Comprehensive diagnosis of advanced-stage breast cancer: exploring detection methods, molecular subtypes, and demographic influences - A cross-sectional study.

Background: Brazil faces notable Breast Cancer (BC) mortality despite lower incidence rates versus developed countries. Despite guidelines from medical societies, Brazilian public policy recommends biennial mammographic screening for women aged 50 to 69. This study investigates sociodemographic and clinical factors related to BC detection methods and clinical stage at diagnosis.

Barriers to early diagnosis and management of oral cancer in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Objective: This study aimed to explore perceived barriers to early diagnosis and management of oral cancer, as well as potential pathways for improvement in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).

Methods: This cross-sectional study used a self-administered online questionnaire created via the Research Electronic Data Capture platform. The survey was distributed to health professionals trained in Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, and Dentists with clinical and academic expertise in oral potentially malignant disorder (OPMD) and oral cancer.

The role of occupation in SARS-CoV-2 infection within a Brazilian municipality: A test-negative case-control study.

Objective: To investigate the association between occupation and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections within a Brazilian municipality.

Methods: In this test-negative study, cases and controls were randomly selected among individuals aged 18-65 years that were registered in a primary health care program in São Caetano do Sul, Brazil. Those who had collected samples for RT-PCR testing between April 2020 and May 2021 were randomly selected to compose the case (positive for SARS-CoV-2) and control (negative for SARS-CoV-2) groups, frequency-matched by sex, age group, and month of sample collection.

Spatial Clusters of Cancer Mortality in Brazil: A Machine Learning Modeling Approach.

Our aim was to test if machine learning algorithms can predict cancer mortality (CM) at an ecological level and use these results to identify statistically significant spatial clusters of excess cancer mortality (eCM). Age-standardized CM was extracted from the official databases of Brazil. Predictive features included sociodemographic and health coverage variables.

Survival inequalities in head and neck cancers: A hospital-based cohort study.

Background: We investigated whether the socioeconomic status (SES) influenced survival rates in oropharynx cancers (OPC), oral cavity cancers (OCC), and larynx cancers (LC) in Brazilian patients.

Methods: This hospital-based cohort study assessed the age-standardized 5-year relative survival (RS) using the Pohar Perme estimator.

Results: Overall, we identified 37 191 cases, and 5-year RS were 24.

Covid-19 hospital mortality using spatial hierarchical models: cohort design with 74,994 registers.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between covid-19 hospital mortality and risk factors, innovating by considering contextual and individual factors and spatial dependency and using data from the city of São Paulo, Brazil.

Methods: The study was performed with a spatial hierarchical retrospective cohort design using secondary data (individuals and contextual data) from hospitalized patients and their geographic unit residences. The study period corresponded to the first year of the pandemic, from February 25, 2020 to February 24, 2021.

Cumulative Coffee Consumption as a Protective Factor for Head and Neck Cancer in Brazil.

There is still no consensus in the literature regarding the role of coffee in head and neck cancer. Thus, we sought to analyze the cumulative consumption of coffee as a protective factor in the genesis of head and neck cancer in Brazil, one of the main coffee producing countries, from January 2011 to February 2017. We carried out a case-control study in 5 referral centers for head and neck cancer with 839 cases and 842 non-cancer hospital controls matched by sex, data collection center and age group.

Socio-demographic profiles and obstetrics outcomes of pregnant women with epilepsy in a vulnerability State, Brazil.

Introduction: The socio-demographic profile of pregnant women in low- and middle- income countries is characterized by low educational attainment and unemployment, leading to social and economic morbidity. characterized by limited opportunities for education, employment, and marriage, which are strongly related to the stigmatization of the disease. The study of the socio- profile and obstetric outcomes of pregnant women with epilepsy in Alagoas, Brazil, may help understand this scenario and facilitate the development of public policy strategies to reduce local morbidity.

Investigating the effect of sexual behaviour on oropharyngeal cancer risk: a methodological assessment of Mendelian randomization.

