Perceived personal immunity to the consequences of drinking alcohol: The relationship between behavior and perception

Heavy drinkers, moderate drinkers, light drinkers, and nondrinkers were asked to rate a variety of negative health and social consequences of using alcohol. Subjects made probability ratings for fictional others who were heavy, moderate, or light drinkers or nondrinkers. Subjects also made probability ratings for themselves as hypothetical heavy, moderate, or light drinkers or nondrinkers and for themselves actually. A pattern of perceived personal immunity was found across groups. Subjects rated fictional others and themselves as hypothetical drinkers to be more likely to experience negative consequences than their actual selves. All groups of subjects (heavy, moderate, and light drinkers and abstainers) rated their actual chances of experiencing negative consequences to be approximately equal. In contrast, heavy drinkers saw the effects of drinking for other heavy drinkers as less likely than did subjects who had light or abstinent drinking patterns who rated fictional heavy drinkers. These findings suggest that individuals who drink more tend to deny the potential harm that may result from alcohol consumption. Short-term social consequences were viewed as most likely to occur. Long-term consequences were perceived as least likely to occur.This research was supported in part by grant 1-R01-AA06201 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.     

The kinetics of the visible growth of a primary melanoma reflects the tumor aggressiveness and is an independent prognostic marker: a prospective study

Primary melanoma (MM) could be a good model to test an intuitive concept: a cancer that is growing fast in its early phase is likely to have a high aggressiveness. Since MMs are visible tumors, many patients can provide information to indirectly assess the kinetics of their lesion. A prospective study was designed to assess if the kinetics of the visible growth of a primary MM, as described by the patient, could be a noninvasive prognostic marker. The ratio of MM thickness to delay between MM appearance and MM removal was used as a surrogate value for the kinetics of the MM growth. To assess the delay between MM appearance and removal, 362 patients with self-detected invasive MM fulfilled a detailed questionnaire, which provided 2 types of estimations of this delay and thus 2 melanoma kinetics indexes (MKI and MKI*). After a median follow-up of 4 years, univariate and multivariate analyses assessed whether relapse-free survival was linked to MKI or MKI*. MKI was significantly predictive of relapse-free survival (HR = 1.84 [1.51-2.25]) and relapse at 1 year (RR = 2.93 [1.84-4.69]), independently from Breslow thickness. MKI was retained in multivariate prognostic models, just after thickness and before other usual markers. MKI* was also a significant independent risk marker, although less predictive. In this model, the initial growth kinetics of a cancer reflects its aggressiveness and a high index predicts a short-term relapse. The "subjective" data obtained from patients about their MM history, although usually neglected, can thus provide a better prognostic marker than many "objective" tests.     

Disulone

For 60 years, dapsone has been used as a both antibacterial and anti-inflammatory agent. Dapsone (4,4'-diaminodiphenylsulfone, DDS) continues to be used successfully to treat a wide range of dermatologic disorders, notably those characterized by abnormal neutrophil and eosinophil polynuclear accumulation. A considerable number of other inflammatory as well as bullous dermatoses, of which dermatitis herpetiformis is the best known, have been shown to respond in varying degrees to dapsone, although the indication for the molecule has not been demonstrated in of them all. This article reviews current knowledge on the pharmacokinetics, mechanism of action and side effects of dapsone in dermatology. Despite the lack of controlled studies, the aim of this study is to specify and classify the pathological states in which disulone could be indicated.