Oral PD-L1 inhibitor GS-4224 selectively engages PD-L1 high cells and elicits pharmacodynamic responses in patients with advanced solid tumors.

Background: Checkpoint inhibitors targeting the programmed cell death 1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death 1 ligand 1 (PD-L1) pathway are effective therapies in a range of immunogenic cancer types. Blocking this pathway with an oral therapy could benefit patients through greater convenience, particularly in combination regimens, and allow flexible management of immune-mediated toxicities.

Methods: PD-L1 binding activity was assessed in engineered dimerization and primary cell target occupancy assays.

Predictors of PrEP awareness, PrEP discussion and interest in long-acting injectable PrEP among Filipina transfeminine adults.

Introduction: Transfeminine adults are impacted by the HIV epidemic in the Philippines, and newly approved modalities of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), including long-acting injectable (LAI-PrEP), could be beneficial for this group. To inform implementation, we analysed PrEP awareness, discussion and interest in taking LAI-PrEP among Filipina transfeminine adults.

Methods: We utilized secondary data from the #ParaSaAtin survey that sampled Filipina transfeminine adults (n = 139) and conducted a series of multivariable logistic regressions with lasso selection to explore factors independently associated with PrEP outcomes, including awareness, discussion with trans friends and interest in LAI-PrEP.

Rapid eye movement sleep parasympathetic activity predicts wake hyperarousal symptoms following a traumatic event.

Heart rate variability (HRV) can be used to assess changes in output of the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). Considering that patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) often experience disturbances in sleep, arousal, and autonomic functioning, we sought to explore the association of PNS activity during sleep with hyperarousal symptoms of PTSD. Because a broad literature supports the importance of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep in PTSD, REM-sleep features were specifically examined as predictors of PTSD symptom severity.

Evaluating Translation of HIV-Related Legal Protections Into Practice: A Qualitative Assessment Among HIV-Positive Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex With Men in Manila, Philippines.

Legal protections for people living with HIV (PLHIV) are important for protecting human rights, yet little research has examined how laws translate into awareness and understanding for key populations. The Philippines has recently revised their legal protections for PLHIV in response to its growing HIV epidemic, where HIV-positive gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men bear the majority of cases. We present findings from interviews with 21 HIV-positive gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men in Manila, Philippines regarding awareness, understanding, and needs regarding HIV-specific legal protections at the time just before new revisions to the omnibus HIV law were passed.

Responsive Medical Providers and Recent HIV Medical Services Engagement Among Transgender Women and Cisgender Men Who Have Sex With Men in the Philippines.

Transgender women and cisgender men who have sex with men (trans-WSM and cis-MSM) comprise the majority of new HIV infections in the Philippines. There is limited research in the Philippines on the relationship between having a provider responsive to the needs of these populations and recent engagement in HIV medical services such as HIV testing and treatment. We used multivariate logistic regression to examine the relationship between having a responsive medical provider and engagement in HIV medical services in the past 12 months among an online sample of 318 trans-WSM and cis-MSM in the Philippines.

From imperialism to inpatient care: Work differences of Filipino and White registered nurses in the United States and implications for COVID-19 through an intersectional lens.

In the United States, nursing is the largest healthcare profession, with over 3.2 million registered nurses (RNs) nationwide and comprised of mostly women. Foreign-trained RNs make up 15 percent of the RN workforce.

A systematic review of the barriers to implementing human papillomavirus vaccination programs in low- and middle-income countries in the Asia-Pacific.

Aim: The increasing burden of human papillomavirus (HPV)-related diseases in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) could be alleviated by effective HPV vaccination programs. In this systematic review, we examined barriers to introduction, implementation, and/or sustainability of HPV vaccination programs in LMICs in the Asia-Pacific region (AP-LMICs).

Methods: A systematic search of literature from the past 10 years (2010-2019) was performed through PubMed, Cochrane CENTRAL, and Google Scholar.

Asian, Latinx, or Multiracial? Assessing Filipinxs' Health Conditions and Outcomes by Aggregate Ethnic Category.

