Search

Purpose: Childhood cancer survivors are at increased lifetime risk of morbidity and mortality, but adherence to periodic surveillance is suboptimal. One of the reasons that adult survivors of childhood cancer do not complete the recommended surveillance is that their parents may not have disclosed their cancer history to them. We sought to identify key barriers and enablers to talking to children about their cancer history., Method: Semi-structured interviews were completed with parents of childhood cancer survivors who had delayed telling their child about their cancer diagnosis. The theoretical domain framework (TDF) informed the interview guide and analysis. Interview transcripts were coded line-by-line and mapped to domains in accordance with the framework., Results: Twelve interviews were conducted with parents of childhood cancer survivors. Parents expressed a desire to protect their children from the knowledge and awareness that they had cancer, as they thought it could lead to hypervigilance and impact their child's identity (TDF domain: belief about consequences). Parents were also afraid the conversation would "trigger" emotions for themselves related to the time their child had cancer (emotion). Due to these barriers, it was the influence of the clinical team that was described as the driving push to having this difficult conversation (social influences). Parents also had a strong conviction that their child had the right to know and that they could use this information to protect themselves and stay healthy (motivation)., Discussion: Parents thought telling their child they had cancer was important because "knowledge is power" and their child "has the right to know." However, this was a difficult conversation that was often avoided., Implications for Cancer Survivors: This study confirms the need for an intervention that encourages and supports parents to have this difficult conversation with their child., Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethics approval: The study was approved by The Hospital for Sick Children Research Ethics Board (Protocol # 1000076291) and Women’s College Hospital REB (#: 2020–0108-E). Consent to participate: All participants gave informed consent to participate in the research study. Consent for publication: All participants gave informed consent that the data we received could be published. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has revolutionized the priorities of the medical society worldwide. Although most patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 exhibit respiratory symptoms, other organs may also be involved, including the liver, often resulting in liver injury. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease in the world, and its prevalence is expected to increase together with the epidemics of type 2 diabetes and obesity. Data about liver injury during COVID-19 are numerous, while overviews of this infection in patients with NAFLD, both in terms of respiratory and liver, are emerging. In this review, we summarise the current research focusing on COVID-19 in NAFLD patients and discuss the association between liver injury in COVID-19 subjects and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (Copyright: © 2023 Termedia & Banach.)

Background: Depression, anxiety, and fear of recurrence (FOR) are prevalent among cancer survivors, and it is recommended that they have access to supportive services and resources to address psychosocial needs during follow-up care. This study examined the impact of a virtual cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)-based telephone coaching program (BounceBack®) on depression, anxiety, and FOR., Method: Through the After Cancer Treatment Transition (ACTT) clinic at the Women's College Hospital (Toronto, Canada), eligible participants were identified, consented, and referred to the BounceBack® program. Program participation involved completion of self-selected online workbooks and support from trained telephone coaches. Measures of depression (PHQ-9), anxiety (GAD-7), and FOR (fear of cancer recurrence inventory, FCRI) were collected at pre-intervention (baseline) and post-intervention (6-month and 12-month time points). For each psychosocial measure, paired t-tests compared mean scores between study time points. Participant experiences and perceptions were collected through a survey., Results: Measures of depression and anxiety significantly improved among participants from pre-intervention to post-intervention. Scores for PHQ-9 and GAD-7 decreased from moderate to mild levels. Measure of FOR also significantly improved, while FCRI sub-scale scores significantly improved for 5 of the 7 factors that characterize FOR (triggers, severity, psychological distress, functional impairment, insight). Participants rated the intervention a mean score of 7 (out of 10), indicating a moderate level of satisfaction and usefulness., Conclusion: This study suggested that a virtual CBT-based telephone coaching program can be an effective approach to managing depression, anxiety, and fear of recurrence in cancer survivors., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

The OKT4 (helper) and OKT8 (suppressor) lymphocytic subpopulations were enumerated in a sample of 60 asymptomatic drug addicts and in 17 controls. No significant differences in the ratio could be found that could not be explained by the action of HIV. It can be concluded that heroin itself was not responsible for any alteration in the T4/T8 ratio in the population considered.

HIV infection prevalence and CD4/CD8 ratio alterations in asymptomatic heroin abusers. Authors evaluated HIV infection prevalence and presence of possible CD4/CD8 ratio alteration in a asymptomatic heroin abusers' sample. Drug addicts consecutively arrived to Local Health Unit No 12-Drug Addicts Advisory Unit. In this sample, there was a 41% prevalence of HIV infection and significant changes, not attributable to HIV infection, in the CD4/CD8 ratio were not found by comparison with 17 healthy controls.