Underserved Patient Populations Research Articles

H3 K27M-altered glioma and diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma: Semi-systematic review of treatment landscape and future directions.

H3 K27M-mutant diffuse glioma is a recently identified brain tumor associated with poor prognosis. As of 2016, it is classified by the World Health Organization as a distinct form of grade IV glioma. Despite recognition as an important prognostic and diagnostic feature in diffuse glioma, radiation remains the sole standard of care and no effective systemic therapies are available for H3K27M mutant tumors. This review will detail treatment interventions applied to diffuse midline glioma and diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) prior to the identification of the H3 K27M mutation, the current standard-of-care for H3 K27M-mutant diffuse glioma treatment, and ongoing clinical trials listed on www.clinicaltrials.gov evaluating novel therapeutics in this population. Current clinical trials were identified using clinicaltrials.gov, and studies qualifying for this analysis were active or ongoing interventional trials that evaluated a therapy in at least 1 treatment arm or cohort comprised exclusively of patients with DIPG and H3 K27M-mutant glioma. Forty-one studies met these criteria, including trials evaluating H3 K27M vaccination, chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy, and small molecule inhibitors. Ongoing evaluation of novel therapeutics is necessary to identify safe and effective interventions in this underserved patient population.

Abstract B015: Enhancing knowledge of cancer survivorship care among primary care clinicians serving underserved populations: Lessons from an ECHO project

Abstract Background: Primary care clinicians (PCCs), especially those practicing at Community Health Centers (CHCs) serving underserved populations, provide medical care for a substantial number of patients with cancer. PCCs often lack formal medical training in cancer survivorship care in the context of their various chronic conditions, creating an opportunity for knowledge sharing through Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes). This is a critical gap because of the growing number of cancer survivors in the United States (US) needing high-quality and comprehensive care. This study partnered with CHC PCCs to enhance cancer survivorship knowledge through a Cancer Survivorship ECHO Project – a peer-to-peer telementoring approach. Methods: Nine ECHO sessions were conducted from Oct 2022 - June 2023 in partnership with two CHCs covering cancer survivorship topics, such as breast and prostate cancer survivorship, late and long-term effects of cancer and its treatments, and psychosocial distress. Each session featured a case-based presentation by a PCC followed by a didactic presentation from oncology and primary care content experts. An online pre-ECHO project survey was distributed to evaluate PCCs' cancer survivorship knowledge and training. Qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted to assess PCCs' barriers and facilitators in providing survivorship care and experiences with participating in the ECHO sessions with eight PCCs. Results: Out of the 12 eligible PCCs from two CHCs, the response rate for the pre-ECHO project survey was 58.3% (n=7). Preliminary findings revealed that 83.3% of the PCCs reported a lack of training in cancer survivorship. Qualitative analysis of the eight PCC interviews identified specific barriers to providing high-quality care, such as the lack of accessible survivorship resources in the electronic medical records and means to quickly communicate with oncologists and the need for survivorship training to assist with managing their patient's side effects from late and long term effects of cancer. In this context, PCCs reported the positive impact of ECHO sessions on enhancing survivorship knowledge and training to deliver high-quality cancer survivorship care. Conclusion: Enhancing knowledge and building capacity among PCCs are important components in improving the delivery of cancer survivorship care in an underserved patient population. ECHO-based telementoring approaches have the potential to engage PCCs collaboratively in addressing the knowledge gap and consequently improving patient outcomes. Citation Format: Maram Museitif, Bijal A. Balasubramanian, Hilary Ma, Rebecca Eary. Enhancing knowledge of cancer survivorship care among primary care clinicians serving underserved populations: Lessons from an ECHO project [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 16th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2023 Sep 29-Oct 2;Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2023;32(12 Suppl):Abstract nr B015.

