Inner Child, Self-Esteem, and Mental Health in Jordanian University Students

The study investigated the influence of the inner child on the mental health of Jordanian university students, considering the mediating role of self-esteem. Using a descriptive analytical survey method, a simple random sample of 625 Jordanian university students was utilized. The study employed three scales: the inner child scale (18 items), the mental health scale (15 items), and the Rosenberg self-esteem scale (10 items). Findings revealed that Jordanian university students demonstrated a high level of awareness of their inner child, mental health, and self-esteem. Statistical analysis indicated no significant differences (α ≤ 0.05) in the impact of inner child awareness on the mental health of Jordanian university students, considering the mediating role of self-esteem, based on variables such as sex, college, and educational level. Moreover, the study identified a positive correlation between inner child awareness and mental health, as well as a positive association between self-esteem and mental health. Consequently, the study recommends several actions, including conducting a longitudinal study to explore the impact of the inner child across various life stages (childhood, adolescence, youth, and old age)

Characterization of Olive Oil Volatile Compounds after Elution through Selected Bleaching Materials—Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry Analysis

Using different bleaching materials to eliminate or reduce organic volatiles in deteriorated olive oils will positively affect its characteristics. This study aims to identify the volatiles of oxidized olive oil after physical bleaching using selected immobilized adsorbents. Oxidized olive oil was eluted using open-column chromatography packed with silica gel, bentonite, resin, Arabic gum, and charcoal at a 1:5 eluent system (w/v, adsorbent: oxidized olive oil). The smoke point was determined. The collected distilled vapor was injected into GC-MS to identify the volatiles eluted after partial refining with each of these bleaching compounds. The results showed that volatile compounds were quantitatively and qualitatively affected by the type of adsorbents used for the elution of olive oil and the smoking points of eluted oils. The most prominent detected volatile compounds were limonene (14.53%), piperitone (10.35%), isopropyl-5-methyl-(2E)-hexenal (8.6%), methyl octadecenoate (6.57%), and citronellyl acetate (5.87%). Both bentonite and resin were superior in decreasing the ratio of volatile compounds compared with other bleaching materials used. Resin immobilized medium was significantly affected (p < 0.05), raising the smoke point. These results highlighted some information regarding the characteristics of volatile compounds that result after the physical elution of olive oil through selected adsorbents

Multidisciplinary management of clear-cell renal cell carcinoma in Africa and the Middle East: current practice and recommendations for improvement

Jamal Zekri,1 Lydia M Dreosti,2 Marwan Ghosn,3 Emad Hamada,4 Mohamed Jaloudi,5 Ola Khorshid,6 Blaha Larbaoui7 1College of Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Alfaisal University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; 2Department of Medical Oncology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa; 3Faculty of Medicine Hematology, Oncology Department, Saint Joseph University, Beirut, Lebanon; 4Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Kasr Alainy, Cairo, Egypt; 5Oncology Hematology Department, Tawam Hospital, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; 6National Cancer Institute, Cairo University, Kasr El Ainy, Cairo, Egypt; 7Oncology Service, Universit&eacute; Djillali Liab&eacute;s, Sidi Bel Abb&eacute;s, Algeria Abstract: The management of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) has evolved considerably in recent years. This report represents the consensus of 22 relevant medical specialists from Africa and the Middle East region engaged in the management of RCC. Partial or radical nephrectomy is the standard of care for most patients with localized RCC. It is essential that patients are followed up appropriately after surgery to enable local and distant relapses to be identified and treated promptly. The treatment of advanced/metastatic disease has changed dramatically with the introduction of targeted therapies. Follow-up of these patients enables therapy optimization and assessment of response to treatment. There was universal agreement on the importance of management of RCC by a multidisciplinary team supported by a multidisciplinary tumor board. Barriers hindering this approach were identified. These included lack of awareness of the benefits of multidisciplinary team role, poor communication among relevant disciplines, time constraints, and specifics of private practice. Other challenges include shortage of expert specialists as urologists and oncologists and lack of local management guidelines in some countries. Solutions were proposed and discussed. Medical educational initiatives and awareness activities were highlighted as keys to encouraging cooperation between specialties to improve patients&#39; outcome. Establishing combined genitourinary cancer clinics and formal referral systems should encourage a culture of effective communication. Joining forces with professionals in peripheral areas and the private sector is likely to help standardize care. Sustained action will be required to ensure that all patients with RCC in the region benefit from up-to-date care. Keywords: Africa&ndash;Middle East, education, multidisciplinary, renal cell carcinoma&nbsp

