Patient-reported supportive care needs among Asian American cancer patients.

PURPOSE: Cancer is the leading cause of death for Asian Americans. However, few studies have documented supportive care needs from the perspective of Asian American cancer patients. This study describes the needs reported by Asian American patients with colorectal, liver, or lung cancer over a 6-month period during their treatment. METHODS: Participants were recruited through the Greater Bay Area Cancer Registry and from cancer care providers in San Francisco. Participants self-identified as Asian or Asian American; were age 21 or older; spoke English, Chinese, or Vietnamese; and had stage I-III colon, rectum, liver, or lung cancer. Participants were matched with a language concordant patient navigator who provided support during a 6-month period. Needs were assessed by surveys at baseline, 3, and 6 months. RESULTS: Among 24 participants, 58% were 65 years or older, 42% did not complete high school, and 75% had limited English proficiency (LEP). At baseline, the most prevalent needs were cancer information (79%), nutrition and physical activity (67%), language assistance (54%), and daily living (50%). At the 3- and 6-month follow-up surveys, there was a higher reported need for mental health resources and healthcare access among participants. CONCLUSION: In this pilot study of Asian American cancer patients who predominantly had LEP, participants reported many needs, with cancer information and language assistance as the most prominent. The findings highlight the importance of culturally and linguistically appropriate patient navigators in addressing supportive care needs among cancer patients with LEP. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03867916.

Establishment of an in-house real-time RT-PCR assay for the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 using the first World Health Organization international standard in a resource-limited country.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 remains public health burdens and many unresolved issues worldwide. Molecular assays based on real-time RT-PCR are critical for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in clinical specimens from patients suspected of COVID-19. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to establish and validate an in-house real-time RT-PCR for the detection of SARS-CoV-2. METHODOLOGY: Primers and probes sets in our in-house real-time RT-PCR assay were designed in conserved regions of the N and E target genes. Optimized multiplex real-time RT-PCR assay was validated using the first WHO International Standard (NIBSC code: 20/146) and evaluated clinical performance. RESULTS: The limit of detection validated using the first WHO International Standard was 159 IU/ml for both E and N target genes. The evaluation of clinical performance on 170 clinical samples showed a positive percent agreement of 100% and the negative percent agreement of 99.08% for both target genes. The Kappa value of 0.99 was an excellent agreement, the strong correlation of Ct values observed between two tests with r2  = 0.84 for the E gene and 0.87 for the N gene. Notably, we assessed on 60 paired saliva and nasopharyngeal samples. The overall agreement was 91.66%, and Kappa value of 0.74 showed a high agreement between two types of samples. When using nasopharyngeal swabs as the reference standard, positive percent agreement, and negative percent agreement were 91.83% and 90.90%, respectively. CONCLUSION: In the present study, we established and validated an in-house real-time RT-PCR for molecular detection of SARS-CoV-2 in a resource-limited country.

Correlates of supportive care needs among Asian Americans with colorectal, liver, or lung cancer from a web-based patient navigation portal intervention: The Patient COUNTS study.

BACKGROUND: Cancer is the leading cause of death among Asian Americans, who often face barriers to cancer care. Cancer supportive care needs among Asian Americans remain understudied. AIMS: We examined cancer supportive care needs and participant factors correlated with these needs, identified profiles of supportive care needs, and examined whether needs profiles are associated with quality of life among Asian American adults. METHODS AND RESULTS: We recruited 47 Asian American adults with colorectal, liver, or lung cancer who spoke Chinese, English, or Vietnamese, and were starting or undergoing cancer treatment. We assessed cancer supportive care needs in four domains: cancer information, daily living, behavioral health, and language assistance. Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to identify clusters of participants based on their supportive need profiles to further examine the association between need profiles and quality of life (QoL) assessed by the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy. Participants (mean age = 57.6) included 72% males and 62% spoke English less than very well. Older participants (age ≥ 65) and those with annual income <$50K reported higher daily living needs. Men and younger participants (age < 50) reported higher behavioral health needs. We found three clusters displaying distinct cancer supportive need profiles: Cluster 1 (28% of the sample) displayed high needs across all domains; Cluster 2 (51%) had low needs across all domains; and Cluster 3 (21%) had high needs for cancer information and daily living. Cluster 1 participants reported the lowest QoL. CONCLUSION: Cancer supportive care needs among Asian American patients with colorectal, liver, and lung cancer were associated with patient characteristics and QoL. Understanding cancer supportive care needs will inform future interventions to improve care and QoL for Asian American patients with cancer. CLINICALTRIALS: gov Identifier: NCT03867916.

