Real-World Palbociclib Use in HR+/HER2− Advanced Breast Cancer in Canada: The IRIS Study

Background: Palbociclib is a selective cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4/6 inhibitor used in combination with aromatase inhibitors or fulvestrant for patients with hormone receptor-positive (HR+) human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative advanced/metastatic breast cancer (ABC/MBC). Palbociclib was the first CDK 4/6 inhibitor approved for HR+/HER2− ABC/MBC treatment in Canada in combination with letrozole (P+L) as an initial endocrine-based therapy (approved March 2016), or with fulvestrant (P+F) following disease progression after prior endocrine therapy (approved May 2017). The Ibrance Real World Insights (IRIS) study ({"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT03159195","term_id":"NCT03159195"}}NCT03159195) collected real-world outcomes data for palbociclib-treated patients in several countries, including Canada. Methods: This retrospective chart review included women with HR+/HER2− ABC/MBC receiving P+L or P+F in Canada. Physicians reviewed medical records for up to 14 patients, abstracting demographic and clinical characteristics, treatment patterns, and clinical outcomes. Progression-free rates (PFRs) and survival rates (SRs) at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months were estimated via Kaplan–Meier analysis. Results: Thirty-three physicians examined medical records for 247 patients (P+L, n = 214; P+F, n = 33). Median follow-up was 8.8 months for P+L and 7.0 months for P+F. Most patients were initiated on palbociclib 125 mg/d (P+L, 90.2%; P+F, 84.8%). Doses were reduced in 16.6% of P+L and 14.3% of P+F patients initiating palbociclib at 125 mg/d. The PFR for P+L was 90.3% at 12 months and 78.2% at 18 months; corresponding SRs were 95.6% and 93.0%. For P+F, 6-month PFR was 91.0%; 12-month SR was 100.0%. Conclusions: Dose reduction rates were low and PFR and SR were high in this Canadian real-world assessment of P+L and P+F treatments, suggesting that palbociclib combinations are well tolerated and effective.     

From the "what" to the "how": Teaching integrative medicine-related skills to medical students during COVID-19

ObjectiveTo examine the impact of an integrative medicine (IM) course on self-perceived IM-related communication and research skills.MethodsA 3-day mandatory "hybrid" (online and in-person) IM course was held within COVID-19 restrictions for 161 pre-clerkship medical students, with workshops facilitated by mentor healthcare professionals (IM and non-IM) and student-directed tasks. Self-perceived levels of 6 IM-related skills were scored (from 1 to 5) for history-taking; communicating with patients with "alternative" health-beliefs; referral to IM consultations; assessing risks/benefits; and working with non-medical IM practitioners.Results137 students (85.1%) completed pre-/post-course questionnaires, with overall scores improving from pre-course (1.98 ± 0.92) to post-course (3.31 ± 0.63; p < 0.0001), for the entire group and student subgroups (with vs. without prior IM experience). Multivariate analysis found no association between age, gender, primary language or prior experience with IM and improvement in skill scores.ConclusionsThe IM course increased self-perceived skill levels, reflecting the course curriculum and workshops. Further research needs to explore the application of these skills during clinical training.Practice implicationsTeaching medical students about IM in a course comprising communication and research skills was shown to be feasible and effective. The application of IM-related skills needs to be evaluated during the clinical clerkship.     

