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Purpose To assess prechemotherapy cardiac imaging practices in relation to patients’ heart failure (HF) risk. Methods We performed a population-based retrospective cohort study of women receiving chemotherapy for early-stage breast cancer in Ontario between 2007 and 2012. We surveyed for baseline cardiac imaging 6 months before chemotherapy or within 30 days thereafter. The proportion of patients who underwent imaging and cumulative incidence of major adverse cardiac event (MACE) rates was determined based on chemotherapy regimen and HF risk factors. Logistic regression was used to assess predictors of pretreatment cardiac imaging. Results We studied 18,444 women who had been treated with chemotherapy (median age, 55 years). There was near-universal imaging of women treated with trastuzumab-containing regimens, including those without additional HF risk factors. Women who received anthracyclines without trastuzumab underwent imaging more frequently if they had additional HF risk factors (73.3% v 62.6%; P < .001). The 5-year incidence of MACE was two to six times higher in patients with HF risk factors across all treatment regimens. Patients with HF risk factors who received anthracyclines without trastuzumab had a higher 5-year incidence of MACE (4.5%) than patients without HF risk factors who received trastuzumab without anthracyclines (2.6%). However, cardiac imaging was less frequent in the former group (73.3% v 93.6%; P < .001). Logistic regression indicated that most variation in baseline imaging was related to chemotherapy, followed by physician-level factors. The odds of imaging were doubled with female physicians. Patient-specific factors, including HF risk factors, made minimal contribution to variation in imaging. Conclusion Baseline cardiac imaging was driven by chemotherapy regimen rather than HF risk. This risk-imaging mismatch is an impetus to reconsider current cardiac imaging practices in patients who receive chemotherapy for breast cancer.

OBJECTIVE Women with breast cancer and diabetes face worse outcomes than those with breast cancer without diabetes; however, the contribution of comorbidity to these disparities remains unclear. We evaluated the impact of diabetes on receipt of cancer treatments as well as mortality while accounting for other comorbidities. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Ontario administrative databases were used to compare the rate of receipt of breast cancer treatments between women with and without diabetes. We also performed adjusted cause-specific hazard models to account for comorbidities when evaluating differences in treatments received and mortality outcomes between the two groups. RESULTS Women with diabetes and stage III breast cancer were slightly less likely to receive chemotherapy (relative risk [RR] 0.93 [95% CI 0.89–0.97]), although this difference was not significant when we adjusted for comorbidities (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 1.03 [95% CI 0.93–1.13]). We saw similar trends for receipt of guideline-adherent radiotherapy (RR 0.97 [0.95–0.99], aHR 0.98 [0.94–1.02]). All-cause mortality was increased in women with diabetes after adjusting for comorbidities (aHR 1.16 [1.06–1.27]), but breast cancer–specific mortality was not increased overall. Women with a longer duration of diabetes and those with preexisting cardiovascular disease had increased all-cause and cancer-specific mortality. CONCLUSIONS Although cancer treatments received were similar between women with and without diabetes, breast cancer–specific mortality remains higher among women with diabetes who have longer diabetes duration or preexisting cardiovascular disease. This study uncovers new information about key risk factors for poorer prognosis in women with diabetes and breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: In the United States, certain minority groups have been shown to have inferior cancer outcomes compared with the white majority population. However, to the authors' knowledge, the majority of research has not separated ethnicity from immigration status. The objective of the current study was to determine the impact of ethnicity, independent of immigration status, on cancer outcomes in Chinese and South Asian populations in Ontario, Canada. METHODS: The authors conducted a population-based retrospective cohort study using administrative databases in Ontario, Canada. Incident cancer cases were captured in Canadian-born Chinese and South Asian individuals, Chinese and South Asian immigrants, and the general Ontario reference population (non-Chinese/non-South Asian and non-immigrant) between 2000 and 2012. Subjects were followed until death (all-cause and cancer-specific), and Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate the impact of Chinese and South Asian ethnicity on cancer outcomes after adjusting for explanatory variables. RESULTS: A total of 423,678 cancer cases were identified; at total of 6631 cases were identified in Canadian-born Chinese individuals and 2752 cases in Canadian-born South Asian individuals. After adjustment, the rate of all-cause mortality was lower for Canadian-born Chinese (hazard ratio [HR], 0.829; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.795-0.865), Canadian-born South Asian (HR, 0.856; 95% CI, 0.797-0.919), and Chinese immigrant (recent immigrant: HR, 0.661 [95% CI, 0.610-0.716] and non-recent immigrant: HR, 0.853 [95% CI, 0.803-0.906]) populations compared with the general Ontario population. A similar effect was found for cancer-specific mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Chinese and South Asian ethnic groups appear to have lower cancer mortalities compared with the general Ontario population. After removing the well-documented protective effect of immigration, Chinese and South Asian ethnicities were found to be associated with a cancer survival advantage in Ontario, Canada. Cancer 2018;124:1473-82. © 2018 American Cancer Society.

