Dashboard

E-Commentary

Go to Commentary

Sponsored
joined 5 years, 10 months ago

The Hills Clinic

The Hills Clinic
Directory:
Healthcare
Expertise:
psychologist

The Hills Clinic is the leader in mental health treatment in Sydney's Norwest. It is the first purpose built private hospital clinic in New South Wales.


Phone Number:
+61 1300 122 144


view this profile
5 years, 10 months ago

Dental Clinic in Coimbatore

Raj kumar
Directory:
Dentistry
Tags:
advanced dentistry
cosmetic dentistry
dental abscess
dental bleaching
dental bridges
Dentist In Coimbatore
dentist in tamilnadu
doctor

Rajkumar's Dentistry was incepted in the year 1994 with a vision to serve our beloved Patients with utmost dental care solutions in achieving that splendid happy smile. With 26 years of Experience, we have achieved an exclusive place in the Dental Clinic in Coimbatore.

view in full page
joined 5 years, 11 months ago

Robina Private Hospital

Owner
Directory:
Healthcare
Expertise:
37-38 weeks

Robina's onlyprivate health hospital providing specialised surgical, medical,rehabilitation and mental health care.

Phone Number:
07 5665 5100

Contact Email ID:
Michelle.Ballard@healthecare.com.au

Business Hours:
Mon-Fri: 08:00 AM - 08:00 PM
Saturday: 10:00 AM - 02:00 PM


view this profile
joined 5 years, 11 months ago

Michelle Ballard

Brunswick Private Hospital
Directory:
Healthcare
Expertise:
antiangiogenic

Brunswick Private Hospital is a comprehensive medical and rehabilitation facility. Our hospital delivers a range inpatient services supported by the latest technology and access to allied health services.

Business Contact Email ID:
Michelle.Ballard@healthecare.com.au

Phone Number:
(03) 9385 1111

Business Hours:
24/7


view this profile
5 years, 11 months ago

Will behavioural techniques improve breast cancer outcomes?

HealthPad
Directory:
Cancer
Tags:
behavioural techniques
breast cancer
breast cancer treatment
cancer research
commentary
  • The burden of breast cancer throughout the world is significant and increasing
  • Research has shown that a cheap pill (anastrozole) halves postmenopausal women’s risk of breast cancer and continues to be effective seven years after women stop taking the drug
  • Anastrozole has fewer side-effects and is more effective than comparable treatments
  • Government watchdogs both in the UK and US recommend anastrozole
  • But the uptake of the drug in the UK is relatively low
  • Doctors are not prescribing anastrozole and women are not availing themselves of the drug
  • The UK’s NHS should employ new behavioural techniques to influence and change doctors’ and patients’ decisions and increase the uptake of anastrozole to reduce the burden of breast cancer

Will behavioural techniques improve breast cancer outcomes?
 
Being a woman and growing older are two unavoidable risk factors for breast cancer. Indeed, most breast cancers are found in women who are 50 years or older. Despite significant advances in diagnoses and treatments, breast cancer is one of the rapidly increasing cancers among women and a significant cause of cancer-related morbidity and mortality worldwide.  Breast cancer alone accounts for 30% of all new cancer diagnoses among females and has become a major 21st century health challenge.
 
Study shows long term benefits of a cheap breast cancer pill

Research findings reported in the December 2019 edition of The Lancet and also presented at the  December 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium in Texas, show that a cheap pill, anastrozole,  if taken once a day for 5 years, not only halves postmenopausal women’s risk of breast cancer, but continues to be effective seven years after stopping treatment, which for the first time, suggests a long-term benefit.
 
Relatively low uptake
 
The UK’s NHS watchdog, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), suggests that hundreds of thousands of healthy older women should take anastrozole to cut their risk of breast cancer and recommends that the drug is offered to postmenopausal women at moderate to high risk of breast cancer unless they have severe osteoporosis. However, evidence suggests that some doctors in the UK are not prescribing anastrozole and some women are not availing themselves of the drug despite its demonstrated clinical benefits and the fact that anastrozole is supported by NICE.
 
Jack Cuzick, the lead author of The Lancet 2019 paper, who is Professor of Epidemiology and the Director of the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine at Queen Mary University, London, is concerned because although anastrozole is, “An agent that looks really effective with minimal side-effects and is available on the NHS in the UK; its uptake has been quite low with only a tenth of eligible women receiving it”. Cuzick’s concerns are echoed by Delyth Jane Morgan, Chief Executive of the charity Breast Cancer Now, who said: "It is worrying to hear that anastrozole may not be being offered to all that could benefit. We need to understand the extent of this potential issue. It's essential that we raise awareness of this option among doctors and patients".
 
