The lancet oncology
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The lancet oncology · Mar 2017
ReviewBarriers to, and opportunities for, palliative care development in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.
The 22 countries of WHO's Eastern Mediterranean Region are experiencing an increase in the burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including cancer. Of the six WHO regions, the Eastern Mediterranean Region is projected to have the greatest increase in cancer incidence in the next 15 years. Furthermore, most cancers are diagnosed at a late stage, resulting in a lower cancer survival rate than in the European Region and the Region of the Americas. ⋯ However, in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, the palliative care available is variable and inconsistent. Several barriers exist to the development and expansion of palliative care delivery in this region, including the absence of palliative care in national policies, little partnership working, insufficient palliative care education for health-care professionals and volunteers, poor public awareness, and gaps in access to essential pain-relief medicines. In this Review, we explore data and evidence from published literature, WHO meeting reports, cancer control mission reports, and the WHO global NCD country capacity survey to identify the status of palliative care in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, including the challenges and opportunities for development.
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The lancet oncology · Mar 2017
Multicenter StudyNivolumab in metastatic urothelial carcinoma after platinum therapy (CheckMate 275): a multicentre, single-arm, phase 2 trial.
Patients with metastatic urothelial carcinoma have a dismal prognosis and few treatment options after first-line chemotherapy. Responses to second-line treatment are uncommon. We assessed nivolumab, a fully human IgG4 PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibitor antibody, for safety and activity in patients with metastatic or surgically unresectable urothelial carcinoma whose disease progressed or recurred despite previous treatment with at least one platinum-based chemotherapy regimen. ⋯ Bristol-Myers Squibb.
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The lancet oncology · Mar 2017
ReviewParticipation in psychosocial oncology and quality-of-life research: a systematic review.
Quality-of-life and psychosocial oncology studies that have low participation might have less precision, less statistical power, and can have non-response bias. In this systematic Review, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, and PsycInfo, for paediatric studies published in 2010-15 and adults studies published 2014-15. Studies were eligible if they were original studies published in a peer-reviewed journal; recruited children (aged 0-18 years at diagnosis) with cancer or their parents, or adult patients with cancer; and assessed psychosocial outcomes, including quality of life, depression, anxiety, wellbeing, distress, coping, or adjustment as a primary or secondary outcome. ⋯ In paediatric studies, recruitment of participants at diagnosis, face to face, and with the use of short questionnaires yielded higher participation. Other study design characteristics (method of data collection, who enrolled the participants, and incentives) and patient characteristics (cancer type, patient or parent age, and sex) did not affect participation in either paediatric or adult studies. Researchers can use these data to improve reporting quality and make evidence-based choices to maximise participation in future studies.