Publications by authors named "Donata Lerda"

Objectives: Mammography screening is generally accepted in women aged 50-69, but the balance between benefits and harms remains controversial in other age groups. This study systematically reviews these effects to inform the European Breast Cancer Guidelines.

Methods: We searched PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane Library for randomised clinical trials (RCTs) or systematic reviews of observational studies in the absence of RCTs comparing invitation to mammography screening to no invitation in women at average breast cancer (BC) risk.

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Description: The European Commission Initiative for Breast Cancer Screening and Diagnosis guidelines (European Breast Guidelines) are coordinated by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre. The target audience for the guidelines includes women, health professionals, and policymakers.

Methods: An international guideline panel of 28 multidisciplinary members, including patients, developed questions and corresponding recommendations that were informed by systematic reviews of the evidence conducted between March 2016 and December 2018.

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Neither breast cancer prevention and early-detection programs, nor their outcomes, are uniform across Europe. This article describes the rationale, methods, and process for development of the European Commission (EC) Initiative on Breast Cancer Screening and Diagnosis Guidelines. To be consistent with standards set by the Institute of Medicine and others, the EC followed 6 general principles.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Women's preferences are key in shaping breast cancer screening guidelines, especially given the mixed views on its benefits versus harms.
  • - A systematic review of 22 studies revealed that women are willing to endure the mental and physical challenges of screening for the chance of an earlier diagnosis, despite risks of overdiagnosis and false positives.
  • - There is a significant emphasis on the need for quicker testing and better communication since the delay in getting results is a major source of anxiety for women, highlighting that while they value early diagnosis, understanding the risks like overdiagnosis remains a concern.
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International guidelines recommend assessing women's satisfaction with breast cancer screening programmes; however, validated tools are needed. A systematic review to identify and evaluate the quality of validated instruments for screening satisfaction, from 01/1965 until 11/2017 was performed. From 3283 individual citations, six instruments were identified.

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Background: Women treated for breast cancer are followed-up for monitoring of treatment effectiveness and for detecting recurrences at an early stage. The type of follow-up received may affect women's reassurance and impact on their quality of life. Anxiety and depression among women with breast cancer has been described, but little is known about how the intensity of the follow-up can affect women's psychological status.

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Unlabelled: A new simple cumulative index, named Critical Index (CI), linearly dependent on traffic load and outdoor 222Rn levels (as related to the air mixing condition) was introduced in order to determine the cumulative effect of traffic and atmospheric dilution on PM10 (particles with aerodynamic diameter < 10 microm) and Benzene concentrations in Milan (Italy) air in the years 2000 and 2001. Benzene, PM10 data were obtained from the public air quality monitoring stations. The traffic load was evaluated by the number of vehicles circulating in a street in the centre of Milan.

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A collaborative study was conducted to validate an analytical method for the determination of ochratoxin A (OTA) in licorice (root powder) and licorice extracts (paste and powder). Contents of OTA ranged from 26 to 141 microg/kg and from 8 to 52 microg/kg for licorice extracts and root material, respectively. For the analysis, a test portion is extracted with a mixture of methanol and aqueous sodium bicarbonate solution.

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