Introduction: Filipinxs are the second-largest Asian subgroup in the USA. While Filipinxs are most often considered Asian when constructing aggregate ethnic categories, recent research has identified a trend of a small portion of Filipinxs identifying as Latinx or multiracial. However, little research had addressed how identification with different aggregate ethnic categories may have implications for identifying health disparities among Filipinxs and how these compare to non-Hispanic whites.

The Association Between Moderate and Serious Mental Health Distress and General Health Services Utilization Among Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese Adults in California.

Introduction: A growing body of literature has indicated that disaggregated analyses using distinct Asian subgroups allow for identification of varying mental health challenges and health services utilization. In this study, we examined the associations between distress and health services utilization among five Asian subgroups: Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Filipino, and Vietnamese adults in California.

Materials And Methods: Using a combined dataset using the 2011-2018 cross-sectional cycles of the California Health Interview survey, we assessed moderate and serious distress and four health services utilization indicators in a set of disaggregated analyses among adults 18 years of age and older in five Asian subgroups.

Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Agency in a Nationally Representative Sample of Women and Girls in the Philippines.

This study examined the prevalence of intimate partner violence (Intimate Partner Violence) and its associations with sexual agency among women and adolescent girls in the Philippines. Data came from the 2017 Philippines National Demographic and Health Survey (DHS), a nationally representative, cross-sectional survey of women and girls ages 15-49. Participants included 11,727 women and girls who reported having a current male partner.

Using structural equation modelling to characterise multilevel socioecological predictors and mediators of condom use among transgender women and cisgender men who have sex with men in the Philippines.

Background: Risks for condomless sex among transgender women and cisgender men who have sex with men (trans-WSM and cis-MSM, respectively) in the Philippines, where HIV recently became a national public health crisis, are shaped and exacerbated by various risk factors across multiple levels.

Methods: Between June 2018 and August 2019, we conducted a cross-sectional online study with 318 trans-WSM and cis-MSM respondents from Manila and Cebu cities. Structural equational modelling procedures were performed to determine direct, indirect and overall effects between condom use and latent variables across multiple socioecological levels: personal (ie, condom self-efficacy), social (ie, social capital), environmental (ie, barriers to condom and HIV services) and structural (ie, structural violence, antidiscrimination policies).

Trans-incarceration: Reimagining confinement and the criminality of aging.

As the U.S. population continues to age and will require increasing levels of care, scholars continue to question what conventional methods of "custodial care" and rehabilitation accomplish for the individuals receiving them, relative to those providing them.

Health Conditions, Outcomes, and Service Access Among Filipino, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean Adults in California, 2011-2017.

To determine the impact of data disaggregation on the ability to identify health disparities and needs for future research for Filipino, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean adults in California. Using available data from the 2011-2017 California Health Interview Survey, we conducted bivariate and multivariable analyses to assess disparities in health conditions, outcomes, and service access compared with non-Hispanic Whites for Asians as an overall group and for each individual subgroup. As an aggregate category, Asians appeared healthier than did non-Hispanic Whites on most indicators.

Efficacy, immunogenicity, and safety of an oral influenza vaccine: a placebo-controlled and active-controlled phase 2 human challenge study.

Background: Influenza is an important public health problem and existing vaccines are not completely protective. New vaccines that protect by alternative mechanisms are needed to improve efficacy of influenza vaccines. In 2015, we did a phase 1 trial of an oral influenza vaccine, VXA-A1.

Gender affirmative HIV care framework: Decisions on feminizing hormone therapy (FHT) and antiretroviral therapy (ART) among transgender women.

Background: Integration of feminizing hormone therapy (FHT) and antiretroviral therapy (ART) is critical in providing gender-affirming HIV care for transgender (trans) women living with HIV. However, interpersonal communications with HIV providers who are not competent with FHT may complicate this integration.

Methods: We conducted semi-structured interviews with trans women (n = 9) who self-reported as HIV-positive and their HIV providers (n = 15) from community-based venues (e.