Abstract A080: Engagement and experience with clinical trial counseling in adult glioma patients: A single institution, mixed-methods study

Abstract Introduction: Participation in a clinical trial offers the promise for high-quality medical care for patients with cancer, particularly glioma; however, disparities exist in the accrual of underserved patient populations, including minority patients. A multi-pronged approach for increasing the accrual of underrepresented patients to meet NIH-defined benchmarks includes optimizing patient trial education and counseling. This study seeks to assess the perceptions of the trial counseling process and barriers to trial enrollment among a diverse population of patients with low-and high-grade glioma. Methods: Adult glioma patients who received care from the UCSF Brain Tumor Center from 2020 to 2022 participated in supervised interviews and completed a validated survey, Service Evaluation of Patient Experience of Clinical Trials and Factors Influencing Clinical Trial Entry (SPECIFIC). Thematic analysis, descriptive statistics, and Chi-square tests were used for analysis. Results: One hundred and thirty-six patients completed the SPECIFC questionnaire. There were 44 trial participants (TPs), and 92 non-trial participants (NTPs). Compared to NTPs, TPs were on average 49.8 years old (NTPs 54.6, p=.11) and white (86.3% v. 70%, p=.009). Four core themes emerged from patient perspectives, either as facilitators or barriers to clinical trial participation: 1) Cancer Awareness/Knowledge of Scientific Research 2) Flexible Lifestyle/Affordability 3) Consistency with Values/Faith/Belief System 4) Existing Family/Community Support. Both TPs and NTPs overwhelmingly agreed that clinical trials help improve treatments for cancer. However, compared to 100% of TPs, only 57% of NTPs believed trials offered the best treatment available (p=.001). TPs were more likely to be referred to our institution specifically to enroll in a trial (p=.003), have done prior research on specific experimental treatments (p=.002), have had more than two appointments with the neurosurgeon/neuro-oncologist, and report receiving the most counseling directly from an MD level provider (p=.01). When evaluating the trial counseling process, 93% of TPs reported willingness to consent the same day, but 5% endorsed feeling pressure to participate. TPs were satisfied with the quality of the patient information sheet, with 88% rating the information sheet as good or excellent and 88% reporting that the information sheet was easy to understand. While 14% of TPs believed the information sheet was too long, 27% and 41% desired more information about the trial therapeutic and participation requirements, respectively. Conclusion: Overwhelmingly, trial participants were confident in the information they received and were willing to begin clinical trial enrollment on the same day of receiving information. Interventions to improve the quality and equitable delivery of patient trial education must be paired with other validated multi-dimensional strategies to reach target accrual benchmarks of underserved patient populations to therapeutic clinical trials. Citation Format: Mulki Mehari, Sheantel Reihl, Ramin Morshed, Jasleen Kaur, Mikias Negussie, Ugomma Chukwueke, Alyx Porter, Valy Fontil, Shawn Hervey-Jumper. Engagement and experience with clinical trial counseling in adult glioma patients: A single institution, mixed-methods study [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 16th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2023 Sep 29-Oct 2;Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2023;32(12 Suppl):Abstract nr A080.

Clinicopathologic Features of Autoimmune Metaplastic Atrophic Gastritis (AMAG) in an Underserved Community

Abstract Introduction/Objective Autoimmune metaplastic gastritis (AMAG), typically associated with pernicious anemia and subsequent risk of gastric neoplasia, is an entity often underrecognized in routine gastric biopsies and can lead to delay in the diagnosis and management of patients. In this study, we analyze the demographics and clinical features of AMAG in an inner city, underserved population with histopathologic and serologic correlation. Methods/Case Report We retrospectively collected data on patients diagnosed with or with probable AMAG over a 29-month period from Jan 2020-May 2022 and correlated the histopathology with demographics and clinical presentation. We retrieved prior biopsies on available cases. Results (if a Case Study enter NA) Our Data Demonstrates: -Almost equal prevalence of AMAG in African American and Caucasian patients, with a higher rate of incidence in older population (68% over the age of 60 years), and in female patients. -43.5% had antibody testing and only 25% of patients had testing for Gastrin levels, but the diagnosis of AMAG was frequently associated with a positive laboratory finding (78.7% and 74.3%, respectively) when performed. -57.8% had clinically documented anemia, among those, 88.9% had microcytic or normocytic anemia. Only 11.1% had macrocytic anemia -A history of prior biopsies demonstrating chronic gastritis was seen in 33% of patients. Conclusion Our study demonstrates that patients with AMAG come from diverse backgrounds and frequently lack laboratory findings typically associated with pernicious anemia at the time of diagnosis. As such, pathologists and gastroenterologists may benefit from a lower threshold when considering which patients to evaluate for AMAG. Complete laboratory evaluations were infrequent, which is a limitation, but this may be secondary to a lack of clinical knowledge regarding appropriate testing and an underserved patient population which lacks good continuity of care.

