Correlates of health-related quality of life in African Americans diagnosed with cancer: a review of survivorship studies and the Detroit research on cancer survivors cohort.

Advances in cancer screening and treatment have improved survival after a diagnosis of cancer. As the number of cancer survivors as well as their overall life-expectancy increases, investigations of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) are critical in understanding the factors that promote the optimal experience over the course of survivorship. However, there is a dearth of information on determinants of HRQOL for African American cancer survivors as the vast majority of cohorts have been conducted predominantly among non-Hispanic Whites.

Age at diagnosis and social risks among Black cancer survivors: Results from the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors cohort.

Background: Social risks are common among cancer survivors who have the fewest financial resources; however, little is known about how prevalence differs by age at diagnosis, despite younger survivors' relatively low incomes and wealth.

Methods: The authors used data from 3703 participants in the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors (ROCS) cohort of Black cancer survivors. Participants self-reported several forms of social risks, including food insecurity, housing instability, utility shut-offs, not getting care because of cost or lack of transportation, and feeling unsafe in their home neighborhood.

Housing instability and psychological distress in African American cancer survivors: findings from the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors study.

Purpose: As health care systems seek to screen for and address housing instability in patient populations, robust evidence linking unstable housing to patient-reported outcomes is needed. Housing instability may increase psychological distress in cancer survivors, potentially more so among African American cancer survivors who are also likely to experience disproportionate burden of housing instability. The purpose of this analysis was to estimate associations between housing instability and psychological distress in African Americans diagnosed with cancer.

Development and evaluation of the MiCheck® Prostate test for clinically significant prostate cancer.

Background: There is a clinical need to identify patients with an elevated PSA who would benefit from prostate biopsy due to the presence of clinically significant prostate cancer (CSCaP). We have previously reported the development of the MiCheck® Test for clinically significant prostate cancer. Here, we report MiCheck's further development and incorporation of the Roche Cobas standard clinical chemistry analyzer.

The impact of preexisting comorbidities on receipt of cancer therapy among women with Stage I-III breast cancer in the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors cohort.

Purpose: Pre-existing comorbidities play an important role in choice of cancer treatment. We retrospectively evaluated the relationship between pre-existing comorbidities and receipt of local and systemic therapy in a cohort of Black women with Stage I-III breast cancer.

Methods: The study population for analysis included 1169 women with Stage I-III disease enrolled in the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors (ROCS) cohort.

The impact of high intensity interval training in a diverse group of cancer survivors: CAPABLE, a pilot study.

Purpose: Given the well-documented benefits of regular exercise to cancer survivors, current American Cancer Society guidelines recommend that patients engage in a minimum of 150 min per week of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity with a minimum of two days of strength training. However, few survivors meet this goal, particularly among minorities.

Methods: The CAPABLE study is a single-arm, pilot exercise intervention that introduced 48 cancer survivors to a high intensity interval and strength training program three days a week for 12 weeks.

Use of electronic cigarettes among African American cancer survivors.

Background: The use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) is increasing rapidly in the United States, although the negative health outcomes associated with these products are still unknown. Emerging research has examined the use of e-cigarettes in the cancer survivor population as a whole, yet none has focused on e-cigarette use in the African American (AA) cancer survivor population.

Methods: The authors used data from the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors cohort study, comprised of AA adult cancer survivors.

Germline Variants in DNA Damage Repair Genes and Among Black Patients With Early-Onset Prostate Cancer.

Purpose: Genetic studies of prostate cancer susceptibility have predominantly focused on non-Hispanic White men, despite the observation that Black men are more likely to develop prostate cancer and die from the disease. Therefore, we sought to identify genetic variants in Black patients diagnosed with early-onset prostate cancer.

Methods: Whole-exome sequencing of germline DNA from a population-based cohort of Black men diagnosed with prostate cancer at age 62 years or younger was performed.

Caregiver costs and financial burden in caregivers of African American cancer survivors.

Purpose: People with cancer commonly rely on loved ones as informal caregivers during and after treatment. Costs related to caregiving and their association with caregiver financial burden are not well understood.

Methods: Results include data from 964 caregivers of African American cancer survivors in the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors (ROCS) cohort.

Evaluation of health behaviors and overall quality of life in younger adult African American cancer survivors.

Background: Epidemiological studies of cancer survivors have predominantly focused on non-Hispanic White, elderly patients, despite the observation that African Americans have higher rates of mortality. Therefore, we characterized cancer survivorship in younger African American survivors using the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors (ROCS) study to assess health behaviors and quality of life.

Methods: Five hundred and seventeen patients diagnosed with any cancer between the ages of 20-49 (mean age: 42 years; SD: 6.

Financial Hardship by Age at Diagnosis Including in Young Adulthood among African American Cancer Survivors.

Background: Financial hardship is most common among cancer survivors with the fewest financial resources at diagnosis; however, little is known about the financial outcomes of young adult (YA) survivors (ages 20-39 at diagnosis), despite their having fewer financial reserves than older adults.

Methods: We utilized data from 3,888 participants in the population-based Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors cohort. Participants self-reported several forms of material and behavioral financial hardship (MFH and BFH, respectively).

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on African American cancer survivors.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has had profound effects on population health to date. African American cancer survivors are particularly vulnerable to developing severe consequences; therefore, understanding the impact of the virus on this patient population is critical.

Methods: The Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors cohort is a unique effort to understand the determinants of poor outcomes in African American cancer survivors.

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy in African American cancer survivors: Risk factors and quality of life outcomes.

