Publications by authors named "Deal A"

Introduction: The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is characterised by major health disparities and complex migration flows. Yet, because of a lack of epidemiological data, there is an urgent need to strengthen routine data collection around migrant health and to define key indicators towards migrant health monitoring. To address this problem, we aim to design and pilot test the Migrant Health Country Profile tool (MHCP-t) which can collate country-level data collection around migration health data, policies and healthcare provision.

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Background: As patient-reported symptoms are increasingly incorporated into routine clinical practice and captured in electronic medical records these data can be used to conduct health-related quality of life research studies. This study compares symptom reports from the Patient-Reported Outcomes version of the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (PRO-CTCAE) and its precursor patient reported symptom monitoring (PRSM) (hereafter PRSM/PRO-CTCAE) with multi-item patient-reported outcome (PRO) scales for fatigue (Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy/FACIT-Fatigue) and depression and anxiety (Mental Health Index/MHI).

Methods: This is a secondary analysis of data collected from women with early breast cancer (Stage I-III) scheduled for chemotherapy who completed PRSM/PRO-CTCAE, FACIT-Fatigue, and MHI scales pre- and post-chemotherapy.

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Objective: To evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of Families Addressing Cancer Together (FACT), a web-based, individually tailored, psychoeducational intervention for parents with cancer to improve illness-related communication with their minor children.

Methods: Parents with stage I-IV solid tumors who had children ages 3-17 were randomized to 6 weeks of FACT versus waitlist control. Feasibility was assessed by rates of recruitment and retention.

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Background: The Middle East and North African (MENA) region is a major global hotspot for migration with more than 40 million migrants, who may be an under-vaccinated group because of barriers to vaccination within countries of origin, transit, and destination. We systematically synthesised the evidence on coverage, acceptance, drivers of uptake, and policies pertaining to vaccination for children and adult migrants in the region, in order to explore tailored interventions for these groups.

Methods: We searched six databases (including Medline, Embase) for peer-reviewed literature, and other websites (including WHO, IOM, ministries of health) for grey literature on coverage, acceptance, drivers of uptake and policies for any vaccination in migrants in the MENA region from between 2000 and 27 August 2024 in any language.

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Background: TB and mental illnesses are public health priorities that often co-exist, with migrants in high-income countries being at risk for both conditions. This study investigates whether mental illness influences TB risk and examines the impact of migration status.

Methods: A nationwide prospective cohort study was conducted in Denmark from 1994-2015, involving migrants matched 1:6 to Danish-born individuals.

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Background: In a convenience sample of women scheduled for chemotherapy for early-stage breast cancer, we investigated associations of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's neighborhood-level social vulnerability index (SVI) with pretreatment demographics and patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures (health behavior, function and quality of life, treatment toxicities during chemotherapy).

Methods: The SVI Overall score is comprised of 4 themes: socioeconomic, household composition, minority status/language, and household type/transportation, with scores ranging from 0 = lowest to 1 = highest vulnerability neighborhoods. Participant SVI scores were derived from zip codes listed in the patient's address within the electronic medical record (EMR).

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Background Patient falls are a common inpatient dilemma and comprise the largest category of preventable adverse events in hospitalized patients. These events place a clinical burden on the patient, such as increased morbidity and reduced quality of life, in addition to an economic burden on the hospital system. Fall prevention strategies have the opportunity to decrease inpatient health care costs and length of stay.

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Background: We derived meaningful individual-level change thresholds for worsening in selected patient-reported outcomes version of the common terminology criteria for adverse events (PRO-CTCAE®) items and their composite scores.

Methods: We used two data sources, the PRO-TECT trial (Alliance AFT-39) that collected PRO-CTCAE data from adults with advanced cancer at 26 United States (U.S.

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To explore the role of the liquid interface in mediating reactivity in small compartments, the formation kinetics of zymonic acid (ZA) is measured in submicron aerosols (average radius = 240 nm) using mass spectrometry. The formation of ZA, from a condensation reaction of two pyruvic acid (PA) molecules, proceeds over days in bulk solutions, while in submicron aerosols, it occurs in minutes. The experimental results are replicated in a kinetic model using an apparent interfacial reaction rate coefficient of = (0.

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Background: Migrants to the UK face disproportionate risk of infections, non-communicable diseases, and under-immunisation compounded by healthcare access barriers. Current UK migrant screening strategies are unstandardised with poor implementation and low uptake. Health Catch-UP! is a collaboratively produced digital clinical decision support system that applies current guidelines (UKHSA and NICE) to provide primary care professionals with individualised multi-disease screening (7 infectious diseases/blood-borne viruses, 3 chronic parasitic infections, 3 non-communicable disease or risk factors) and catch-up vaccination prompts for migrant patients.