Clinical Characteristics of Light Chain Amyloidosis in an Underserved Patient Population

Background Primary or light chain (AL) amyloidosis is the most common form of systemic amyloidosis in which insoluble fibrils are deposited in various tissues and can ultimately lead to multi-organ failure. It is commonly linked to plasma cell dyscrasias which lead to the overproduction and deposition of immunoglobin proteins. Due to multi-organ involvement and difficulty in diagnosing patients with light chain amyloidosis, these patients are faced with greater challenges present with extensive disease especially in an underserved patient population in the Bronx. Our aim was to report clinical characteristics of patients at a tertiary care center in the Bronx Methods A retrospective analysis of 29 patients with AL amyloidosis were evaluated at Montefiore Medical Center from 2008 until 2023 was performed to determine demographics, clinical characteristics, and outcome measures. Patient demographics such as age, sex, and race/ethnicity as well as organ involvement, mode of diagnosis, and disease staging were determined. The Mayo 2004 staging system was used for staging at the time of diagnosis. Results 29 patients with AL amyloidosis were identified at Montefiore Medical center from 2008-2023, the median age of diagnosis was 63 (range 36-87). There were 18 men (62%) and 11 women (38%). Most of the female and male patients were black with 5 (45%) and 9 (50%) respectively. One third of the population were Hispanic. Out of all the patients, 11 (38%) had positive bone marrow biopsies at time of diagnosis and the most common organ involvement was cardiac with 21 patients at 72% of the data set. 11 had renal involvement (38%) and 9 (31%) had involvement of the gastrointestinal tract. 11 of the patients were stage 3 disease (38%) and 9 patients had stage 1 and 2 disease (31%) each. Majority of patients had lambda light chain involvement (55%). 2 patients had concurrent TTR amyloidosis. In terms of follow-up, 4 patients have died while 4 patients have been lost to follow-up. Conclusion Our study reports the extensive organ involvement in our patient population. A third of the patients present with Stage III AL amyloidosis with most patients having cardiac involvement. We aim to report specific outcomes for this patient population at the meeting.

Consensus-Based Best Practice Recommendations for Myelofibrosis Management in Routine Clinical Practice with a Focus on Patients with Cytopenias: Systematic Literature Review and Clinical Practice Recommendations from a Global Consensus Group