Background: Human papilloma virus infection is known to influence oropharyngeal cancer (OPC) risk, likely via sexual transmission. However, sexual behaviour has been correlated with other risk factors including smoking and alcohol, meaning independent effects are difficult to establish. We aimed to evaluate the causal effect of sexual behaviour on the risk of OPC using Mendelian randomization (MR).

Examining socio-economic factors to understand the hospital case fatality rates of COVID-19 in the city of São Paulo, Brazil.

Background: Understanding differences in hospital case fatality rates (HCFRs) of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may help evaluate its severity and the capacity of the healthcare system to reduce mortality.

Methods: We examined the variability in HCFRs of COVID-19 in relation to spatial inequalities in socio-economic factors, hospital health sector and patient medical condition across the city of São Paulo, Brazil. We obtained the standardized hospital case fatality ratio adjusted indirectly by age and sex, which is the ratio between the HCFR of a specific spatial unit and the HCFR for the entire study area.

Agreement and validity of asbestos-related cancers in the hospital information system of the Brazilian Unified Health System.

Objective: To estimate the degree of agreement and validity of diagnoses of asbestos-related malignant neoplasms registered in the Hospital Information System of the Brazilian Unified Health System (SIH/SUS), in comparison to the Hospital Cancer Registries of the State of São Paulo (HCR/SP).

Methods: Deaths with records of malignant neoplasms associated with asbestos were identified and extracted from SIH/SUS between 2007 and 2014. Deaths in cases registered in the HCR/SP were extracted for the same period.

Causes of death in former asbestos-cement workers in the state of São Paulo, Brazil.

Background: In low- and middle-income countries, such as Brazil, studies on the causes of death in asbestos-exposed workers are scarce.

Methods: A cohort study was performed involving 988 males who had worked in the asbestos-cement industry in the state of São Paulo, with a total of 12,217 person-years of observation between 1995 and 2016. The standardized mortality ratio (SMR) stratified by age was calculated as the ratio between the observed rate and the expected rate in the state of São Paulo.

The role of metformin on lung cancer survival: the first systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies and randomized clinical trials.

Purpose: To assess the effects of metformin use on lung cancer (LC) survival according to summarized results from observational studies (OBs) and randomized clinical trials (RCTs).

Methods: We systematically searched electronic databases and, to our knowledge, for the first time, RCTs were included in a systematic review and meta-analysis about the role of metformin on LC survival. We carried out meta-analyses separately for OBs and RCTs.

Homeobox gene amplification and methylation in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Objectives: Investigate the DNA copy number and the methylation profile of the homeobox genes HOXA5, HOXA7, HOXA9, HOXB5, HOXB13, HOXC12, HOXC13, HOXD10, HOXD11, IRX4 and ZHX1, and correlate them with clinicopathological parameters and overall survival.

Material And Methods: DNA from OSCC samples and surgical margins were submitted to DNA amplification by qPCR and to DNA methylation analysis using a DNA Methylation PCR Array System.

Results: HOXA5, HOXB5 and HOXD10 were amplified in surgical margins while HOXA9, HOXB13 and IRX4 were amplified in OSCC.

Global incidence trends in head and neck cancer for HPV-related and -unrelated subsites: A systematic review of population-based studies.

In head and neck cancer (HNC), some subsites are associated with human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, whereas others are unrelated. Although studies have demonstrated the heterogeneity of HPV prevalence worldwide, its impacts on incidence trends in HNC are unknown. This systematic review examined the incidence trends for HPV-related HNC subsites, exploring patterns by geographic region, age group, sex, and race/ethnicity.

Association between oral hygiene and head and neck cancer in Brazil.

Introduction: Poor oral hygiene, regular use of mouthwash and absence of visits to the dentist could correspond to potential risk factors for the development of head and neck cancer.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine whether oral hygiene is associated with the occurrence of oral cavity and head and neck cancer in a Brazilian sample.

