Publications by authors named "Benjamin Brady"

Background: U.S. policy intervention to increase methadone treatment accommodations during COVID did not result in national adoption of the new patient-centered treatment practices.

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Previous research suggests that individuals with mental health needs and chronic pain may be less likely to use mental health treatment compared with those with mental health needs only. Yet, few studies have investigated the existence of population-level differences in mental health treatment use. We analyzed data from the National Health Interview Survey (n = 31,997) to address this question.

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Objective: The objective of this study is to examine rural hospitals' status in implementing opioid stewardship program (OSP) elements and assess differences in implementation in emergency department (ED) and acute inpatient departments.

Design: Health administrator survey to identify the number and type of OSP elements that each hospital has implemented.

Setting: Arizona critical access hospitals (CAHs).

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Introduction: This study examined the impact of federal regulatory changes on methadone and buprenorphine treatment during COVID-19 in Arizona.

Methods: A cohort study of methadone and buprenorphine providers from September 14, 2021 to April 15, 2022 measured the proportion of 6 treatment accommodations implemented at 3 time periods: before COVID-19, during Arizona's COVID-19 shutdown, and at the time of the survey completion. Accommodations included (1) telehealth, (2) telehealth buprenorphine induction, (3) increased multiday dosing, (4) license reciprocity, (5) home medications delivery, and (6) off-site dispensing.

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Background: Historically marginalized youth are at risk for daily substance use. Daily use may be associated with social and environmental factors.

Methods: In March 2018, we surveyed primarily Latino adolescents ages 14-18 who lived on the US-Mexico border and assessed associations between daily substance use, neighborhood stress, border community and immigration stress, and family support.

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The United States is experiencing a crisis of opioid misuse and overdose. To understand the underlying factors, researchers have begun looking upstream to identify social and structural determinants. However, no study has yet aggregated these into a comprehensive ecology of opioid overdose.

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Introduction: The purpose of this study was to characterize hepatitis C virus screening and treatment access experiences among people in treatment for opioid use disorder in Arizona during COVID-19.

Methods: Arizonans receiving treatment for opioid use disorder from methadone clinics and buprenorphine providers during COVID-19 were interviewed about hepatitis C virus testing, curative treatment, and knowledge about screening recommendations. Interviews were conducted with 121 people from August 4, 2021 to October 10, 2021.

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Co-occurrence of chronic pain and clinically significant symptoms of anxiety and/or depression is regularly noted in the literature. Yet, little is known empirically about population prevalence of co-occurring symptoms, nor whether people with co-occurring symptoms constitute a distinct subpopulation within US adults living with chronic pain or US adults living with anxiety and/or depression symptoms (A/D). To address this gap, this study analyzes data from the 2019 National Health Interview Survey, a representative annual survey of self-reported health status and treatment use in the United States (n = 31,997).

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Background: Adolescent substance use is a significant issue which occurs during a critical period of life of youth. Perceived stress is a risk factor for adolescent substance use, and life events such as low family support, and community and familial turmoil often lead to ongoing feelings of stress and uncertainty. Similarly, structural factors such as poverty, local neighborhood disinvestment and disrepair, and exposure to racism and discrimination are linked to feelings of stress.

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Background And Objectives: Physician location is an important element of health care access. However, physician shortages and disparities in geographic distribution exist. This study examines physician locations, relocation patterns, and factors associated with relocating.

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Objective: To understand patient experience of federal regulatory changes governing methadone and buprenorphine (MOUD) access in Arizona during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: This community-based participatory and action research study involved one-hour, audio-recorded field interviews conducted with 131 people who used methadone and/or buprenorphine to address opioid use disorder at some point during COVID (January 1, 2020- March 31, 2021) in Arizona. Transcribed data were analyzed using a priori codes focused on federally recommended flexibilities governing MOUD access.

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Background: Historically marginalized youth are at risk for daily substance use. Daily use may be associated with social and environmental factors.

Methods: In March 2018, we surveyed primarily Latino adolescents ages 14-18 who lived on the US-Mexico border and assessed associations between daily substance use, neighborhood stress, border community and immigration stress, and family support.

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Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) is recommended, but not always accessible to those who desire treatment. This study assessed the impact of expanding access to buprenorphine through federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) in Arizona. We calculated mean drive-times to Arizona opioid treatment (OTP) locations, office-based opioid treatment (OBOT) locations, and FQHCs clinics using January 2020 location data.

