Phase 2 pilot study of Pathfinders: a psychosocial intervention for cancer patients

Pathfinders is a multi-faceted psychosocial care program for cancer patients; it was developed in community oncology and adapted to the academic oncology setting. This prospective, single-arm, phase 2 pilot study examined the acceptability and feasibility of Pathfinders for women with metastatic breast cancer

Comorbidity, age, race and stage at diagnosis in colorectal cancer: a retrospective, parallel analysis of two health systems

© 2008 Zafar et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.Background : Stage at diagnosis plays a significant role in colorectal cancer (CRC) survival. Understanding which factors contribute to a more advanced stage at diagnosis is vital to improving overall survival. Comorbidity, race, and age are known to impact receipt of cancer therapy and survival, but the relationship of these factors to stage at diagnosis of CRC is less clear. The objective of this study is to investigate how comorbidity, race and age influence stage of CRC diagnosis. Methods : Two distinct healthcare populations in the United States (US) were retrospectively studied. Using the Cancer Care Outcomes Research and Surveillance Consortium database, we identified CRC patients treated at 15 Veterans Administration (VA) hospitals from 2003–2007. We assessed metastatic CRC patients treated from 2003–2006 at 10 non-VA, fee-for-service (FFS) practices. Stage at diagnosis was dichotomized (non-metastatic, metastatic). Race was dichotomized (white, non-white). Charlson comorbidity index and age at diagnosis were calculated. Associations between stage, comorbidity, race, and age were determined by logistic regression. Results : 342 VA and 340 FFS patients were included. Populations differed by the proportion of patients with metastatic CRC at diagnosis (VA 27% and FFS 77%) reflecting differences in eligibility criteria for inclusion. VA patients were mean (standard deviation; SD) age 67 (11), Charlson index 2.0 (1.0), and were 63% white. FFS patients were mean age 61 (13), Charlson index 1.6 (1.0), and were 73% white. In the VA cohort, higher comorbidity was associated with earlier stage at diagnosis after adjusting for age and race (odds ratio (OR) 0.76, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.58–1.00; p = 0.045); no such significant relationship was identified in the FFS cohort (OR 1.09, 95% CI 0.82–1.44; p = 0.57). In both cohorts, no association was found between stage at diagnosis and either age or race. Conclusion : Higher comorbidity may lead to earlier stage of CRC diagnosis. Multiple factors, perhaps including increased interactions with the healthcare system due to comorbidity, might contribute to this finding. Such increased interactions are seen among patients within a healthcare system like the VA system in the US versus sporadic interactions which may be seen with FFS healthcare

2017 Research & Innovation Day Program

A one day showcase of applied research, social innovation, scholarship projects and activities.https://first.fanshawec.ca/cri_cripublications/1004/thumbnail.jp

AI-Infused Collaborative Inquiry in Upper Elementary School: A Game-Based Learning Approach

Artificial intelligence has emerged as a technology that is profoundly reshaping society and enabling rapid improvements in science, engineering, and mathematics, as well as information technology itself. This has generated increased demand for fostering an AI-literate populace as well as a growing recognition of the importance of promoting K-12 students’ awareness and interest in AI. Although efforts are be-ginning to incorporate AI learning within K-12 education, there is little research exploring how to introduce students to AI and how to support teachers to integrate AI learning experiences in their classrooms. This is especially true at the elementary school level. A particularly promising approach for providing effective and engaging AI learning experiences for elementary students is game-based learning. In this paper, we explore how to introduce AI-infused collaborative inquiry learning into upper elementary school (student ages 8 to 11) using game-based learning. To ground the work in the realities of elementary school classrooms, we present insights from interviews with elementary school teachers to under-stand how best to support them in integrating AI into their classrooms. We then present the design of PrimaryAI, a game-based learning environment that supports rich problem-based learning activities within upper elementary classrooms centered on AI applied toward solving life-science problems. Finally, we discuss some of the challenges we face in bringing AI-infused collaborative inquiry learning to upper elementary students

Lack of morphological coevolution between male forelegs and female wings in Themira (Sepsidae: Diptera: Insecta)

10.1111/j.1095-8312.2007.00922.xBiological Journal of the Linnean Society932227-238BJLS