1.
Incidence of peripheral neuropathy associated with eribulin mesylate versus vinorelbine in patients with metastatic breast cancer: sub-group analysis of a randomized phase III study.
Wu, Y, Wang, Q, Zhang, J, Cao, J, Wang, B, Hu, X
Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer. 2020;(8):3819-3829
Abstract
BACKGROUND Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is one of the most significant neurologic complications of chemotherapy, impacting patient's behavior and quality of life. CIPN is mostly sensory, with rare incidences of autonomic dysfunction and other neuropathy. METHODS We conducted a single-center sub-group analysis of patients with metastatic breast cancer enrolled in a phase III study (NCT02225470) set up to compare eribulin mesylate (1.4 mg/m2 on days 1 and 8 every 21 days) with vinorelbine (25 mg/m2 on days 1, 8, and 15 every 21 days). The analysis investigated incidence of peripheral neuropathy, time to onset of neuropathy, and safety. RESULTS Our analysis included 110 women with a mean age of 50.7 (SD = 10.9). The median accumulated dose of eribulin was 11.2 mg/m2 and 125.0 mg/m2 for vinorelbine. Among patients in the eribulin group, a performance status (ECOG PS) of 2 was correlated with peripheral sensory neuropathy (p = 0.015), and accumulated eribulin dose (≥ 10 mg/m2) was associated with all neuropathy and peripheral sensory neuropathy (p = 0.003 and p = 0.007, respectively). In the vinorelbine group, patient age (≥ 65 years) was positively associated with all neuropathy (p = 0.043). The time to onset of neuropathy appeared to be longer for eribulin versus vinorelbine (35.3 vs. 34.6 weeks; p = 0.046), with a significantly higher incidence of autonomic neuropathy at weeks 2 and 10 observed among patients receiving vinorelbine (p = 0.008 and p = 0.043, respectively). CONCLUSION Vinorelbine is associated with a higher incidence of autonomic neuropathy than eribulin in patients with metastatic breast cancer. Furthermore, the onset of neurotoxicity appears to occur earlier with vinorelbine than eribulin.
2.
Active Interest Mentorship for Soon-to-Retire People: A Self-Sustaining Retirement Preparation Program.
Ng, SM, Leng, L, Wang, Q
Journal of applied gerontology : the official journal of the Southern Gerontological Society. 2019;(3):344-364
Abstract
Retirement is a major life transition that often leads to maladjustments and mental health hazards. In this study, we developed an innovative retirement preparation program, the Active Interest Mentorship Scheme (AIMS), which utilized active interest development as a positive entry point through which to engage soon-to-retire people. Each retiree received a 1-year mentorship 6 months before retirement. Adopting a quasi-experimental design, the study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of the AIMS in protecting retirees' well-being. The well-being status of 161 retirees was assessed at 4-month intervals. Measures included self-esteem, life satisfaction, positive affect, depression, anxiety, and somatic symptoms. Serial trend analysis revealed a general improvement in well-being at 4 months after mentorship, followed by a mark reversion in some variables at 2 months after retirement. Upon completion of the program, participants generally returned to a level of well-being that was comparable with or better than preretirement levels. The first 2 months after retirement appeared to be the most distressing. The findings support the efficacy, as well as feasibility of the innovative retirement preparation program.