Examining the Priorities of Local Health Departments in California: A Mixed Methods Study.

Objective: Prioritization is an essential task of local health departments (LHDs). We examined the alignment of priorities reported in Community Health Needs Assessments (CHNA) priorities align with priorities in the Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIP). We report factors that influence the choice of priorities and the alignment of the priorities.

Advancing alternative methods to reduce animal testing.

Emerging approaches show promise for regulatory use.

Fast-food consumption and asthma-related emergency room visits in California.

Introduction: Asthma is common, affecting up to 8% of adults in the United States. Several studies have shown an association between poorer diet and asthma. Despite the prevalence of fast-food consumption in the Western diet, research examining fast food consumption and asthma is limited.

Validation of the prognostic index for spine metastasis (PRISM) for stratifying survival in patients treated with spinal stereotactic body radiation.

Purpose: The Prognostic Index for Spinal Metastasis (PRISM) is a scoring system derived from prospective data from a single institution that stratifies patients undergoing spine stereotactic radiosurgery (SSRS) for spinal metastases into subgroups by overall (OS). We sought to further demonstrate its generalizability by performing validation with a large dataset from a second high-volume institution, Mayo Clinic.

Methods And Materials: Eight hundred seventy-nine patients-424 from Mayo Clinic and 455 from MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC)-who received SSRS between 2007 and 2019 were identified.

Establishing the minimal clinically important difference of the Brief Fatigue Inventory for brain or CNS cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy.

Background: Minimal clinically important differences (MCIDs) quantify the clinical relevance of quality of life results at the individual patient and group level. The aim of this study was to estimate the MCID for the Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI) and the Worst and Usual Fatigue items in patients with brain or CNS cancer undergoing curative radiotherapy.

Methods: Data from a multi-site prospective registry was used.

Radiotherapy and Systemic Treatment for Leptomeningeal Disease.

Leptomeningeal disease (LMD) is a devastating sequelae of metastatic spread that affects approximately 5% of cancer patients. The incidence of LMD is increasing due to advancements in systemic therapy and enhanced detection methods. The purpose of this review is to provide a detailed overview of the evidence in the detection, prognostication, and treatment of LMD.

Impact of proton versus photon adjuvant radiotherapy on overall survival in the management of skull base and spinal chordomas: a National Cancer Database analysis.

Objective: Chordomas are rare tumors that originate from undifferentiated remnants of the notochord. Currently, there are no established guidelines regarding the choice of adjuvant radiation modality for patients surgically treated for chordomas. Using a nationwide, multicenter database, the authors aimed to compare long-term survival outcomes associated with the use of proton or photon adjuvant therapy for the management of chordomas of skull base and spine.

Potential value of animal microphysiological systems.

Microphysiological systems (MPS) are designed to recapitulate aspects of tissue/organ physiology in vivo, thereby providing potential value in safety and efficacy assessments of FDA-regulated products and regulatory decision-making. While there have been significant advances in the development, use, and proposals of qualification criteria for human organ MPS, there remains a gap in the development using animal tissues. Animal MPS may be of value in many areas including the study of zoonotic diseases, assessment of the safety and efficacy of animal therapeutics, and possibly reduction of the use of animals in regulatory submissions for animal therapeutics.

Toxicity of rare earth elements (REEs) to marine organisms: Using species sensitivity distributions to establish water quality guidelines for protecting marine life.

A lack of chronic rare earth element (REE) toxicity data for marine organisms has impeded the establishment of numerical REE water quality benchmarks (e.g., guidelines) to protect marine life and assess ecological risk.

Benzene-1,2,4,5-tetrol.

The crystal structure of the title compound was determined at 120 K. It crystallizes in the triclinic space group with four independent mol-ecules in the asymmetric unit. In the crystal, each symmetry-unique mol-ecule forms π-π stacks on itself, giving four unique π-π stacking inter-actions.

Trust your gut: Establishing confidence in gastrointestinal models - An overview of the state of the science and contexts of use.

