Predictors of Quality of Life Among Breast Cancer Patients

Over 3.1 million women living in the U.S. have been diagnosed with breast cancer. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether stage of cancer, psychological distress, cognitive fusion (fusion of one’s thoughts and emotions), mindfulness, and resilience were related to quality of life among breast cancer patients. Participants were 24 women, aged 41-71, diagnosed with stage 0-3 breast cancer, recruited to participate in a pilot intervention study. All data for this study were collected at the baseline assessment. A multiple linear regression analysis explained 79.1% of the total variance in quality of life, F(5, 14) = 15.400, p < .001, Adjusted R2 = .791. Higher resilience significantly predicted higher quality of life (b = 2.392, p = .002), whereas higher stage of cancer (b = -8.068, p = .030) and higher levels of psychological distress (b = -1.737, p < .001) significantly predicted lower quality of life. Contrary to the hypotheses, higher levels of mindfulness significantly predicted lower quality of life (b = -0.612, p = .022). Cognitive fusion did not significantly predict quality of life (p > .05). More research is needed to determine how various factors predict quality of life among breast cancer patients

Evaluation of genome-wide loci of iron metabolism in hereditary hemochromatosis identifies PCSK7 as a host risk factor of liver cirrhosis

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have revealed genetic determinants of iron metabolism, but correlation of these with clinical phenotypes is pending. Homozygosity for HFE C282Y is the predominant genetic risk factor for hereditary hemochromatosis (HH) and may cause liver cirrhosis. However, this genotype has a low penetrance. Thus, detection of yet unknown genetic markers that identify patients at risk of developing severe liver disease is necessary for better prevention. Genetic loci associated with iron metabolism (TF, TMPRSS6, PCSK7, TFR2 and Chr2p14) in recent GWAS and liver fibrosis (PNPLA3) in recent meta-analysis were analyzed for association with either liver cirrhosis or advanced fibrosis in 148 German HFE C282Y homozygotes. Replication of associations was sought in additional 499 Austrian/Swiss and 112 HFE C282Y homozygotes from Sweden. Only variant rs236918 in the PCSK7 gene (proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 7) was associated with cirrhosis or advanced fibrosis (P = 1.02 × 10−5) in the German cohort with genotypic odds ratios of 3.56 (95% CI 1.29-9.77) for CG heterozygotes and 5.38 (95% CI 2.39-12.10) for C allele carriers. Association between rs236918 and cirrhosis was confirmed in Austrian/Swiss HFE C282Y homozygotes (P = 0.014; ORallelic = 1.82 (95% CI 1.12-2.95) but not in Swedish patients. Post hoc combined analyses of German/Swiss/Austrian patients with available liver histology (N = 244, P = 0.00014, ORallelic = 2.84) and of males only (N = 431, P = 2.17 × 10−5, ORallelic = 2.54) were consistent with the premier finding. Association between rs236918 and cirrhosis was not confirmed in alcoholic cirrhotics, suggesting specificity of this genetic risk factor for HH. PCSK7 variant rs236918 is a risk factor for cirrhosis in HH patients homozygous for the HFE C282Y mutatio

Evaluation of genome-wide loci of iron metabolism in hereditary hemochromatosis identifies PCSK7 as a host risk factor of liver cirrhosis

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have revealed genetic determinants of iron metabolism, but correlation of these with clinical phenotypes is pending. Homozygosity for HFE C282Y is the predominant genetic risk factor for hereditary hemochromatosis (HH) and may cause liver cirrhosis. However, this genotype has a low penetrance. Thus, detection of yet unknown genetic markers that identify patients at risk of developing severe liver disease is necessary for better prevention. Genetic loci associated with iron metabolism (TF, TMPRSS6, PCSK7, TFR2 and Chr2p14) in recent GWAS and liver fibrosis (PNPLA3) in recent meta-analysis were analyzed for association with either liver cirrhosis or advanced fibrosis in 148 German HFE C282Y homozygotes. Replication of associations was sought in additional 499 Austrian/Swiss and 112 HFE C282Y homozygotes from Sweden. Only variant rs236918 in the PCSK7 gene (proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 7) was associated with cirrhosis or advanced fibrosis (P = 1.02 × 10(-5)) in the German cohort with genotypic odds ratios of 3.56 (95% CI 1.29-9.77) for CG heterozygotes and 5.38 (95% CI 2.39-12.10) for C allele carriers. Association between rs236918 and cirrhosis was confirmed in Austrian/Swiss HFE C282Y homozygotes (P = 0.014; ORallelic = 1.82 (95% CI 1.12-2.95) but not in Swedish patients. Post hoc combined analyses of German/Swiss/Austrian patients with available liver histology (N = 244, P = 0.00014, ORallelic = 2.84) and of males only (N = 431, P = 2.17 × 10(-5), ORallelic = 2.54) were consistent with the premier finding. Association between rs236918 and cirrhosis was not confirmed in alcoholic cirrhotics, suggesting specificity of this genetic risk factor for HH. PCSK7 variant rs236918 is a risk factor for cirrhosis in HH patients homozygous for the HFE C282Y mutation

