THIRD AGE Archives

Consumer wearables could make ‘positive contribution to routine care’

Consumer wearables that measure heart rate and physical activity provide similar clinical value to standard hospital tests for atrial fibrillation (AF) and heart failure, new research has found.

The study, published in Nature Medicine, examined whether a commercially-available fitness tracker and smartphone could continuously monitor the response to medications, and provide clinical information similar to in-person hospital assessment.

The wearable devices, consisting of a wrist band and connected smartphone, collected a vast amount of data on the response to two different medications prescribed as part of a clinical trial called RATE-AF, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).

Researchers used artificial intelligence (AI) to help analyse over 140 million datapoints for heart rate in 53 individuals over 20 weeks.

They found that digoxin and beta-blockers had a similar effect on heart rate, even after accounting for differences in physical activity.

This was in contrast to previous studies that had only assessed the short-term impact of digoxin.

A neural network that took account of missing information was developed to avoid an over-optimistic view of the wearable data stream.

Using this approach, the team found that the wearables were equivalent to standard tests often used in hospitals and clinical trials that require staff time and resources.

The average age of participants in the study was 76 years, highlighting possible future value regardless of age or experience with technology.

Professor Dipak Kotecha from the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences at the University of Birmingham and the lead author of the study said: “People across the world are increasingly using wearable devices in their daily lives to help monitor their activity and health status.

“This study shows the potential to use this new technology to assess the response to treatment and make a positive contribution to the routine care of patients.”

“Heart conditions such as atrial fibrillation and heart failure are expected to double in prevalence over the next few decades, leading to a large burden on patients as well as substantial healthcare cost.

“This study is an exciting showcase for how artificial intelligence can support new ways to help treat patients better.”

https://www.htworld.co.uk/news/wearables/consumer-wearables-could-make-positive-contribution-to-routine-care/

Cancer is on the rise in under-50s – a key task is to work out why

Nine in 10 of all cancers affect people over 50 but research shows a worrying rise in early onset cases

There are many upsides to growing old, but one of the downsides, unfortunately, is a higher risk of developing cancer. Increasing age is a key risk factor. And with more of us living longer worldwide, millions of older people will have to contend with the disease

Now a new study adds weight to previous work warning of a grim trend in global health: cancer in people under the age of 50 is becoming more common.

In the study, researchers led by the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and Zhejiang University School of Medicine in Hangzhou, China, found that the number of under-50s being diagnosed with cancer worldwide rose by 79% between 1990 and 2019, from 1.82 million to 3.26 million. Cancer deaths in the same age group grew by 27%, and more than 1 million under-50s a year are now dying of cancer, the research published in BMJ Oncology reveals

The study is not the first to show the trend. A review in 2022 of cancer registry records from 44 countries found that the incidence of early onset cancer was rising rapidly for 14 types of cancers, and this increase was happening across many middle- and high-income nations.

The new research adds meat to the bone. Examining data from 204 countries, it found a striking increase in the global incidence of early onset cancers. It also showed the highest incidence rates of cancer in the under-50s was in North America, Oceania and western Europe.

Researchers worldwide are only just starting their next task: working out why.

The authors of the 2022 review, led by Harvard University, said any uptick in testing or checks could not account for the rise in diagnoses. They suggested the rise was most likely due to an unhealthy mix of risk factors that could be working together, some which are known and others of which need to be investigated.

Many of these risks had established links to cancer such as obesity, inactivity, diabetes, alcohol, smoking, environmental pollution and western diets high in red meat and added sugars, not to mention shift work and lack of sleep. Experts have speculated that ultra-processed food may also be partly to blame

The researchers behind the new study echoed those observations. Genetic factors are likely to have a role, they say. But diets high in red meat and salt and low in fruit and milk, as well as alcohol consumption and tobacco use, are the main risk factors underlying the most common cancers among under-50s, with physical inactivity, excess weight and high blood sugar other contributory factors.

As worrying as the increase in early onset cancers is, caution is required. Cancer in people under 50 is still uncommon. With breast cancer, the most common type in under-50s, there were 13.7 cases per 100,000 people in 2019. Nine in 10 of all cancers affect people over 50.

Until experts unlock definitive answers, there remains plenty that people young and old can do to reduce their risk of cancer. Not smoking, maintaining a balanced diet and a healthy weight, getting plenty of exercise and staying safe in the sun are among them.

