Intraminority Gay Community Stress and Coping Responses Among Gay and Bisexual Men in Taiwan.

A proportion of gay and bisexual men (GBM) experience worse mental health when they encounter stress from problems within the gay community. This qualitative study examined the dominant standards held in the gay community in Taiwan, the intraminority-community stress experienced by GBM, and the strategies that GBM adopt to cope with such stress. Data from open and in-depth interviews with 26 GBM were subject to reflexive thematic analysis.

Obesity-Specific improvement of lung cancer outcomes and immunotherapy efficacy with metformin.

Background: Pre-clinical cancer studies ascribe promising anticancer properties to metformin. Yet, clinical findings vary, casting uncertainty on its therapeutic value for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. We hypothesized that metformin could benefit obese and overweight patients with NSCLC.

EXCELLENT Registry: A Prospective, Multicenter, Global Registry of Endovascular Stroke Treatment With the EMBOTRAP Device.

Background: The EXCELLENT registry aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the EMBOTRAP Revascularization Device in an all-comer population in a real-world setting, with a focus on the composition of retrieved clots.

Methods: EXCELLENT is a prospective, global registry of patients with acute ischemic stroke treated with EMBOTRAP as the first-line mechanical thrombectomy device conducted at 34 sites (25 sites contributing clot) from September 2018 to March 2021, utilizing core imaging and central histology laboratories blinded to clinical data, independent 90-day modified Rankin Scale assessment and Clinical Events Committee.

Results: After screening 3799 patients, a total of 997 subjects (mean age, 70.

Assessing the Effects of HbA1c Reduction on Alleviating Chronic Nonspecific Low Back Pain in Prediabetic Non-obese Patients: A Non-Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Pre-diabetes, characterized by elevated glycemic indices, poses a high risk of diabetes development, and is increasingly linked to non-specific low back pain. While mechanisms remain incompletely understood, metabolic, inflammatory, and neurological factors are implicated. Dietary interventions, including low-glycemic and anti-inflammatory diets, alongside weight management, may improve outcomes in this population.

Determinants of long-term paramagnetic rim lesion evolution in people with multiple sclerosis.

Objective: Baseline paramagnetic rim lesion (PRL) load predicts disease progression in people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS). Understanding how PRLs relate to other known MS-related factors, and the practical utility of PRLs in clinical trials, is crucial for informing clinical decision-making and guiding development of novel disease-modifying treatments (DMTs).

Methods: This study included 152 pwMS enrolled in a larger prospective, longitudinal cohort study who had 3T MRI scans and clinical assessments at baseline and 5- or 10-year follow-ups.

Evaluating the Factors Associated With Increased Risk of Self-Reported Ischemic Heart Disease in Patients With Arthritis.

. Arthritis has increased systematic repercussions either by extra-articular manifestations or due to limited activities. .

An Unusual Case of Chest Pain Presenting to the Cardiology Clinic.

We present the case of a 45-year-old physically active female who presented to the cardiology clinic with subacute chest pain. Despite an extensive diagnostic cardiac workup revealing no significant findings, her chest pain persisted. The patient was finally referred to thoracic surgery for the management of severe pectus excavatum deformity, and her symptoms improved following surgical correction of the condition.

Opposition to banning cigarette filters and the belief that removing filters makes cigarettes much more harmful among adults who smoke: Findings from the 2022 International Tobacco Control Four Country Smoking and Vaping Survey.

Introduction: In line with historical tobacco industry marketing claims, many consumers perceive cigarettes with filters as less harmful than cigarette without filters. However, scientific evidence indicates that cigarette filters do not reduce the risks associated with smoking. We examined opposition to banning the sale of cigarettes with filters, beliefs about whether removing filters makes cigarettes much more harmful, and whether this belief is associated with opposition to banning filters among adults who smoke cigarettes from four high-income countries.

Case report: Single gene testing and comprehensive genomic profiling in non-small cell lung cancer-a case series of divergent results from a large reference laboratory.

Clinical management of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) requires accurate identification of tumor-specific genetic alterations to inform treatment options. Historically, providers have relied on single-gene testing (SGT) for actionable variants due to a perception of cost-effectiveness and/or efficient turnaround time compared to next-generation sequencing (NGS). However, not all actionable variants may be evaluated through SGT modalities, and an SGT approach can exhaust valuable tissue needed for more comprehensive analyses.

