Objectives: Instilling the principles of ethical and responsible medical research is critical for educating the next generation of clinical researchers. We developed a responsible conduct of research (RCR) workshop and associated curriculum for undergraduate trainees in a quantitative clinical research program.
Methods: Topics in this 7-module RCR workshop are relevant to undergraduate trainees in quantitative fields, many of whom are learning about these concepts for the first time.
Multi-cancer early detection (MCED) tests are already being marketed as noninvasive, convenient opportunities to test for multiple cancer types with a single blood sample. The technology varies-involving detection of circulating tumor DNA, fragments of DNA, RNA, or proteins unique to each targeted cancer. The priorities and tradeoffs of reaching diagnostic resolution in the setting of possible false positives and negatives remain under active study.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: The past decade has seen an increase in oral anticancer drug (OACD) approvals. Polypharmacy and drug-drug interactions (DDIs) likely contribute to OACD toxicity. We assessed a one-time pharmacist-led video consultation to identify DDIs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Understanding the relative contributions of SARS-CoV-2 infection-induced and vaccine-induced seroprevalence is key to measuring overall population-level seroprevalence and help guide policy decisions.
Methods: Using a series of six population-based cross-sectional surveys conducted among persons aged ≥7 years in a large health system with over 4.5 million members between May 2021 and April 2022, we combined data from the electronic health record (EHR), an electronic survey and SARS-CoV-2 spike antibody binding assay, to assess the relative contributions of infection and vaccination to population-level SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence.
Objective: In the U.S., uterine cancer incidence is rising, with racial and ethnic minorities experiencing the largest increases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Germline cancer genetic testing has become a standard evidence-based practice, with established risk reduction and screening guidelines for genetic carriers. Access to genetic services is limited in many places, which leaves many genetic carriers unidentified and at risk for late diagnosis of cancers and poor outcomes. This poses a problem for childhood cancer survivors, as this is a population with an increased risk for subsequent malignant neoplasms (SMN) due to cancer therapy or inherited cancer predisposition.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Contrary to clinical guidelines, there has been a decrease over time in estrogen therapy use in premenopausal women undergoing bilateral oophorectomy for benign indications.
Objective: This study aimed to estimate the excess morbidity and mortality associated with current patterns of estrogen therapy use in women who undergo bilateral oophorectomy with hysterectomy for benign indications.
Study Design: We developed 2 Bayesian sampling Markov state-transition models to estimate the excess disease incidence (incidence model) and mortality (mortality model).
Background: Understanding the relative contributions of SARS-CoV-2 infection-induced and vaccine- induced seroprevalence is key to measuring overall population-level seroprevalence and help guide policy decisions.
Methods: Using a series of six population-based cross-sectional surveys conducted among persons aged ≥7 years in a large health system with over 4.5 million members between May 2021 and April 2022, we combined data from the electronic health record (EHR), an electronic survey and SARS-CoV-2 spike antibody binding assay, to assess the relative contributions of infection and vaccination to population- level SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence.
Importance: The OlympiA trial found that 1 year of adjuvant olaparib therapy can improve distant disease-free survival and overall survival from early-stage breast cancer in patients with a germline BRCA1/2 mutation. However, olaparib, an oral poly-adenosine diphosphate ribose polymerase inhibitor, is estimated to cost approximately $14 000 per month in the US.
Objective: To estimate the incremental cost-effectiveness of adjuvant olaparib compared with no olaparib in eligible patients.
