antioxidant properties were determined by Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) and Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP)....
Chlorophyllin (CHL), a water-soluble derivative of the green plant pigment, chlorophyll, is an effective antimutagen and anticarcinogen in various model systems when used as a modulator against a class of carcinogens that, in general, have a structure consisting of at least three fused rings. Dibenzo[a,l]pyrene (DBP), an extremely potent environmental...