Background: Myelofibrosis (MF) is a BCR-ABL1-negative myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) characterized by progressive bone marrow fibrosis, splenomegaly, and cytopenias due to impaired hematopoiesis (Passamonti and Mora. Blood 2022). Despite the availability of comprehensive national and international guidelines for diagnosing and managing MF, gaps remain in translating these guidelines into clinical practice, particularly for patients with cytopenias, non-response or intolerance to Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor treatment, and those ineligible for clinical trial enrollment. Consequently, an international expert consensus group was established with the objective of augmenting the existing guidance. Objectives: To develop a set of evidence- and consensus-based recommendations for managing MF in routine clinical practice, with a focus on patients with cytopenias, including practical strategies and tools to support clinicians. Methods : Modified Delphi methodology was utilized to achieve consensus (Figure 1). A Steering Committee (SC) of 9 expert hematologists (the authors) was established. During an initial meeting, the SC proposed 25 clinical questions that addressed key issues across 5 consensus themes: 1) Defining the thresholds for anemia and when to initiate/modify treatment; 2) defining the threshold for thrombocytopenia and when to initiate/modify treatment; 3) defining JAK inhibitor failure and what would warrant switching treatment; 4) how and when to determine prognosis in patients with MF; and, 5) unmet needs in MF clinical trials. An extended faculty (EF) was then enlisted, comprising hematologists and patient advocacy groups, who voted on the importance of the questions to address. The 15 highest scoring questions were selected for the consensus program (Table 1). To gather scientific evidence around the questions, a systematic literature review (SLR) was conducted using the PubMed and Embase databases, adhering to a PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome) framework. In a subsequent meeting, recommendations were formulated to address the questions using evidence from the SLR and the expert clinical experience of the SC. An online voting platform was then used for both the SC and EF to provide an agreement score for each recommendation. Consensus was achieved when 75% of the respondents agreed within the range of 7-9 on a 9-point scale (1=strongly disagree, 9=strongly agree). Results: Consensus was achieved among voters (hematologists [n=29] and patients [n=9] from Europe, the United States, Canada, Australia, and Israel) for all 15 recommendations. Recommendations in theme 1 emphasize the importance of comprehensive evaluation, exclusion of other causes of anemia, therapy dose optimization, and consideration of additional treatments for managing anemia in patients with MF. Recommendations in theme 2 highlight the complexity of managing splenomegaly, symptoms, and anemia in patients with low platelet counts, and factors guiding therapy selection for these patients. Theme 3 recommendations discuss criteria used to determine JAK inhibitor failure, including relapse, refractoriness, or intolerance, and guidance for distinguishing between these. In theme 4, recommendations address the use of validated prognostic scores at diagnosis and during the disease course, and transplantation risk assessment. The limitations and appropriate utilization of these scores are emphasized, and the need to develop prognostic scores in pre-primary MF is highlighted. Theme 5 recommendations cover the importance of addressing unmet needs in MF clinical trials, and include striving for inclusivity by removing barriers to the participation of underserved patient populations and focusing efforts on validating additional endpoints beyond traditional measures. Conclusions: An international panel of physicians with expertise in MF, together with a diverse EF, was able to achieve a high level of consensus across a wide range of critical gaps in MF management. These recommendations provide a valuable framework to support clinicians in optimizing care for patients with MF.

Adherence to antiseizure medications in an underserved population with epilepsy

Background and purposeAntiseizure medications (ASM) effectively prevent seizures in about 70% of adult epilepsy patients, but nonadherence to medication is the primary cause of breakthrough seizures, accounting for 26% to 79% of cases. Factors such as age, education, dosing frequency, forgetfulness, fear of side effects, and socioeconomic status contribute to poor adherence, especially among underserved populations. This study aimed to assess medication adherence during routine follow-up visits and identify the role of education in reducing non adherence in an underserved patient population. MethodsThe study involved a retrospective chart review of adult epilepsy patients seen at the University of Illinois Hospital between December 2016 and April 2020. Data on patient demographics, epilepsy and seizure classification, medication details, emergency visits, and adherence were collected from electronic medical records using the RedCap system. Descriptive statistics and statistical tests were conducted using STATA 17.0 for data analysis, including chi-squared analysis for categorical data and t-tests for continuous data. ResultsThe study enrolled a total of 286 adult epilepsy patients who met the eligibility criteria. Among them, 111 patients (38.81 %) were classified as nonadherent based on ASM levels. Caucasian/white race and income > $50,000 per year, were significantly associated with adherence (p = 0.009 and p = 0.006 respectively). Moreover, patients with weekly seizures were more likely to be adherent (p = 0.042). No significant differences were found regarding medication adherence and sex, education, employment, epilepsy type, age at diagnosis, seizure type or number of current ASM medications. Even though not significant, a trend towards college educated patients being more adherent was observed (70.37 %). Of self-reported adherent patients, 33.33 % were found to be nonadherent based on ASM levels. Nurse phone calls reminding 70 non adherent patients about adherence increased the chances of becoming adherent by 80.39 %. Finally, although not statistically significant, the majority of adherent patients had no history of hospitalizations for breakthrough seizures (73.89 %). ConclusionMore than a third of our patients were found to be non-adherent during routine follow-up visits. Lower socio-economic status and lower education were associated with increased chances of being non adherent. Rates of adherence were improved by nurse’s phone calls discussing the importance of adherence and risks of SUDEP. The findings emphasize the importance of education in improving medication adherence among these populations, suggesting the need for social interventions, community outreach programs, and targeted educational initiatives.