 In this Commentary
 
Part 1 of this Commentary explores some of the reasons for the relatively low uptake of anastrozole. Part 2 describes new behavioural techniques, which could be cheaply and easily employed by health systems to increase the uptake of anastrozole and dent the burden of breast cancer. Also the Commentary: (i) describes breast cancer, (ii) provides some epidemiological facts of the disease, (iii) estimates the cost to treat breast cancer in the UK, (iv) describes hormone receptor positive breast cancer, (v) explains how anastrozole works and (vi) reports the findings of The Lancet 2019 study.

 
Part 1
 
 
Breast cancer
 
Cancer is a group of diseases that cause cells in your body to change and spread out of control. Most types of cancer cells eventually form a lump or mass called a tumour and are named after the part of your body where the tumour originates.

 

Breast cancer is characterized by the presence of cancer cells in the tissue or ducts of your breast. Most breast cancers begin either in the breast tissue made up of glands for milk production, called lobules, or in the ducts that connect the lobules to the nipple. The remainder of the breast is made up of fatty, connective and lymphatic tissues. Advanced breast cancer refers to cancer that has spread outside of your breast to lymph nodes and/or distant locations in your body, often invading your vital organs.
You might also like:
 
Epidemiology of breast cancer
 
Breast cancer is a common malignancy. Although more and more women are surviving the disease, each year in the UK there are over 55,000 new breast cancer cases: which equates to over 1,000 diagnosed each week. In the US, there are some 250,000 new breast cancer cases diagnosed each year: nearly 5,000 a week. Between 1993 and 2016 the incidence of breast cancer in the UK increased by 24%. Over a similar period, breast cancer incidence in the US declined, but an increasing trend of some 1.1% was observed among American Asians. In China, between 2000 to 2013, breast cancer increased at an annual rate of around 3.5%. Breast cancer rates in China are higher in urban areas than in rural areas: the higher the population density, the higher the rate. It is not altogether clear why breast cancer incidence is increasing. Experts suggest that breast cancer is a complicated disease with a variety of causes. Most cases of the disease are not linked to a family history. Around 5% of people diagnosed with breast cancer have inherited a faulty BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene. However, if you have a faulty gene, it does not mean that you will automatically develop breast cancer, but you are at higher risk. Out of every 100 women with a faulty gene, between 40 and 85 will develop breast cancer in their lifetime. Optimal therapy for breast cancer often requires several different treatment modalities including surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and hormone therapy (see below).
 
Cost of breast cancer treatment in the UK
 
The cost of treating breast cancer in the UK is significant and rising. Findings of research on the treatment costs of breast cancer published in the August 1999 edition of The Breast estimated that the average cost per case of breast cancer in the UK to be £7,247 (US$9,418).  Although the estimate is dated, it provides a guide. With 55,000 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed each year, the annual cost of treating the newly diagnosed alone, would be about £0.4bn (US$0.52bn). According to the UK charity Breast Cancer Now, an estimated 840,000  women  living in the UK have been diagnosed with breast cancer and the charity predicts that this figure will increase to 1.2m over the next decade. Thus, ceteris paribus, we can assume that the current annual cost  of treating breast cancer in the UK is significantly higher than £0.4bn and this figure is expected to increase substantially by 2030.
  
Hormones and hormone therapy
 
Hormones are chemical messengers secreted directly into your bloodstream, which carry them to organs and tissues of your body to exercise their functions.  Oestrogen and progesterone are steroid hormones produced by the ovaries in premenopausal women and by some other tissues, including fat and skin, in both premenopausal and postmenopausal women. These hormones play a critical role in regulating reproduction. Oestrogen promotes the development and maintenance of female sex characteristics and the growth of long bones. Progesterone plays a role in the menstrual cycle and pregnancy.
 
Similar hormones are produced artificially either for use in oral contraceptives or to treat menopausal and menstrual disorders. Oestrogen and progesterone also promote the growth of some breast cancers, which are called hormone-sensitive (or hormone-dependent) breast cancers. Hormone-sensitive breast cancer cells contain proteins called hormone receptors, which become activated when hormones bind to them. The activated receptors cause changes in the expression of specific genes that can stimulate cell growth.
 
