Second primary lung malignancy following head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: Analyze the characteristics of second primary lung malignancies (SPLMs) following an index head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. METHODS: The Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database was queried for all cases of HNSCC between 1973 and 2014 (N = 101,856). This population was compared to a standard population to assess relative risk for lung cancer, calculated as the standardized incidence ratio (SIR). Patients who developed SPLMs were extracted (N = 8,116) and compared to all other cases of lung cancer (N = 1,160,853) to assess histopathological differences. SPLM subpopulations divided by head and neck primary site were compared for lung cancer histology and time interval between cancer diagnoses. RESULTS: Overall, 8.0% of HNSCC patients developed SPLMs (SIR = 4.22, P < .001), diagnosed an average of 6.7 years later. Patients with HNSCC of the supraglottis and hypopharynx were at the highest risk relative to a standard population, with SIRs of 8.10 and 6.34, respectively. When comparing SPLMs to all other lung cancers, there was no difference in the distribution of lung lobe affected, but SPLMs were significantly more likely to be of squamous cell carcinoma histology (42.0% vs. 21.0%, P < .001). Among head and neck subsites, lung cancers following larynx tumors had a significantly higher proportion of small cell histology, and those following oropharyngeal or hypopharyngeal tumors had significantly higher proportions of squamous cell histology. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who undergo curative treatment of HNSCC are at high risk for developing SPLMs. Subsite-specific differences may help elucidate the degree of risk attributable to smoking, genetic susceptibility, human papillomavirus infection, or metastasis masquerading as an SPLM. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4 Laryngoscope, 129:903-909, 2019.

Trajectories of cigarette smoking from adolescence to adulthood as predictors of unemployment status.

INTRODUCTION: This longitudinal study examined the association between trajectories of cigarette smoking and unemployment across a 29-year time period from mean age 14 to mean age 43. METHODS: Participants came from a community-based random sample of residents in 2 upstate New York counties. Data were collected at 7 timepoints. RESULTS: Using growth mixture modeling, 5 trajectory groups of cigarette smokers were identified. The trajectory groups were as follows: heavy/continuous smokers, occasional smokers, late-starting smokers, quitters/decreasers, and nonsmokers. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to study the relationship between the participant's trajectory group membership and unemployment in the fifth decade of life. The association was determined with controls for age, gender, current cigarette use, current alcohol use, current marijuana use, physical diseases, occupation, educational level, past unemployment experience, socioeconomic status measures of family of origin, depressive mood, and self-control from adolescence through the early 40s. The findings indicate that patterns of adolescent and young adult cigarette smoking have implications for later unemployment. Overall, the results showed that people who fell into the categories of heavy/continuous smokers (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 3.84) and occasional smokers (AOR = 4.03) were more likely to be unemployed at mean age 43 when compared with nonsmokers. There was no significant difference between the quitters/decreasers and the nonsmokers with respect to unemployment. CONCLUSIONS: Intervention programs designed to deal with unemployment should consider focusing on heavy/continuous and occasional cigarette smokers as risk factors for unemployment.

Postoperative fever: a normal inflammatory response or cause for concern.

PURPOSE: To devise a systematic diagnostic strategy displayed in algorithm format to assist advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) in determining when postoperative fever is simply a normal inflammatory response and when further investigation is needed to rule out infection or other serious noninfectious causes of fever. DATA SOURCES: Selected research and clinical articles. CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative fever is often a normal inflammatory response to surgery, but it can also be a manifestation of a serious underlying infectious or noninfectious etiology. Therefore, it is important to approach each instance of postoperative fever in a systematic manner. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: The role of the APRN in managing surgical patients requires being able to accurately assess and evaluate the cause of postoperative fever and take action accordingly. That means taking into account a variety of factors (e.g., patient's medical history, physical examination findings, and type of surgery), so that appropriate diagnostic tests can be ordered to evaluate the cause of the postoperative fever. By being aware of the causes of postoperative fever, the APRN can also take prophylactic action to decrease the risk associated with many of these potential febrile causes.