Zehra B. Omer

Growth hormone deficiency is associated with decreased quality of life in patients with prior acromegaly.

CONTEXT Both GH deficiency (GHD) and GH excess are associated with a decreased quality of life. However, it is unknown whether patients with GHD after treatment for acromegaly have a poorer quality of life than those with normal GH levels after cure of acromegaly. OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to determine whether patients with GHD and prior acromegaly have a poorer quality of life than those with GH sufficiency after cure of acromegaly. DESIGN AND SETTING We conducted a cross-sectional study in a General Clinical Research Center. STUDY PARTICIPANTS Forty-five patients with prior acromegaly participated: 26 with GHD and 19 with GH sufficiency. INTERVENTION There were no interventions. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES We evaluated quality of life, as measured by 1) the Quality of Life Adult Growth Hormone Deficiency Assessment (QoL-AGHDA); 2) the Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36); and 3) the Symptom Questionnaire. RESULTS Mean scores on all subscales of all questionnaires, except for the anger/hostility and anxiety subscales of the Symptom Questionnaire, showed significantly impaired quality of life in the GH-deficient group compared with the GH-sufficient group. Peak GH levels after GHRH-arginine stimulation levels were inversely associated with QoL-AGHDA scale scores (R = -0.53; P = 0.0005) and the Symptom Questionnaire Depression subscale scores (R = -0.35; P = 0.031) and positively associated with most SF-36 subscale scores. CONCLUSIONS Our data are the first to demonstrate a reduced quality of life in patients who develop GHD after cure of acromegaly compared to those who are GH sufficient. Further studies are warranted to determine whether GH replacement would improve quality of life for patients with GHD after cure from acromegaly.

Aspirin protects against Barrett's esophagus in a multivariate logistic regression analysis.

BACKGROUND & AIMS Better criteria are needed to identify patients who should be screened for Barretts esophagus (BE) to reduce overtesting and improve the cost effectiveness. There is evidence that chemopreventive agents such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, particularly aspirin, reduce the risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC), but little is known about their effects on BE. We analyzed characteristics of patients with BE for factors that might be used in screening and management. METHODS In this case-controlled study, we identified 434 patients with BE diagnosed at the first endoscopy (incident cases) at a single institution (1997-2010). BE cases were matched with controls on the basis of indication for endoscopy, year of endoscopy, and endoscopist. Risk factors analyzed included age, sex, body mass index, medical and social history, and medications. We performed a multivariate logistic regression analysis to identify clinical risk factors for BE. RESULTS In a multivariate regression model, men had a greater risk for developing BE (odds ratio, 3.2; 95% confidence interval, 2.3-4.4), whereas current aspirin users had a lower risk than nonusers (odds ratio, 0.56; 95% confidence interval, 0.39-0.80). A subset analysis, limited to patients who had endoscopies for symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease, yielded similar findings. No interactions were found between aspirin use and smoking or use of acid-suppressive medications. CONCLUSIONS In a case-controlled study of 434 patients with BE, current aspirin use appeared to reduce the risk of BE; previous studies associated aspirin use with a reduced risk of EAC. Although efforts were made to minimize biases in our analysis, the possibility of residual confounding remains.

Impact of Ductal Carcinoma In Situ Terminology on Patient Treatment Preferences

Impact of Ductal Carcinoma In Situ Terminology on Patient Treatment Preferences Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is a preinvasive malignancy of the breast and is diagnosed in more than 50 000 women a year in the United States. It is treated with either mastectomy or lumpectomy, often combined with radiation therapy.1 In cases of low-grade DCIS, studies suggest that if progression occurs, it does so within a time frame of 5 to 40 years2 and possibly in only 20% of DCIS cases.3 This raises the possibility that some cases of DCIS will follow an indolent course that will not attain clinical significance during the patient’s lifetime. Accordingly, watchful waiting has been proposed as a reasonable option for DCIS,4 akin to what is currently offered for patients with early stage prostate cancer; however, how to implement such a strategy is unclear. Many women are unable to distinguish between preinvasive and invasive cancer and often overestimate the implications of a DCIS diagnosis.5 These misperceptions may drive patients’ willingness for invasive treatments. Health care providers’ communication with their patients about DCIS plays an important role in patients understanding the risks of their diagnosis. Terms such as carcinoma, stage-0 cancer, and noninvasive cancer are commonly used to describe DCIS and may further contribute to the confusion engendered in many patients.6 Given the inconsistent terminology used for DCIS, we hypothesized that when DCIS is described without the term cancer, women would be more likely to opt for noninvasive approaches such as medication or watchful waiting in place of surgery.