Background: Epidemiological studies of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) have predominantly focused on non-Hispanic White patients, despite the observation that African Americans are more likely to experience CIPN. To address this health disparities gap, we sought to identify non-genetic risk factors and comorbidities associated with CIPN in African American cancer survivors using the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors study.

Methods: Logistic regression was used to evaluate relationships between presence of self-reported CIPN and relevant clinical characteristics in 1045 chemotherapy-treated African American cancer survivors.

Neighborhood walkability and body mass index in African American cancer survivors: The Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors study.

Background: Extant evidence links neighborhood walkability with obesity-related health in the general population. This association likely exists in cancer survivors, but research is limited. Furthermore, a disproportionate obesity burden in African American cancer survivors warrants subgroup-specific analyses.

Social needs and health-related quality of life among African American cancer survivors: Results from the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors study.

Background: Social needs may affect cancer survivors' health-related quality of life (HRQOL) above and beyond sociodemographic and cancer-related factors. The purpose of this study was to estimate associations between social needs and HRQOL.

Methods: Results included data from 1754 participants in the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors cohort, a population-based study of African American survivors of breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancer.

Work changes and individual, cancer-related, and work-related predictors of decreased work participation among African American cancer survivors.

African American cancer survivors disproportionately experience financial difficulties after cancer. Decreased work participation (going from being employed full time to part time or from employed to not employed) can contribute to financial hardship after cancer but employment outcomes among African American cancer survivors have not been well described. This study estimates the prevalence of work changes and identifies factors associated with decreased work participation among African American cancer survivors.

Cardiometabolic risk factors and survival after cancer in the Women's Health Initiative.

Background: Cardiometabolic abnormalities are a leading cause of death among women, including women with cancer.

Methods: This study examined the association between prediagnosis cardiovascular health and total and cause-specific mortality among 12,076 postmenopausal women who developed local- or regional-stage invasive cancer in the Women's Health Initiative (WHI). Cardiovascular risk factors included waist circumference, hypertension, high cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes.

The costs of treating and not treating patients with chronic myeloid leukemia with tyrosine kinase inhibitors among Medicare patients in the United States.

Background: Patients with high cost-sharing of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) experience delays in treatment for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). To the authors' knowledge, the clinical outcomes among and costs for patients not receiving TKIs are not well defined.

Methods: Using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare database, the authors evaluated differences in TKI initiation, health care use, cost, and survival among patients with CML with continuous Medicare Parts A and B and Part D coverage who were diagnosed between 2007 and 2015.

Heritable Susceptibility to Breast Cancer among African-American Women in the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors Study.

Background: African-American women have high rates of breast cancer associated with hereditary features. However, no studies have reported the prevalence of inherited variation across all genes known to be breast cancer risk factors among African-American patients with breast cancer not selected for high-risk characteristics.

Methods: We evaluated 182 African-American women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer in metropolitan Detroit via targeted capture and multiplex sequencing of 13 well-established breast cancer risk genes and five suggested breast cancer risk genes.

Continued smoking in African American cancer survivors: The Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors Cohort.

Tobacco cessation among those recently diagnosed with cancer is important to improve their prognosis, yet, many cancer survivors continue to smoke. The epidemiology of tobacco use differs by race and ethnicity, and limited cessation research has been conducted in African American (AA) populations. Here, we assess demographic and clinical variables associated with continued smoking in AAs after a cancer diagnosis.

A comparison of prostate health index, total PSA, %free PSA, and proPSA in a contemporary US population-The MiCheck-01 prospective trial.

Background: Increasing numbers of patients are presenting with aggressive prostate cancer (CaP); therefore, there exists a need to optimally identify these patients pre-biopsy.

Objectives: To compare the accuracy of total prostate specific antigen (PSA), %free PSA, and prostate health index (PHI) to differentiate between patients without CaP, with non-aggressive (Gleason 3 + 3, non-AgCaP) and with aggressive (Gleason ≥ 3 + 4, AgCaP) in a contemporary US population.

Design, Settings, And Participants: Serum samples were collected from 332 US patients scheduled for biopsy due to an elevated age-adjusted PSA.

Development and evaluation of the MiCheck test for aggressive prostate cancer.

Background: A clinical need exists for a biomarker test to accurately delineate aggressive prostate cancer (AgCaP), and thus better assist clinicians and patients decision-making on whether to proceed to prostate biopsy.

Objectives: To develop a blood test for AgCaP and compare to PSA, %free PSA, proPSA, and prostate health index (PHI) tests.

Design, Settings And Participants: Patient samples from the MiCheck-01 trial were used for development of the MiCheck test.

Risk of Prostate Cancer Associated With Familial and Hereditary Cancer Syndromes.

Purpose: Recently developed clinical guidelines suggest that men in families with specific cancer syndromes, such as hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC), consider genetic testing, especially in the setting of aggressive disease. However, although a family history (FH) of the same disease among close relatives is an established risk factor for prostate cancer (PC), a direct comparison of PC risk for men with each syndrome in a single population is needed.

Methods: The Utah Population Database was used to identify 619,630 men, age ≥ 40 years, who were members of a pedigree that included at least 3 consecutive generations.

Smartphone apps for cancer: A content analysis of the digital health marketplace.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the state of smartphone applications for cancer intended for the general public with a focus on interactive features, content sources, and application developer affiliations. The level of health provider involvement in screening or appraising application content was also assessed.

Methods: A total of 123 apps were identified for analysis from two major mobile application marketplaces (Apple iTunes = 40; Google Play = 83).