Rescuing Drugs That are Discontinued in Adult Oncology Development for the Benefit of Children and Adolescents With Cancer - AnACCELERATE Multistakeholder Consensus.

Better therapies for childhood cancer remain an unmet need to improve the dismal prognosis of certain malignancies and to reduce the burden of toxicity. Rescuing discontinued or shelved drugs for children, adolescents, and young adults is a strategy to identify new uses for approved or investigational medicines outside the scope of their original medical indication. Our proposed multistakeholder consensus focuses on the development of innovative, patent-protected targeted agents, sourced from previously shelved or discontinued programs that have the potential to provide significant benefit to underserved patient populations, with unmet medical needs. There are several challenges to continuing/rescuing drugs for pediatric oncology development, which include the lack of information for decision making, corporate strategy considerations underlying the decision to invest in pediatric development, and the contracting and technology transfer complexities required to enable divestment and subsequent development. The multistakeholder approach for drug development has the advantage of conveying a consensus among academia, patient advocates, and importantly industry itself. We propose three areas of action to facilitate rescuing potentially beneficial drugs for children and adolescents with cancer: (i) initiatives to provide information to companies considering developing these drugs and a standards framework; (ii) incentives both in Europe and in the United States to encourage companies to develop pediatric-only drugs, with the reform of the EU Pharmaceutical Legislation posing an important opportunity; and (iii) communication of the issues to all stakeholders. Ultimately, this will benefit children and adolescents with cancer.

4 Norm Selection and Application in Socially Responsible Neuropsychological Practice

Objective:In the wake of the national controversy over demographically corrected normative comparisons used in neuropsychological assessment, the field finds itself in need of adopting better practices and providing stronger instruction in norm selection and application when assessing underrepresented populations. Neuropsychologists must employ critical thinking within their clinical decision-making that takes into account patient demographics, analysis of the measures themselves, normative samples, and statistical adjustments employed in normative studies. Not doing so may result in erroneous diagnostic conclusions, exposing underserved patient populations to poor or harmful clinical care and even misdiagnosis. The following case series presents several demographic considerations illustrating how selection and application of different (at times, ill-fitting) normative reference groups can affect treatment outcomes in the Latinx community. We examined the performance of various published norms when applied to monolingual and bilingual Spanish speakers.Participants and Methods:This study samples three demographically diverse (i.e., education, age, and sex) clinical cases and applies regression-based and stratified norms to raw scores to demonstrate the possible differential outcomes when using different reference groups. One example is Ms. Congeniality, a 69-year-old, Spanish and English bilingual woman with 12 years of education who presented for a third revaluation at our clinic due to progressive memory loss. Her prior Spanish language profiles demonstrated impaired confrontation naming and steadily decreasing letter fluency over the past 10 years.Results:Her performance on semantic fluency (i.e., animal naming) showed relative stability based on her raw scores (10 in 2012, 11 in 2016, and 12 in 2022). Using the Neuropsi A&M norms, which stratify performance across nine age ranges between ages 6-85 and three education ranges between 0-10+ years, her performance over the past 10 years ranged between the less than 1st percentile to the 9th percentile (1%, 1%, and 9%, respectively). However, using the NP-NUMBRS norms, which use regression-based continuous age (19-60) and education (0-20) predictors of test performance, her scores corresponded to steadily improved performance (8%, 28%, and 86%). Thus, this qualitative comparison demonstrates a likely overcorrection for individuals of advanced age when using norms based on samples that are a poor fit because they lack representation of older adults, as in NP-NUMBRS, and a possible undercorrection when using norms with overly broad education stratifications (e.g., 10-22 years, as in Neuropsi).Conclusions:Application of ill-fitting normative standards can have far-reaching implications for interpretation of neuropsychological test results. Moreover, this case series exemplifies the need for higher-order instruction in norm selection, specifically for underserved communities who run the risk of being misdiagnosed. Through case examples, this study underscores the importance of understanding the unique effects of different demographic corrections in the context of limited available normative reference groups. This abstract is the first illustration in a series of papers aimed at facilitating the decision-making process within the framework of socially responsible neuropsychological practice.