Objective Lithium is an essential mood disorder treatment; however, it remains unclear whether lithium increases chronic kidney disease (CKD) risk. There are few data on this in the elderly, even though older adults may be particularly susceptible to CKD. We wished to determine whether lithium is associated with increased CKD risk relative to valproate in older adults. Methods This nested case-control study analyzed province-wide administrative health data from mental health service users aged ≥ 66 years in Ontario, Canada, from 2003 to 2014. Five-year incident CKD risk was compared in lithium users, valproate users, and patients who used neither medication. ICD-10 was used to assign CKD diagnosis. We used conditional logistic regression to control for hypertension, diabetes mellitus, acute kidney injury, medications associated with lithium toxicity, and other potential confounders. Results 21,741 cases and 86,930 age- and sex-matched controls were identified, including 529 lithium users and 498 valproate users. After controlling for confounders, we found that lithium use was associated with increased risk of incident CKD (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 1.76 [95% CI, 1.41-2.19]), while valproate use was not (adjusted OR = 1.03 [95% CI, 0.81-1.29]). Conclusions Lithium is independently associated with an almost 2-fold increase in CKD risk in this community sample of older mental health service users. In the absence of clear information about certain contributing factors, such as inadequate monitoring and acute and chronic lithium level elevations, causes for this increase will need to be determined in future research.

There is limited information on stage at breast cancer diagnosis in Canadian immigrant women. We compared stage at diagnosis between immigrant women and Canadian-born women, and determined whether ethnicity was an independent factor associated with stage. 41,213 women with invasive breast cancer from 2007 to 2012 were identified from the Ontario Cancer Registry. Women were classified as either immigrants or Canadian-born by linkage with the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada's Permanent Resident database. Women's ethnicity was classified as Chinese, South Asian, or remaining women in Ontario. Logistic regression was performed to calculate the odds ratio (OR) of being diagnosed at stage I breast cancer (versus stage II-IV). 4,353 (10.6%) women were immigrants and 36,860 (89.4%) were Canadian-born women. The mean age at breast cancer diagnosis was 53.5 years for immigrants versus 62.3 years for Canadian-born women (p < 0.0001). Immigrant women were less likely than Canadian-born women to be diagnosed with stage I breast cancers (adjusted OR = 0.85; 95% CI: 0.79-0.91; p < 0.0001). The adjusted OR of being stage I was 1.28 (95% CI: 1.14-1.43; p < 0.0001) for women of Chinese ethnicity and was 0.82 (95% CI: 0.70-0.96; p = 0.01) for women of South Asian ethnicity, compared to the remaining women in Ontario. Canadian immigrant women were less likely than Canadian-born women to be diagnosed with early-stage breast cancers. Ethnicity was a greater contributor to the stage disparity than was immigrant status. South Asian women, regardless of immigration status, might benefit from increased breast cancer awareness programs.

