Structural Racism and Treatment Delay Among Black and White Patients With Breast Cancer.

Purpose: Structural racism (SR) is a potential driver of health disparities, but research quantifying its impacts on cancer outcomes has been limited. We aimed to develop a multidimensional county-level SR measure and to examine the association of SR with breast cancer (BC) treatment delays among Black and White patients.

Methods: The cohort included 32,095 individuals from the North Carolina Central Cancer Registry with stage I to III BC diagnosed between 2004 and 2017 and linked to multipayer insurance claims from the Cancer Information and Population Health Resource.

Mixed-Methods Study on the Responsiveness of the Comprehensive Score for Financial Toxicity Among People With Multiple Myeloma.

Purpose: Financial toxicity is a contributor to the psychosocial burden of cancer care. There is no consensus measure of financial toxicity; however, recent studies have adopted the Comprehensive Score for Financial Toxicity (COST). Despite its growing popularity, data on the responsiveness to change of the COST instrument are lacking.

Functional Status Associations With Treatment Receipt and Outcomes Among Older Adults Newly Diagnosed With Multiple Myeloma.

Purpose: Multiple myeloma (MM) is a prevalent hematologic malignancy in older adults, who often experience physical disability, increased health care usage, and reduced treatment tolerance. Home health (HH) services are frequently used by this group, but the relationship between disability, HH use, and MM treatment receipt is unclear. This study examines the connections between disability, treatment receipt, and survival outcomes in older adults with newly diagnosed MM using a nationwide data set.

Simulating the population impact of interventions to reduce racial gaps in breast cancer treatment.

Background: Inequities in guideline-concordant treatment receipt contribute to worse survival in Black patients with breast cancer. Inequity-reduction interventions (eg, navigation, bias training, tracking dashboards) can close such treatment gaps. We simulated the population-level impact of statewide implementation of inequity-reduction interventions on racial breast cancer inequities in North Carolina.

A Mobile App to Support Self-Management in Patients with Multiple Myeloma or Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Patients with blood cancer experience serious physical and emotional symptoms throughout their cancer journey.

Objective: Building on previous work, we aimed to develop an app designed to help patients with multiple myeloma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia self-manage symptoms and test it for acceptability and preliminary efficacy.

Methods: We developed our Blood Cancer Coach app with input from clinicians and patients.

Race, geography, and risk of breast cancer treatment delays: A population-based study 2004-2015.

Background: Treatment delays affect breast cancer survival and constitute poor-quality care. Black patients experience more treatment delay, but the relationship of geography to these disparities is poorly understood.

Methods: We studied a population-based, retrospective, observational cohort of patients with breast cancer in North Carolina between 2004 and 2017 from the Cancer Information and Population Health Resource, which links cancer registry and sociodemographic data to multipayer insurance claims.

Physical Function, Psychosocial Status, and Symptom Burden Among Adults with Plasma Cell Disorders and Associations with Quality of Life.

Background: The plasma cell disorders (PCDs), multiple myeloma (MM), and light-chain amyloidosis (AL) are disproportionately diseases of older adults, whose care may be complicated by frailty associated with advancing age. We sought to evaluate the prevalence of functional deficits and symptoms in a cohort of persons with PCDs and associations of demographic, disease-related, functional, and psychosocial measures with quality of life (QoL).

Patients And Methods: Adults with PCDs were recruited into an observational registry in 2018-2020.

Between 2000 and 2020, Reimbursement for Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Surgery Decreased by 30.

Purpose: To examine and analyze Medicare reimbursement rates from 2000 to 2020 for orthopaedic foot and ankle procedures.

Methods: The 20 most used orthopaedic foot and ankle surgical procedures were gathered from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services website using the Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data Public Use File 2017. The reimbursement data for each code were gathered from The Physician Fee Schedule Look-Up Tool from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

A cross-sectional observational study of health-related quality of life in adults with multiple myeloma.

Background: The purpose of this manuscript is to describe health-related quality of life (HRQoL) outcomes in a United States (US)-based sample of multiple myeloma (MM) patients and identify characteristics associated with poor HRQoL.

Patients And Methods: MM patients identified through the Tumor Registry of a Southeastern US medical center were mailed surveys assessing patient characteristics and HRQoL outcomes. HRQoL outcomes were measured using PROMIS short form instruments which included measures of global health (global physical health and global mental health), physical function, and ability to participate in social roles and activities (social function).

