Assessing screening practices among health care workers at a tertiary-care hospital in Sao Paulo, Brazil

OBJECTIVE: To ascertain the extent to which screening procedures (with and without evidence of effectiveness) are practiced among health care workers at a tertiary-care hospital in Sao Paulo, Brazil. METHODS: From February 2001 to September 2003, a cross-sectional study involving physicians, nurses and nursing assistants (aged 40 to 69 years) was carried out at a tertiary-care hospital in the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Subjects were interviewed using a questionnaire that addresses 17 procedures with grades of recommendation of A, B, C, D or E, in accordance with the 1996 United States Preventive Services Task Force guidelines for routine screening. RESULTS: Of the 333 health care workers included, 228 (68.5%) were female. The mean age was 48.8 (SD 6.6 years). Most subjects had undergone screening for hypertension (blood pressure measurement) and lipid abnormalities (cholesterol testing). Screening for breast and cervical cancer was common among females. Resting electrocardiography, serum glucose testing, urine tests, chest X-rays and serum prostate-specific antigen testing were also quite common. However, only 6 (1.8%) of the subjects had undergone screening for colorectal cancer (fecal occult blood test or sigmoidoscopy). CONCLUSIONS: A sizeable proportion of health care workers underwent screening procedures that are not recommended or for which there was insufficient evidence of a benefit. Conversely, certain recommended procedures were performed on a small proportion of such workers. These results indicate that the Brazilian National Ministry of Health must develop nationwide evidence-based screening recommendations and disseminate such recommendations among health care professionals in Brazil.Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP

Itinerário terapêutico de mulheres com câncer de mama tratadas no Distrito Federal, Brasil

OBJETIVO: Conhecer os itinerários terapêuticos de mulheres com câncer de mama tratadas em hospitais públicos, assim como analisar os fatores que influenciam o intervalo de tempo entre a primeira consulta e o início do tratamento. MÉTODOS: Realizou-se um estudo transversal com 600 mulheres com câncer de mama tratadas em nove hospitais públicos do Distrito Federal, Brasil. As pacientes foram entrevistadas entre setembro de 2012 e setembro de 2014. Foram ajustados modelos de regressão logística simples e múltipla para avaliar as variáveis associadas ao intervalo de tempo estudado. O itinerário mais frequente foi aquele iniciado na atenção primária com atendimento subsequente no serviço de tratamento (28,9%). No ajuste múltiplo, foram associados a um maior tempo entre a primeira consulta e o tratamento: menor renda familiar (OR = 1,89; IC95% 1,32–2,68), realização da primeira consulta em serviços públicos (OR = 1,78; I IC95% 1,20–2,64), atendimento em mais de dois serviços de saúde no itinerário terapêutico (OR = 1,71; IC95% 1,19–2,44); e obtenção da análise anatomopatológica da biópsia em serviços públicos ao invés de serviços de saúde privados (OR = 1,87; IC95% 1,29–2,71). De forma independente, a implementação do agendamento de consulta com especialista, por meio da regulação assistencial, foi associada a um menor intervalo de tempo entre primeira consulta e tratamento (OR = 0,33; IC95% 0,16–0,65). CONCLUSÕES: Observou-se que múltiplos itinerários foram percorridos pelas mulheres com câncer de mama tratadas em serviços públicos do Distrito Federal. Iniquidades socioeconômicas e diversos aspectos dos itinerários percorridos foram associados a um maior intervalo de tempo entre a primeira consulta e início do tratamento do câncer de mama.OBJECTIVE: To identify the clinical pathways of women with breast cancer treated in public hospitals, and to analyze the factors that influence the time interval between the first appointment and the start of therapy. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 600 women with breast cancer treated in nine public hospitals in the Brazilian Federal District. Patients were interviewed between September 2012 and September 2014. Simple and multiple logistic regression models were adjusted to evaluate the variables associated with the time interval studied. The most frequent pathway was the one that started in primary care with following care in the therapy service (28.9%). In the multiple adjustment, factors associated to a longer time interval between the first appointment and therapy were: lower family income (OR = 1.89; 95%CI 1.32–2.68), the first appointment in public services (OR = 1.78; 95%CI 1.20–2.64), care in more than two health services in the clinical pathway (OR = 1.71; 95%CI 1.19–2.44); and obtaining the anatomopathological analysis of the biopsy in public services instead of private health services (OR = 1.87; 95%CI 1.29–2.71). Independently, the implementation of specialist appointment scheduling, with care regulation, was associated with a shorter time interval between first appointment and therapy (OR = 0.33; 95%CI 0.16–0.65). CONCLUSIONS: We observed that multiple pathways were covered by women with breast cancer treated in public services of the Federal District. Socioeconomic iniquities and several aspectos of the pathways covered were associated with a longer time interval between the first appointment and the start of breast cancer therapy