Andrew GregoryHealth editor

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/sep/05/cancer-is-on-the-rise-in-under-50s-a-key-task-is-to-work-out-why?utm_source=salesforce-marketing-cloud&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=September+12+2023+Cancer+Today+E-newsletter&utm_term=Read+More+in+the+Guardian

Depression Is Often Overlooked in Cancer Patients

When Carly Flumer was a teenager, she was diagnosed with anxiety and depression. She saw a psychiatrist and a therapist regularly, and got medication and counseling. She managed her mental health well for over a decade. But in January 2017, she was diagnosed with an aggressive form of thyroid cancer that had spread to her lymph nodes by the time it was diagnosed.

That’s when things got complicated again.

Flumer, then 27, underwent surgery to remove her thyroid. She also received intensive radiation. To all observers, she got a clean bill of health — at least with regard to her cancer. But, she says, her mental health had suffered.

“People absolutely do not understand the panic a cancer diagnosis can cause,” Flumer says. “My depression and anxiety got worse when I got diagnosed. I also have had more suicidal thoughts because of the cancer,” she says. “The side effects of treatment are real. So is the stress of waiting to see if the cancer comes back again.”

Flumer, who is still receiving medication and counseling for her anxiety and depression, is not alone in struggling with mental health issues brought on or worsened by cancer. Research has found a higher risk of depression and suicidal thoughts among cancer patients.

The Evidence for the Mental Health Toll Wrought by Cancer

There’s no shortage of evidence that cancer takes a toll on mental health. A study published in March 2022 in Nature Medicine examined patients with 26 different cancers and concluded that depression was the most common mental illness in people diagnosed with cancer.

People who were treated with chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery were more likely to experience mental health issues, according to the study, and a link between depression and the immune system’s inflammatory reaction to tumors was found, indicating that the body’s fight against tumors can come with a mental health cost. Researchers for this study also found an increased risk of self-harm in this population, which was highest in the first year following a mental illness diagnosis.

Another study, also published in March 2022 in Nature Medicine, found that patients with cancer had an 85 percent higher death rate from suicide than the general population. The suicide death rate was higher in patients with difficult-to-treat cancers, such as liver, stomach, head and neck, and pancreas, according to the study.

Mental Health Screening and Follow-Up

In 2014, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)recommended that all cancer patients and survivors be screened for symptoms of depression and anxiety throughout their care with a short screening questionnaire, such as the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9).

Getting any traction on this has been difficult, says Patricia Ganz, MD, a medical oncologist and the director of cancer preventionand control research at the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of California in Los Angeles. “It is still not being done routinely, and, if it is done, it is often done early, but not subsequent to treatment,” she says.

Dr. Ganz warns that it’s not enough to screen cancer patients for depression if doctors and facilities aren’t equipped to follow up with appropriate care. And not all are. In a study published in March 2022 in JAMA Network Open, researchers found out that of patients screened, 77 percent met criteria for follow-up care, but only 32 percent received care within three months of screening.

Read more :

https://www.everydayhealth.com/cancer/depression-is-often-overlooked-in-cancer-patients/?utm_source=salesforce-marketing-cloud&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=May+23%2c+2023+Cancer+Today+eNewsletter&utm_term=Read+More+in+Everyday+Health

The Economics of Health for All and the Transformative Power of the Arts

In the first-ever report of its kind, the WHO Council on the Economics of Health for All has outlined a bold new path to reorient economies to deliver what matters – health for all.

The Council has put forward a bold new narrative grounded in new economic wisdom to reorient economies to deliver health for all across four interrelated themes:

Value – valuing and measuring what matters through new economic metrics;
Finance – how to finance health for all as a long-term investment, not a short-term cost;
Innovation – how to advance health innovation for the common good;
Capacity – how to strengthen dynamic public sector capacity to achieve health for all.

Meet the new WHO Goodwill Ambassadors for Arts and Health

The appointments of Fleming and Yende underscore the profound link between arts and health. Engagement in creative activities, such as music, art, and dance, positively impacts physical, mental health, social well-being, and overall quality of life.

Through their roles as Goodwill Ambassadors, Fleming and Yende will promote the integration of arts into healthcare systems, advocate for access to creative arts therapies, and champion the importance of artistic expression in improving health outcomes globally.

Health for All Film Festival

A shortlist of 93 films has been selected for the 4th Health for All Film Festival out of more than 780 entries received.

Watch the shortlisted films here. Winners will be announced on 6 June.

Meet the new WHO Goodwill Ambassadors for Arts and Health

Health for All Film Festival

Key highlights from the Seventy-sixth World Health Assembly