Getting out of harm's way: one-year outcomes for abused women in a vietnamese immigrant enclave.

The study identifies predictors of women's remaining entangled in abusive relationships. The sample includes 57 women in one Vietnamese American enclave. Women's beliefs in maintaining an intact family, patriarchal decision making, and fear of their partners characterized women remaining. To a lesser extent, seeking help from a variety of places characterized women who escaped, and concern with achieving important goals, number of children, financial dependence, lack of support, and legal marriage characterized women who remained. Discussion centers on how social and legal services can meet the unique needs of women with circumstances similar to those who participated in the study.

Effects of hyperbaric pressure on the oxidative stress status in healthy subjects

Introduction: In the hyperbaric pressure environment the partial pressure of each gas component increases, which increases oxygen partial pressure. This causes the generation of free radicals and oxidative stress. Objective: To determine the effects of hyperbaric pressure on the oxidative stress status in healthy subjects. Methods: 29 healthy men performed standardized hyperbaric chamber dive to a depth of 30 meters of water (msw) for 30 minutes. Blood samples were collected before compression, immediately after decompression and 1 hour after decompression. The levels of Malondialdehyde, Catalase and Superoxide Dismutase were measured in blood samples. Results: Malondialdehyde activity increased immediately after decompression and recovered at 1 hour after decompression. Superoxide Dismutase enzyme activity decreased immediately after decompression as well as 1 hour after decompression. Catalase enzyme activity increased immediately after decompression, which was significant at 1 hour after decompression. Conclusion: Changes in the biological markers Malondialdehyde, Catalase and Superoxide Dismutase suggest the appearance of oxidative stress under the influence of a hyperbaric pressure environment.

Introducción: En la condición de presión hiperbárica, la presión parcial de los componentes del aire se encuentra aumentada, incluida la del oxígeno. Esto se considera la causa de formación de radicales libres y el estado de estrés oxidativo. Objetivo: Determinar los efectos de la presión hiperbárica sobre estado del estrés oxidativo en individuos sanos. Métodos: 29 hombres sanos realizaron buceo estandarizado en cámara hiperbárica, a una profundidad de 30 metros de agua, durante un tiempo total de 30 minutos. Se recogieron muestras de sangre antes de la compresión, inmediatamente después de la descompresión y una hora después. Se midieron los niveles de malondialdehído, catalasa y superóxido dismutasa en muestras de sangre. Resultados: La acción del malondialdehído se incrementó inmediatamente después del buceo y se recuperó en 1 hora. La acción de enzima superóxido dismutasa se encontró disminuida al término y 1 hora después, mientras la enzima catalasa se demostró lo contrario y aumentó significativamente en la primera hora. Conclusión: El cambio de los marcadores biológicos malondialdehído, catalasa y superóxido dismutasa sugiere estado de estrés oxidativo bajo la influencia de presión hiperbárica.

Risk factors for abusive relationships: a study of Vietnamese American immigrant women.