Translation and cultural adaptation into Brazilian Portuguese of the Finnish diabetes risk score (Findrisc) and reliability assessment

Introduction: The Finnish Diabetes Risk Score (FINDRISC) is a tool that was initially developed to predict the risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus in adults. This tool is simple, quick to apply, non-invasive, and low-cost. The aims of this study were to perform a translation and cultural adaptation of the original version of FINDRISC into Brazilian Portuguese and to assess test-retest reliability. Methodology: This work was done following the ISPOR Principles of Good Practice for the Translation and Cultural Adaptation Process for Patient-Reported Outcomes Measures. Once the final Brazilian Portuguese version (FINDRISC-Br) was developed, the reliability assessment was performed using a non-random sample of 83 individuals attending a primary care health center. Each participant was interviewed by trained registered dieticians on two occasions with a mean interval of 14 days. The reliability assessment was performed by analyzing the level of agreement between the test-retest responses of FINDRISC-Br using Cohen’s kappa coefficient and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Results: The steps of ISPOR guidelines were consecutively followed without major problems. Regarding the reliability assessment, the questionnaire as a whole presented adequate reliability (Cohen’s kappa = 0.82, 95%CI 0.72 – 0.92 and ICC = 0.94, 95%CI 0.91 – 0.96). Conclusion: FINDRISC was translated into Brazilian Portuguese and culturally adapted following standard procedures. FINDRISC-Br has thus become available for use and has potential as a screening tool in different Brazilian settings and applications. © 2020 Associação Brasileira de Saúde Coletiva.Peer reviewe

La falta d’expressió de MICA en pacients amb càncer de bufeta significa un pitjor pronòstic

Antecedents: el càncer de bufeta urinària i de pulmó es troben entre els deu tipus de càncer més comuns en ambdós sexes. El receptor NKG2D i un dels seus lligants, MICA, s’associen amb el tabaquisme i la susceptibilitat de patir malaltia pulmonar obstructiva crònica i càncer de pulmó. Objectiu: esbrinar si el sistema NKG2D-MICA s’associa amb altres càncers epitelials relacionats amb l’hàbit de fumar com el càncer de bufeta. Disseny, Escenari i Participants: 70 casos primaris de càncer de bufeta no múscul invasiu van ser examinats per detectar l’expressió de MICA i CD8 +, CD4 + i la infiltració de cèl·lules NK. La majoria dels pacients (n = 55, 78,6%) eren fumadors actuals o anteriors. Metodologia: la tecnologia de microarrays (TMA) va ser triada per avaluar MICA i l’infiltració tumoral de limfòcits en les mostres de càncer de bufeta. Es varen utilitzar Curves de Kaplan-Meier i l’anàlisi univariant de Cox per avaluar la recaiguda, mortalitat total per càncer i la mortalitat específica per càncer de bufeta. Resultats i limitacions: MICA es va expressar en la majoria dels espècimens de càncer examinats (és a dir, 70%). La recaiguda del càncer de bufeta no es va associar amb l’estat d’expressió de MICA (log rank p = 0,1123). No obstant això, ha existit una associació significativa entre l’expressió de MICA i l’alta mortalitat per càncer de bufeta (HR = 0,25; IC95% = 0,06-0,97). Limfòcits CD4 + i CD8 + es van trobar a la majoria (64%) de les mostres de tumors infiltrants. Les cèl·lules que expressen el receptor NKG2D es van trobar només en el 3% de les mostres. No hi havia cap funció lineal entre les cèl·lules NKG2D +, el nombre o proporció de cèl·lules CD4 + i CD8 + TIL. Conclusions: MICA s’expressa només en una proporció significativa de carcinomes de bufeta. L’expressió de MICA s’associa amb avantatges significatius en la supervivència davant el càncer de bufeta. El sistema NKG2D-MICABackground: Bladder and lung cancer are among the ten most common cancers in both genders. The NKG2D receptor and one of its ligands, MICA, are associated with smoking and susceptibility to both chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer. Objective: We hypothesized that NKG2D-MICA system was associated with other smok- ing-related epithelial cancers such as bladder cancer. Design, Setting, and Participants: 70 cases of primary non-muscle invasive bladder cancer were screened for the MICA expression and CD8+, CD4+ and NK cell infiltration. Most patients (n = 55, 78.6%) were current or former smokers. Measurements: Tissue microarray (TMA) technology was chosen to evaluate MICA and tumor infiltrating lymphocytes in samples with confirmed bladder cancer. Kaplan- Meier curves and univariate Cox analysis was used to assess relapse, all-cancer mortality and specific bladder cancer mortality. Results and Limitations: MICA was expressed in most cancer specimens examined (i.e., 70%). Relapse of bladder cancer was not associated with the status of MICA expression (log rank p = 0.1123). Nevertheless, a signifi- cant association existed between high MICA expression and bladder cancer mortality (HR = 0.25; CI95% = 0.06 - 0.97). Tumor infiltrating CD4+ and CD8+ lymphocytes were found in the majority (64%) of samples. Cells expressing the NKG2D receptor were found in only 3% of the samples. There was no linear function between NKG2D+ cells and number or ratio of CD4+ and CD8+ TIL. Conclusions: MICA is expressed in a significant proportion of bladder carci- nomas. MICA expression associates with significant survival advantages in the face of both all-cancer and bladder can- cer. The NKG2D-MICA system could represent a common mechanism involved in the immunopathology and natural history of bladder neoplasms