Key Points Question What are the population-based frequency, factors, and sex-specific differences in burdensome interventions and antibiotic therapy at the very end of life among nursing home residents with advanced dementia? Findings In this population-based cohort study of 27 243 decedent nursing home residents with advanced dementia, men were statistically significantly more likely than women to experience burdensome interventions (ie, transitions of care, invasive procedures, and physical restraints) and receive antibiotics; only a minority of residents saw a palliative care physician in the year before death, but those who did were significantly less likely to experience an end-of-life transition of care and to receive antibiotics. Meaning Study findings underscore the importance of sex-specific analysis in dementia research and the expanding roles of palliative care and antimicrobial stewardship in the nursing home setting., This population-based cohort study examines the sex-based variations in burdensome interventions (care transitions, invasive procedures, and use of physical restraints) and antibiotic therapy at the very end of life among nursing home residents with advanced dementia in Ontario, Canada., Importance Nursing home residents with advanced dementia have limited life expectancies yet are commonly subjected to burdensome interventions at the very end of life. Whether sex-specific differences in the receipt of these interventions exist and what levels of physical restraints and antibiotics are used in this terminal setting are unknown. Objective To evaluate the population-based frequency, factors, and sex differences in burdensome interventions and antibiotic therapy among nursing home residents with advanced dementia. Design, Setting, and Participants This population-based cohort study from Ontario, Canada, used linked administrative databases held at ICES, including the Continuing Care Resident Reporting System Long-Term Care database, which contains data from the Resident Assessment Instrument Minimum Data Set, version 2.0. Nursing home residents (n = 27 243) with advanced dementia who died between June 1, 2010, and March 31, 2015, at 66 years or older were included in the analysis. Initial statistical analysis was completed in May 2017, and analytical revisions were conducted from November 2018 to January 2019. Exposure Sex of the nursing home resident. Main Outcomes and Measures Burdensome interventions (transitions of care, invasive procedures, and physical restraints) and antibiotic therapy in the last 30 days of life. Results The final cohort included 27 243 nursing home residents with advanced dementia (19 363 [71.1%] women) who died between June 1, 2010, and March 31, 2015, at the median (interquartile range) age of 88 (83-92) years. In the last 30 days of life, burdensome interventions were common, especially among men: 5940 (21.8%) residents were hospitalized (3661 women [18.9%] vs 2279 men [28.9%]; P