A Data-Driven Method to Discriminate Limb Salvage from Other Combat-Related Extremity Trauma.

The aim of this study was to address and enhance our ability to study the clinical outcome of limb salvage (LS), a commonly referenced but ill-defined clinical care pathway, by developing a data-driven approach for the identification of LS cases using existing medical code data to identify characteristic diagnoses and procedures, and to use that information to describe a cohort of US Service members (SMs) for further study. Diagnosis code families and inpatient procedure codes were compiled and analyzed to identify medical codes that are disparately associated with a LS surrogate population of SMs who underwent secondary amputation within a broader cohort of 3390 SMs with lower extremity trauma (AIS > 1). Subsequently, the identified codes were used to define a cohort of all SMs who underwent lower extremity LS which was compared with the opinion of a panel of military trauma surgeons. The data-driven approach identified a population of n = 2018 SMs who underwent LS, representing 59.5% of the combat-related lower extremity (LE) trauma population. Validation analysis revealed 70% agreement between the data-driven approach and gold standard SME panel for the test cases studied. The Kappa statistic (κ = 0.55) indicates a moderate agreement between the data-driven approach and the expert opinion of the SME panel. The sensitivity and specificity were identified as 55.6% (expert range of 51.8-66.7%) and 87% (expert range of 73.9-91.3%), respectively. This approach for identifying LS cases can be utilized to enable future high-throughput retrospective analyses for studying both short- and long-term outcomes of this underserved patient population.

Characterizing the Extracellular Matrix Transcriptome of Endometriosis.

In recent years, the matrisome, a set of proteins that make up the extracellular matrix (ECM) or are closely involved in ECM behavior, has been shown to have great importance for characterizing and understanding disease pathogenesis and progression. The matrisome is especially critical for examining diseases characterized by extensive tissue remodeling. Endometriosis is characterized by the extrauterine growth of endometrial tissue, making it an ideal condition to study through the lens of matrisome gene expression. While large gene expression datasets have become more available and gene dysregulation in endometriosis has been the target of several studies, the gene expression profile of the matrisome specifically in endometriosis has not been well characterized. In our study, we explored four Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) DNA microarray datasets containing eutopic endometrium of people with and without endometriosis. After batch correction, menstrual cycle phase accounted for 53% of variance and disease accounted for 23%; thus, the data were separated by menstrual cycle phase before performing differential expression analysis, statistical and machine learning modeling, and enrichment analysis. We established that matrisome gene expression alone can effectively differentiate endometriosis samples from healthy ones, demonstrating the potential of matrisome gene expression for diagnostic applications. Furthermore, we identified specific matrisome genes and gene networks whose expression can distinguish endometriosis stages I/II from III/IV. Taken together, these findings may aid in developing future in vitro models of disease, offer insights into novel treatment strategies, and advance diagnostic tools for this underserved patient population.

Molecular mechanisms of hormones implicated in migraine and the translational implication for transgender patients.

Migraine is a primary headache disorder recognized by the World Health Organization as one of the most poorly understood and debilitating neurological conditions impacting global disability. Chronic pain disorders are more frequently diagnosed among cisgender women than men, suggesting that female sex hormones could be responsible for mediating chronic pain, including migraine and/or that androgens can be protective. This review discusses the major gonadal hormones, estrogens, progesterone, and testosterone in the context of molecular mechanisms by which they play a role in migraine pathophysiology. In addition, the literature to date describing roles of minor sex hormones including prolactin, luteinizing hormone, follicular stimulating hormone, and gonadotropin releasing hormone in migraine are presented. Because transgender and gender non-conforming (trans*) individuals are an underserved patient population in which gender-affirming sex hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is often medically necessary to align biological sex with gender identity, results from cisgender patient populations are discussed in the context of these major and minor sex hormones on migraine incidence and management in trans* patients.

