Not all cancer patients with an interest in CAM are the same. Differences between patients with a CAM interest prior to the cancer diagnosis and those with first-time interest since diagnosis

2019 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 167-171
Author(s):  
Clara Dubois ◽  
Hannah Eisfeld ◽  
Fabienne Bauer ◽  
Thorsten Schmidt ◽  
Karin Kastrati ◽  
...  
Author(s):  
Mariana Brito ◽  
Ana Laranjo ◽  
Júlia Sabino ◽  
Carla Oliveira ◽  
Irina Mocanu ◽  
...  

Introduction: Since the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic there has been widespread concern regarding the possible delay in the diagnosis/treatment of cancer patients. We aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the diagnosis, treatment, and outcome of patients with digestive cancer. Methods: This was a retrospective study including patients with an inaugural digestive cancer diagnosis discussed for the first time at our center during the weekly digestive oncology reunion (DOR) meeting. The study group was enlisted from March to August 2020, and a control group was sourced from the equivalent period of 2018. Patients with a previous digestive cancer diagnosis/discussion in the DOR were excluded. The following data were collected: demographics, referral origin, tumor staging, first DOR discussion timing, treatment, and outcome. Results: A total of 235 patients were included: 107 in the study group (65.4% male, mean age 71.59 years); 128 in the control group (54.7% male, mean age 68.16 years). The mean number of clinical discussions per week was higher in 2018 (13.65 vs. 10.67, p = 0.040), without a difference in the mean number of patients discussed for the first time (inaugural diagnosis) between groups (p = 0.670). In the 2020 study group, more patients were referred to DOR from the emergency room (ER), fewer from the outpatient clinic/hospital wards (p < 0.001), and more were referred after urgent surgery (p = 0.022). There was no difference in the mean waiting time from diagnosis to first DOR discussion (p = 0.087). Tumor staging in colorectal, gastric, and esophageal cancer was not significantly different between the groups (p = 0897, p = 0.168, and p = 0.717). More patients in the study group presented with stage IV pancreatic cancer (p = 0.043). There was no difference in the time span from DOR until the beginning of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (p = 0.680) or elective surgery (p = 0.198), or from surgery until adjuvant chemotherapy (p = 0.396). Also, there was no difference in 30-day mortality from the first DOR date between the groups (p = 0.742). Conclusion: During the COVID-19 era there was a reduced number of clinical discussions in the DOR, but the number of debated patients with an inaugural digestive cancer diagnosis was similar. In the study group more patients were referred to DOR from the ER, and were referred after urgent surgery, suggesting a delayed demand for clinical attention. Study group patients were not significantly affected by the pandemic regarding timely DOR discussion, beginning of treatment, or 30-day mortality, reflecting the maintenance of the quality of care for digestive cancer patients.


Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 3368
Author(s):  
Dafina Petrova ◽  
Andrés Catena ◽  
Miguel Rodríguez-Barranco ◽  
Daniel Redondo-Sánchez ◽  
Eloísa Bayo-Lozano ◽  
...  

Many adult cancer patients present one or more physical comorbidities. Besides interfering with treatment and prognosis, physical comorbidities could also increase the already heightened psychological risk of cancer patients. To test this possibility, we investigated the relationship between physical comorbidities with depression symptoms in a sample of 2073 adult cancer survivors drawn from the nationally representative National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) (2007–2018) in the U.S. Based on information regarding 16 chronic conditions, the number of comorbidities diagnosed before and after the cancer diagnosis was calculated. The number of comorbidities present at the moment of cancer diagnosis was significantly related to depression risk in recent but not in long-term survivors. Recent survivors who suffered multimorbidity had 3.48 (95% CI 1.26–9.55) times the odds of reporting significant depressive symptoms up to 5 years after the cancer diagnosis. The effect of comorbidities was strongest among survivors of breast cancer. The comorbidities with strongest influence on depression risk were stroke, kidney disease, hypertension, obesity, asthma, and arthritis. Information about comorbidities is usually readily available and could be useful in streamlining depression screening or targeting prevention efforts in cancer patients and survivors. A multidimensional model of the interaction between cancer and other physical comorbidities on mental health is proposed.