Systemic chemokine-modulatory regimen combined with neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with triple-negative breast cancer.

Background: Higher cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) numbers in the tumor microenvironment (TME) predict pathologic complete response (pCR) to neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) and positive long-term outcomes in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). pCR to NAC is achieved only in 30-40% of patients. The combination of NAC with pembrolizumab increases the pCR rate but at the cost of immune-related adverse events (irAEs).

Bevacizumab First in DRCR Protocol AC vs Real-World Physician Treatment Choice for Diabetic Macular Edema: Two-Year Cost Analysis.

To compare the modeled costs of the Protocol AC bevacizumab-first treatment protocol (with a switch to aflibercept for sub-responders) with real-world costs for treatment-naïve patients with diabetic macular edema (DME) over a 2-year period. Published data from the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network (DRCR) Protocol AC bevacizumab-first arm (154 eyes) were used to model 2-year treatment costs. Real-world costs were modeled using data from the Vestrum Health electronic medical records database from a 2016 to 2018 cohort of treatment-naïve eyes with DME (n = 1062) treated with antivascular endothelial growth factor monotherapy.

Network analysis of U.S. non-fatal opioid-involved overdose journeys, 2018-2023.

We present a nation-wide network analysis of non-fatal opioid-involved overdose journeys in the United States. Leveraging a unique proprietary dataset of Emergency Medical Services incidents, we construct a journey-to-overdose geospatial network capturing nearly half a million opioid-involved overdose events spanning 2018-2023. We analyze the structure and sociological profiles of the nodes, which are counties or their equivalents, characterize the distribution of overdose journey lengths, and investigate changes in the journey network between 2018 and 2023.

Validity of Woven EndoBridge sizing based on the device-to-aneurysm volume ratio.

Background: The Woven EndoBridge (WEB) is a treatment modality available for the treatment of intracranial aneurysms, specifically beneficial in wide-necked bifurcation aneurysms. Conventional sizing methods rely on the manipulation of aneurysm width and height measurements. This results in frequent need for re-sizing after initial WEB insertion attempts.

Proton-Pump Inhibitors and Fat Absorption in Cystic Fibrosis and Pancreatic Insufficiency: A Randomized Crossover Pilot Trial.

Background: Dietary fat malabsorption contributes to poor nutritional status in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI). Prescribing gastric acid-reducing agents such as proton-pump inhibitors (PPI) as an adjunct to pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT) to improve dietary fat absorption has been accepted in clinical practice despite limited evidence.

Aims: This was a pilot randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial of subjects aged 12 and older with CF and EPI assessed on placebo and omeprazole to determine if PPI improved the efficacy of PERT as indicated by measures of dietary fat absorption.

Utility of icobrain for brain volumetry in multiple sclerosis clinical practice.

Background: Few studies on multiple sclerosis (MS) have explored the variability of percentage brain volume change (PBVC) measurements obtained from different clinical MRIs. In a retrospective multicentre cohort study, we quantified the variability of annualised PBVC in clinical MRIs.

Methods: Clinical MRIs of relapse-onset MS patients were assessed by icobrain.

Symptom Screening Linked to Care Pathways for Pediatric Patients With Cancer: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Pediatric patients with cancer commonly experience severely bothersome symptoms. The effectiveness of routine symptom screening with symptom feedback and symptom management care pathways is unknown.

Objective: To determine whether thrice-weekly symptom screening with symptom feedback and management care pathways, compared with usual care, improves overall self-reported symptom scores measured by the Symptom Screening in Pediatrics Tool (SSPedi) in pediatric patients with cancer.

A call to action: Standardisation of intravaginal hygiene product reporting in preoperative evaluation.

Preoperative checklists have demonstrated efficacy in improving patient care in the surgical setting. While the assessment of perioperative risks through patient inquiry is extensive, the menstrual status of the patient is one question that is not frequently discussed. If a patient is menstruating during their surgical procedure, unknown use of an intravaginal menstrual hygiene product, such as a tampon or menstrual cup, places the patient at risk of infection.