The Caregiver’s Role Across the Bone Marrow Transplantation Trajectory

Background: Approximately 50 000 people undergo bone marrow transplants (BMTs) each year worldwide. With the move to more outpatient and home care, family caregivers are playing an ever-increasing role. However, there is little information regarding the needs and well-being of caregivers of individuals undergoing BMT. Objective: The study purpose was to gain a better understanding of the BMT experience across the trajectory from the perspective of the family caregiver. Methods: Qualitative interviews were conducted with 15 family caregivers during and 4 months after BMT. Interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using a content analysis approach. Results: Uncertainty and need for more information were 2 major underlying themes noted across the early BMT trajectory. Caregivers reported feeling overwhelmed and juggling multiple roles, including (a) ‘‘interpreter,’’ which included obtaining and translating medical information to their partner, family, and social network; (b) ‘‘organizer,’’ which included arranging and coordinating medical appointments (pre- and post-BMT) for the patient, but also juggling the needs of immediate and extended family members; and (c) ‘‘clinician,’’ which included assessing and identifying changes in their significant other, with many reporting that they had to be ‘‘vigilant’’ about or ‘‘on top of’’ any changes. Caregivers also reported the most challenging aspects of their role were to ‘‘be strong for everyone’’ and ‘‘finding balance.’’ Conclusions: Our results underscore the unique needs of family caregivers as a consequence of BMT. Implications for Practice: A greater understanding of the adaptation of caregivers will lead to the development of effective interventions for families going through BMT

PAIN AND ANXIETY AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS

poster abstractBACKGROUND: Pain and anxiety are symptoms that frequently occur as co-related groups termed “clusters.” While it is known that pain may be associated with decreased quality of life (QOL), less is understood about the effects of anxiety on breast cancer survivors (BCS). PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to: 1) determine levels of pain and anxiety in breast cancer survivors and 2) examine the relationship between anxiety and pain on quality of life in breast cancer survivors (BCS) controlling for age and time post-treatment. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK: Ferrell’s Quality of Life Model guided this study. METHODS: A cross-sectional, descriptive design was used. BCS enrolled in a longitudinal cognitive behavioral study completed self-report questionnaires including the Medical Outcome Scale-Short Form, Pain Subscale, Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Instrument (STAI) State Subscale to measure anxiety, and Ferrell’s QOL Instrument which measures Physical, Psychological, Social and Spiritual Well-being (higher scores indicating higher quality of life). Covariates of age and time post-treatment were controlled for. All data were collected at a baseline assessment before randomization in the cognitive intervention study. Data were evaluated using descriptive statistics and general linear regression. RESULTS: 88 female BCS averaging 57 years old (range 40-74; SD=8.54), primarily Caucasian (88.6%), college-educated (88%), approximately 5.3 (SD=4.0) years post-treatment participated. Cancer-related pain (4 lymphedema, 4 neuropathy) was specified by 8 participants. BCS reported low-moderate pain (x= 66.0114; sd = 22.348) and moderate anxiety (x̅=35.0227; sd= 8.7749). Clinically significant levels of anxiety (≥ 39 on the STAI-S where higher scores indicated higher anxiety) were reported in 24% of BCS. Age, anxiety, and pain significantly accounted for 45% of the total variance on QOL in the regression model (R = 0.45, F = 18.61; p = <0.000), controlling for age and time post-treatment. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides support for the fact that both pain and anxiety are negatively associated with QOL. Anxiety is a significant long-term symptom for a sub-set of BCS which negatively impacts all dimensions of BCS quality of life. Findings indicate the need for comprehensive assessment of symptoms of anxiety in long-term BCS and the development of evidenced-based interventions to alleviate anxiety and improve QOL

Evaluation of the Inheritance of the Complex Vertebral Malformation Syndrome by Breeding Studies

To investigate the congenital complex vertebral malformation syndrome (CVM) in Holstein calves, two breeding studies were performed including 262 and 363 cows, respectively. Cows were selected from the Danish Cattle Database based on pedigree and insemination records. Selected cows were progeny of sires with an established heterozygous CVM genotype and pregnant after insemination with semen from another sire with heterozygous CVM genotype. Following calving the breeders should state, if the calf was normal and was requested to submit dead calves for necropsy. In both studies, significantly fewer CVM affected calves than expected were obtained; a finding probably reflecting extensive intrauterine mortality in CVM affected foetuses. The findings illustrate increased intrauterine mortality as a major potential bias in observational studies of inherited disorders

High-throughput, quantitative analyses of genetic interactions in E. coli.