Large-Scale Evaluation of Candidate Genes Identifies Associations between VEGF Polymorphisms and Bladder Cancer Risk

Common genetic variation could alter the risk for developing bladder cancer. We conducted a large-scale evaluation of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in candidate genes for cancer to identify common variants that influence bladder cancer risk. An Illumina GoldenGate assay was used to genotype 1,433 SNPs within or near 386 genes in 1,086 cases and 1,033 controls in Spain. The most significant finding was in the 5′ UTR of VEGF (rs25648, p for likelihood ratio test, 2 degrees of freedom = 1 × 10(−5)). To further investigate the region, we analyzed 29 additional SNPs in VEGF, selected to saturate the promoter and 5′ UTR and to tag common genetic variation in this gene. Three additional SNPs in the promoter region (rs833052, rs1109324, and rs1547651) were associated with increased risk for bladder cancer: odds ratio (95% confidence interval): 2.52 (1.06–5.97), 2.74 (1.26–5.98), and 3.02 (1.36–6.63), respectively; and a polymorphism in intron 2 (rs3024994) was associated with reduced risk: 0.65 (0.46–0.91). Two of the promoter SNPs and the intron 2 SNP showed linkage disequilibrium with rs25648. Haplotype analyses revealed three blocks of linkage disequilibrium with significant associations for two blocks including the promoter and 5′ UTR (global p = 0.02 and 0.009, respectively). These findings are biologically plausible since VEGF is critical in angiogenesis, which is important for tumor growth, its elevated expression in bladder tumors correlates with tumor progression, and specific 5′ UTR haplotypes have been shown to influence promoter activity. Associations between bladder cancer risk and other genes in this report were not robust based on false discovery rate calculations. In conclusion, this large-scale evaluation of candidate cancer genes has identified common genetic variants in the regulatory regions of VEGF that could be associated with bladder cancer risk

Diagnosis delay and follow-up strategies in colorectal cancer. Prognosis implications: a study protocol

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Controversy exists with regard to the impact that the different components of diagnosis delay may have on the degree of invasion and prognosis in patients with colorectal cancer. The follow-up strategies after treatment also vary considerably. The aims of this study are: a) to determine if the symptoms-to-diagnosis interval and the treatment delay modify the survival of patients with colorectal cancer, and b) to determine if different follow-up strategies are associated with a higher survival rate.</p> <p>Methods/Design</p> <p>Multi-centre study with prospective follow-up in five regions in Spain (Galicia, Balearic Islands, Catalonia, Aragón and Valencia) during the period 2010-2012. Incident cases are included with anatomopathological confirmation of colorectal cancer (International Classification of Diseases 9th revision codes 153-154) that formed a part of a previous study (n = 953).</p> <p>At the time of diagnosis, each patient was given a structured interview. Their clinical records will be reviewed during the follow-up period in order to obtain information on the explorations and tests carried out after treatment, and the progress of these patients.</p> <p>Symptoms-to-diagnosis interval is defined as the time calculated from the diagnosis of cancer and the first symptoms attributed to cancer. Treatment delay is defined as the time elapsed between diagnosis and treatment. In non-metastatic patients treated with curative intention, information will be obtained during the follow-up period on consultations performed in the digestive, surgery and oncology departments, as well as the endoscopies, tumour markers and imaging procedures carried out.</p> <p>Local recurrence, development of metastases in the follow-up, appearance of a new tumour and mortality will be included as outcome variables.</p> <p>Actuarial survival analysis with Kaplan-Meier curves, Cox regression and competitive risk survival analysis will be performed.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>This study will make it possible to verify if the different components of delay have an impact on survival rate in colon cancer and rectal cancer. In consequence, this multi-centre study will be able to detect the variability present in the follow-up of patients with colorectal cancer, and if this variability modifies the prognosis. Ideally, this study could determine which follow-up strategies are associated with a better prognosis in colorectal cancer.</p