Development of a personalized decision aid for breast cancer risk reduction and management

BackgroundBreast cancer risk reduction has the potential to decrease the incidence of the disease, yet remains underused. We report on the development a web-based tool that provides automated risk assessment and personalized decision support designed for collaborative use between patients and clinicians.MethodsUnder Institutional Review Board approval, we evaluated the decision tool through a patient focus group, usability testing, and provider interviews (including breast specialists, primary care physicians, genetic counselors). This included demonstrations and data collection at two scientific conferences (2009 International Shared Decision Making Conference, 2009 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium).ResultsOverall, the evaluations were favorable. The patient focus group evaluations and usability testing (N = 34) provided qualitative feedback about format and design; 88% of these participants found the tool useful and 94% found it easy to use. 91% of the providers (N = 23) indicated that they would use the tool in their clinical setting.ConclusionBreastHealthDecisions.org represents a new approach to breast cancer prevention care and a framework for high quality preventive healthcare. The ability to integrate risk assessment and decision support in real time will allow for informed, value-driven, and patient-centered breast cancer prevention decisions. The tool is being further evaluated in the clinical setting.

Using radiation risk models in cancer screening simulations: important assumptions and effects on outcome projections.

PURPOSE To evaluate the effect of incorporating radiation risk into microsimulation (first-order Monte Carlo) models for breast and lung cancer screening to illustrate effects of including radiation risk on patient outcome projections. MATERIALS AND METHODS All data used in this study were derived from publicly available or deidentified human subject data. Institutional review board approval was not required. The challenges of incorporating radiation risk into simulation models are illustrated with two cancer screening models (Breast Cancer Model and Lung Cancer Policy Model) adapted to include radiation exposure effects from mammography and chest computed tomography (CT), respectively. The primary outcome projected by the breast model was life expectancy (LE) for BRCA1 mutation carriers. Digital mammographic screening beginning at ages 25, 30, 35, and 40 years was evaluated in the context of screenings with false-positive results and radiation exposure effects. The primary outcome of the lung model was lung cancer-specific mortality reduction due to annual screening, comparing two diagnostic CT protocols for lung nodule evaluation. The Metropolis-Hastings algorithm was used to estimate the mean values of the results with 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs). RESULTS Without radiation exposure effects, the breast model indicated that annual digital mammography starting at age 25 years maximized LE (72.03 years; 95% UI: 72.01 years, 72.05 years) and had the highest number of screenings with false-positive results (2.0 per woman). When radiation effects were included, annual digital mammography beginning at age 30 years maximized LE (71.90 years; 95% UI: 71.87 years, 71.94 years) with a lower number of screenings with false-positive results (1.4 per woman). For annual chest CT screening of 50-year-old females with no follow-up for nodules smaller than 4 mm in diameter, the lung model predicted lung cancer-specific mortality reduction of 21.50% (95% UI: 20.90%, 22.10%) without radiation risk and 17.75% (95% UI: 16.97%, 18.41%) with radiation risk. CONCLUSION Because including radiation exposure risk can influence long-term projections from simulation models, it is important to include these risks when conducting modeling-based assessments of diagnostic imaging.

MRI-Guided Focused Ultrasound Surgery for Uterine Fibroid Treatment: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the cost effectiveness of a treatment strategy for symptomatic uterine fibroids that uses MRI-guided focused ultrasound as a first-line therapy relative to uterine artery embolization (UAE) or hysterectomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS. We developed a decision-analytic model to compare the cost effectiveness of three first-line treatment strategies: MRI-guided focused ultrasound, UAE, and hysterectomy. Treatment-specific short- and long-term utilities, lifetime costs, and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) were incorporated, allowing us to conduct an incremental cost-effectiveness analysis, using a societal willingness-to-pay (WTP) threshold of

Growth hormone status predicts left ventricular mass in patients after cure of acromegaly

50,000/QALY to designate a strategy as cost effective. Sensitivity analyses were subsequently performed on all key parameters. RESULTS. In the base-case analysis, UAE as a first-line treatment of symptomatic fibroids was the most effective and expensive strategy (22.75 QALYs;

P5-15-01: Words Matter: Influence of DCIS Diagnosis Terminology on Patient Treatment Decisions.

22,968), followed by MRI-guided focused ultrasound (22.73 QALYs;

Abstract P4-11-03: Single nucleotide polymorphism testing for breast cancer risk assessment: patient trust and willingness to pay

20,252) and hysterectomy (22.54 QALYs;

The Effect of Obesity on Esophageal Adenocarcinoma

11,253). MRI-guided focused ultrasound was cost effective relative to hysterectomy, with an associated incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of