Author(s):  
C. T. Sánchez-Díaz ◽  
S. Strayhorn ◽  
S. Tejeda ◽  
G. Vijayasiri ◽  
G. H. Rauscher ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Prior studies have observed greater levels of psychosocial stress (PSS) among non-Hispanic (nH) African American and Hispanic women when compared to nH White patients after a breast cancer diagnosis. We aimed to determine the independent and interdependent roles of socioeconomic position (SEP) and unmet support in the racial disparity in PSS among breast cancer patients. Methods Participants were recruited from the Breast Cancer Care in Chicago study (n = 989). For all recently diagnosed breast cancer patients, aged 25–79, income, education, and tract-level disadvantage and affluence were summed to create a standardized socioeconomic position (SEP) score. Three measures of PSS related to loneliness, perceived stress, and psychological consequences of a breast cancer diagnosis were defined based on previously validated scales. Five domains of unmet social support needs (emotional, spiritual, informational, financial, and practical) were defined from interviews. We conducted path models in MPlus to estimate the extent to which PSS disparities were mediated by SEP and unmet social support needs. Results Black and Hispanic patients reported greater PSS compared to white patients and greater unmet social support needs (p = 0.001 for all domains). Virtually all of the disparity in PSS could be explained by SEP. A substantial portion of the mediating influence of SEP was further transmitted by unmet financial and practical needs among Black patients and by unmet emotional needs for Hispanic patients. Conclusions SEP appeared to be a root cause of the racial/ethnic disparities in PSS within our sample. Our findings further suggest that different interventions may be necessary to alleviate the burden of SEP for nH AA (i.e., more financial support) and Hispanic patients (i.e., more emotional support).


2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. e18636-e18636
Author(s):  
Cinduja Nathan

e18636 Background: Transitions of care are an important part of medical care, as they provide opportunities to address patient concerns, refine goals to match current needs and prevent unforeseen complications and comorbidities. One such common and prevalent comorbidity amongst cancer patients is venous thromboembolism (VTE) events. Common VTE events include the occurrence of pulmonary embolism (PE), deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or both at the time of diagnosis or any time thereafter. It is estimated that approximately 4–20% of cancer patients will experience a VTE. Cancer patients developing VTE is a serious concern as it can adversely affect the patients’ quality of life and reduce overall survival rates and prognosis. Methods: This study is designed as a case control study. The subject group consists of 87 cancer patients who had one or several VTE events after their cancer diagnosis. Patients were selected from the UVM Medical Center electronic health record database. The goal of this project was to quantify and compare the average number of transitions of care in cancer patients with and without venous thromboembolism (VTE) events. This was achieved by reviewing the patients charts three months following a VTE event and evaluating whether these patients had a greater number of transitions compared to the three months prior to their VTE event. Transitions of care in our study were defined as office visits, ED visits, and inpatient admissions related to their VTE. Results: Initial evaluation of the results showed that there were more transitions of care amongst cancer patients with a VTE than without. Preliminary data of the 87 patients shows that patients who developed a VTE event after their cancer diagnosis had on average 1.3 more transitions of care within the three months following their VTE event compared to cancer patients without a VTE event. A t test will be used to determine whether the difference between the means (number of transitions of care) of the two groups (cancer patients with VTE and those without VTE) is significant. Conclusions: The implications of having greater transitions of care amongst cancer patients with VTE events are profound. Having more transitions of care exemplifies better implementation, patient care and involvement of health care teams given a history of VTE. Furthermore, the results of this study will provide further insight on ways to improve clinical outcomes and oncology patient care given a history of VTE.