OBJECTIVE Many patients with bipolar disorder are reaching old age, but whether they are receiving evidence-based psychotropic treatment remains unclear. Our objective was to describe current psychotropic prescribing patterns in a large Canadian late-life bipolar sample. METHODS Population-based cross-sectional study of 1443 bipolar disorder patients aged ≥ 66, discharged from a psychiatric hospitalization in Ontario, Canada from 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2012. We described psychotropic medication prescribing within 30 days post-discharge. RESULTS Prescription of ≥2 psychotropic medications was highly prevalent (81.5%). The most common medications were atypical antipsychotics (75.3%), benzodiazepines/zopiclone (42.3%), and antidepressants (38.5%), with less frequent use of valproate (35.4%) and lithium (23.4%). Only 1.4% of patients were on lithium monotherapy, while 4.4% and 15.7% of patients were on antidepressant or atypical antipsychotic monotherapy; 8.9% of all patients were using ≥2 atypical antipsychotics. CONCLUSIONS In clinical practice, older adults hospitalized with bipolar disorder are often prescribed multiple psychotropic medications upon discharge. In many instances, practices did not reflect bipolar treatment guidelines and may be putting patients at risk for poor physical health and psychiatric outcomes. One such example is the very infrequent use of lithium monotherapy. Future research should examine whether health system-wide protocolized late-life bipolar treatment may optimize prescribing to improve effectiveness and safety. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Aromatase inhibitors (AIs) may increase cardiovascular risk relative to tamoxifen in post-menopausal women with breast cancer. This risk has not been well-quantified outside of clinical trials.Observational population-based cohort study of women aged55 years diagnosed with stage I-III breast cancer between 2005 and 2010. Women treated with AIs or tamoxifen were followed to March 2012. The primary outcome was hospitalisation for myocardial infarction (MI). Cause-specific hazards were compared using tamoxifen as the reference group. Inverse probability of treatment weighting using the propensity score was used to reduce confounding due to measured baseline covariates. Results were confirmed using two cause-specific hazards models. Subgroup analyses included women aged ≥66 years, those with prior ischaemic heart disease, and a 'lower-risk group' aged74 years with stage I-II cancer and no prior ischaemic heart disease.In 7409 aromatase inhibitor-treated and 1941 tamoxifen-treated women, the median age was 71 versus 74 years, respectively (p 0.001). Baseline prevalence of ischaemic heart disease was similar (17.0% versus 16.9%, p = 0.96). Over a mean of 1184 d of follow-up, there were 123 hospitalisations for MI; the cause-specific hazard was higher with AIs (hazard ratio 2.02; 95% confidence interval 1.16-3.53 in the weighted sample). We observed comparable patterns within pre-defined subgroups and when adjusted using cause-specific hazards models.Aromatase inhibitors are associated with a higher risk of MI compared with tamoxifen. This risk should be accounted for when managing aromatase inhibitor-treated women.

We evaluated risk of adverse respiratory outcomes associated with incident opioid use among older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD).This was a retrospective population-based cohort study using a validated algorithm applied to health administrative data to identify adults aged 66 years and older with COPD. Inverse probability of treatment weighting using the propensity score was used to estimate hazard ratios comparing adverse respiratory outcomes within 30 days of incident opioid use compared to controls.Incident opioid use was associated with significantly increased emergency room visits for COPD or pneumonia (HR 1.14, 95% CI 1.00–1.29; p=0.04), COPD or pneumonia-related mortality (HR 2.16, 95% CI 1.61–2.88; pIncident opioid use, and in particular use of the generally more potent opioid-only agents, was associated with increased risk for adverse respiratory outcomes, including respiratory-related mortality, among older adults with COPD. Potential adverse respiratory outcomes should be considered when prescribing new opioids in this population.

BACKGROUND Diabetes is associated with an increased risk of several cancers; however, greater detection of cancer around the time of diabetes diagnosis may partly contribute to this relationship. The goal of the current study was to explore the temporal relationship between diabetes and cancer incidence. METHODS The authors conducted a retrospective, population-based cohort study of >1 million adults living in Ontario, Canada to evaluate the association between diabetes diagnosis and the incidence of cancer in 3 time periods: within the 10 years before a diabetes diagnosis, within the first 3 months after a diabetes diagnosis, and from 3 months to 10 years after a diabetes diagnosis. RESULTS Individuals with diabetes were significantly more likely to have been diagnosed with cancer within the 10 years before a diabetes diagnosis compared with individuals without diabetes (odds ratio, 1.23; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 1.19-1.27). Cancer incidence also was found to be significantly higher in individuals with diabetes within the 3-month period after a diabetes diagnosis (hazard ratio, 1.62; 95% CI, 1.52-1.74), whereas the risk was not found to be elevated in the later period (hazard ratio, 0.97; 95% CI, 0.95-0.98). Similar trends were noted for individual cancers. CONCLUSIONS The results demonstrated that individuals with diabetes had a significantly higher risk of most cancers, which was limited to the time periods before and immediately after a diabetes diagnosis. The highest risk period was observed within the first 3 months after a diabetes diagnosis, suggesting a partial role of detection bias in the apparent relationship between diabetes and cancer. Cancer 2016. © 2016 American Cancer Society. Cancer 2016;122:2731–2738. © 2016 American Cancer Society.