河南省非订单定向全科住院医师规范化培训结业学员的就业状况及影响因素研究

背景 全科医生数量和质量是人力资源管理的两个重要维度，其中，医生数量的新增、保持和流失，是全科人力动态规划、管理和评价的重要考量，也是全科住院医师规范化培训（简称全科住培）的绩效指标。探讨全科住培学员的就业状况及影响因素，可以为今后住培政策和激励机制的制定提供参考，但目前针对非订单定向全科住培学员的相关研究较为缺乏。 目的 了解河南省非订单定向全科住培学员的就业状况，分析学员结业后未从事全科医学相关工作的原因，从而为完善培训管理和人力资源激励机制提供参考。 方法 于2021年8月，采用分层随机整群抽样法，在河南省选取2014—2017年入培且已结业的非订单定向全科住培学员326例进行问卷调查。问卷由课题组自行设计，主要内容为学员的基本信息、全科住培情况、目前工作情况及结业后从事与未从事全科医学相关工作的原因。问卷通过"问卷星"平台发放，由学员自行填写。 结果 共发放问卷326份，回收有效问卷271份（83.1%）。结业后，从事全科医学相关工作者77例（28.4%），从事非全科医学相关工作者194例（71.6%）。多因素Logistic回归分析结果显示，年龄、文化程度、生源类型、全科住培基地所在区域是学员结业后是否从事全科医学相关工作的影响因素（P<0.05）。与结业后未从事全科医学相关工作的学员相比，结业后从事全科医学相关工作学员注册为全科医学专业的比例更高〔70.1%（54/77）比32.0%（62/194），P<0.05〕，在乡镇卫生院/社区卫生服务中心执业的比例更高〔49.4%（38/77）比6.2%（12/194），P<0.05）〕。194例未从事全科医学相关工作的学员中，从事内科学工作者78例（40.2%），从事急诊及危重症医学工作者33例（17.0%），从事外科学工作者17例（8.8%）。不选择从事全科医学相关工作的前3位原因分别为：单位安排〔34.5%（67/194）〕，所在单位没有全科医学科〔29.9%（58/194）〕，薪酬低〔26.8%（52/194）〕。 结论 非订单定向全科住培学员选择从事全科医学相关工作的比例较低，年龄、文化程度、生源类型及基地所在区域是影响因素。建议加大全科医学理念宣传，加快综合医院全科医学科建设，提高全科医生薪酬待遇，以此增加全科医生的职业吸引力。     

Economic Status and Mortality in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease in Japan: The Longevity Improvement and Fair Evidence Study

ObjectivesAs more countries are implementing measures to address Alzheimer’s disease (AD), it is essential to update the available knowledge on the relationship between economic status and mortality in patients with AD. This study examined the influence of economic status on mortality in Japanese individuals with AD using a medical claims dataset.DesignThis was a retrospective cohort study.Setting and ParticipantsMedical claims data from April 2014 to March 2019 were obtained from 13 local cities participating in the Longevity Improvement and Fair Evidence study. The inclusion criteria were patients aged 65 years and older who were newly diagnosed with AD during the study period.MethodsThe outcome was death during the follow-up period. We assessed economic status by household income (middle to high income and low income); data were obtained from the use of the Medical Expenditure Ceiling Application and Standard Copayment Reduction Card (fee reduction card) when receiving an AD diagnosis, as an indicator of low-income status. We performed multivariate Cox proportional hazards analyses to examine the relationship between economic status and mortality; the model was adjusted for age, sex, the Charlson comorbidity index, and antidementia drug use.ResultsWe identified 39,081 newly diagnosed patients with AD from the Longevity Improvement and Fair Evidence study database (mean age, 83.6 years; female, 67.1%). Of these, 3189 individuals were identified as having a low-income status. After adjusting for possible confounders, low-income status was associated with mortality (hazard ratio, 1.95; 95% confidence interval, 1.84–2.07).Conclusions and ImplicationsLow-income status was associated with substantially poorer prognoses in new AD cases, indicating a need for a thorough examination of medical and nursing care services utilized by low-income individuals with AD and to explore improvement strategies.     

The impact of neighborhoods and friendships on interracial anxiety among medical students and residents: A report from the medical student CHANGES study

Objective

To examine the experience of interracial anxiety among health professionals and how it may affect the quality of their interactions with patients from racially marginalized populations. We explored the influence of prior interracial exposure—specifically through childhood neighborhoods, college student bodies, and friend groups—on interracial anxiety among medical students and residents. We also examined whether levels of interracial anxiety change from medical school through residency.