Anastrozole is a hormone therapy (also called hormonal therapy and endocrine therapy), which slows or stops the growth of hormone-sensitive tumours by either blocking the body’s ability to produce hormones or by interfering with the effects of hormones on breast cancer cells. Anastrozole blocks a process called aromatisation, which changes sex hormones called androgens into oestrogen. This happens mainly in the fatty tissues, muscle and the skin and needs a particular enzyme called aromatase.
 
 Prescribing anastrozole
 
Anastrozole belongs to a group of drugs called aromatase inhibitors, which are specifically designed to treat postmenopausal women diagnosed with hormone-receptor-positive, early-stage breast cancer.  It is most often prescribed as an adjuvant therapy (after surgery) to decrease the risk of your cancer returning but can also be used in the neoadjuvant setting (prior to surgery) to decrease the size of your cancer in the breast. Hormone blocking therapy is also used to treat breast cancer that has recurred or spread. Most hormone blocking therapy drugs such as anastrozole are taken daily in pill form.
 
Anastrozole also may be given to reduce the risk of breast cancer in women who have not had breast cancer but have an increased risk of developing it because of their family history. Most experts suggest that your breast cancer risk should be higher than average for you to consider taking anastrozole as a preventative strategy. If your cancer is hormone receptor negative, then anastrozole will not be of any benefit, because these cancers do not need oestrogen to grow and usually such cancer cells do not stop growing when treated with hormones that block oestrogen from binding.
 
Reasons for the relatively low uptake of anastrozole
 
There are at least three probably reasons for the relatively low uptake of anastrozole. These include: (i) doctors becoming so used to prescribing the gold standard tamoxifen as an adjuvant hormone therapy, (ii) doctors wanting to be convinced about anastrozole’s long term benefits, and (iii) doctors wanting assurance about anastrozole’s minimal side effects.
  
Tamoxifen
 
Tamoxifen is the oldest and most-prescribed aromatase inhibitor and for the past three decades has become the standard of care as the adjuvant treatment of postmenopausal women with hormone-responsive early breast cancer. The drug reduces the risk of breast cancer returning by 40% to 50% in postmenopausal women and by 30% to 50% in premenopausal women. Notwithstanding, over the past two decades a new generation of aromatase inhibitors have been developed, and anastrozole is one of these. How does anastrozole compare with the gold standard tamoxifen?

Tamoxifen and anastrozole compared
 
Findings of two long-term comparative clinical studies undertaken in North America and Europe involving over 1,000 women with oestrogen receptor positive advanced breast cancer, showed that anastrozole is better than tamoxifen for: (i) increasing the time before the cancer returns in those who experience recurrence, (ii) reducing the risk of the cancer spreading to other parts of the body and (iii) reducing the risk of a new cancer developing in the other breast.

Significantly, studies have shown that anastrozole avoids two of tamoxifen's more serious side-effects: an increased risk of developing a blood-clotting disease and an increased risk of developing womb cancer.  Anastrozole can make bones weaker and so it is not recommended for women with osteoporosis and also it can cause stiff joints, hot flushes and vaginal dryness, which clinicians need to recognize and manage. But overall, the benefits of anastrozole over tamoxifen were maintained without a detrimental impact on quality of life. However, anastrozole is not a therapy for  premenopausal women because it blocks the hormone oestrogen and in effect creates a drug-induced menopause.


Part 2

Increasing the uptake of anastrozole
 
For healthcare systems to function effectively and efficiently we expect doctors and patients to behave rationally and make effective and efficient decisions. Traditionally, the rational choice model, which is predicated upon the belief that all human beings (including doctors and patients) act rationally in their own self-interest, has been used to influence people to behave in desirable ways. However, evidence suggests that, despite the well-founded theory and sound evidence to support it, the rational choice approach does not appear to work that well in practice.



You might also like:

Behavioral scientists not doctors will prevent CVD
 A newer theory to explain peoples’ choices and behaviours
 
A newer approach to influencing behaviour, which builds on decades of research by Nobel prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman, and described in a book published in 2008 entitled Nudge, by Nobel Prize winning economist Richard Thaler and Harvard Law School professor Cass Sunstein, suggests that no choice is ever presented in a neutral way and people - including doctors and patients - are susceptible to biases that can lead them to make suboptimal decisions. The authors suggest that many decisions and consequent behaviours are made automatically rather than after a considered rational decision. And this applies to decisions about your health.
Policymakers have been quick to latch onto the possibilities of these new behavioural techniques. Following the publication of Thaler and Sunstein’s book in 2008, President Obama set up a “Nudge Unit” in the White House and the UK Government, under Prime Minister David Cameron, set up the Behavioural Insights Team, popularly known as the Nudge Unit, in 10 Downing Street, and other governments around the world have since followed suit.

