Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

High Accuracy Stool Biomarkers Of Precancerous Colorectal Cancer Identified Using A 2000-Plex Immunoproteomic Screen, Kamala Vanarsa, Jessica Castillo, Hao Li, Kala T Pham, Maria Akter, Sravya Gude, Kyung Hyun Lee, Claudia Pedroza, Robert Bresalier, Nicholas Chia, Chandra Mohan

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Given the morbidity and mortality associated with colorectal cancer (CRC), novel biomarkers are clearly warranted, especially for early detection. An antibody-based screen of 2000 proteins was utilized to identify stool proteins that were elevated in patients with CRC, compared with healthy controls (HCs). Thirty-seven lead candidates were selected for ELISA validation in three independent cohorts comprised of CRC patients, advanced adenoma patients, and HCs, drawn from two different ethnicities. Of the 2000 proteins interrogated, 116 were differentially expressed in CRC stool, with 45 being elevated at twofold or higher; 37 of these proteins were selected for ELISA validation in three …

A Patient-Derived Organ-On-Chip Platform For Modeling The Tumor Microenvironment And Drug Responses In Pancreatic Cancer, Darbaz Adnan, Natan Roberto De Barros, Luca S Santovito, Xuhong Cheng, Kristi M Lawrence, Mariah K Barnett, Martine D Boetto, Neal Mehta, Ajaypal Singh, Lin Cheng, Xiangsheng Huang, Faraz Bishehsari

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a fatal malignancy. Current conventional chemotherapeutics are inadequate in controlling the disease; hence, there is an urgent need for precision medicine. Ex vivo models that replicate the tumor and its microenvironment can advance precision medicine in PDAC. Patient‐derived organoids (PDOs) offer a promising solution by retaining the functional features of the tumor, allowing for individualized study of cancer biology and drug response. However, PDOs fall short in replicating the tumor microenvironment (TME), which includes various stromal and immune cells influencing tumor growth and chemoresistance. We hypothesize that combining PDO technology with organ‐on‐a‐chip (OoC) systems can …

Severe Renal Phenotype Across A Multigenerational Tuberous Sclerosis Complex (Tsc) Family, Elena Tuller, Joshua A Samuels, Hope Northrup, Kate Richardson

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is an autosomal dominant genetic disorder characterized by the formation of hamartomas in the brain, kidney, and heart, along with other complex clinical manifestations, including TSC-associated neuropsychiatric disorder (TAND). Development of genotype-phenotype correlations within TSC can aid clinicians in providing prognostic data and improve clinical management. We present here a multigenerational family who has a pathogenic variant in TSC2 displaying a severe renal phenotype.

Methods: A 23-year-old Caucasian male (Patient 1) was determined to have a molecularly confirmed diagnosis of TSC at approximately 2 months of age. The nonsense pathogenic variant (c.1372C>T (p.Arg458*)) in …

Disposition At Equipoise: A Qualitative Study Of Emergency Physicians' Decision-Making About Hospitalizing People With Dementia, Anita N Chary, Annika R Bhananker, Rebecca Franks, Jason Bowman, Adrian D Haimovich, Victoria Martell, Elizabeth M Schoenfeld, Cameron J Gettel, Shan W Liu, Kei Ouchi, Maura Kennedy, Aanand Naik, Manish N Shah

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: People with dementia are often hospitalized from the emergency department (ED) for conditions that could potentially be treated in the outpatient setting. In scenarios of clinical equipoise-where either admission or discharge may be appropriate-little is known about how emergency physicians make disposition decisions.

Methods: We conducted a qualitative study with attending emergency physicians at a single academic medical center. Interviews included open-ended questions about disposition decision-making in general as well as structured case scenarios using a think-aloud protocol. We used an inductive approach to code interview data and elucidate themes about the factors emergency physicians consider in disposition decisions …

An Odd Protocol For An Agent-Based Model Of Hepatitis C Virus Transmission In A Homogeneous Syringe-Sharing Network, Seun Ale, Que Thi Nguyet Nguyen Dr., John D. Kelleher Prof., Elizabeth Hunter Dr.

Reports

The model described in this ODD is an agent-based model of hepatitis C virus (HCV) transmission among people who inject drugs (PWID). The model assumes homogeneous mixing among syringe-sharing agents, without any form of heterogeneity in the agents interactions or syringe-sharing attitude. All syringe-sharing PWID are treated as identical in terms of their interaction frequency and syringe-sharing probability. Interactions are generated dynamically using proximity-based sampling at each timestep (one day), allowing agents to form syringe-sharing interactions based on spatial closeness. The number of daily interaction events is fixed at the population level, and each syringe-sharing agent has the same probability …

An Odd Protocol For An Agent-Based Model Of Hepatitis C Virus Transmission With Inter-Group Structural And Behavioural Heterogeneous Syringe-Sharing Networks (M4), Seun Ale, Que Nguyen Dr., John D. Kelleher Prof., Elizabeth Hunter Dr.

