Nutritional management of older adults with gastrointestinal cancers: An International Society of Geriatric Oncology (SIOG) review paper.

Malnutrition is one of the most common physical manifestations of gastrointestinal (GI) cancers and is often under-diagnosed and under-treated. Like cancers, malnutrition occurs more commonly in older adults, with potential negative consequences to quality of life, functional status, tolerance to treatment, and prognosis. Nutritional assessment and management require a proactive and systematic, multi-disciplinary approach.

Preadolescents' Daily Peer Victimization and Perceived Social Competence: Moderating Effects of Classroom Aggression.

Few studies have assessed children's daily peer experiences, and even fewer have considered their daily self-perceptions. This daily diary study examined relations between preadolescents' daily reports of peer victimization and perceived social competence, along with moderating effects of classroom aggression. A racially diverse sample of 182 children in 5th grade (105 boys; age = 10.

Corrigendum: Surgical Rates for Crohn's Disease Are Decreasing: A Population-Based Time Trend Analysis and Validation Study.

This corrects the article DOI: 10.1038/ajg.2017.

Effects of Repeated Intraperitoneal Injection of Pharmaceutical-grade and Nonpharmaceutical-grade Corn Oil in Female C57BL/6J Mice.

Due to potential adverse effects on animal wellbeing, the use of nonpharmaceutical-grade substances in animal research must be scientifically justified in cases where a pharmaceutical-grade version of the substance exists. This requirement applies to all substances, including vehicles used to solubilize experimental drugs. To date, no studies have evaluated the direct effect of the pharmaceutical classification of a compound on animal wellbeing.

Establishing and characterizing patient-derived xenografts using pre-chemotherapy percutaneous biopsy and post-chemotherapy surgical samples from a prospective neoadjuvant breast cancer study.

Background: Patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) are increasingly used in cancer research as a tool to inform cancer biology and drug response. Most available breast cancer PDXs have been generated in the metastatic setting. However, in the setting of operable breast cancer, PDX models both sensitive and resistant to chemotherapy are needed for drug development and prospective data are lacking regarding the clinical and molecular characteristics associated with PDX take rate in this setting.

The Development and Implementation of a Multi-Couple Therapy Model with Torture Survivors in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In this article, we present development and feasibility of implementation of a multi-couple group for use with torture-surviving couples. The model was developed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in a community that experienced widespread torture during the wars from 1998 to 2004. The Torture-Surviving Couple Group model is a short-term intervention designed to use few human resources to address relational difficulties resulting from exposure to traumatic stressors.

Teacher factors contributing to dosage of the KiVa anti-bullying program.

The KiVa Anti-Bullying Program (KiVa) seeks to meet the growing need for anti-bullying programming through a school-based, teacher-led intervention for elementary school children. The goals of this study were to examine how intervention dosage impacts outcomes of KiVa and how teacher factors influence dosage. Participants included 74 teachers and 1409 4th- and 5th-grade students in nine elementary schools.

Representation of Minorities and Women in Oncology Clinical Trials: Review of the Past 14 Years.

Purpose: Many cancer clinical trials lack appropriate representation of specific patient populations, limiting their generalizability. Therefore, we determined the representation of ethnic minorities and women in cancer clinical trials.

Methods: Enrollment data from all therapeutic trials reported as completed in ClinicalTrials.

Surgical Rates for Crohn's Disease are Decreasing: A Population-Based Time Trend Analysis and Validation Study.

Objectives: Temporal changes for intestinal resections for Crohn's disease (CD) are controversial. We validated administrative database codes for CD diagnosis and surgery in hospitalized patients and then evaluated temporal trends in CD surgical resection rates.

Methods: First, we validated International Classification of Disease (ICD)-10-CM coding for CD diagnosis in hospitalized patients and Canadian Classification of Health Intervention coding for surgical resections.

Real-time gait analysis with accelerometer-based smart shoes.

In this paper, we present the evaluation of a new smart shoe capable of performing gait analysis in real time. The system is exclusively based on accelerometers which minimizes the power consumption. The estimated parameters are activity class (rest/walk/run), step cadence, ground contact time, foot impact (zone, strength, and balance), forward distance, and speed.

Progression-Free Survival in Patients Receiving Chemotherapy Alone (C) or Chemotherapy with Bevacizumab (CB) for First-Line Treatment of KRAS Mutant Metastatic Colorectal Cancer in Community Oncology Settings.

Purpose: Bevacizumab is a standard first-line (L1) treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) patients regardless of RAS status. This retrospective study examined treatment patterns and outcomes in a community oncology sample of KRAS mutant mCRC patients treated with chemotherapy (C) or C plus bevacizumab (CB) in L1.

Methods: This study used medical records from the Vector Oncology Data Warehouse.

Making (mis) sense of asymptomatic marked hypercalcemia in pregnancy.

We describe a rare case of homozygous inactivating calcium-sensing receptor mutation detected during pregnancy and mimicking primary hyperparathyroidism. In pregnancy, the differential diagnosis of hypercalcaemia requires a cautious approach as physiological changes in calcium homeostasis may mask rare genetic conditions.

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Alters Immune Cell Composition and Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Efficacy in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Rationale: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are interrelated diseases with substantial mortality, and the pathogenesis of both involves aberrant immune functioning.

Objectives: To profile immune cell composition and function in patients with NSCLC and describe the effects of COPD on lung and tumor microenvironments.

Methods: We profiled resected lung and tumor tissue using flow cytometry and T-cell receptor sequencing in patients with and without COPD from a prospective cohort of patients undergoing resection of NSCLC.

