Agency and mental health among Peruvian older adults during the COVID-19 lockdown

OBJECTIVES: To explore the experiences of older Peruvian adults living in urban areas of Lima under lockdown due to the National COVID-19 Emergency, this study analyzes how older adults (aged 60 and above) exercise agency while also living with the negative impacts of COVID-19 and related control measures. METHODS: Between August and December 2020, our research team conducted a telephone-based, qualitative study, in which we undertook semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of low-income older adults living with chronic multi-morbidities and limited resources. Forty older adults, 24 women and 16 men, with a mean age of 72 years, participated in the study. For data analysis, we employed thematic analysis with a predominantly inductive approach. RESULTS: Older adults demonstrated several forms of agency to regulate emotions, maintain crucial bonds, foster social relationships, and seek economic and food security. Older adults experienced entertainment and support by caring for pets, undertaking farm work, and practicing their religious beliefs. For several participants and their families, quarantine was an opportunity to strengthen family relationships and learn new technologies. Older adults and their families re-organized themselves to assume new roles and perform activities that improved self-worth and confidence thereby improving their wellbeing and mental health. DISCUSSION: Peruvian older adults exerted agency in different ways to respond to and sustain their mental health during the COVID-19 lockdown. Policy makers should value and recognize the agency of older adults when planning future health responses

p.G12C KRAS mutation prevalence in non-small cell lung cancer: Contribution from interregional variability and population substructures among Hispanics

Background: The KRAS exon 2 p. G12C mutation in patients with lung adenocarcinoma has been increasing in relevance due to the development and effectiveness of new treatment medications. Studies around different populations indicate that regional variability between ethnic groups and ancestries could play an essential role in developing this molecular alteration within lung cancer. Methods: In a prospective and retrospective cohort study on samples from lung adenocarcinoma from 1000 patients from different administrative regions in Colombia were tested for the KRAS p.G12C mutation. An analysis of STR populations markers was conducted to identify substructure contributions to mutation prevalence. Results: Included were 979 patients with a national mean frequency for the KRAS exon 2 p.G12C mutation of 7.97% (95%CI 6.27–9.66%). Variation between regions was also identified with Antioquia reaching a positivity value of 12.7% (95%CI 9.1–16.3%) in contrast to other regions such as Bogota DC (Capital region) with 5.4% (2.7–8.2%) and Bolivar with 2.4% (95%CI 0–7.2%) (p-value = 0.00262). Furthermore, Short tandem repeat population substructures were found for eight markers that strongly yielded association with KRAS exon 2 p.G12C frequency reaching an adjusted R2 of 0.945 and a p-value of < 0.0001. Conclusions: Widespread identification of KRAS exon 2 p.G12C mutations, especially in cases where NGS is not easily achieved is feasible at a population based level that can characterize regional and national patterns of mutation status. Furthermore, this type of mutation prevalence follows a population substructure pattern that can be easily determined by population and ancestral markers such as STR