Increased levels of circulating and tumor-infiltrating granulocytic myeloid cells in colorectal cancer patients

Increased levels of myeloid cells, especially myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), have been reported to correlate with bad prognosis and reduced survival in cancer patients. However, limited data are available on their conclusive phenotypes and their correlation with clinical settings. The aim of this study was to investigate levels and phenotype of myeloid cells in peripheral blood and tumor microenvironment of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients, compared to blood from healthy donors (HDs) and paired, adjacent non-tumor colon tissue. Flow cytometric analysis was performed to examine the expression of different myeloid markers in fresh peripheral blood samples from CRC patients and HDs, and tissue-infiltrating immune cells from CRC patients. We found significantly higher levels of cells expressing myeloid markers and lacking the expression of MHC class II molecule HLA-DR in blood and tumor of CRC patients. Further analysis revealed that these cells were granulocytic and expressed Arginase 1 (ARG1), indicative of their suppressive phenotype. These expanded cells could be neutrophils or granulocytic MDSCs, and we refer to them as granulocytic myeloid cells (GMCs) due to the phenotypical and functional overlap between these cell subsets. Interestingly, the expansion of peripheral GMCs correlated with higher stage and histological grade of cancer, thereby suggesting their role in cancer progression. Furthermore, an increase in CD33+CD11b+HLA-DR-CD14-CD15- immature myeloid cells (IMCs) was also observed in CRC tumor tissue. Our work shows that GMCs are expanded in circulation and tumor microenvironment of CRC patients, which provides further insights for developing immunotherapeutic approaches targeting these cell subsets to enhance anti-tumor immune and clinical responses

Safety and tolerability of subcutaneous trastuzumab for the adjuvant treatment of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive early breast cancer: SafeHer phase III study's primary analysis of 2573 patients

Aim To assess the safety and tolerability of adjuvant subcutaneous trastuzumab (Herceptin® SC, H SC), delivered from an H SC Vial via hand-held syringe (Cohort A) or single-use injection device (Cohort B), with or without chemotherapy, for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive stage I to IIIC early breast cancer (EBC) in the phase III SafeHer study (NCT01566721). Methods Patients received 600 mg fixed-dose H SC every 3 weeks for 18 cycles. The chemotherapy partner was at the investigators' discretion (H SC monotherapy was limited to ≤10% of the population). Data from the first H SC dose until 28 days (plus a 5-day window) after the last dose are presented. Results are descriptive. Results In the overall population, 2282/2573 patients (88.7%) experienced adverse events (AEs). Of the above, 128 (5.0%) patients experienced AEs leading to study drug discontinuation; 596 (23.2%) experienced grade ≥ 3 AEs and 326 (12.7%) experienced serious AEs. Grade ≥ 3 cardiac disorders were reported in 24 patients (0.9%), including congestive heart failure in eight (0.3%). As expected, the AE rates varied according to the timing of chemotherapy in both cohorts, with higher rates in concurrent versus sequential chemotherapy subgroups. In the concurrent chemotherapy subgroup, AEs were more common during the actual period of concurrent chemotherapy compared with the period when patients did not receive concurrent chemotherapy. Conclusion SafeHer confirms the safety and tolerability of the H SC 600 mg fixed dose for 1 year (every 3 weeks for 18 cycles) as adjuvant therapy with concurrent or sequential chemotherapy for HER2-positive EBC. These primary analysis results are consistent with the known safety profile for intravenous H and H SC