Smalltillman4482
2 × 10
), Radiology encounters (p=1.9 × 10
), Surgery encounters (p=1.6 × 10
), Radiation Oncology encounters (p=4.1 × 10
), and infusion visits (6.1 × 10
). Subgroup analyses revealed cancer-specific variations in changes to delivery. Patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) had the most significant decrease in NPVs (p=7.1 × 10
), which was significantly associated with a concomitant decrease in colonoscopies performed during the early pandemic period (r
=0.722, p=2.1 × 10
).
The COVID-19 pandemic has been associated with significant disruptions to care delivery. While these effects were appreciated broadly across GI malignancies, CRC, diagnosed and managed by periodic screening, has been affected most acutely.
The COVID-19 pandemic has been associated with significant disruptions to care delivery. ATG-019 While these effects were appreciated broadly across GI malignancies, CRC, diagnosed and managed by periodic screening, has been affected most acutely.Although various (bio)fabrication technologies have achieved revolutionary progress in the past decades, engineered constructs still fall short of expectations owing to their inability to attain precisely designable functions. Shrinkable and expandable (bio)materials feature unique characteristics leading to size-/shape-shifting and thus have exhibited a strong potential to equip current engineering technologies with promoted capacities toward applications in biomedicine. In this progress report, the advances of size-/shape-shifting (bio)materials enabled by various stimuli, are evaluated; furthermore, representative biomedical applications associated with size-/shape-shifting (bio)materials are also exemplified. Toward the future, the combination of size-/shape-shifting (bio)materials and 3D/4D fabrication technologies presents a wide range of possibilities for further development of intricate functional architectures.
Over the last decade, the population of childhood cancer survivors has rapidly increased in Latin America, opening a long chapter of challenges for healthcare providers in these countries to provide follow-up and adult care.
In the process of exploring childhood cancer parent and patient engagement in resource-limited settings, we highlight the challenges faced by Latin American survivors from El Salvador, Mexico, and Peru as they transitioned from receiving cancer treatment to life as a cancer survivors.
Focus group discussions and interviews were performed as part of a larger qualitative study involving 10 low and middle-income countries in four continents regarding patient and caregiver engagement in childhood cancer treatment. We present the results of the Latin-American survivors and their experiences finishing treatment and life outside the pediatric oncology follow-up system. Themes regarding a) losing eligibility for pediatric surveillance and care, b) the importance of peer survivors, and c) the need for giving back were part of their stories.
We suggest that given the lack of organized support from healthcare systems and providers for survivors' proper transition into adult-centered care, foundations and non-governmental organizations can provide transitional support, offer space for guidance/information, and work towards collaboration among systems for future integrated programs.
We suggest that given the lack of organized support from healthcare systems and providers for survivors' proper transition into adult-centered care, foundations and non-governmental organizations can provide transitional support, offer space for guidance/information, and work towards collaboration among systems for future integrated programs.
To standardize and assess the reliability of ultrasonographic assessment of inflammatory and structural lesions in patients with hand osteoarthritis (OA).
The Outcome Measures in Rheumatology (OMERACT) Ultrasound Working Group selected synovial hypertrophy (SH), joint effusion (JE), and power Doppler (PD) signals as the main inflammatory lesions in hand OA, and suggested osteophytes in the scapho-trapezio-trapezoid (STT) and cartilage defects in the proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joints as novel additions to previous structural scoring systems. A complementary imaging atlas provided detailed examples of the scores. A reliability exercise of static images was performed for the inflammatory features, followed by a patient-based exercise with six sonographers testing inflammatory and structural features in twelve hand OA patients. We used Cohen's kappa (κ) for intra-reader and Light's κ for inter-reader reliability for all features except PD, in which Prevalence-Adjusted Bias-Adjusted Kappa (PABAK) was applierall high close agreement between readers suggest that better reliability is achievable after further training. Assessment of osteophytes in the STT joint and cartilage in the PIP joints achieved less good reliability and the latter is not endorsed.Natural extracellular matrices (ECM) are currently being studied as an alternative source for organ transplantation or as new solutions to treat kidney injuries, which can evolve to end-stage renal disease, a life devastating condition. This paper provides an overview on the current knowledge in kidney ECM and its usefulness on future investigations. The composition and structure of kidney ECM is herein associated with its intrinsic capacity of remodeling and repair after insult. Moreover, it provides a deeper insight on altered ECM components during disease. The use of decellularized kidney matrices is discussed in the second part of the review, with emphasis on how these matrices contribute to tissue-specific differentiation of embryonic, pluripotent, and other stem cells. The evolution on the field toward different uses of xenogeneic ECM as a biological scaffold material is discussed, namely the major outcomes on whole kidney recellularization and its in vivo implantation. At last, the recent literature on the use of processed kidney decellularized ECM to produce diverse biomaterial substrates, such as hydrogels, membranes, and bioinks are reviewed, with emphasis on future perspectives of its translation into the clinic.