Author(s):  
Sara Hayee ◽  
Amna Rehman

Caner a dreadful disease is actually one large group of diseases which dates back to times of “Hippocrates”, The Father of Medicine, (460-370BC) who used this name for the first time to talk about non-ulcer and ulcer forming tumors. Theevidence of its presence from the very past history comes from fossilized “Egyptian Mummies” having tumors on bones. Then Galen (130-200 AD) used the term “Oncos” to explain tumors. So it's a disease involving growth of abnormal cells, their proliferation and metastasizing the other tissues and organs. Now we know that biology has a branch namedOncology to deal with the scientific study of cancer and oncogenes. It took centuries to get knowledge and use modern technologies against this malady. Now we know cancer is a group disease which has hundreds of types. 19th Century saw much advancement towards its cure. Along with surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy were the main methods to cure cancer patients. Day by day, scientists are looking for new methods to control and cure of this curse. Hundreds of natural medicinal compounds are being tested to use clinically for its cure in order to replace the radiotherapy andchemotherapy and lower their side effects. But humanity is still fighting against this disease as the numbers of cases throughout the world are increasing day by day. If we look on the reports p r e s e n t e d b y W H O ( W o r l d H e a l t hOrganization), Cancer is the second leading cause of deaths globally which means one person in every six deaths, dies due to cancer. In 2018, the most common types of cancers reported in men were of liver, prostate, stomach, lung andcolorectal. Whereas in females the most common forms were breast, thyroid, cervical and colorectal. Cancer has become a global disasterfamily of the patient. It imparts physical, emotional and financial crisis. Unfortunately, the condition is bitterer in under developing countries. Cancer has become a lifestyle disease these days. We are living in the world withsuperficial comfort but we are breathing with urbanizations, ozone depletion, exposure to microwave and ultraviolet radiations, hazardous chemicals etc. Moreover, It is becoming a lifestyle disease due to lack of exercise, Obesity, consumptions of drugs, tobacco and alcohols. The cases of cancers are reported more in urban areas than in rural areasmore likely due to above mentioned factors. The ratio of cancer patients is expected to raise up-to 27.5 million by 2040 globally. So the battle is never ending, Humans need to figure out the factors and cutting these from their lives in orderto live a healthy life which is a blessing indeed. which is not only crunching the cancer patient but it also has damaging effects on the whole


2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. 6581-6581
Author(s):  
Alexander Qian ◽  
Edmund Qiao ◽  
Vinit Nalawade ◽  
Nikhil V. Kotha ◽  
Rohith S. Voora ◽  
...  

6581 Background: Hospital readmission are associated with unfavorable patient outcomes and increased costs to the healthcare system. Devising interventions to reduce risks of readmission requires understanding patients at highest risk. Cancer patients represent a unique population with distinct risk factors. The purpose of this study was to define the impact of a cancer diagnosis on the risks of unplanned 30-day readmissions. Methods: We identified non-procedural hospital admissions between January through November 2017 from the National Readmission Database (NRD). We included patients with and without a cancer diagnosis who were admitted for non-procedural causes. We evaluated the impact of cancer on the risk of 30-day unplanned readmissions using multivariable mixed-effects logistic regression models. Results: Out of 18,996,625 weighted admissions, 1,685,099 (8.9%) had record of a cancer diagnosis. A cancer diagnosis was associated with an increased risk of readmission compared to non-cancer patients (23.5% vs. 13.6%, p < 0.001). However, among readmissions, cancer patients were less likely to have a preventable readmission (6.5% vs. 12.1%, p < 0.001). When considering the 10 most common causes of initial hospitalization, cancer was associated with an increased risk of readmission for each of these 10 causes (OR range 1.1-2.7, all p < 0.05) compared to non-cancer patients admitted for the same causes. Compared to patients aged 45-64, a younger age was associated with increased risk for cancer patients (OR 1.29, 95%CI [1.24-1.34]) but decreased risk for non-cancer patients (OR 0.65, 95%CI [0.64-0.66]). Among cancer patients, cancer site was the most robust individual predictor for readmission with liver (OR 1.47, 95%CI [1.39-1.55]), pancreas (OR 1.36, 95%CI [1.29-1.44]), and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (OR 1.35, 95%CI [1.29-1.42]) having the highest risk compared to the reference group of prostate cancer patients. Conclusions: Cancer patients have a higher risk of 30-day readmission, with increased risks among younger cancer patients, and with individual risks varying by cancer type. Future risk stratification approaches should consider cancer patients as an independent group with unique risks of readmission.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. e0128730 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christie Y. Jeon ◽  
Stephen J. Pandol ◽  
Bechien Wu ◽  
Galen Cook-Wiens ◽  
Roberta A. Gottlieb ◽  
...  

