Straight Talk
Risk of Miscarriage Is Increased for Nurses Handling Chemotherapy
Past studies have reported similar results, but this study, a partnership between the National Institute for Occupations Safety and Health and the Nurses’ Health Study 2, looked at pregnancy outcome and occupational exposures retrospectively from 8,461 participants in the Nurses’ Health Study 2. Participants reported 6,707 live births and 775 (10%) spontaneous abortions (less than 20 weeks).
The Fine Line Between Patient Rights and Biospecimen Research
Every day, physicians send tissue to pathology labs for routine analyses; in addition, tissue repositories are designed exclusively for the collection and eventual analysis of genetic material. In fact, in 2000, more than 300 million specimens containing genetic material were stored in the United States. The vast collection of samples could easily be used to explore genetic expressions associated with diseases. However, concerns about ethical use of biospecimens may prevent the use of many of those samples.
Is Your Patient Experiencing Post-Traumatic Stress After a Cancer Diagnosis?
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is most often associated with military personnel who have seen combat. Other highly stressful, life-threatening events causing PTSD include natural disasters, terrorist acts, violent personal attack (e.g., rape), or other traumatic occurrence. Since 1994, PTSD has been applied to people with life-threatening illnesses as well.
Do Computed Tomography Scans Cause Cancer?
The risk of developing cancer from radiology procedures such as x-rays, computed tomography (CT) scans, or nuclear medicine scans is a current hot topic in medicine. Although the relationship of exposure to ionizing radiation and cancer has been studied extensively, the current concern is fueled by a rapid rise in the number of CT scans being performed. CT scans expose a person to more radiation than a diagnostic x-ray.
POLST Complement Advance Directives to Better Honor Patients’ Preferences for End-of-Life Care
Traditionally, end-of-life treatment preferences had been communicated via advance directives such as living wills or single-intervention medical orders such as do-not-resuscitate orders. As a result, patients’ preferences regarding life-sustaining treatment were poorly or incompletely communicated to the healthcare team. For these reasons, physician orders for life-sustaining treatment (POLST) were eventually developed.
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