Challenges of conducting a prospective clinical trial for older patients: Lessons learned from NCCTG N0949 (alliance).

Objectives: While the risk of developing colorectal cancer increases with age, there are limited prospective data regarding best treatment in the older adult population. We launched a phase III trial to evaluate difference in treatment outcome for older adults (aged ≥70years) with advanced colorectal cancer. Here we review the challenges faced and reasons for poor accrual to N0949.

Universal Design Across the Curriculum: Training for Students and Teachers.

Providing an inclusive educational setting for children with disabilities is essential if they are to truly benefit from mainstream education. Universal design (UD) provides a framework to develop our classrooms, materials and methods to accommodate diverse learners and students with special educational needs without the need to retrofit or remove the student from the classroom. This paper outlines the theory and the approach of two training courses on Universal Design developed for teachers and students.

Radiological imaging markers predicting clinical outcome in patients with metastatic colorectal carcinoma treated with regorafenib: post hoc analysis of the CORRECT phase III trial (RadioCORRECT study).

Objective: To identify imaging markers predicting clinical outcomes to regorafenib in metastatic colorectal carcinoma (mCRC).

Methods: The RadioCORRECT study is a post hoc analysis of a cohort of patients with mCRC treated within the phase III placebo-controlled CORRECT trial of regorafenib. Baseline and week 8 contrast-enhanced CT were used to assess response by RECIST 1.

Feasibility and Acceptability of a Dignity Therapy/Life Plan Intervention for Patients With Advanced Cancer.

Purpose/objectives: To determine the feasibility and acceptability of a dignity therapy/life plan intervention in the outpatient oncology setting.
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Research Approach: Pilot descriptive study.

Alliance for clinical trials in oncology (ALLIANCE) trial A021501: preoperative extended chemotherapy vs. chemotherapy plus hypofractionated radiation therapy for borderline resectable adenocarcinoma of the head of the pancreas.

Background: Borderline resectable pancreatic cancers infiltrate into adjacent vascular structures to an extent that makes an R0 resection unlikely when pancreatectomy is performed de novo. In a pilot study, Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology Trial A021101, the median survival of patients who received chemotherapy and radiation prior to anticipated pancreatectomy was 22 months, and 64% of operations achieved an R0 resection. However, the individual contributions of preoperative chemotherapy and radiation therapy to therapeutic outcome remain poorly defined.

Clinical Predictors of the Risk of Early Colectomy in Ulcerative Colitis: A Population-based Study.

Background: A subset of patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) will require colectomy within a few years of diagnosis. Thus, our aim was to determine the clinical predictors of early colectomy among patients with UC who are hospitalized with an acute flare.

Methods: Using population-based surveillance (1996-2009), all adults (≥18 years) hospitalized for UC within 3 years of diagnosis (n = 489) were identified.

Aspartame Intake Relates to Coronary Plaque Burden and Inflammatory Indices in Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

Background: Dietary sweeteners may contribute to metabolic dysregulation and cardiovascular disease (CVD), but this has not been assessed in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

Methods: One hundred twenty-four HIV-infected and 56 non-HIV-infected participants, without history of known coronary artery disease were included. Dietary intake was assessed using a 4-day food record.

Phosphorylation of AMPK by upstream kinases is required for activity in mammalian cells.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) plays a major role in regulating metabolism and has attracted significant attention as a therapeutic target for treating metabolic disorders. AMPK activity is stimulated more than 100-fold by phosphorylation of threonine 172 (Thr). Binding of AMP to the γ subunit allosterically activates the kinase.

Modulation of Hematopoietic Lineage Specification Impacts TREM2 Expression in Microglia-Like Cells Derived From Human Stem Cells.

Microglia are the primary innate immune cell type in the brain, and their dysfunction has been linked to a variety of central nervous system disorders. Human microglia are extraordinarily difficult to obtain for experimental investigation, limiting our ability to study the impact of human genetic variants on microglia functions. Previous studies have reported that microglia-like cells can be derived from human monocytes or pluripotent stem cells.

Macronutrient intake associated with weight gain in adolescent girls with anorexia nervosa.

Objective: Adolescents and women with anorexia nervosa (AN) are known to severely restrict total calorie and fat intake. However, data are limited regarding specific macronutrient intake associated with weight gain in AN.

Objective: To prospectively investigate dietary macronutrient composition associated with weight gain in adolescent girls with AN.

The transcriptome of human oocytes is related to age and ovarian reserve.

Study Question: How does the human oocyte transcriptome change with age and ovarian reserve?

Summary Answer: Specific sets of human oocyte messenger RNAs (mRNAs) and non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are affected independently by age and ovarian reserve.

What Is Known Already: Although it is well established that the ovarian reserve diminishes with increasing age, and that a woman's age is correlated with lower oocyte quality, the interplay of a diminished reserve and age on oocyte developmental competence is not clear. After maturation, oocytes are mostly transcriptionally quiescent, and developmental competence prior to embryonic genome activationrelies on maternal RNA and proteins.

Napabucasin: An Update on the First-in-Class Cancer Stemness Inhibitor.

Napabucasin (BBI608) is an orally administered small molecule that blocks stem cell activity in cancer cells by targeting the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 pathway. The signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 pathway is over-activated in many types of cancer and has been shown to be an important pathway in cancer stem cell-mediated propagation of cancer. Cancer stem cells are a subpopulation of cancer cells considered to be the primary source of tumor growth, metastasis, and resistance to conventional therapies, and thus, responsible for cancer relapse.