Data Source

Web-based longitudinal survey data from the Medical Student Cognitive Habits and Growth Evaluation Study.

Study Design

We used a retrospective longitudinal design with four observations for each trainee. The study population consisted of non-Black US medical trainees surveyed in their 1st and 4th years of medical school and 2nd and 3rd years of residency. Mixed effects longitudinal models were used to assess predictors of interracial anxiety and assess changes in interracial anxiety scores over time.

Principal Findings

In total, 3155 non-Black medical trainees were followed for 7 years. Seventy-eight percent grew up in predominantly White neighborhoods. Living in predominantly White neighborhoods and having less racially diverse friends were associated with higher levels of interracial anxiety among medical trainees. Trainees' interracial anxiety scores did not substantially change over time; interracial anxiety was highest in the 1st year of medical school, lowest in the 4th year, and increased slightly during residency.

Conclusions

Neighborhood and friend group composition had independent effects on interracial anxiety, indicating that premedical racial socialization may affect medical trainees' preparedness to interact effectively with diverse patient populations. Additionally, the lack of substantial change in interracial anxiety throughout medical training suggests the importance of providing curricular tools and structure (e.g., instituting interracial cooperative learning activities) to foster the development of healthy interracial relationships.     

Constructing queer mother‐knowledge and negotiating medical authority in online lesbian pregnancy journals

Medical interactions around reproduction are increasingly extending beyond the physician's office and onto the Internet, where negotiation with medical authority occurs in complex and dynamic ways. Recently, scholars have noted the Internet's potential for creating spaces where women can dialogue with and reconstruct medical authority, yet this growing body of work is overwhelming heteronormative. This paper thus interrogates how lesbian women use the Internet to challenge, deploy, and rework medical authority around reproduction while navigating the transition to parenthood. I draw from 17 online journals authored by lesbian couples during the conception, pregnancy, and birth of their first child, each spanning between 18 months and 2 years, in order to understand how the transition process unfolds over time. I argue that lesbian couples engage with medical authority when seeking affirmation and normalisation yet discard and publicly reject the heteronormative assumptions that accompany reproductive medicine. Further, they chart a new process that I term ‘constructing queer mother‐knowledge’, in which they critique and balance knowledges from institutionalised medicine, their own bodies, and their queer communities. With this new concept, I complicate understandings of lesbian mothers‐to‐be and their interactions with medical authority as they build subversive families.     

Measuring catastrophic medical expenditures: Reflections on three issues

In the “basic” approach, medical expenses are catastrophic if they exceed a prespecified percentage of consumption or income; the approach tells us if expenses cause a large percentage reduction in living standards. The ability‐to‐pay (ATP) approach defines expenses as catastrophic if they exceed a prespecified percentage of consumption less expenses on nonmedical necessities or an allowance for them. The paper argues that the ATP approach does not tell us whether expenses are large enough to undermine a household's ability to purchase nonmedical necessities. The paper compares the income‐based and consumption‐based variants of the basic approach, and shows that if the individual is a borrower after a health shock, the income‐based ratio will exceed the consumption‐based ratio, and both will exceed the more theoretically correct Flores et al. ratio; whereas if the individual continues to be a saver after a health shock, the ordering is reversed and the income‐based ratio may not overestimate Flores et al.'s ratio. Last, the paper proposes a lifetime money metric utility (LMMU) approach defining medical expenses as catastrophic in terms of their lifetime consequences. Under certain assumptions, the LMMU and Flores et al. approaches are identical, and neither requires data on how households finance their medical expenses.     

Safety profile of the adjuvanted recombinant zoster vaccine: Pooled analysis of two large randomised phase 3 trials

Background

The ZOE-50 (NCT01165177) and ZOE-70 (NCT01165229) phase 3 clinical trials showed that the adjuvanted recombinant zoster vaccine (RZV) was ≥90% efficacious in preventing herpes zoster in adults. Here we present a comprehensive overview of the safety data from these studies.