Investigating relationships among cancer survivors' engagement in an online support community, social support perceptions, well-being, and moderating effects of existing (offline) social support.

PURPOSE: Socially supportive relationships help cancer survivors cope with their diagnosis and may improve quality of life; however, many survivors report unmet support and information needs. Online communities of survivors may address these needs, but research on their benefits have been equivocal. This cross-sectional, self-report study investigated relationships among cancer survivors' level of engagement in an online survivor community (The American Cancer Society Cancer Survivors Network®; CSN), perceptions of emotional/informational support available from online communities ("online social support"), well-being, and moderating effects of "offline social support." METHODS: Participants were 1255 registered users of the CSN who completed surveys between 2013 and 2014. Three types of engagement with the CSN-social/communal, interpersonal communication, and informational/search engagement-were identified through principal components analysis. Regression analyses examined hypotheses. RESULTS: More frequent social/communal and interpersonal communication engagement were associated with increased online social support (p < .0001), and the relationship between interpersonal communication engagement and online social support was strongest for survivors reporting lower offline social support (interaction ß = - .35, p < .001). Greater online social support was associated with increased well-being, but only among survivors reporting low offline social support (interaction ß = - .35, p < .0001). CONCLUSIONS: Engagement in online survivor communities may increase support perceptions that promote well-being, but benefits may accrue more to survivors reporting low offline social support. IMPLICATIONS FOR CANCER SURVIVORS: Newly diagnosed cancer survivors, particularly those with unmet emotional/informational support needs, should be given the opportunity to communicate with other survivors through online survivor support networks.

Theory-based evaluation of an online cancer fatigue class.

Fatigue is a common problem faced by cancer patients and survivors, yet is often overlooked. An online fatigue class is evaluated using measures based on the Health Belief Model (HBM). A sample of 26 survivors and seven caregivers completed pre-class and post-class surveys and a facilitated discussion. Statistically significant improvements were detected in both the fatigue knowledge (p < 0.001) and belief (p < 0.001) scores. Participants reported that the content was accessible and useful. The class had a positive impact on their knowledge and beliefs about cancer fatigue. This suggests that HBM may be an appropriate framework for the evaluation of Internet-based educational interventions.

Plasma and skin concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids before and after supplementation with n-3 fatty acids in dogs with atopic dermatitis.

OBJECTIVE: To determine essential fatty acid concentrations in plasma and tissue before and after supplementation with n-3 fatty acids in dogs with atopic dermatitis. ANIMALS: 30 dogs with atopic dermatitis. PROCEDURE: Dogs received supplemental flaxseed oil (200 mg/kg/d), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 50 mg/kg/d)-docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 35 mg/kg/d), or mineral oil as a placebo in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial. Clinical scores and plasma and cutaneous concentrations of linoleic acid, arachidonic acid, alpha-linolenic acid (alpha-LLA), EPA, DHA, prostaglandin E2, and leukotriene B4 were determined. RESULTS: Total plasma concentrations of alpha-LLA and EPA increased and those of arachidonic acid decreased significantly with administration of EPA-DHA, and concentrations of alpha-LLA increased with flaxseed oil supplementation; nevertheless, there was no significant change in the concentrations of these fatty acids or eicosanoids in the skin. There was no correlation between clinical scores and plasma or cutaneous concentrations for any of the measured fatty acids or eicosanoids. CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results indicated that at the dose used, neither the concentrations of fatty acids in skin or plasma nor a decrease in the production of inflammatory eicosanoids was a major factor involved in the mechanism of action in dogs with atopy that responded to fatty acid supplementation.

Matrix metalloproteinase activity in tumor, stromal tissue, and serum from cats with malignancies.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are enzymes that play key roles in angiogenesis, tumor invasion, and metastasis in a wide variety of species. The purpose of this study was to evaluate pro and active MMP 2 and 9 concentrations in tumor, normal stromal tissue, and serum from tumor-bearing cats. We hypothesized that serum concentrations of pro and active forms of MMPs 2 and 9 would be predictive of MMP concentrations in tumor tissue and that these MMP concentrations would correlate with the histopathologic grade of the malignancies. Pro and active forms of MMPs 2 and 9 were determined by gelatin zymography and subsequent computerized densitometry from tumor and nearby stromal tissue and serum from 49 cats with various malignancies. The serum concentrations of MMPs from these tumor-bearing cats were compared with serum concentrations of MMPs from 44 normal cats of similar age and gender. Measurable concentrations of MMPs 2 and 9 were found within tumor, stromal, and serum samples. Mean concentrations of total pro and active MMPs 2 and 9 within tumor tissue were significantly higher (P values <.0001, .0031, <.001, and .0064, respectively) when compared with stromal tissue from the same animals. Serum MMP concentrations from tumor-bearing cats were higher than those from normal cats. Poor correlation was found between serum MMP concentrations and tissue MMP concentrations of increasing histologic grades of malignancies.