Maquetación 1

Introduction: colorectal cancer is one of the most common malignancies in developed countries. Data on specific and 10-year survival are scarce. This study analyzes overall and disease-specific survival for patients with colorectal cancer and assesses the value of clinical factors on disease-specific survival. Methods: a retrospective cohort study of newly diagnosed invasive colorectal cancer cases diagnosed from 1992 to 2007 were identified through the Hospital del Mar Cancer Registry. Five-and 10-year survival functions were estimated using Kaplan-Meier method. Cox proportional hazard models were used to assess prognostic factors. Results: a total of 2,080 patients with colorectal cancer were identified. The median age at diagnosis was 72 years and 58.5% were men. By the end of the follow-up period (December 2008), 1,225 patients had died and 68.4% of deaths were due to colorectal cancer. The 5-and 10-year cancer-specific survival rates were 55.5% (95%CI 53.9-57.9%) and 48.5% (95%CI 45.6-51.3%), respectively. The 5-year specific survival rate improved in the last period (2003 Conclusions: cancer-specific survival improved from 1992 to 2007. This improvement could be due to more effective treatment, since changes in stage distribution or age at diagnosis were not observed during the study period. Overall survival rates should notably improve with the implementation of a population-based colorectal cancer screening program in Spain

Maquetación 1

Introduction: colorectal cancer is one of the most common malignancies in developed countries. Data on specific and 10-year survival are scarce. This study analyzes overall and disease-specific survival for patients with colorectal cancer and assesses the value of clinical factors on disease-specific survival. Methods: a retrospective cohort study of newly diagnosed invasive colorectal cancer cases diagnosed from 1992 to 2007 were identified through the Hospital del Mar Cancer Registry. Five-and 10-year survival functions were estimated using Kaplan-Meier method. Cox proportional hazard models were used to assess prognostic factors. Results: a total of 2,080 patients with colorectal cancer were identified. The median age at diagnosis was 72 years and 58.5% were men. By the end of the follow-up period (December 2008), 1,225 patients had died and 68.4% of deaths were due to colorectal cancer. The 5-and 10-year cancer-specific survival rates were 55.5% (95%CI 53.9-57.9%) and 48.5% (95%CI 45.6-51.3%), respectively. The 5-year specific survival rate improved in the last period (2003 Conclusions: cancer-specific survival improved from 1992 to 2007. This improvement could be due to more effective treatment, since changes in stage distribution or age at diagnosis were not observed during the study period. Overall survival rates should notably improve with the implementation of a population-based colorectal cancer screening program in Spain

Abordagem da Violência contra a Mulher no Ensino Médico: um Relato de Experiência

RESUMO Trata-se de um relato de experiência sobre a incorporação do tema da violência contra a mulher no ensino médico. O objetivo do estudo foi descrever as correntes teóricas explicativas da violência contra a mulher e as formas de intervenção apreendidas pelos estudantes. Foram realizados dez encontros semanais com um grupo de 12 estudantes e desenvolvidas as seguintes atividades: (a) leitura de um caso de uma mulher em situação de violência, busca na literatura científica; (b) visitas a serviços de atenção primária à saúde e ao Centro de Referência Especializado de Assistência Social; (c) sistematização dos dados teóricos e práticos para construção do planejamento estratégico; (d) apresentação das atividades realizadas aos demais grupos de alunos. Ao final do módulo, destacou-se o aprendizado de quatro aspectos importantes das implicações do tema para a saúde das mulheres: (a) influência dos fenômenos socioculturais e psicossociais no processo saúde-doença; (b) importância da integralidade no atendimento; (c) a estratégia de saúde da família como facilitadora na detecção e acompanhamento dos casos; (d) violência contra a mulher como um problema de saúde pública pertinente na formação médica