Reports

The model described in this ODD is an agent-based model of hepatitis C virus (HCV) transmission among people who inject drugs (PWID). The model incorporates structural heterogeneity through a three-group interaction framework and behavioural heterogeneity through group-specific syringe-sharing rates. The syringe-sharing population in the model is divided into core, inner, and outer circle groups representing individuals with high, moderate, and low levels of syringe-sharing interaction intensity, respectively. In addition to differences in the number of daily interaction opportunities across groups, agents in each group are assigned distinct syringe-sharing probabilities, reflecting variation in risk-taking behaviour across structural groups within the syringe-sharing …

Global, Regional, And National Burden Of Breast Cancer Among Females, 1990–2023, With Forecasts To 2050: A Systematic Analysis For The Global Burden Of Disease Study 2023, Gbd 2023 Breast Cancer Collaborators Breast Cancer Collaborators, Kathryn H. Jacobsen

Health Studies Faculty Publications

Summary

Background

Methods

Soft Skills For Medical Physicists: Evolving A Profession., Tomas Kron, Julie Raffi, Shada Wadi-Ramahi, Abdelkader Toutaoui, Bilal Jalal, Peter A Sandwall, Graciela Velez, Dario Sanz, Godfrey Azangwe

Oncology Articles

PURPOSE: Medical physicists are essential healthcare professionals who bridge the gap between technology and patient care, particularly in radiation oncology and medical imaging. With the profession expanding its clinical and global roles, the need for competencies beyond technical expertise-such as communication, leadership, and cultural awareness-is increasingly evident. These competencies, commonly referred to as soft skills, are critical for patient-centered care but remain insufficiently integrated into formal education and training pathways. The aim of the present work was to identify soft skills relevant to medical physics practice and investigate where in a career they are acquired and used.

METHODS: This paper …

Navigation-Assisted Percutaneous Fixation Of An Anterior Column And Posterior Hemitransverse Fracture In An Elderly Patient: A Case Report., Matthew Rohl, Taylor J Manes, Nate Rodriguez, Kevin Monahan, Joseph P Scheschuk

Surgery Articles

INTRODUCTION: Acetabular fractures in elderly patients are often the result of low-energy trauma and are complicated by osteopenia, comorbidities, and limited physiologic reserve. Minimally invasive approaches, such as percutaneous fixation have emerged as viable alternatives to open reduction in selected fracture patterns.

CASE REPORT: We report the case of a 76-year-old male with a history of coronary artery disease, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and osteopenia who sustained a comminuted right anterior column and posterior hemitransverse acetabular fracture following a ground-level fall. His hospital course was complicated by rhabdomyolysis and elevated troponin levels, necessitating cardiac evaluation, which demonstrated normal left ventricular function and …

The Correlation Of Vitamin D Deficiency On Clinical Disease Activity Index (Cdai) Scores In Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis, Ruha Reddy, Amanda Rodriguez Do, Amy Wu, Jasmine Sturn, Rachel Champagne, Rebekah Johnson, Marie S. O'Brien Do

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

Association Between Infection With Multidrug Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus And Patient Risk Factors, Ariana Virgillio, Emily A. Felton, Josh Alvior, Abigail Eglinton, Deanna N. Becker, Amorce Lima, E Cella, T Azarian, Suzane Silbert, Lindsey N. Shaw, Kami Kim

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

Lehigh County Harm Reduction Women’S Outreach, Linda Schiller, Abby S. Letcher Md, Nyann Biery Ms, Heather Diehl, Carnen Ortiz, Bryant Rivera, William Delgado

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

A Comparative Operational Analysis Of Patient Access And Clinician Productivity: Identifying Success Drivers In Pediatric Gastroenterology, Lionel Sam, Liborio Larussa Md

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

Youth Suicide Across The Lehigh Valley Health Network Region:Determining Common Lethal Means Used Locally, Madeline Pollak, Emmanuel Annor Md, Rebecca Lipscomb, Dhanalakshmi Ramasamy Md

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

Characterization Of Transgender Men Undergoing Hysterectomy At The Lehigh Valley Health Network, Christine Peng, Shae Duka Mph, Patricia L. Mara Md

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

An Assessment Of Brain Mri Utilization In Inpatient Admissions For Headache And Dizziness At Lehigh Valley Health Network, Srijit Paul, Shadi Jarjous Md

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

Real-World Challenges Associated With Assembling Multicenter Radiomics Dataset, Wai Lone Jonathan Ho, Lawrence O. Hall, Dmitry Goldgof, Matthew B. Schabath

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

Patient Education Quality Improvement Initiative On Common Neuro Ophthalmology Diagnoses, Rithvic Jupudi, Casey Judge Do, Negar Moheb Md

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

Ulcerative Colitis Predominates, Yet Hepatic Progression Mirrors Crohn’S In Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis–Inflammatory Bowel Disease Overlap: A Tertiary Cohort Study, Sunny Kahlon, Megan Pearce, Donna Ortiz, Jennifer Seminerio

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

Safer Opioid Prescribing Practices In Pediatric Surgery:A Multi-Specialty Initiative To Implement Evidence-Based Pain Management Strategies, Grace Lee, Carly Miller, Rebecca Lipscomb, Amy L. Serfas Bsn, Rn, Marybeth Browne Md

USF-LVHN SELECT

No abstract provided.