Disparities in pediatric cancer survivorship care: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Childhood cancer survivors (CCS) experience many long-term health problems that can be mitigated with recommended survivorship care. However, many CCS do not have access to survivorship care nor receive recommended survivorship care. We reviewed the empirical evidence of disparities in survivorship care for CCS. METHODS: This systematic review searched PubMed, CINAHL, and PsycINFO for studies on survivorship care for CCS (PROSPERO: CRD42021227965) and abstracted the reported presence or absence of disparities in care. We screened 7945 citations, and of those, we reviewed 2760 publications at full text. RESULTS: A total of 22 studies reported in 61 publications met inclusion criteria. Potential disparities by cancer treatment (N = 14), diagnosis (N = 13), sex (N = 13), and current age (N = 13) were frequently studied. There was high quality of evidence (QOE) of survivorship care disparities associated with non-White race, Hispanic ethnicity, and being uninsured. Moderate QOE demonstrated disparities among CCS who were unemployed and older. Lower QOE was found for disparities based on cancer diagnosis, cancer treatment, age at diagnosis, time since diagnosis, sex, insurance type, income, educational attainment, and geographic area. CONCLUSIONS: We found strong empirical evidence of disparities in survivorship care for CCS associated with race, ethnicity, and insurance status. Multiple other disparate groups, such as those by employment, income, insurance type, education, cancer diagnosis, age at diagnosis, time since diagnosis, cancer treatment, geographic area, sex, and self-identified gender warrant further investigation. Prospective, multilevel research is needed to examine the role of other patient characteristics as potential disparities hindering adequate survivorship care in CCS

Time from Diagnosis and Correlates of Health-Related Quality of Life among Young Adult Colorectal Cancer Survivors

The incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC) is rising among young adults. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in survivorship is not well-described in this population. We assessed HRQoL among young adult CRC survivors diagnosed from age 18–39 (AYAs) to examine differences by time from diagnosis, and to identify key correlates. A cross-sectional online survey was administered in collaboration with a national patient advocacy organization. The Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT-C) was used to measure HRQoL, which assesses HRQoL globally and across 4 domains: emotional, physical, social, and functional. T-tests were conducted to compare HRQoL between survivors who were 6–18 months versus 19–36 months from diagnosis or relapse and multiple linear regression was conducted to identify correlates. The sample (n = 196) had a mean age of 32.2(SD ± 4.5); 116 (59.9%) were male; and the self-reported tumor location was colon (39.3%) or rectal (60.7%). The majority (56.4%) were diagnosed with stage 2 disease; 96.9% were non-metastatic. The mean global HRQoL score was 67.7 out of a possible score of 136. Across domains, mean scores were low. Emotional and physical well-being were significantly higher among survivors who were 19–36 months from diagnosis/relapse compared to those 6–18 months from diagnosis/relapse. Longer time from diagnosis and older current age were associated with higher HRQoL, while more intensive treatment and higher clinical disease stage were negatively associated, particularly in the emotional and physical domains. Overall, HRQoL was low in this population, and further research is needed to inform age-appropriate interventions to improve HRQoL for AYA CRC survivors

Disparities in pediatric cancer survivorship care: A systematic review

Abstract Background Childhood cancer survivors (CCS) experience many long‐term health problems that can be mitigated with recommended survivorship care. However, many CCS do not have access to survivorship care nor receive recommended survivorship care. We reviewed the empirical evidence of disparities in survivorship care for CCS. Methods This systematic review searched PubMed, CINAHL, and PsycINFO for studies on survivorship care for CCS (PROSPERO: CRD42021227965) and abstracted the reported presence or absence of disparities in care. We screened 7945 citations, and of those, we reviewed 2760 publications at full text. Results A total of 22 studies reported in 61 publications met inclusion criteria. Potential disparities by cancer treatment (N = 14), diagnosis (N = 13), sex (N = 13), and current age (N = 13) were frequently studied. There was high quality of evidence (QOE) of survivorship care disparities associated with non‐White race, Hispanic ethnicity, and being uninsured. Moderate QOE demonstrated disparities among CCS who were unemployed and older. Lower QOE was found for disparities based on cancer diagnosis, cancer treatment, age at diagnosis, time since diagnosis, sex, insurance type, income, educational attainment, and geographic area. Conclusions We found strong empirical evidence of disparities in survivorship care for CCS associated with race, ethnicity, and insurance status. Multiple other disparate groups, such as those by employment, income, insurance type, education, cancer diagnosis, age at diagnosis, time since diagnosis, cancer treatment, geographic area, sex, and self‐identified gender warrant further investigation. Prospective, multilevel research is needed to examine the role of other patient characteristics as potential disparities hindering adequate survivorship care in CCS