The webinar series and workshop titled “Trust Your Gut: Establishing Confidence in Gastrointestinal Models – An Overview of the State of the Science and Contexts of Use” was co-organized by NICEATM, NIEHS, FDA, EPA, CPSC, DoD, and the Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT) and hosted at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD, USA on October 11-12, 2023. New approach methods (NAMs) for assessing issues of gastrointestinal tract (GIT)- related toxicity offer promise in addressing some of the limitations associated with animal-based assessments. GIT NAMs vary in complexity, from two-dimensional monolayer cell line-based systems to sophisticated 3-dimensional organoid systems derived from human primary cells.

Multidisciplinary Management of Isocitrate Dehydrogenase-Mutated Gliomas in a Contemporary Molecularly Defined Era.

Mutations in isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) genes, an early step in the ontogeny of lower-grade gliomas, induce global epigenetic changes characterized by a hypermethylation phenotype and are critical to tumor classification, treatment decision making, and estimation of patient prognosis. The introduction of IDH inhibitors to block the oncogenic neomorphic function of the mutated protein has resulted in new therapeutic options for these patients. To appreciate the implications of these recent IDH inhibitor results, it is important to juxtapose historical outcomes with chemoradiotherapy.

Long-term kidney outcomes of semaglutide in obesity and cardiovascular disease in the SELECT trial.

The SELECT trial previously reported a 20% reduction in major adverse cardiovascular events with semaglutide (n = 8,803) versus placebo (n = 8,801) in patients with overweight/obesity and established cardiovascular disease, without diabetes. In the present study, we examined the effect of once-weekly semaglutide 2.4 mg on kidney outcomes in the SELECT trial.

Genes Differentially Expressed Across Major Arteries Are Enriched in Endothelial Dysfunction-Related Gene Sets: Implications for Relative Inter-artery Atherosclerosis Risk.

Atherosclerosis differs across major arteries. Although the biological basis is not fully understood, limited evidence of genetic differences has been documented. This study, therefore, was aimed to identify differentially expressed genes between clinically relevant major arteries and investigate their enrichment in endothelial dysfunction-related gene sets.

An Ensemble Framework for Projecting the Impact of Lymphatic Filariasis Interventions Across Sub-Saharan Africa at a Fine Spatial Scale.

Background: Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is a neglected tropical disease targeted for elimination as a public health problem by 2030. Although mass treatments have led to huge reductions in LF prevalence, some countries or regions may find it difficult to achieve elimination by 2030 owing to various factors, including local differences in transmission. Subnational projections of intervention impact are a useful tool in understanding these dynamics, but correctly characterizing their uncertainty is challenging.

Subnational Projections of Lymphatic Filariasis Elimination Targets in Ethiopia to Support National Level Policy.

Background: Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is a debilitating, poverty-promoting, neglected tropical disease (NTD) targeted for worldwide elimination as a public health problem (EPHP) by 2030. Evaluating progress towards this target for national programmes is challenging, due to differences in disease transmission and interventions at the subnational level. Mathematical models can help address these challenges by capturing spatial heterogeneities and evaluating progress towards LF elimination and how different interventions could be leveraged to achieve elimination by 2030.

Costs of Air Pollution in California's San Joaquin Valley: A Societal Perspective of the Burden of Asthma on Emergency Departments and Inpatient Care.

Introduction: The San Joaquin Valley (SJV) is often recognized as one of the most polluted regions in the US. Periods of pollution exposure are associated with increased health burden related to respiratory inflammation and undermined lung function, which aggravates respiratory diseases such as asthma and leads to symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, or difficulty breathing. Asthma costs US$ 82 billion annually in healthcare costs, missed work and school in the US.

Proton versus photon craniospinal irradiation for adult medulloblastoma: A dosimetric, toxicity, and exploratory cost analysis.

Background: This study aimed to determine whether proton craniospinal irradiation (CSI) decreased the dose to normal tissue and resulted in less toxicity than photon CSI for adult patients.

Methods: This single-institution retrospective analyzed differences in radiation doses, acute toxicity, and cost between proton and CSI for adult medulloblastoma patients.

Results: Of 39 total patients, 20 were treated with photon CSI prior to 2015, and 19 were treated with proton CSI thereafter.