Factors affecting axillary lymph node retrieval and assessment in breast cancer patients.

Background: Breast cancer is the most common female cancer in North America. Axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) is important for staging, prognosis, and adjuvant treatment decisions. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that affect the number of lymph nodes (LN) retrieved in ALND for breast cancer.

Are older cancer patients being referred to oncologists? A mail questionnaire of Ontario primary care practitioners to evaluate their referral patterns.

Purpose: Understanding why older patients are frequently underrepresented in cancer services use and clinical research may help to increase their participation in clinical trials and eventually result in better cancer care for this vulnerable population.

Methods: To identify potential barriers that may prevent older cancer patients from being referred from a primary care physician (PCP) to an oncology specialist, a self-administered questionnaire was mailed to 9,312 PCPs throughout Ontario.

Results: With a one-time mailing, 2,240 questionnaires were returned (response rate, 24%) of which 2,089 (93%) were assessable.

[Cystic tumor of the mediastinum of digestive origin. Apropos of a new case. Diagnostic and pathogenic hypotheses].

An incidental discovery of a posterior and inferior mediastinal cyst-like opacity allowed us to diagnose a pulmonary sequestration in a 45-year old woman. The operative findings showed an hour-glass tumor of the inferior mediastinum with an abdominal prolongation attached by a stalk onto the top of the stomach. These findings made us change our diagnosis in favour of an abdomino-thoracic gastric duplication.

Human temporary threshold shift (TTS) and damage risk.

Information regarding the relation of human temporary threshold shift (TTS) to properties of steady-state and intermittent noise published since the 1966 appearance of the CHABA damage risk contours is reviewed. The review focuses on results from four investigative areas relevant to potential revision of the CHABA contours including effects of long-duration exposure and asymptotic threshold shifts (ATS); equivalent quiet and/or safe noise levels; effects of intermittency; and use of noise-induced temporary threshold shift (NITTS) to predict susceptibility to noise-induced permanent threshold shift (NIPTS). These data indicate that two of three major postulates on which the original contours were based are not valid.

Hearing compensation evaluation.

Compensation claims for hearing loss are increasing. Physicians and audiologists supply necessary information regarding probable cause and amount of loss for evaluating these claims. Compensable hearing loss can arise from several sources.