Method: The variables of oral hygiene condition, such as toothbrushing frequency, dental loss, need and use of prosthesis, and regular visit to the dentist in a case-control study were analyzed in patients from five hospitals in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, paired by gender and age, from the multicenter project Genoma do Câncer de Cabeça e Pescoço (GENCAPO).

Alcohol drinking and head and neck cancer risk: the joint effect of intensity and duration.

Background: Alcohol is a well-established risk factor for head and neck cancer (HNC). This study aims to explore the effect of alcohol intensity and duration, as joint continuous exposures, on HNC risk.

Methods: Data from 26 case-control studies in the INHANCE Consortium were used, including never and current drinkers who drunk ≤10 drinks/day for ≤54 years (24234 controls, 4085 oral cavity, 3359 oropharyngeal, 983 hypopharyngeal and 3340 laryngeal cancers).

The emerging risk of oropharyngeal and oral cavity cancer in HPV-related subsites in young people in Brazil.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is responsible for the rise in the incidence of cancer in the oropharynx, tonsils, and base of the tongue (i.e., HPV-related subsites).

Age at start of using tobacco on the risk of head and neck cancer: Pooled analysis in the International Head and Neck Cancer Epidemiology Consortium (INHANCE).

Background: Tobacco use is a well-established risk factor for head and neck cancer (HNC). However, less is known about the potential impact of exposure to tobacco at an early age on HNC risk.

Methods: We analyzed individual-level data on ever tobacco smokers from 27 case-control studies (17,146 HNC cases and 17,449 controls) in the International Head and Neck Cancer Epidemiology (INHANCE) consortium.

Lung Cancer Mortality Trends in a Brazilian City with a Long History of Asbestos Consumption.

There are scarce epidemiological studies on lung cancer mortality in areas exposed to asbestos in developing countries. We compared the rates and trends in mortality from lung cancer between 1980 and 2016 in a municipality that made extensive use of asbestos, Osasco, with rates from a referent municipality with lower asbestos exposure and with the rates for the State of São Paulo. We retrieved death records for cases of lung cancer (ICD-9 C162) (ICD-10 C33 C34) from 1980 to 2016 in adults aged 60 years and older.

Joint effects of intensity and duration of cigarette smoking on the risk of head and neck cancer: A bivariate spline model approach.

Objectives: This study aimed at re-evaluating the strength and shape of the dose-response relationship between the combined (or joint) effect of intensity and duration of cigarette smoking and the risk of head and neck cancer (HNC). We explored this issue considering bivariate spline models, where smoking intensity and duration were treated as interacting continuous exposures.

Materials And Methods: We pooled individual-level data from 33 case-control studies (18,260 HNC cases and 29,844 controls) participating in the International Head and Neck Cancer Epidemiology (INHANCE) consortium.

Epidemiological science and cancer control.

Epidemiological methods are essential for the discovery of cancer risks and prognostic factors as well as for the evaluation of cancer prevention measures. In this review, we discuss epidemiological surveillance procedures for data collection and processing to guide and evaluate the consequences of anticancer efforts for populations, assess the identification of cancer risk factors, examine barriers to cancer screening and recommended rules for early diagnosis programs. Epidemiological studies have shown that hindrances to cancer information assessment are currently encountered in developing countries.

GLI3 knockdown decreases stemness, cell proliferation and invasion in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is an extremely aggressive disease associated with a poor prognosis. Previous studies have established that cancer stem cells (CSCs) actively participate in OSCC development, progression and resistance to conventional treatments. Furthermore, CSCs frequently exhibit a deregulated expression of normal stem cell signalling pathways, thereby acquiring their distinctive abilities, of which self-renewal is an example.

Effects of a new intervention based on the Health at Every Size approach for the management of obesity: The "Health and Wellness in Obesity" study.

Health at Every Size® (HAES®) is a weight-neutral approach focused on promoting healthy behaviors in people with different body sizes. This study examined multiple physiological, attitudinal, nutritional, and behavioral effects of a newly developed, intensive, interdisciplinary HAES®-based intervention in obese women. This was a prospective, seven-month, randomized (2:1), controlled, mixed-method clinical trial.