A novel therapy for breast cancer: implications for treatment access

In 2016, there were 250,000 new cases of invasive cancer and 60,000 of ductal carcinoma in situ. Mammograms are used to screen for cases of disease, but the literature shows that mammograms are highly dependent on patient characteristics and do not majorly impact mortality rates from invasive cancer. Additionally, they are prone to false-positives, false-negatives, and overdiagnosis in cases of in situ cancer, with overdiagnosis exposing patients to the side effects of treatment. Better screening tests are needed, and a potential solution can be to extend molecular screening methods often used in advanced stage 1 and higher cancers to stage 0 ductal carcinoma in situ cases. This new test would prevent overdiagnosis, be more accurate, and prevent unnecessary screening as well as be in line with the future of cancer care in the US

Diversity Matters: A 21-Year Review of Trends in Resident Recruitment into Surgical Specialties

Background:. Diversity within the healthcare workforce is essential to improve quality of care, although evaluation of diversity within surgical training remains limited. This study analyzed diversity in recruitment of residents into surgical subspecialties at a large academic medical institution and national trends. Methods:. A 21-year cross-sectional study of medical school graduates accepted into all surgical subspecialty training programs was performed. The institutional cohort was divided into two groups (1997–2006, 2007–2017). Subspecialty acceptance rates were determined between 2011 and 2018. Data on candidate demographics including gender, race, ethnicity, citizenship, and origin of medical education at a single institution and nationally were extracted. Results:. Two thousand found hundred seventy-two residents were included in this study. From 1997 to 2018, female acceptances increased from 21.1% to 29.7% (p < 0.01), non-White increased from 27.9% to 31.8% (p = 0.01), and international medical graduates decreased from 28.8% to 25.5% (p = 0.02). There was no significant change in accepted Hispanic and Non-US candidates. Female subspecialty rates for subspecialties increased nationally and was comparable to our cohort, except in general surgery. Hispanic subspecialty acceptance rates were less than 10% and Black/African American acceptance rates remained less than 5% across subspecialties nationally and at our institution. Conclusion:. Diversity in surgical training has modestly progressed over the last two decades, but the degree of positive change has not been universal and highlights the critical need for improvement and action. Continued institution driven and collaborative strategies are essential to promote diversity in recruitment across all surgical specialties that has implications on our future workforce and surgical leadership