This study identifies risk factors for Vietnamese American women's abuse. Intensive interviews with 129 Vietnamese women immigrants in a northeastern metropolitan area provided data to examine risk factors for sexual, physical, and verbal abuse. Patriarchal gender arrangements in the family, arguments about fulfilling gender and family roles, and partner's threat that divorce would compromise the participant's immigration status put women at risk for each type of abuse. "Picture brides" were at heightened risk for sexual abuse. For women with limited resources, education and interventions within the ethnic immigrant community are critical to addressing wife abuse.

Intimate Partner Violence Against Women in Zimbabwe.

The present study examines intimate partner violence (IPV) reported by a sample of women in Zimbabwe to explore factors associated with the problem. Findings from the study indicate an important role of gender relationships in violence against women. The effects of gender inequalities on the likelihood of IPV vary with types of violence, but husband's patriarchal behaviors increase the likelihood of all forms of violence. The study suggests the importance of improving gender equality through public education on gender relationships, increasing women's education and economic opportunities, and eliminating customary laws that sustain gender inequality as necessary steps to combat IPV against women in Zimbabwe.

Racial and ethnic differences in the immigrant paradox in substance use.

Using data from the National Longitudinal Studies of Adolescent Health, the present study examines self-reported substance use (cigarettes, tobacco, and marijuana) among youth from different immigration generations to determine the immigrant paradox in substance use for different racial and ethnic groups as well as factors contributing to the relationship between immigration and substance use. Results of data analysis indicate the immigrant paradox in substance use among non-Hispanic Whites, Asians, and Hispanics, but not among non-Hispanic Blacks. The study also shows that factors explaining the immigrant paradox in substance use vary with racial and ethnic groups, but English use at home, friends' cigarette and marijuana use appear to be the most important mediating factors. Findings from the study suggest that effective interventions in youth substance use require an understanding of adaptation patterns in different racial and ethnic groups, so that factors associated with adaptation problems experienced by particular groups will be appropriately addressed.

Brain structural abnormalities and mental health sequelae in South Vietnamese ex-political detainees who survived traumatic head injury and torture.

CONTEXT: A pilot study of South Vietnamese ex-political detainees who had been incarcerated in Vietnamese reeducation camps and resettled in the United States disclosed significant mental health problems associated with torture and traumatic head injury (THI). OBJECTIVES: To identify structural brain alterations associated with THI and to investigate whether these deficits are associated with posttraumatic stress disorder and depression. DESIGN: Cross-sectional neuroimaging study. SETTING: Massachusetts General Hospital and McLean Hospital. PARTICIPANTS: A subsample of Vietnamese ex-political detainees (n = 42) and comparison subjects (n = 16) selected from a community study of 337 ex-political detainees and 82 comparison subjects. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Scores on the Vietnamese versions of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 (HSCL) and Harvard Trauma Questionnaire for depression and posttraumatic stress disorder, respectively; cerebral regional cortical thickness; and manual volumetric morphometry of the amygdala, hippocampus, and thalamus. RESULTS: Ex-political detainees exposed to THI (n = 16) showed a higher rate of depression (odds ratio, 10.2; 95% confidence interval, 1.2-90.0) than those without THI exposure (n = 26). Ex-political detainees with THI had thinner prefrontotemporal cortices than those without THI exposure (P < .001 by the statistical difference brain map) in the left dorsolateral prefrontal and bilateral superior temporal cortices, controlling for age, handedness, and number of trauma/torture events (left superior frontal cortex [SFC], P = .006; left middle frontal cortex, P = .01; left superior temporal cortex [STC], P = .007; right STC, P = .01). Trauma/torture events were associated with bilateral amygdala volume loss (left, P = .045; right, P = .003). Cortical thinning associated with THI in the left SFC and bilateral STC was related to HSCL depression scores in THI-exposed (vs non-THI-exposed) ex-political detainees (left SFC, P for interaction = .007; left STC, P for interaction = .03; right STC, P for interaction = .02). CONCLUSIONS: Structural deficits in prefrontotemporal brain regions are linked to THI exposures. These brain lesions are associated with the symptom severity of depression in Vietnamese ex-political detainees.