Large-scale genetic interaction studies provide the basis for defining gene function and pathway architecture. Recent advances in the ability to generate double mutants en masse in Saccharomyces cerevisiae have dramatically accelerated the acquisition of genetic interaction information and the biological inferences that follow. Here we describe a method based on F factor-driven conjugation, which allows for high-throughput generation of double mutants in Escherichia coli. This method, termed genetic interaction analysis technology for E. coli (GIANT-coli), permits us to systematically generate and array double-mutant cells on solid media in high-density arrays. We show that colony size provides a robust and quantitative output of cellular fitness and that GIANT-coli can recapitulate known synthetic interactions and identify previously unidentified negative (synthetic sickness or lethality) and positive (suppressive or epistatic) relationships. Finally, we describe a complementary strategy for genome-wide suppressor-mutant identification. Together, these methods permit rapid, large-scale genetic interaction studies in E. coli

The Regge Limit for Green Functions in Conformal Field Theory

We define a Regge limit for off-shell Green functions in quantum field theory, and study it in the particular case of conformal field theories (CFT). Our limit differs from that defined in arXiv:0801.3002, the latter being only a particular corner of the Regge regime. By studying the limit for free CFTs, we are able to reproduce the Low-Nussinov, BFKL approach to the pomeron at weak coupling. The dominance of Feynman graphs where only two high momentum lines are exchanged in the t-channel, follows simply from the free field analysis. We can then define the BFKL kernel in terms of the two point function of a simple light-like bilocal operator. We also include a brief discussion of the gravity dual predictions for the Regge limit at strong coupling.Comment: 23 pages 2 figures, v2: Clarification of relation of the Regge limit defined here and previous work in CFT. Clarification of causal orderings in the limit. References adde

Single valley Dirac fermions in zero-gap HgTe quantum wells

Dirac fermions have been studied intensively in condensed matter physics in recent years. Many theoretical predictions critically depend on the number of valleys where the Dirac fermions are realized. In this work, we report the discovery of a two dimensional system with a single valley Dirac cone. We study the transport properties of HgTe quantum wells grown at the critical thickness separating between the topologically trivial and the quantum spin Hall phases. At high magnetic fields, the quantized Hall plateaus demonstrate the presence of a single valley Dirac point in this system. In addition, we clearly observe the linear dispersion of the zero mode spin levels. Also the conductivity at the Dirac point and its temperature dependence can be understood from single valley Dirac fermion physics.Comment: version 2: supplementary material adde

Cloaked Facebook pages: Exploring fake Islamist propaganda in social media

This research analyses cloaked Facebook pages that are created to spread political propaganda by cloaking a user profile and imitating the identity of a political opponent in order to spark hateful and aggressive reactions. This inquiry is pursued through a multi-sited online ethnographic case study of Danish Facebook pages disguised as radical Islamist pages, which provoked racist and anti-Muslim reactions as well as negative sentiments towards refugees and immigrants in Denmark in general. Drawing on Jessie Daniels’ critical insights into cloaked websites, this research furthermore analyses the epistemological, methodological and conceptual challenges of online propaganda. It enhances our understanding of disinformation and propaganda in an increasingly interactive social media environment and contributes to a critical inquiry into social media and subversive politics

Shear friction strength of monolithic concrete interfaces

YesThis paper presents an integrated model for shear friction strength of monolithic concrete interfaces derived from the upper-bound theorem of concrete plasticity. The model accounts for the effects of applied axial stresses and transverse reinforcement on the shear friction action at interfacial shear cracks. Simple equations were also developed to generalize the effectiveness factor for compression, ratio of effective tensile to compressive strengths and angle of concrete friction. The reliability of the proposed model was then verified through comparisons with previous empirical equations and 103 push-off test specimens compiled from different sources in the literature. The previous equations considerably underestimate the concrete shear transfer capacity and the underestimation is notable for the interfaces subjected to additional axial stresses. The proposed model provides superior accuracy in predicting the shear friction strength, resulting in a mean between experimental and predicted friction strengths of 0.97 and least scatter. Moreover, the proposed model has consistent trends with test results in evaluating the effect of various parameters on the shear friction strength

Measurements of Elastic Constants of Thin Al2O3 and SiC/Al Composite using Coupled Ultrasonic Plate Modes

An ultrasonic technique utilizing coupled ultrasonic plate modes for the measurement of elastic constants has been suggested in our previous studies [1–3]. The technique is based on measurements of obliquely incident ultrasonic beam zero-transmission angles and reconstruction from these angles of the composite elastic constants. Such a technique is particularly useful for measuring elastic constants of anisotropic plates and it has a unique capacity to measure in-plane elastic constants of thin anisotropic plates