Reflections from the Road: Vincentian Hospitality Principles in Healthcare Education for the Indigent

Hospitality and health care are clearly connected, both etymologically and practically. Health care has traditionally been delivered in hospitals. Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marillac developed the concept and practice of Vincentian health care, demonstrating a preferential option for the poor. It is important that those who work in healthcare understand and remain committed to Vincentian and hospitality based health care, particularly for the indigent and marginalized. The need for Vincentian and hospitality-based health care remains relevant and necessary in contemporary society, as there remains health inequity, particularly for the poor

Development of a Mission-Aligned Campus-Community Partnership Model: The Urban Institute Flu Vaccine Initiative for the Indigent of NYC

Despite its position as a powerful country which offers the opportunity for state-of-the-art high-quality patient-centered care, many people within the U.S. do not have access to or cannot afford health care. The Urban Institute of the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences at St. John’s University was successful in developing a community outreach initiative that provided free flu vaccines to an underserved indigent patient population in New York City in an effort to decrease their risk for flu-related morbidity and mortality

Response of follicular dendritic cell sarcoma to gemcitabine and docetaxel: report of two cases and literature review

Follicular dendritic cell sarcoma is a rare malignancy arising from follicular dendritic cells, which form a meshwork within lymphoid follicles. Traditional treatment of metastatic disease with CHOP chemotherapy, the most commonly used regimen for lymphoid malignancies, has met with limited success. I report herein two cases of follicular dendritic cell sarcoma metastatic to the liver treated with the combination of gemcitabine and docetaxel showing unprecedented response in this disease. These observations coupled with recent evidence of a mesenchymal origin of follicular dendritic cells support the premise that this malignancy should be treated similar to other adult soft tissue sarcomas

From Mission to Scholarship: Welcome to JoVSA

St. Vincent de Paul’s devotion to addressing the needs of the poor is rooted in the foundation of a Vincentian education. As a Catholic and Vincentian institution, the University provides a distinctive, value-based education to its students. In addition to this proud tradition, the University continues to enhance its resources to address the needs of a transforming world. In 2008, the University created a new unit to highlight and strengthen the distinctiveness of its mission. The Vincentian Institute for Social Action was created as part of the University’s strategic plan, with a goal of broadening the Catholic and Vincentian mission in the educational experiences of students

Reflections from the Road: Vincentian Hospitality Principles in Healthcare Education for the Indigent

John Conry discusses Vincentian health care history and principles and addresses inequities in health care, particularly in the United States. He focuses on the challenges that persons who are homeless face in managing chronic conditions and obtaining preventive care. A pharmacist and an educator at St. John’s University, Conry explains his work and that of his students with Project Renewal. Among other services, Project Renewal maintains five MedVans, traveling state-of-the-art clinics that work specifically with the homeless in New York. Although it does not have a spiritual component, Project Renewal provides holistic care, exemplifying hospitality and other Vincentian values. Conry shares a typical student reflection from this experiential service learning opportunity. He emphasizes the need for students to be educated as compassionate professionals who understand their responsibilities to poor persons

When should we stop mammography screening for breast cancer in elderly women?

There is insufficient evidence to recommend for or against routine screening mammography beyond the age of 69 years. The best candidates to stop screening are elderly women who have significant comorbidities, poor functional status, low bone mineral density (BMD), little interest in preventive care, or an unwillingness to accept the potential harm of screening. (Grade of Recommendation: C, based on retrospective cohort studies.

A Comparison of the Anti-Tumor Effects of a Chimeric versus Murine Anti-CD19 Immunotoxins on Human B Cell Lymphoma and Pre-B Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Cell Lines

Precursor B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (pre-B ALL) affects five to six thousand adults and almost three thousand children every year. Approximately 25% of the children and 60% of the adults die from their disease, highlighting the need for new therapies that complement rather than overlap chemotherapy and bone marrow transplantation. Immunotherapy is a class of therapies where toxicities and mechanisms of action do not overlap with those of chemotherapy. Because CD19 is a B cell- restricted membrane antigen that is expressed on the majority of pre-B tumor cells, a CD19-based immunotherapy is being developed for ALL. In this study, the anti-tumor activities of immunotoxins (ITs) constructed by conjugating a murine monoclonal antibody (MAb), HD37, or its chimeric (c) construct to recombinant ricin toxin A chain (rRTA) were compared both in vitro using human pre-B ALL and Burkitt’s lymphoma cell lines and in vivo using a disseminated human pre-B ALL tumor cell xenograft model. The murine and chimeric HD37 IT constructs were equally cytotoxic to pre-B ALL and Burkitt’s lymphoma cells in vitro and their use in vivo resulted in equivalent increases in survival of SCID mice with human pre-B ALL tumors when compared with control mice