Social Work in Outpatient Neurology at a Safety-Net Hospital: A 200-Hour Profile.

Social work plays a critical role in preventive health and mitigation of healthcare disparities, but few studies focus on its role in multi-specialty clinics serving marginalized populations. We aimed to characterize the role of outpatient neurology social work at an urban, safety-net hospital. In December 2021, we introduced a dedicated social worker to a neurology clinic primarily caring for an underserved patient population. We logged and characterized the first 200 consecutive hours of patient encounters, classifying interventions based on a recently popularized 10-category scheme in social work literature derived from natural language processing and machine learning algorithms. We characterized 125 encounters with neurology patients referred to social work. The neurology social worker spent the greatest amount of time on care coordination (40%), followed by housing insecurity (14%) and applications and reporting (11%). Interventions that required the most time per case included housing (129min), applications and reporting (120min), care coordination (96min). The majority of interventions were directly related to the patient's underlying neurologic disorder, highlighting the importance of a neurology-specific social worker. Embedding a social worker in a multi-specialty neurology clinic may address many of the root causes of neurologic health disparities.

Adherence rate and barriers to completion of chemotherapy in recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer in an underserved Hispanic patient population (2246)

Adherence rate and barriers to completion of chemotherapy in recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer in an underserved Hispanic patient population (2246)

Abstract P194: Unmet Social Needs In Youth Referred For Hypertension Disorders Across U.s. Geographic Regions: A Superhero Interim Analysis

Objective: Investigate the relationship between geographic region and unmet social needs in youth referred for hypertension disorders.Youth facing health disparities often experience substantial challenges due to adverse social determinants of health, such as those related to the geographic area in which they reside. Understanding the prevalence of unmet social needs by geographic region is vital to advocating for underserved patient populations. Interim cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from The Study of the Epidemiology of Pediatric Hypertension (SUPERHERO), a multisite retrospective Registry using electronic health record data. Inclusion criteria were initial visit for hypertension disorder (identified by ICD-10 code) between 1/1/2015 and 12/31/2022 and age <19 years. Exclusion criteria were ICD-10 code-identified kidney failure on dialysis, kidney transplant, or pregnancy. We recorded U.S. Census geographic Region based on participants’ home address. Our outcome was at least one ICD-10 code for an unmet social need. We used unadjusted generalized linear models.Of the 9,416 participants, mean age was 12 yrs. (SD 5.0) and 29 (0.3%) had at least one unmet social need (Table). Compared to the South, youth from the Northeast had 3.17 times higher risk of unmet social needs (1.08-9.32) and those from the Midwest had 4.71 times higher risk (95% CL 1.76-12.62).We found that youth referred for hypertension disorders from the Northeast and Midwest were more likely to have an unmet social need compared to youth from the South. Ongoing steps include acquiring geocoded data to investigate neighborhood-level metrics and more rigorous unmet social needs data.

Administrative Burden Associated with Cost-Related Delays in Care in U.S. Cancer Patients.

U.S. cancer patients engage in administrative tasks to pay for their healthcare. This study investigated the relationship between payment tasks and timely access to cancer care. We analyzed online survey data from 510 U.S. cancer patients and survivors to understand the relationship between administrative payment tasks and cost-related delays and nonadherence. Two-part modelling was used to determine if, and to what extent, there was a relationship between administrative burden and cost-related delays/nonadherence. Younger patients (≤44 years) reported more payment tasks and cost-related delays/nonadherence than older patients (≥ 55 years); African American patients reported more payment tasks and cost-related delays/nonadherence than white patients. After accounting for age, race/ethnicity, education, and out-of-pocket costs, patients who reported engaging in more tasks had greater log odds of delaying/forgoing care [b = 0.18; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.12-0.24]. Cost-related delays/nonadherence increased by 32% for every unit increase in administrative payment burden (b = 0.32; 95% CI, 0.18-0.46). Administrative payment burden increased the odds of cost-related delays and nonadherence by 49%, taking the form of delayed or skipped doctor appointments, tests and bloodwork, and prescription fulfillment. Younger patients and those identifying as African American were more likely to engage in payment tasks and to delay or forgo care due to cost. Administrative burdens can disrupt access to care and traditionally underserved patient populations are disproportionately exposed to these hardships. Reducing the complexity of healthcare through universal, human-centered design could reduce burdens and increase access.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Delays to Breast Cancer Surgery: Ripples or Waves?