Nudges
 
Nudges are particular types of interventions, which are used to change peoples’ behaviour and improve outcomes at lower cost than traditional tools across a range of policy areas. Nudge techniques have been used in healthcare to influence behaviour and decision making to improve patient outcomes. For instance, the behavioural analysis of the decision-making that leads to a patient taking one drug instead of another. A research paper published in 2015 by the UK’s Health Foundation entitled “Behavioural insights in healthcare” suggests that health messages are often inconsistent and confusing to patients and framing them using social comparison via descriptive social norms (pointing out what is commonly done) or using injunctive norms (pointing out what is approved of) has been demonstrated to change patients’ behaviour and thereby have the potential to improve patient outcomes.
 
Information design
 
Behavioural techniques suggest that more attention should be given to the design of health information because the design and the way information is presented can influence and change doctors' and patients’ behaviour. Clinical guidelines, patients’ checklists and decision aids can all be improved in terms of text and language (e.g. the use of “plain English” and behaviourally specific, concrete statements and presentation of risk) and appearance (e.g. colour, visual stimuli, images etc).
 
HealthPad advocates that health information can have significantly more influence on the choices that doctors and patients make and on their  behaviour simply by presenting critical information in a video format. Over the past few decades people have moved away from consuming information in written and audio formats to consuming information predominantly in a visual format.  
 
Shift to consuming information in video format
 
Consider the following as being indicative of this shift. 82% of Twitter’s 330m average monthly users consume information in video format. The video channel You Tube has over a billion users and more than 500m hours of video are watched on the channel each day. 72 hours of video are uploaded to You Tube every 60 seconds, and more video content is uploaded onto the channel in 30 days than the major US television networks have created in 30 years. To further put things into perspective, in 2017, 56 exabytes (equivalent to 1bn gigabytes) of internet video content was consumed on a monthly basis, and this figure is expected to more than quadruple to 240 exabytes per month by 2022.

Today, almost all industries,  with the exception of healthcare, use video formats to communicate and the overwhelming majority of people who have consumed information in video format say it has influenced their choices and changed their behaviour. With video becoming the most significant influence on consumer decisions, it seems reasonable to suggest that more health information needs to be communicated in a video format if it is to influence and change doctors’ and patients’ behaviours in order to improve medical outcomes, increase the quality of care and slow and prevent chronic lifetime diseases.
 
Prompts cues reminders and audits
 
Prompts, cues and reminders have been demonstrated to be generally effective “nudges” that can successfully change the behaviour of healthcare providers and consumers, as well as being relatively inexpensive and easy to administer. Audit and feedback “nudges” are also effective. A set of best practices derived from systematic review evidence suggests that various nudge-type interventions (notably information design and presentation) may offer new ways to enhance choices and change behaviour.
  
Takeaways
 
The burden of breast cancer is huge and increasing globally. Research has demonstrated that a cheap pill, anastrozole, halves postmenopausal women’s risk of the disease and continues to be effective seven years after women stop taking the drug. We suggest that healthcare systems should consider using new behavioural techniques to influence and change doctors' and patients’ decisions to increase the uptake of anastrozole to help reduce the burden of breast cancer. Evidence suggests that nudge-type interventions, if suitably applied, can influence and change the behaviour of doctors and patients and thereby contribute to the reduction of the burden of breast cancer. However, given the newness of these techniques the quality of evidence available about their impact is relatively thin and patchy. Notwithstanding, this suggests a need for more quality evaluation and synthesised evidence of nudge-type interventions, their behaviour change potential and their impact on reducing the burden of breast cancer and other chronic lifetime diseases.
view in full page
joined 5 years, 11 months ago

Orthodontics For You

Registered Specialist in Orthodontics
Directory:
Dentistry
Expertise:
botox therapy
invisible braces
teeth whitening

Orthodontics For You is a small group of two specialist orthodontic practices in Bromsgrove and Solihull. Our aim is to offer quality orthodontic treatments with a caring and sympathetic approach, so patients can feel confident about themselves and most importantly about their teeth. Orthodontics For You offers a wide range of dental treatment like Teeth Straightening, Invisible Braces, Incognito Braces and facial aesthetic treatments such as Dermal Fillers, Lips Augmentation and Botox treatments under one roof.

