Background: Cancer care hospitals are taking measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Doctors and health-care workers might be suffering from burnout. Measures taken to reduce overcrowding in hospitals might be making access to essential cancer care difficult. The study aims to understand changes in practice, levels of burnout, and other psychological aspects in radiation oncologists working in a regional cancer center during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods: Data were collected through online Google Forms. The participants who were included in the study were doctors working in the department of radiation oncology. A 25min survey consisting of multiplechoice questions related to the changes at work during COVID19, and standardized questionnaires assessing fear of Covid 19 and burnout. The Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) was used in this study to assess burnout. The Fear of COVID-19 Scale was used to assess fear induced by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Results And Conclusion: Out of 71 professionals who participated in this study, most of them belonged to the category of residents (84.5%) and the rest were consultants (15.5%). Rescheduling of the patients' radiation treatment to convenient time slots to avoid overcrowding, preferring hypofractionated radiotherapy, and the use of telephonic consultations to prioritize outpatient appointments were the most commonly used measures. The results have shown that 62% of the doctors have experienced symptoms of exhaustion and disengagement, indicating a presence of burnout. However, aspects related to fear of COVID have been revealed to be less prevalent among the participants.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.4103/jcrt.JCRT_1671_20 | DOI Listing |
Nat Methods
January 2025
Steele Laboratories, Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
The physical microenvironment plays a crucial role in tumor development, progression, metastasis and treatment. Recently, we proposed four physical hallmarks of cancer, with distinct origins and consequences, to characterize abnormalities in the physical tumor microenvironment: (1) elevated compressive-tensile solid stresses, (2) elevated interstitial fluid pressure and the resulting interstitial fluid flow, (3) altered material properties (for example, increased tissue stiffness) and (4) altered physical micro-architecture. As this emerging field of physical oncology is being advanced by tumor biologists, cell and developmental biologists, engineers, physicists and oncologists, there is a critical need for model systems and measurement tools to mechanistically probe these physical hallmarks.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAnn Surg Oncol
January 2025
Wilmot Cancer Institute, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, USA.
Background: Preventative medication (PM) uptake is low among patients at an elevated risk of breast cancer, largely due to fears of intolerance. This study aimed to investigate whether a new, surgical advanced practice provider (APP)-run clinic was effectively prescribing PM. We hypothesized equivalent rates of PM uptake compared to consultation with medical oncologists (MD).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMed Dosim
January 2025
Department of Radiation Oncology, People's Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region & Guangxi Academy of Medical Sciences, 530021, Nanning, Guangxi, China. Electronic address:
Axillary dose restriction (ADR) is rarely implemented in breast cancer radiotherapy by radiation oncologists to minimize exposure to organs at risk (OARs), particularly the axilla. This prospective randomized controlled study aims to evaluate the efficacy of ADR in improving plan quality (PQ) and its impact on acute radiation dermatitis (ARD) in breast cancer radiotherapy. The study recruited breast cancer patients who required postoperative radiotherapy but did not have an indication for axillary irradiation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJPRAS Open
March 2025
Department of Radiation Oncology, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan.
Background: Breast cancer patients experience acute radiation dermatitis (ARD) during radiation therapy (RT). This study investigated the prophylactic effect of a newly developed xenogeneic platelet-rich plasma (PRP) lotion on ARD for breast cancer patients.
Methods: This study enrolled patients with ductal carcinoma in situ and early-stage invasive breast cancers after breast-conserving surgery.
Clin Neurol Neurosurg
January 2025
Department of Neurosurgery, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Electronic address:
Objectives: To provide information about implementation, resources, practice patterns and prevalent perceptions regarding neuro-oncology tumor boards (NOTBs) in a lower middle income country.
Methods: A nationwide survey was designed to include licensed neurosurgeons involving data on practice, structure, and perceptions of NOTBs with non-probability sampling, a pre-validated proforma, data analysis using SPSS v27, and geospatial mapping using Quantum GIS.
Results: 139 neurosurgeons were surveyed from 63 neurosurgical centers of a lower middle income country.
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