Adherence to current recommendations for optimal time from diagnosis to treatment for patients with breast cancer may have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on time to surgery or systemic treatment with chemotherapy or immunotherapy for patients diagnosed with breast cancer. Using the National Cancer Database, patients diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020 were compared to those diagnosed from 2018-2019 (Pre-COVID). Sub-analyses were performed for patients who were tested for COVID-19 and those who had a positive result in 2020. Multivariate logistic regression was used assess odds ratios for delayed time to surgery (DTS, defined as >90 days) or systemic therapy (defined as >120days). In total, 230,997 patients were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018 and 2019 compared to 102,065 in 2020. Of the 2020 cohort, 47,659 (46.7%) received COVID-19 testing; of which, 3,158 (6.6%) resulted positive. A larger proportion of COVID-tested or COVID-positive patients had higher stage at diagnosis. DTS was more likely for patients who were diagnosed in 2020, uninsured or underinsured, non-white, Hispanic, less educated, or age <70years. Similar factors were predictive of delay to systemic therapy (less age <70years); however, diagnosis in 2020 was not. The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with significant DTS for breast cancer but spared time to systemic therapy. Delays disproportionately impacted vulnerable and underserved patient populations. The true clinical effects of these delays may yet be realized for breast cancer patients.

Viewpoint on anifrolumab in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and a high unmet need in clinical practice

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a heterogeneous autoimmune disease characterised by unpredictable flares. Many patients with SLE are unable to achieve the recommended treatment goal of remission or the intermediate,...

Tele dentistry - A modern day boon to dental practice

Telemedicine is the use of electronic information to communicate technologies to provide and support healthcare when distance separates the participants. Brown N. A brief history of telemedicine. Teledentistry is a field that combines telecommunications and dentistry to provide newer opportunities of dental education and delivery of oral care. It involves delivering data in the form of clinical information and images from one point (spoke point) to another point (hub site) for dental treatment using telecommunications technology. It can potentially improve the accessibility and delivery of oral healthcare, extending to underserved patient populations, such as those in rural areas, at a reasonable cost. Teledentistry can thus eliminate the disparities in oral health care between urban and rural communities. This article reviews the role of teledentistry in different fields of dentistry.

Applying a systems oriented ethical decision making framework to mitigating social and structural determinants of health.

Clinical ethical decision-making models are largely geared toward individual clinician choices and individual patient outcomes, not necessarily accounting for larger systemic issues that affect optimal patient outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to provide an ethical decision-making model, drawing upon systems orientation and ethical theory, specifically incorporating and aiding in the mitigation of social and structural determinants of health. This paper presents a systems-oriented ethical decision-making framework derived from the analysis and critique of the Four-Box Method for Ethical Decision-Making by Jonsen, Siegler, and Winslade. Drawing upon both deontological and utilitarian ethical theory, the developed framework will assist providers, organizations, and health system leaders in navigating the increasingly complex ethical dimensions of care delivery for underserved patient populations, who are largely impacted by social and structural determinants of health. The needs of underserved patients are inextricably linked to various social and structural determinants of health that, if left unaddressed, result in even poorer health outcomes, exacerbating existing health disparities. A systems-oriented ethical decision-making framework, centered on obligation, duty, and a utilitarian view of the optimal good, will aid providers, organizations, health system leaders, and community stakeholders in navigating the increasingly complex ethical dimensions of care delivery for underserved patient populations. Socioeconomic and political contexts have a significant impact on the way society is organized, how people are positioned in society, and how they will fare in terms of their health. Healthcare providers, including dentists, are largely unaware of and insensitive to the social issues that underlie the biological or psychological concerns that patients from socially disadvantaged backgrounds face. A systems-oriented ethical decision-making model will aid in mitigating social and structural determinants of health and the dental profession's obligations to the underserved.