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Rural-Urban Differences In Survival Among People With Early Onset Colorectal Cancer, Radhika Ranganathan

Theses and Dissertations

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer and the second most among cancer deaths both in the US and globally. Early Onset Colorectal Cancer (EOCRC), occurring between the ages of 20 and 49, has continued to rise over the past decades. Several studies have reported a persistent increase in EOCRC incidence and mortality, especially in rural areas as compared to urban areas, despite decreases in rates for people over the age of 50 years. Increase in EOCRC may have played a role in lowering the age of screening recommendation to 45-49 age group. The objective of this study …

A Multilevel And Spatial Analysis Of Oral And Pharyngeal Cancer In South Carolina, Deborah M. Hurley

Theses and Dissertations

Objective: Disparities in the distribution of oral and pharyngeal cancer exist worldwide. This is also true in the United States and in South Carolina. Differences exist in oral and pharyngeal cancer stage and survival by race and sex, with higher incidence rates for Whites but higher proportions of late-stage cancer and lower survival for Blacks. This study was conducted to evaluate whether any differences exist in the spatial distribution of oral and pharyngeal cancer stage at diagnosis and survival, and to evaluate the association of income inequality, material deprivation and other measures of social determinants of health (contextual risk factors) …

Infant Mortality In The United States: Socioeconomic Factors Predicting Infant Survival In Late Neo-Natal And Post Neo-Natal Infants From Birth Certificate Data, Mark Brunk-Grady

Theses and Dissertations

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the infant mortality rate in the United States in 2018 was 5.6 deaths per 1000 live births. Infant mortality is defined as a child being born alive but dying before their first birthday. This study aimed to determine if adding socioeconomic factors to traditional predictive survival models improved the predictive power in terms of survival for late and post neonatal infants. Secondly, this study looked to develop a risk score to and predict which mothers would be classified as “High” or “Low” risk for infant death.

Data were analyzed from a …

Economic Burden Of Renal Cell Carcinoma (Rcc) And Treatment Patterns, Overall Survival And Healthcare Costs Among Older Metastatic Rcc Patients, Hrishikesh P. Kale

Theses and Dissertations

Background

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common type of kidney cancer. Patients diagnosed with metastatic RCC (mRCC) have shorter overall survival compared to those diagnosed at earlier stages. Several targeted therapies, which cost from $7,000 - $16,000 per month have been approved since 2005 to treat mRCC. In addition, there is a growing interest in the use of cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN) with targeted therapies among mRCC patients. However, little is known regarding the economic burden of RCC and role of CN and prescribing patterns of targeted therapies among older mRCC patients.

Objectives

1) To assess the economic burden …

The Impact Of Autoimmune Disease On Breast Cancer Survival, Samantha Truman

Theses and Dissertations

Background Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death for women in developed countries, while autoimmune disease effects approximately 10 million people in the United States, of which approximately 80% are female. Both diseases are associated with hormonal risk factors and are related to the divergent effects of the cellular and humoral immunity that is associated with the T-helper 1 and T-helper 2 immune response. To investigate the potential implications that autoimmune disease may have on breast cancer-specific mortality, we have conducted a population-based retrospective cohort study of women who were diagnosed with breast cancer between January 1, …

Meta-Analysis: Racial Disparities In Prostate Cancer Survival And Case-Control Study: Association Between Family History Of Cancers, Obesity And Prostate Cancer, Gayathri Sridhar

Theses and Dissertations

This is a compilation of 3 abstracts for the three manuscripts included in this dissertation. I. Meta-Analysis: Racial Disparities in Prostate Cancer Survival: Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related mortality in men. Previous studies have drawn inconsistent conclusions on racial differences in prostate cancer survival. This meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the relationship between race and survival from prostate cancer. A systematic review of published articles from 1968 to 2007 assessing survival from prostate cancer among African American and White men was conducted. The search yielded 20 eligible published manuscripts. Analysis of unadjusted studies showed African American …