Diverging breast cancer mortality rates in relation to screening? A comparison of Nijmegen to Arnhem and the Netherlands, 1969-1997.

Age-standardised breast cancer mortality rates have been stable for decades. However, rates have started to decline in several Western countries. In countries where population-based screening programmes for breast cancer were introduced in the late 1980s or early 1990s, the key question now is to what extent screening is responsible for the reported declines in mortality.

Endogenous nitric oxide and prostaglandins synergistically counteract thromboembolism in arterioles but not in venules.

It has been shown that NO and prostacyclin (prostaglandin I(2)) from cultured endothelium synergistically inhibit blood platelet aggregation in vitro. However, it is unknown whether this synergism is also effective in the inhibition of thromboembolism in vivo and, if it is, whether it differs between vessel types. Therefore, the effect of endogenous NO and prostacyclin, in combination or alone, on thromboembolism was studied in an in vivo model.

Nebivolol: a third-generation beta-blocker that augments vascular nitric oxide release: endothelial beta(2)-adrenergic receptor-mediated nitric oxide production.

Background: Nebivolol is a beta(1)-selective adrenergic receptor antagonist with proposed nitric oxide (NO)-mediated vasodilating properties in humans. In this study, we explored whether nebivolol indeed induces NO production and, if so, by what mechanism. We hypothesized that not nebivolol itself but rather its metabolites augment NO production.

Verapamil causes decreased diaphragm endurance but no decrease of nocturnal O(2) saturation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Objective: In animal studies, it has been shown that verapamil reduces strength and endurance of the diaphragm and inhibits the beneficial effects of theophylline. We examined whether the use of verapamil in patients with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who use theophylline leads to a deterioration of diaphragmatic function resulting in a decrease of nocturnal O(2) saturation.

Methods: A double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study was designed in eight stabile severe COPD patients [forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV(1)) 0.

Interval cancers in the Dutch breast cancer screening programme.

The nationwide breast cancer screening programme in The Netherlands for women aged 50-69 started in 1989. In our study we assessed the occurrence and stage distribution of interval cancers in women screened during 1990-1993. Records of 0.

Breast cancer screening in 21 countries: delivery of services, notification of results and outcomes ascertainment.

Following clinical trial evidence of mammography screening's efficacy and effectiveness, data are needed from organized population-based programmes to determine whether screening in these programmes results in breast cancer mortality reductions comparable to those demonstrated in controlled settings. The International Breast Cancer Screening Network (IBSN) conducted two international programme assessments: in 1990 among nine countries and in 1995 among 22 countries, obtaining information on the organization and process for screening within breast cancer screening programmes. This manuscript describes procedures for recruitment, service delivery, interpretation and communication of results, case ascertainment, and quality assurance.

Breast cancer screening programmes in 22 countries: current policies, administration and guidelines. International Breast Cancer Screening Network (IBSN) and the European Network of Pilot Projects for Breast Cancer Screening.

Background: Currently there are at least 22 countries worldwide where national, regional or pilot population-based breast cancer screening programmes have been established. A collaborative effort has been undertaken by the International Breast Cancer Screening Network (IBSN), an international voluntary collaborative effort administered from the National Cancer Institute in the US for the purposes of producing international data on the policies, funding and administration, and results of population-based breast cancer screening.

Methods: Two surveys conducted by the IBSN in 1990 and 1995 describe the status of population-based breast cancer screening in countries which had or planned to establish breast cancer screening programmes in their countries.

Endogenous nitric oxide protects against thromboembolism in venules but not in arterioles.

Because nitric oxide (NO) inhibits aggregation and adhesion of blood platelets, NO may play a role in platelet-vessel wall interactions. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the involvement of endogenous NO in thromboembolic processes, as induced by wall puncture, in rabbit mesenteric arterioles and venules (diameters 20 to 43 microm). In venules, inhibition of NO synthase by superfusion of the mesentery with N omega-nitro-L-arginine (L-NA; 0.

Breast cancer epidemiology and risk factors.

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy among women in the Western society. Over the past decades it has become apparent that breast cancer incidence rates are increasing steadily, whereas the mortality rates for breast cancer have remained relatively constant. Information through the media on this rising number of cases has increased breast health awareness but has also introduced anxiety in the female population.

Mammographic screening in older women. Is it worthwhile?

The optimal upper age limit in mammographic screening for breast cancer is still a matter for debate. The incidence of breast cancer rises gradually with increasing age and, without screening, breast cancer in elderly women is diagnosed at a more advanced stage than in younger women. After menopause, much of the glandular tissue of the breast is replaced by fat, which facilitates the mammographic detection of breast cancer in older women.

Breast cancer risk in mothers of twins.

The risk of breast cancer associated with delivering a twin birth was examined in a population-based nested case-control study of nearly 4800 Swedish women with breast cancer and 47000 age-matched control subjects. All were aged less than 50 years and parous. After adjustment for age at first birth and parity, a 29% reduction in breast cancer risk was observed in mothers of twins relative to those who were not (odds ratio = 0.

History of childbearing and colorectal cancer risk in women aged less than 60: an analysis of Swedish routine registry data 1960-1984.

Data from a computerised linkage between the Swedish Cancer Registry and the Fertility Registry were used to study the influence of reproductive history on the risk of colorectal cancer in women aged less than 60, in the period 1960 to 1984. A "nested" case-control design was used with 1,415 colon cancer cases and 733 rectal cancer cases, and 7,073 and 3,665 age-matched controls, respectively. Conditional logistic regression was employed to study the independent effects of parity, age at first birth and years since last birth on the risk of colorectal cancer.

Breast cancer in Swedish women before age 50: evidence of a dual effect of completed pregnancy.

We set out to detect a transient increase in risk of breast cancer following childbirth, the existence of which has been postulated, but for which empirical evidence is contradictory. Breast cancers and births occurring among the cohort of Swedish women born after 1939 were linked, yielding 3,439 cases and 25,140 age-matched controls with at least two children. Within three years of their last childbirth, women had an estimated rate of breast cancer of 1.

Accutracker II (version 30/23) ambulatory blood pressure monitor: clinical validation using the British Hypertension Society and Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation standards.

Objective: To assess the Accutracker II (version 30/23) ambulatory blood pressure monitor by nationally agreed protocols in order to resolve previous conflicting assessments, and to examine the feasibility of combining these protocols into one study.

Design: The protocols of the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) and the British Hypertension Society (BHS) were used simultaneously.

Subjects: Five normotensive subjects were used to assess interobserver variation; 30 subjects took part in the field evaluation and 85 in the laboratory evaluation.