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This article looks at the Karolinska 2 report which compared cancer survival rates in 25 countries and found that access to cancer drugs affected survival concluding that the licensing process should be speeded up with equitable access to all. British epidemiologist Michel Coleman who heads Cancer Research UK says the study is flawed and the conclusion questionable. Coleman claims that estimates rather than actual survival rates were used and the benefits from access to drugs information was skewed. Further, he suggested that study sponsor, Roche Pharmaceuticals, had input into the conclusion. The charges are denied by Roche and by the authors of the study.

The article discusses that after screening for breast or colorectal cancer, what is the time lag needed before cancer deaths are seen. According to a research paper by Sei J Lee and colleagues, cancer screening does help in preventing cancer deaths in the future, the time to benefit from is unclear. The paper adds that the screening prevents one cancer death per 1000 patients screened at 10 years, and it should be carried out on patients who have a life expectancy of more than 10 years.

The article presents a study which examines the mortality rate of children aged 5-15 years old in countries of Great Britain and Sweden, obtained through its National Statistics Offices. The study outlines the common disorders and infections suffered by children in the countries including asthma, respiratory infections and viral infections. The study also highlights the issues on limited access on healthcare services for children in low-income countries.

The article discusses the population based cohort study that determined possible association between inter-hospital variation in using guideline recommended treatments and acute myocardial infarction clinical outcomes in Sweden and Great Britain, based on clinical registries. Findings discussed include higher between hospital variation in 30 day mortality for acute myocardial infarction in Great Britain, associated and partly attributed to greater variation in practice in British hospitals.