Barriers and facilitators to uptake of condoms among Filipinx transgender women and cisgender men who have sex with men: A situated socio-ecological perspective.

Transgender women (TW) and cisgender men who have sex with men (cis-MSM) are disproportionately impacted by the national HIV crisis in the Philippines, where the HIV incidence has, in large part, been attributed to condomless sex. This study sought to qualitatively examine the socio-ecological factors that contribute to low condom uptake among Filipinx TW and cis-MSM communities in Manila. Between July and August 2017, we conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews with 30 TW and cis-MSM participants ( = 23 and 7, respectively).

Prioritizing HIV Services for Transgender Women and Men Who Have Sex With Men in Manila, Philippines: An Opportunity for HIV Provider Interventions.

Transgender women (TW) and men who have sex with men (MSM) are highly affected by the rising HIV epidemic in the Philippines. HIV providers are essential to curbing the epidemic. Between July and August 2017, we conducted one-on-one qualitative interviews with 15 HIV providers in Manila, Philippines.

Collective Coping Strategies for HIV-Related Challenges Among Men Who Have Sex With Men in Manila, Philippines.

Contextual factors, such as cultures of collectivism versus individualism, shape HIV coping strategies; despite this, little research regarding collective coping strategies applied to HIV exists. This may be important for the growing HIV epidemic in the Philippines, which has a collectivistic culture and where men who have sex with men (MSM) account for a majority of the cases. Fifteen semistructured, in-depth interviews with HIV-positive MSM and 6 interviews with community-based organization workers were conducted between June and August 2017.

Sword and Shield: Perceptions of law in empowering and protecting HIV-positive men who have sex with men in Manila, Philippines.

Legal protections for people living with HIV (PLHIV) are important for protecting human rights and combatting stigma. While much focus has been on the pernicious impacts of criminalisation of HIV transmission or nondisclosure, little research has accounted for the ways in which perception of protective laws may affect the everyday lives of PLHIV. The Philippines has the fastest growing HIV epidemic in the Asia & Pacific region, with HIV-positive men-who-have-sex-with-men (HIV+ MSM) bearing the majority of cases, and has recently revised their legal protections for PLHIV.

Home Health Utilization in Assisted Living Settings.

Home health agencies (HHAs) are one of the most commonly used third-party providers in the assisted living (AL) setting. One way ALs may be potentially able to meet the needs of their residents despite increased impairment is through supplementing the services offered with those delivered by HHAs. We explore the growth in the delivery of HHA services to Medicare beneficiaries in AL compared with other home settings between 2012 and 2014.

Trends and emerging directions in HIV risk and prevention research in the Philippines: A systematic review of the literature.

Background: The Philippines is experiencing one of the fastest growing epidemics globally. Evidence-based public health policies are needed. To describe the public health literature on HIV risk groups and prevention approaches in the Philippines, we reviewed published empirical studies with HIV-related outcomes.

Welfare State Replacements: Deinstitutionalization, Privatization and the Outsourcing to Immigrant Women Enterprise.

The U.S. government has a long tradition of providing direct care services to many of its most vulnerable citizens through market-based solutions and subsidized private entities.

Isolated from Tuberculinpositive Rhesus Macaques () in the Absence of Disease.

Mycobacterial infections are of primary health concern in NHP colonies in biomedical research. NHP are constantly monitored and screened for Mycobacterium spp. We report 6 Chinese-origin rhesus macaques infected with Mycobacterium kansasii that exhibited positive tuberculin skin tests in the absence of disease.

A Methodology to Identify a Cohort of Medicare Beneficiaries Residing in Large Assisted Living Facilities Using Administrative Data.

Background: Assisted living is a popular option for housing and long-term care.

Objective: To develop and test a methodology to identify Medicare beneficiaries residing in assisted living facilities (ALFs).

Research Design: We compiled a finder file of 9-digit ZIP codes representing large ALFs (25+ beds) by matching Outcome and Assessment Information Set (OASIS) assessments and Medicare Part B Claims to the Medicare enrollment records and addresses of 11,751 ALFs.