Internal medicine journal
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Internal medicine journal · Oct 2021
Do Health Service staff support the implementation of Voluntary Assisted Dying at their workplace?
On 29 November 2017, the Victorian Parliament passed the Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD) Act 2017, which came into effect on 19 June 2019. ⋯ This study found that health workers have concerns about the implementation of VAD at their workplace but are generally supportive. This article provides information for health services considering the implementation of VAD, about staff concerns and issues that need to be addressed for the successful introduction of VAD.
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Internal medicine journal · Oct 2021
Qualitative study of nuclear medicine physicians' perceptions of positron emission tomography/computed tomography in pregnant patients with cancer.
Staging using positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) is standard of care in many cancers that occur most frequently in pregnancy, particularly lymphoma. While expert guidelines generally recommend against PET/CT in pregnant women, there is emerging evidence that likely absorbed foetal doses in pregnancy are relatively low, and as such in certain circumstances PET/CT may be acceptable when balancing benefit and risk. We conducted a qualitative survey of nuclear medicine physicians in Australia and New Zealand to assess practice and attitudes with respect to PET/CT in pregnancy women, finding that most respondents considered PET/CT in pregnancy may be an appropriate modality in carefully selected clinical contexts with appropriate modifications. It is important to continue to define the role of PET/CT in pregnancy into the future, particularly as this imaging modality has emerged as the standard of care in staging and response assessment for many cancers.