If you are considering an orthodontic treatment, kindly get in touch with us by calling us on either location or visit our website www.orthodonticsforyou.co.uk


view this profile
joined 5 years, 11 months ago

Dr Mohit Saxena Cancer Specialist

Best Cancer Specialist Gurgaon
Directory:
Cancer
Expertise:
advanced stage cancer
cancer specialist
clinical oncology

Dr. Mohit brings,cancer specialist in Gurgaon has over 13 years of experience in oncology across some of the best hospitals in India such as Artemis Hospital (Gurgaon), VPS Rockland Hospitals (Manesar & New Delhi), Gujarat Cancer & Research Institute (Ahmedabad), and G.C.S. Medical College & Hospital (Ahmedabad). He completed his MBBS and MD in Medicine from Sawai Man Singh Medical College (Jaipur) and DM in Medical Oncology from Gujarat Cancer Research Institute (Ahmedabad). He holds a number of achievements, presentations and publications to his credit. His areas of interest include solid malignancies like breast, colon, lung, prostate, etc. and hematological malignancies like leukemias, lymphoma, and myeloma.


view this profile
joined 5 years, 11 months ago

Evovle Dentistry

Dentist In Portishead
Directory:
Dentistry
Expertise:
dentistry
invisible braces
teeth whitening

Evolve Dentistry is a modern dental practice in Portishead, specialising in preventative dental treatment, cosmetic dentistry, facial aesthetics, TMJ and orthodontic braces. In addition to high-end dental equipment, all services are provided in a comfortable, luxury environment. You will be looked after by our highly skilled and friendly dental team who will ensure that you are relaxed and looked after. Backed by state-of-the-art equipment and the latest dental and cosmetic technology, you're in expert hands at all times.

In addition to the dental treatments such as regular check-ups, dental implants, crowns, braces and fillings, Evolve Dentistry also provide cosmetic facial treatments – dermal fillers and other facial rejuvenation treatments are available.

Why Choose Evolve Dentistry?
The warm welcome you receive
Our relaxed atmosphere
The benefit of our expertise
The state-of-the-art equipment
The easy parking in Waitrose car park

Registering as a patient is really easy, just call us on 01275 842 550 or book your Free consultation at our Portishead practice.


view this profile
joined 5 years, 11 months ago

Dr Ratnav Ratan Orthopaedic Surgeon

Best Joint Replacement Doctor in Gurgaon
Directory:
Orthopaedics
Expertise:
orthopaedics
orthopaedic surgeon
Sports Injuries

Dr. Ratnav Ratan -best join replacement doctor in Gurgaon, has over 13 years of rich experience in orthopaedics post MS. He completed his MBBS and MS in orthopaedics from the Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University (Varanasi). He holds a DNB Orthopaedics and Diploma SICOT.

He specialises in paediatric orthopaedics, sports injuries and limb reconstruction surgeries.

Within paediatric orthopaedics, he specialises in cerebral palsy and spasticity management (BOTOX, SEMLS, Rehabilitation, Gait training), foot deformities such as CTEV and CVT, congenital hip dislocations, limb anomalies, limb lengthening, bone tumours, genetic or developmental skeletal disorders, and reconstruction of hip, knee, ankle & foot

 


view this profile
joined 5 years, 11 months ago

Dr Raman Tanwar Urologist

Best Urologist in Gurgaon
Directory:
Urology
Expertise:
general surgeon
urinary tract infections
urology

Dr. Raman Tanwar- urologist in Gurgaon has over 14 years of experience as a urological surgeon, andrologist and men’s health specialist. He is a national expert for andrology and male sexual dysfunction. He has completed his education and training from Maulana Azad Medical College, PGIMER and RML Hospital (New Delhi).

Dr Raman has been a Visiting Physician to the University of Vienna, AKH Wein Hospital and a Visiting Fellow at the University of Naples – Federico II for training in andrology and men’s health. He has received the ISSM Scholarship for his research in sexual medicine. He is one of the best-selling authors of 5 books and over 50 publications in surgery and is an editor and expert panellist for urology and sexual dysfunction.


view this profile
load more Loading..