Physical Activity And Exercise Patterns Of Submariners In Land And Sea Environments, Benjamin Kirk, Georgios Mavropalias, Anthony Blazevich, Jodie Cochrane Wilkie, Aus Molan, Kazunori Nosaka

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Introduction: Submarine environments pose unique challenges to maintaining physical activity and exercise routines due to confined spaces, demanding schedules, and limited resources. This study investigated submariners’ physical activity patterns, sleep quality, and perceived exercise barriers in both land- and sea-based settings, with the goal of informing targeted health interventions. Materials and Methods: Ethics approval was granted by the Defence Science and Technology Group and Edith Cowan University review panels. This cross-sectional study surveyed 21 Royal Australian Navy submariners (25-48 years; 18 male) using a modified version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Participants reported weekly engagement in general physical activity …

Preliminary Evidence Of Blood Dna Methylation Changes In Pregnant Women Adhering To A Mediterranean Diet, Grace Tavelli, Nikki Schultz, Joanna Brisbane, Nina Kresoje, Samantha Lodge, Jeremy K. Nicholson, Nicola J. Armstrong, Desiree Silva, Nina D’Vaz, David Martino

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background/Objectives: Consumption of a Mediterranean diet (MD) has been associated with reduced incidence of non-communicable diseases and reduced overall mortality, with epigenomic effects representing plausible mediators. The aim of this pilot study was to explore potential epigenetic associations between DNA methylation markers in blood and adherence to an MD in pregnancy. Methods: Fifty-two pregnant women with high or low adherence to an MD throughout pregnancy, who participated in the BioMood ORIGINS study, were selected using an extremes-of-exposure design. DNA methylation (DNAm) profiles from whole blood were generated using the TWIST human methylome panel. We conducted both genome-wide and candidate gene-based …

Seeing Voices: A Dynamic, Interprofessional Approach To Teaching Performing Arts And Speech-Language Pathology Students About Vocal Anatomy And Physiology, Deborah Hersh, Luzita Fereday, Fiona Palmer, David Hall, Pedro Amarante Andrade, Priscilla Cornelius, Charn Nang, Jane White

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Objectives: Seeing Voices was an interprofessional, technology-enabled, large-scale, teaching and learning event developed to address the need to improve voice students’ knowledge of laryngeal anatomy and physiology toward understanding and maintaining vocal health. Seeing Voices trialed a novel interprofessional educational approach, collected both quantitative and qualitative data about student experiences of laryngostroboscopic examination, and built a databank of laryngeal recordings for future student learning. Methods: Seeing Voices involved two 3-hour seminars in a large, university lecture space, run by an interprofessional team (speech-language pathologists, vocal coach, Ear Nose and Throat consultant) with quality equipment projecting laryngeal images to large screens …

Mass Cytometry Workflow To Achieve High-Dimensional Immunophenotyping In Resource-Limited Or Decentralized Environments, Natalie Smith, Michael Cohen, Lauren Tracey, Julie Alipaz, Christina Loh, David King, Neha Pulyani, Rebecca Auzins, Elin Gray, Sandra Taylor, Rajat Rai, Steven Kao, Barbara Fazekas De St Groth, Helen Mcguire

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Globally, regional and remote communities are burdened by both an increased prevalence and worse prognosis of many infectious and chronic diseases. However, largely owing to logistical challenges, these communities are under-represented in clinical trials and research studies. As individuals from rural communities experience unique environmental exposures and risk factors for disease, immune phenotyping data collected from metropolitan populations may not be broadly generalizable. To address this, we present a workflow that enables the inclusion of resource-limited sites in high-parameter mass cytometry studies. In this approach, whole blood (WB) or peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) are collected, stained fresh for surface …

Digital Pain Assessment: Patient And Family Perspectives, Rosemary Saunders, Kate Crookes, Kaoru Nosaka, Olivia Gallagher, Jeff Hughes, Caroline Bulsara, Max K. Bulsara, Seng Giap Marcus Ang, Beverley Ewens, Sue Haydon, Karla Seaman, Renée Graham, Debra Scaini, Karen Gullick, Michelle Gay, Christopher Etherton-Beer, Renée Graham