Objectives To analyse the tobacco industry’s use of international trade agreements to oppose policies to strengthen health warning labels (HWLs). Design A review of tobacco industry documents, tobacco control legislation and international treaties. Results During the early 1990s, the tobacco industry became increasingly alarmed about the advancement of HWLs on cigarettes packages. In response, it requested legal opinions from British American Tobacco’s law firms in Australia and England, Britain’s Department of Trade and Industry and the World Intellectual Property Organisation on the legality of restricting and prohibiting the use of their trademarks, as embodied in cigarette packages. The consistent legal advice, privately submitted to the companies, was that international treaties do not shield trademark owners from government limitations (including prohibition) on the use of their trademarks. Despite receiving this legal advice, the companies publicly argued that requiring large HWLs compromised their trademark rights under international treaties. The companies successfully used these arguments as part of their successful effort to deter Canadian and Australian governments from enacting laws requiring the plan packaging of cigarettes, which helped delay large graphic HWLs, including ‘plain’ packaging, for over a decade. Conclusions Governments should not be intimidated by tobacco company threats and unsubstantiated claims, and carefully craft HWL laws to withstand the inevitable tobacco industry lawsuits with the knowledge that the companies’ own lawyers as well as authoritative bodies have told the companies that the rights they claim do not exist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Childhood growth affects long-term health and could contribute to health inequalities that persist throughout life. Methods We compared growth data of 4-year-old to 6-year-old children born 1997–2002 in UK (n=15 168), Sweden (n=6749) and rural China (n=10 327). SD scores (SDS) were calculated against the WHO Growth Standard. Obesity and overweight were defined by the International Obesity Taskforce cut-offs, and stunting, underweight and thinness by height, weight or body mass index (BMI)<−2 SDS. Associations with maternal education were standardised by calculating the Slope Index of Inequality (SII). Results Mean SDS height, weight and BMI in the UK (−0.01, 0.42, 0.62, respectively) and Sweden (0.45, 0.59, 0.45) were higher than in China (−0.98, −0.82, −0.29). Higher maternal education was consistently associated with taller offspring height SDS (SII: UK 0.25; Sweden 0.17; China 1.06). Underweight and stunting were less common in the UK (prevalence: 0.6% and 2.2%, respectively) and Sweden (0.3% and 0.6%) than in China (9.5% and 16.4%), where these outcomes were inversely associated with maternal education (SII: −25.8% and −12.7%). Obesity prevalence in the UK, Sweden and China was 4.8%, 3.7% and 0.4%, respectively. Maternal education was inversely associated with offspring obesity in the UK (SII: −3.3%) and Sweden (−2.8%), but not in China (+0.3%). Conclusions Higher maternal education was associated with more favourable growth in young children: lower obesity and overweight in the UK and Sweden, and lower stunting and underweight in rural China. Public health strategies to optimise growth in early childhood need to acknowledge socioeconomic factors, but possibly with a different emphasis in different settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Finite mixture models posit the existence of a latent categorical variable and can be used for probabilistic classification. The authors illustrate the use of mixture models for dietary pattern analysis. An advantage of this approach is taking classification uncertainty into account. Methods Participants were a random sample of women from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer. Food consumption was measured using dietary questionnaires. Mixture models identified latent classes in food consumption data, which were interpreted as dietary patterns. Results Among various assumptions examined, models allowing the variance of foods to vary within and between classes fit better than alternatives assuming constant variance (the K-means method of cluster analysis also makes the latter assumption). An eight-class model was best fitting and five patterns validated well in a second random sample. Patterns with lower classification uncertainty tended to be better validated. One pattern showed low consumption of foods despite being associated with moderate body mass index. Conclusion Mixture modelling for dietary pattern analysis has advantages over both factor and cluster analysis. In contrast to these other methods, it is easy to estimate pattern prevalence, to describe patterns and to use patterns to predict disease taking classification uncertainty into account. Owing to substantial error in food consumptions, any analysis will usually find some patterns that cannot be well validated. While knowledge of classification uncertainty may aid pattern evaluation, any method will better identify patterns from food consumptions measured with less error. Mixture models may be useful to identify individuals who under-report food consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data from the 5-6 year control questionnaire of the ABIS study, a Swedish prospective screening of children for Type 1 diabetes, indicates a genuine trust in the researchers--very few participating families expressed concern about their participation. Nevertheless, a majority do not want their research data to be used beyond the agreement of the original consent. They want to be asked for renewed consent in such cases. A vast majority also want potential high-risk information about their child to be communicated to them. Most participating families want this regardless of whether any preventive treatment is available. Although potential benefits for their child is a motivation for participation for a majority of the respondents, they also claim to be motivated by altruistic reasons. These results are compared to results from two similar studies in the UK. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This study examined the constituents of smokeless tobacco products available in the UK and compared them with products available in India, Sweden, and the USA Methods: Seven UK brands of smokeless tobacco, including a tooth cleaning powder, and four international brands of smokeless tobacco were tested for a range of toxins and known carcinogens, such as tobacco specific N-nitrosamines (TSNA), as well as nicotine availability. Results: Ten of the 11 brands tested had detectable levels of tobacco specific nitrosamines, which are proven carcinogens, and levels varied 130-fold. All had detectable levels of benzo(a)pyrene, another proven carcinogen (with around 175-fold variation) and several toxic metals (with nearly 150-fold variation). Nicotine availability varied in the UK products from 0.1 mg/g to 63.2 mg/g. All the tobacco products tested are likely to be hazardous to users' health, but the data indicate that it should be possible to reduce key toxins to non-detectable levels. Conclusions: Smokeless tobacco products should be regulated and standards set for maximum levels of toxins and carcinogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To describe the relation with age of risk of reported injury after a fall among women at work in two countries, the United Kingdom and Sweden, with particular emphasis on fractures, and to interpret these data. Methods: Rates of accidents compiled under the national reporting regulations of each country during a two year period were described by age, sex, cause (fail on the level, fall from a height, other), and occurrence of fracture, with emphasis on the relative risk (RR) in workers aged 45 years and over compared with those aged under 45. For fractures (major fractures only in the United Kingdom) among women, RRs were calculated for all occupations, with the three digit occupational classification schemes of each country. Summary RRs for older versus younger women, directly standardised. for occupation, were derived. Results: Among women, RRs for injury after a fall on the level and fall from a height were 2.77 and 1.77 respectively inSweden and 2.28 and 1.54 in the United Kingdom. When restricted to fractures, the RRs became 4.75 and 3.66 respectively in Sweden and 3.35 and 1.97 in the United Kingdom. Standardisation for occupation gaveRRs for fractures of 4.87 and 3.75 in Sweden and 3.43 and 2.16 in the United Kingdom. Almost all occupational groups with enough fractures for analysis showed an excess of fractures related to falls among older women. A different age pattern was seen for all injuries or fracture after other types of accidents and for all types of accident in men. Conclusion: It is argued that, for fractures at least, the results for women are unlikely to be due to reporting bias and unlikely tobe explained by a greater exposure to workplace hazards among older women. Whether there is an increased risk of falling, as distinct from sustaining a fracture, is not clear. The generality of the increased risk suggest that efforts should be made to minimise hazards in alloccupational sectors, particularly those using many women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a survey of medical research as of March 12, 2016. Topics discussed include the investigation on whether induction at term will lessen the stillbirth rate and a prospective research on Zika virus infection in pregnant women. The results of the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study and the risk of performing gastric diversion surgery through a laparoscope are also mentioned.

Objectives: The discovery of a variant strain of Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) in Sweden has raised awareness of its possible undetected spread in the UK. The assays that fail to detect this variant are widely used in this country. This study aimed to determine if this variant is circulating in the UK. Method: 1,680 genital specimens tested negative by the Roche assays were retested by Aptima Combo2. Discordant results were sequenced to check for the deletion variant. Results: Of 1,680 specimens tested, 29 were candidates for sequencing: 16 were negative for the variant, 11 failed to amplify, and 2 were lost. Discussion: No Ct deletion variants were found in the UK. If it is circulating, then the prevalence is low (0-0.77%), but even a low level cannot be ignored. The system we describe is simple and suitable for rapid response and phasing of surveillance to match an unknown level of threat if other variants emerge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]