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Article Synopsis
  • A new financial navigation (FN) intervention was developed and tested to help cancer patients dealing with financial toxicity, using a comprehensive screening tool to identify those in distress.
  • In the study involving 50 patients at the North Carolina Basnight Cancer Hospital, all participants screened positive for financial distress, and 46 patients completed the intervention, which included consultations with a trained financial navigator.
  • Results showed a significant improvement in perceived financial toxicity, with average scores rising from 6.4 to 13.3 after the intervention, and 96% of participants received financial assistance, indicating the intervention's effectiveness and high acceptance.
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BACKGROUNDThe mechanism(s) responsible for the efficacy of WHO-recommended malaria vaccine RTS,S/AS01 are not completely understood. We previously identified RTS,S vaccine-induced Plasmodium falciparum circumsporozoite protein-specific (PfCSP-specific) antibody measures associated with protection from controlled human malaria infection (CHMI). Here, we tested the protection-predicting capability of these measures in independent CHMI studies.

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The ozone oxidation, or ozonation, of thiosulfate is an important reaction for wastewater processing, where it is used for remediation of mining effluents, and for studying aerosol chemistry, where its fast reaction rate makes it an excellent model reaction. Although thiosulfate ozonation has been studied since the 1950s, challenges remain in developing a realistic reaction mechanism that can satisfactorily account for all observed products with a sequence of elementary reaction steps. Here, we present novel measurements using trapped microdroplets to study the pH-dependent thiosulfate ozonation kinetics.

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Purpose: This study asked whether, if provided with education on heart-healthy habits, elementary school children in Abbeville, Greenwood, and Saluda counties in South Carolina would retain and desire to implement healthy nutrition and increased exercise. We hypothesized that teaching children about heart-healthy habits would increase their activity levels and improve their desire to be active.

Methods: This was a longitudinal survey study.

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Purpose: Understanding quality of life (QOL) implications of individual components of breast cancer treatment is important as systemic therapies continue to improve oncologic outcomes. We hypothesized that adjuvant radiation therapy does not significantly impact QOL domains in breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

Methods: Data was drawn from three prospective studies in women with localized breast cancer being treated with chemotherapy from March 2014 to December 2019.

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Introduction: Rural cancer caregivers experience obstacles in accessing services, obtaining respite, and ensuring their care recipients receive quality care. These challenges warrant opportunities to participate in evidence-based behavioral intervention trials to fill support gaps. Adaptation to rural settings can facilitate appropriate fit, given higher caregiver service needs and unique challenges.

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Adult and adolescent migrants worldwide, and those arriving in Europe, are an under-immunised group for routine vaccinations due to missed childhood vaccines and doses in their countries of origin, and their subsequent marginalisation from health and vaccination systems. Declining population-level coverage for routine vaccines across Europe, which has accelerated post-pandemic, places these and other under-immunised populations at even greater risk of vaccine-preventable diseases. However, despite clear guidelines around the importance of delivering 'catch-up' vaccination throughout the life-course, migrants are rarely effectively incorporated into routine vaccination programmes on arrival to Europe.

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Background: Pre-treatment characteristics of women with early breast cancer that are associated with persistent fatigue or suboptimal health-related quality of life (HRQOL) post-chemotherapy need to be identified as potential targets for pre-habilitation.

Patients And Methods: Ancillary analysis of previously collected data from patients with newly diagnosed Stage I-III breast cancer scheduled to receive chemotherapy. The objective was to identify baseline (pre-chemotherapy) variables associated with meaningful deteriorations in fatigue and other measures of HRQOL from pre-treatment to 6 months after chemotherapy completion.

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Article Synopsis
  • The MENA region experiences significant migration, yet there's limited data on the health of migrant populations, including their immunisation levels and healthcare access, necessitating systematic reviews to gather this information.
  • The protocol outlines seven systematic reviews focusing on disease burdens and health outcomes, health policies, and healthcare access barriers for migrants regarding diseases like tuberculosis, HIV, diabetes, and more from 2000-2023.
  • Findings will be shared through academic publications and conferences to inform health program design and improve health outcomes for these populations.
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Background: The WHO's global hepatitis strategy aims to achieve viral hepatitis elimination by 2030. Migrant children and pregnant persons represent an important target group for prevention strategies. However, evidence on the burden of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infection and the factors affecting its incidence is lacking.

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The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacted intersectionally marginalised migrants, revealing systemic disparities in health outcomes and vaccine uptake. Understanding the underlying social and structural factors influencing health behaviours is necessary to develop tailored interventions for migrants, but these factors have been seldom explored. This qualitative study aimed to explore contextual factors shaping COVID-19 vaccination decision-making among Congolese migrants in the UK.

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Background: Fertility counseling is recommended for adolescent and young adult women facing gonadotoxic cancer therapy. However, fertility care is subspecialized medical care offered at a limited number of institutions, making geographic access a potential barrier to guideline-concordant care. We assessed the relationship between geographic access and receipt of fertility counseling among adolescent and young adult women with cancer.

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Background: To describe reasons for deviations from planned chemotherapy treatments in women with nonmetastatic breast cancer that contribute to less-than-planned receipt of chemotherapy.

Methods: Electronic medical records for patients receiving chemotherapy were reviewed for adverse events and treatment modifications. Log-binomial regression models were used to estimate relative risks (RRs) with 95% CIs to examine associations between chemotherapy modifications, patient characteristics, and treatment modalities.

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