2008 ◽  
Vol 100 (09) ◽  
pp. 435-439 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier Trujillo-Santos ◽  
José Nieto ◽  
Gregorio Tiberio ◽  
Andrea Piccioli ◽  
Pierpaolo Micco ◽  
...  

SummaryCancer patients with acute venous thromboembolism (VTE) have an increased incidence of recurrences and bleeding complications while on anticoagulant therapy. Methods RIETE is an ongoing registry of consecutive patients with acute VTE. We tried to identify which cancer patients are at a higher risk for recurrent pulmonary embolism (PE), deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or major bleeding. Up to May 2007, 3, 805 cancer patients had been enrolled in RIETE. During the first three months of follow-up after the acute, index VTE event, 90 (2.4%) patients developed recurrent PE, 100 (2.6%) recurrent DVT, 156 (4.1%) had major bleeding. Forty patients (44%) died of the recurrent PE,46 (29%) of bleeding. On multivariate analysis, patients aged <65 years (odds ratio [OR]: 3.0; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.9–4.9), with PE at entry (OR: 1.9; 95% CI: 1.2–3.1), or with <3 months from cancer diagnosis to VTE (OR: 2.0; 95% CI: 1.2–3.2) had an increased incidence of recurrent PE. Those aged <65 years (OR: 1.6; 95% CI: 1.0–2.4) or with <3 months from cancer diagnosis (OR: 2.4; 95% CI: 1.5–3.6) had an increased incidence of recurrent DVT. Finally, patients with immobility (OR: 1.8; 95% CI: 1.2–2.7), metastases (OR: 1.6; 95% CI: 1.1–2.3), recent bleeding (OR: 2.4; 95% CI: 1.1–5.1), or with creatinine clearance <30 ml/ min (OR: 2.2; 95% CI: 1.5–3.4), had an increased incidence of major bleeding. With some variables available at entry we may identify those cancer patients withVTE at a higher risk for recurrences or major bleeding.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chen He ◽  
Wenxi Zhu ◽  
Yunxiang Tang ◽  
Yonghai Bai ◽  
Zheng Luo ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: The health burden of breast cancer is rising in China. The effect of informed diagnosis on long-term survival has not been fully understood. This retrospective cohort study aims at exploring the association between early informed diagnosis and survival time in breast cancer patients.Methods: 12,327 breast cancer patients were enrolled between October 2002 and December 2016. Potential factors including knowing cancer diagnosis status, gender, age, clinical-stage, surgical history, the grade of reporting hospital and diagnostic year were registered. We followed up all participants every 6 months until June 2017.Results: By June 2017, 18.04% of the participants died of breast cancer. Both the 3-year and 5-year survival rate of whom knew cancer diagnosis were longer (P<0.001). By stratified analysis, except subgroups of male patients and patients in stage III, patients knowing diagnosis showed a better prognosis in all the other subgroups (P<0.05). By Cox regression analysis, it was showed that not knowing cancer diagnosis was an independent risk factor for survival in breast cancer patients (P<0.001).Conclusions: Being aware of their cancer diagnosis plays a protective role in extending the survival time in breast cancer patients, which suggests medical staff and patients’ families disclose cancer diagnosis to patients timely.


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