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Medicaid-insured individuals who smoke experience disparities in quitting and are a priority population for assistance. This retrospective cohort study of Arizona Smokers' Helpline clients (Jan 2014-Mar 2019) examined the association between insurance status, treatment, and smoking cessation. When compared to clients with non-Medicaid insurance or no insurance, clients with Medicaid (26%) were more likely to be female, referred directly to the ASHLine by a healthcare or community partner, smoke in the home, and report having a mental health condition.

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Purpose: The CheckMate 066 trial investigated nivolumab monotherapy as first-line treatment for patients with previously untreated wild-type advanced melanoma. Five-year results are presented herein.

Patients And Methods: In this multicenter, double-blind, phase III study, 418 patients with previously untreated, unresectable, stage III/IV, wild-type melanoma were randomly assigned 1:1 to receive nivolumab 3 mg/kg every 2 weeks or dacarbazine 1,000 mg/m every 3 weeks.

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Introduction: At tobacco quitlines, coaching and cessation medications are commonly structured around setting a date for making a quit attempt. However, limited literature evaluating this practice suggests that callers do not routinely set quit-date goals. High quality goal setting may increase the frequency of caller quit attempts.

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There is a lack of consensus on whether e-cigarettes facilitate or threaten existing tobacco prevention strategies. This uncertainty is reflected in organizations' conflicting e-cigarette position statements. We conducted a scoping review of position statements in published and gray literature to map the range and frequency of e-cigarette use recommendations.

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Importance: Rheumatic immune-related adverse events (irAEs) occur in approximately 10-20% of anti-programmed death 1 (anti-PD1)-treated cancer patients. There are limited data on the natural history, optimal treatment and long-term oncological outcomes of patients with rheumatic irAEs.

Objective: The objective of the study was to describe the spectrum and natural history of rheumatic irAEs and the potential impact of rheumatic irAEs and immunomodulators on anti-PD1 tumour efficacy.

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Importance: This analysis provides long-term follow-up in patients with BRAF wild-type advanced melanoma receiving first-line therapy based on anti-programmed cell death 1 receptor inhibitors.

Objective: To compare the 3-year survival with nivolumab vs that with dacarbazine in patients with previously untreated BRAF wild-type advanced melanoma.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This follow-up of a randomized phase 3 trial analyzed 3-year overall survival data from the randomized, controlled, double-blind CheckMate 066 phase 3 clinical trial.

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Introduction: Quitlines are an integral part of tobacco treatment programs and reach groups of smokers who have a wide range of barriers to cessation. Although tobacco dependence is chronic and relapsing, little research exists on factors that predict the likelihood of clients re-engaging and reconnecting with quitlines for treatment. The objective of this study was to describe factors that predict the re-enrollment of clients in Arizona's state quitline.

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Purpose: Circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) allows noninvasive disease monitoring across a range of malignancies. In metastatic melanoma, the extent to which ctDNA reflects changes in metabolic disease burden assessed by F-labeled fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) is unknown. We assessed the role of ctDNA analysis in combination with FDG-PET to monitor tumor burden and genomic heterogeneity throughout treatment.

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Purpose Mucosal melanoma is an aggressive malignancy with a poor response to conventional therapies. The efficacy and safety of nivolumab (a programmed death-1 checkpoint inhibitor), alone or combined with ipilimumab (a cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen-4 checkpoint inhibitor), have not been reported in this rare melanoma subtype. Patients and Methods Data were pooled from 889 patients who received nivolumab monotherapy in clinical studies, including phase III trials; 86 (10%) had mucosal melanoma and 665 (75%) had cutaneous melanoma.

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BRAF mutations occur commonly in metastatic melanomas and inhibition of mutant BRAF and the downstream kinase MEK results in rapid tumor regression and prolonged survival in patients. Combined therapy with BRAF and MEK inhibition improves response rate, progression free survival and overall survival compared with single agent BRAF inhibition, and reduces the skin toxicity that is seen with BRAF inhibitor monotherapy. However, this combination is associated with an increase in other toxicities, particularly drug-related pyrexia, which affects approximately 50% of patients treated with dabrafenib and trametinib (CombiDT).

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MELANOMA BRIDGE 2015 KEYNOTE SPEAKER PRESENTATIONS Molecular and immuno-advances K1 Immunologic and metabolic consequences of PI3K/AKT/mTOR activation in melanoma Vashisht G. Y. Nanda, Weiyi Peng, Patrick Hwu, Michael A.

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