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background/Objectives: Pain is a common symptom for hospitalised older adults. Pain is not always adequately assessed, which can lead to inadequate pain management and adverse patient outcomes. Thus, new technology-driven pain assessment tools have been developed; however, little is known about patients’ and families’ experiences of nurses using them in acute care. This study aimed to explore the perspectives of older adult inpatients and their families’ regarding nurses’ use of the digital technology-driven pain assessment application PainChek^® Universal. Methods: A survey was undertaken as part of a stakeholder evaluation of a randomised control trial exploring the effectiveness of nurse-led …

Defining A Quantitative Threshold For Adaptive Re-Planning Using A Percentile-Based Scoring System, Alexandra O Leone, Christine B Peterson, Anna Lee, Adam S Garden, G Brandon Gunn, Lauren L Mayo, Amy C Moreno, Steven J Frank, C David Fuller, Jay P Reddy, Karen Hoffman, Ivan Vazquez, Ming Yang, Joshua S Niedzielski, Laurence E Court, Thomas J Whitaker

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Despite the frequent need for adaptive planning in head and neck proton therapy, no quantitative indicators have been identified to determine when a plan should be adapted. Here, we aimed to determine a quantitative threshold for the change in plan quality between the primary treatment plan and verification plans that correlates with the physician's decision to adapt.

Methods: Primary treatment and verification plans were extracted from the clinical treatment planning system for 167 patients who underwent intensity-modulated proton therapy for base of tongue, tonsillar, or oropharyngeal cancers, with and without nodal involvement, between 2016 and 2021. All plans were …

Clemastine Ameliorates Cognitive Deficits In An Experimental Rat Model Of Chronic Cerebral Hypoperfusion, Xuemei Zong, Zhihai Huang, Fanfei Kong, Yu Feng, Yulan Zhang, Peibin Zou, Hung Wen Lin, David C Hess, Quanguang Zhang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH) profoundly affects patient well-being and has been proposed as a risk factor for cognitive impairment and dementia. However, due to the limited understanding of the pathophysiology of CCH, there are currently no effective preventive or therapeutic approaches for CCH-associated cognitive impairment. Therefore, identifying new targets for CCH is essential to bridge this knowledge gap. In this study, we sought to determine whether enhanced myelination could prevent cognitive impairment associated with CCH. Experimental CCH was induced via bilateral common carotid artery occlusion (BCCAO) in rats, and clemastine, a well-established pro-myelinating agent, was administered to boost myelin renewal. …

Shiny-Magec: A Bayesian R Shiny Application For Meta-Analysis Of Censored Adverse Events, Zihan Zhou, Zizhong Tian, Christine Peterson, Le Bao, Shouhao Zhou

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Accurate assessment of adverse event (AE) incidence is critical in clinical research for drug safety. While meta-analysis serves as an essential tool to comprehensively synthesize the evidence across multiple studies, incomplete AE reporting in clinical trials remains a persistent challenge. In particular, AEs occurring below study-specific reporting thresholds are often omitted from publications, leading to left-censored data. Failure to account for these censored AE counts can result in biased AE incidence estimates. We present an R Shiny application that implements a Bayesian meta-analysis model specifically designed to incorporate censored AE data into the estimation process. This interactive tool provides a …

Grwd1 Inhibits Nucleolar Stress And Reduces The Sensitivity Of Hepatocellular Carcinoma To Oxaliplatin., Yuanyuan Li, Yumeng Wu, Shenghuan Zuo, Wenjing Zhao, Jibin Liu, Yilang Wang, Xiubing Zhang, Jian Xu, Feng Sun, Dianzheng Zhang, Shudong Zhu, Aiguo Shen

PCOM Scholarly Works

No abstract available

Evolving Landscape Of Respiratory Infections And Amr In The Uae: A 12-Year Nationwide Study Of Regional Burden, Epidemiologic Trends And Policy Implications, Madikay Senghore, Jens Thomsen, Najiba M. Abdulrazzaq, Wei Chen, Eveline Kaambo, Stefan Weber, Fouzia Jabeen, Godfred Antony Menezes, Carole Ayoub Moubareck, Dean B. Everett, Abiola Senok

All Works

Objectives This study characterizes the epidemiological trends and resistance profiles of respiratory tract infections (RTIs) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from 2010 to 2022, aiming to inform national control strategies. Method We conducted a retrospective observational study of RTI cases across 345 UAE healthcare settings using data from the national surveillance network. Pathogen identification and resistance profiling were performed using advanced diagnostics and standardized antimicrobial susceptibility testing, in accordance with Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guidelines. Results Lower respiratory tract infections (LRI) comprised most cases (73.1%; n = 100,856), including 6416 due to Mycobacterium tuberculosis , while upper …