In Search of the Honest Executive: A View from The Top and the Middle

On 16 November 1983, a U.S. District Court judge granted the federal government's request that prison officials be allowed to force feed Ramon Sanchez, a hunger striking prisoner. Levine briefly describes the events leading to the court's involvement and summarizes the reasoning behind its decision. Declining to draw an analogy between the prisoner's refusing food and a patient's refusing life-prolonging treatment, the judge ruled that force feeding was permissible because Sanchez's hunger strike was motivated by his desire to escape prison and frustrate the authority of the courts, and not by religious or political convictions.     

Treatment of malignant gliomas in adults with BCNU plus metronidazole

Summary Twenty-six adult patients with astrocytomas were treated with BCNU (1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea) 180–240 mg/m² 1.V. every 6–9 weeks, with metronidazole 1.5 g/m² p. o. 12 h and 1 h before BCNU and again 6 h and 24 h after BCNU. Of twenty-two evaluable patients, 9 (41%) responded with evidence of reduced tumor size on CT scan, 3 (14%) stabilized and 10 (45%) failed. Patients with no prior chemotherapy or radiotherapy, good performance. status, low grade tumors, and age 50 years had the highest response rates, although differences were not statistically significant. Median survival and duration of response have not been reached with a median follow-up time of ten months. Hematological toxicity was dose-limiting and was probably not augmented by the metronidazole. There was one death from infection that was possibly drug-related. Gastrointestinal toxicity was substantial, and was probably increased by the metronidazole.While the combination of BCNU and metronidazole were tolerable, the response rate seen was no higher than that noted for BCNU alone, and further studies using this dose-schedule are not recommended in astrocytomas.Presented at the 13th International Congress of Chemotherapy, Vienna Austria, August 1983.     

Penetration of teniposide (VM-26) into human intracerebral tumors

Thirty-four consenting patients received VM-26 50–100 mg/m² I.V. before surgical resection of intracerebral tumor, and drug was measured using a high pressure liquid chromatographic technique. Sufficient tumor for analysis was obtained from 29 patients. Brain metastases (13 patients) had higher concentrations of V M-26 than did gliomas (13 patients). Concentrations were comparable in brain metastases and meningiomas (3 patients). Prolonged (24 h) infusion of V M-26 did not appear to result in higher tumor drug concentrations in 5 patients than did rapid (1 h) infusion in 24 patients. Pretreatment with Amphotericin-B 10 mg/m² 12 h and 1 h before VM-26 did not appear to have any effect on VM-26 uptake into 4 intracerebral tumors, although data were limited, and VM-26 concentrations were very high in 1 metastasis. Pretreatment with oral glycerol 500 mg/kg 18 h, 12 h, 6 h, and immediately before I.V. VM-26 may have resulted in increased penetration of VM-26 into 9 tumors, although confirmation is required. Amphotericin-B, glycerol, and operative conditions did not appear to alter VM-26 plasma pharmacokinetics.VM-26 4-demethylepipodophyllotoxin 9-(4-6-O-thenylidene-B-D-glucopyranoside) - VP-16 4-demethylepipodophyllotoxin 9-(4-6-O-ethylidene-B-D-glucopyranoside) Presented in Part at the 74th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, San Diego, California, May 25–28, 183(1).     

Short-term impact of COVID-19 on quality of life,perceived stress,and serious psychological distress in an adult population in the midwest United States

Quality of Life Research - This study aimed to investigate changes over time in quality of life, perceived stress, and serious psychological distress for individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in an...     

Distinct groups of smokers in primary care based on mental health diagnosis

Journal of Public Health - To determine whether statistically distinct classes of smokers exist according to mental health (MH) diagnoses within primary care and to evaluate whether class...     

Variation in General Practice Services Provided to Australian Workers with Low Back Pain: A Cross-Jurisdictional Comparative Study

Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation - Purpose: To compare the frequency of General Practitioner (GP) services and the time between first and last GP services (service duration) provided to...     

Alcohol Use as a Function of Physical Activity and Golfing Motives in a National Sample of United States Golfers

Alcohol and physical inactivity are risk factors for a variety of cancer types. However, alcohol use often co-occurs with physical activity (PA), which could mitigate the cancer-prevention benefits of PA. Alcohol is integrated into the culture of one of the most popular physical activities for adults in the United States (U.S.), golf. This study examined how alcohol use was associated with total PA, golf-specific PA, and motives for golfing in a national sample of golfers in the U.S. Adult golfers (n = 338; 51% male, 81% White, 46 ± 14.4 years) self-reported alcohol use, golfing behavior and motives, and PA. Most (84%) golfers consumed alcohol, averaging 7.91 servings/week. Golf participation, including days/week, holes/week, and practice hours/week, was not associated with alcohol use. Golfers with stronger social motives were 60% more likely to consume alcohol. Weekly walking (incident risk ratio (IRR) = 7.30), moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA; IRR = 5.04), and total PA (IRR = 4.14) were associated with more alcohol servings/week. Golfers’ alcohol use may be higher than the general adult population in the U.S. and contributes 775 extra kilocalories/week, a surplus that may offset PA-related energy expenditure and cancer-protective effects. Alcohol use interventions targeting golfers may facilitate weight loss and reduce cancer risk, especially for golfers motivated by social status.     

Interventions to Increase Multivitamin Use Among Women in the Interconception Period: An IMPLICIT Network Study

Maternal and Child Health Journal - Each year, 3% of infants in the Unites States (US) are born with congenital anomalies, including 3000 with neural tube defects. Multivitamins (MVIs) including...     

Discrimination Trends and Mental Health Among Native- and Foreign-Born Latinos: Results from National Surveys in 2004 and 2013

Prevention Science - We examined national trends and mental health correlates of discrimination among Latinos in the USA. We used data from two nationally representative surveys based on the...