National and geographic trends in Medicare reimbursement rates for orthopedic shoulder and upper extremity surgery from 2000 to 2020.

Background: There is a paucity of information regarding financial trends in orthopedic upper extremity surgery. If progress is to be made in advancing agreeable reimbursement models, a more comprehensive understanding of these trends is needed. The purpose of this study was to assess national and geographic trends in Medicare reimbursement rates for shoulder and elbow surgical procedures over the past 2 decades.

Persistent fatigue among long-term non-Hodgkin lymphoma survivors.

This study describes the prevalence and persistence of fatigue among a cohort of long-term non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) survivors. Mailed surveys assessed quality-of-life including fatigue (SF-36) at baseline and five years. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with prevalence of fatigue at baseline and persistence of fatigue across timepoints.

A SMART approach to optimizing delivery of an mHealth intervention among cancer survivors with posttraumatic stress symptoms.

Background/aims: Many cancer survivors who received intensive treatment such as hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) experience posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. PTSD is associated with lower quality of life and other symptoms that require clinical treatment. The iterative treatment decisions that happen in clinical practice are not adequately represented in traditional randomized controlled trials (RCT) of PTSD treatments.

A Qualitative Study of the Experiences of Living With Multiple Myeloma.

Purpose: To explore the ways in which multiple myeloma affects an individual's life in the modern treatment era.

Participants & Setting: 15 individuals with multiple myeloma and 10 clinicians were recruited from two academic medical centers in the southeastern United States.

Methodologic Approach: Semistructured interviews were conducted with individuals with multiple myeloma and clinicians to explore the effect of a multiple myeloma diagnosis and treatment on individuals' lives.

A Comprehensive Analysis of Medicare Reimbursement to Physicians for Common Arthroscopic Procedures: Adjusted Reimbursement Has Fallen Nearly 30% From 2000 to 2019.

Purpose: To analyze and objectively measure the trends in inflation-adjusted Medicare reimbursement rates for the 20 most commonly performed orthopaedic arthroscopic surgical procedures from 2000 to 2019.

Methods: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services website was used to find the top 20 most commonly performed arthroscopic procedures using the Public Use File data file for calendar year 2017. By use of the Physician Fee Schedule Look-Up Tool, national reimbursement averages were calculated from 2000-2019 and data were analyzed.

Quality of Life and Impact of Cancer: Differences in Rural and Nonrural Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Survivors.

Purpose: People living in rural areas experience greater health disparities than their nonrural counterparts, but little is known about the association between rural status and quality of life (QOL) in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) survivors. We compared self-reported quality of life and impact of cancer in rural and nonrural NHL survivors.

Methods: This study is a secondary analysis of 566 NHL cancer survivors recruited from cancer registries at 2 large academic medical centers in 1 state.

How are patient-reported outcomes and symptoms being measured in adults with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma? A systematic review.

Purpose: Patients with relapsed and/or refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM) are living longer due in part to changing treatment patterns. It is important to understand how changing treatment patterns affect patients' lives beyond extending survival. Research suggests that direct patient report is the best way to capture information on how patients feel and function in response to their disease and its treatment.

: A Randomized Controlled Trial of an Online, Personalized Coping and Decision Aid for Metastatic Breast Cancer Patients.

Anticipating and making health care decisions about appropriate or preferred treatment around end-of-life care are intellectually challenging and emotionally distressing for metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients, new interventions are needed. This study examined the effect of , an online and personalized coping and decision aid curriculum, on the completion of advance care directives and shared decision making among patients and their loved ones, clinicians, and spirit. Participants were randomized 1:1 to or wait-listed usual care conditions.

The bright and dark side of Joseph Fenton: An analysis of narratives describing the man known as Sudharman.

The death of Joe "Sudharman" Fenton sparked competing narratives leaving some members of the family wondering who Joe Fenton was, the man who died as Sudharman. During the night of July 4, 2010, Sudharman was murdered as he slept in his yoga studio in Union County, Pennsylvania. This piece examines his death in order to examine how communication was used to describe Joe Fenton.

Oncology nurses need to get serious about cancer rehabilitation .

Patients with cancer suffer greatly. Rehabilitation helps them suffer less, and yet very few patients with cancer get rehabilitation services of any kind. Oncology nurses are well positioned to see the toll that cancer and its treatment take on patients and to facilitate appropriate supportive care, including rehabilitation.