Introduction: Hematopoietic stem cells are cells that differentiate into blood cell types. Although the placenta secretes hormones, proteins and other factors important for maternal/fetal health, cross-talk between placental and hematopoietic stem cells is poorly understood. Moreover, toxicant impacts on placental-hematopoietic stem cell communication is understudied.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Oral anticancer drugs (OACDs) have become increasingly prevalent over the past decade. OACD prescriptions require coordination between payers and providers, which can delay drug receipt. We examined the association between insurance type, pursuit of copayment assistance, pursuit of prior authorization (PA), and time to receipt (TTR) for new OACD prescriptions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLung cancer is the leading cause of mortality and person-years of life lost from cancer among US men and women. Early detection has been shown to be associated with reduced lung cancer mortality. Our objective was to update the American Cancer Society (ACS) 2013 lung cancer screening (LCS) guideline for adults at high risk for lung cancer.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe placenta performs essential biologic functions for fetal development throughout pregnancy. Placental dysfunction is at the root of multiple adverse birth outcomes such as intrauterine growth restriction, preeclampsia, and preterm birth. Exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals during pregnancy can cause placental dysfunction, and many prior human studies have examined molecular changes in bulk placental tissues.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Elderly women diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) are living longer, however their primary care management may be sub-optimal. Influenza results in preventable hospitalizations and deaths. Guidelines recommend the influenza vaccine for those > 65 years and those with cancer but use is unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSyncytialization, the fusion of cytotrophoblasts into an epithelial barrier that constitutes the maternal-fetal interface, is a crucial event of placentation. This process is characterized by distinct changes to amino acid and energy metabolism. A metabolite of the industrial solvent trichloroethylene (TCE), -(1,2-dichlorovinyl)-l-cysteine (DCVC), modifies energy metabolism and amino acid abundance in HTR-8/SVneo extravillous trophoblasts.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Hematopoietic stem cells are cells that differentiate into all blood cell types. Although the placenta secretes hormones, proteins and other factors important for maternal and fetal health, cross-talk between placental cells and hematopoietic stem cells is poorly understood. Moreover, toxicant impacts on placental-hematopoietic stem cell communication is understudied.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Implementation of routine financial screening is a critical step toward mitigating financial toxicity. We evaluated the feasibility, sustainability, and acceptability of systematic financial screening in the outpatient breast oncology clinic at a large, urban cancer center.
Methods: We developed and implemented a stakeholder-informed process to systematically screen for financial hardship and worry.
The placenta mediates adverse pregnancy outcomes, including preeclampsia, which is characterized by gestational hypertension and proteinuria. Placental cell type heterogeneity in preeclampsia is not well-understood and limits mechanistic interpretation of bulk gene expression measures. We generated single-cell RNA-sequencing samples for integration with existing data to create the largest deconvolution reference of 19 fetal and 8 maternal cell types from placental villous tissue (n = 9 biological replicates) at term (n = 40,494 cells).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: To improve skin cancer screening among survivors of childhood cancer treated with radiotherapy where skin cancers make up 58% of all subsequent neoplasms. Less than 30% of survivors currently complete recommended skin cancer screening.
Patients And Methods: This randomized controlled comparative effectiveness trial evaluated patient and provider activation (PAE + MD) patient and provider activation with teledermoscopy (PAE + MD + TD) compared with patient activation alone (PAE), which included print materials, text messaging, and a website on skin cancer risk factors and screening behaviors.
Introduction COVID-19 vaccination rates remain suboptimal in the United States. Clinicians and policymakers need to better understand how likely vaccine-hesitant individuals are to ultimately accept vaccination and what is associated with such changes. This study's aims were to 1) describe changes between vaccine intentions and actual uptake from June 2021 through February 2022, and 2) identify modifiable factors associated with vaccine uptake among those with initial hesitancy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Oral anticancer drug (OACD) prescriptions require extensive coordination between providers and payers, which can delay drug receipt. Specialty pharmacies facilitate communication between multiple entities. In 2018, our cancer center partnered with a freestanding organization to implement a hospital-based specialty pharmacy (HB-SP).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNumerous Superfund sites are contaminated with the volatile organic chemical trichloroethylene (TCE). In women, exposure to TCE in pregnancy is associated with reduced birth weight. Our previous study reported that TCE exposure in pregnant rats decreased fetal weight and elevated oxidative stress biomarkers in placentae, suggesting placental injury as a potential mechanism of TCE-induced adverse birth outcomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Patients with recurrent endometrial cancer treated with carboplatin and paclitaxel whose disease progresses have few effective treatment options. Based on promising clinical trial data, the anti-programmed cell death 1 (anti-PD-1) antibody dostarlimab was recently granted accelerated approval for endometrial cancer by the US Food and Drug Administration. We developed a decision model to examine the cost-effectiveness of dostarlimab for patients with progressive/recurrent deficient mismatch repair (dMMR) endometrial cancer whose disease has progressed with first-line chemotherapy.
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