Maryam Aleissa

This editorial discusses the literature review article by Tonini and Zanni, the paper was published in January 2024, and the authors provided very interesting conclusions regarding existing barriers to the early diagnosis of colon cancer. Many cancers do not have identifiable precursors, or there are currently no screening tests to find them. Therefore, these cancers do not have preventive screening options. Early detection is crucial for reducing mortality rates by identifying cancer at an earlier stage through screening, as opposed to no screening. Colorectal cancer develops from precancerous lesions, which can be detected early and potentially prevented and cured. Early detection leads to improved survival rates, decreased complications, and reduced healthcare expenses. This editorial provides a brief description of the biology of colon cancer, emphasizing the contrast in outcomes between early detection and late detection. We also describe screening programs around the globe and examine the barriers in each program. Finally, we explore potential future solutions to enhance inclusion in screening programs and improve patient compliance.

Orthotopic murine models of pancreatic cancer represent an important tool for evaluating treatment strategies. Several genetically modified mouse tumors and xenograft models have been reported. Genetic models have unpredictable growth and variable ...

Background: A stoma poses numerous physical, social, and psychological challenges and interferes with some religious practices, thus potentially negatively affecting the quality of life. In the contemporary era of stoma care, the study sought to assess this impact in a population with distinctive sociocultural characteristics. Methods: A modified City of Hope Quality of Life ostomy questionnaire was used to survey patients with intestinal stomas. The scoring was dichotomous on a 0 to 10 scale, where 0–3 indicated severe impact, 4–6 moderate, and 7–10 minimum. Statistical analysis involved Student’s t-test, one-way ANOVA, Spearman’s correlation, and multivariate linear regression. Results: There were 108 patients, with 59 males and 49 females. The mean age was 40.8 years. The overall quality of life score was 6, for the social domain 7, the physical domain 6, the psychological domain 5, and the spiritual domain 6. The stoma’s impact on the quality of life was severe in 2%, moderate in 61%, and minimal in 37% of patients. Young patients, women, and those with benign diseases or without a job had low scores. Furthermore, 90% of patients had difficulty performing religious activities. For the regression analysis, life quality predictors were dietary, religious, pouch and stoma site issues, leak, odor, diarrhea or constipation, depression, anxiety, and future and disease concerns. Conclusions: Despite advances in stoma care, stoma patients had multiple impediments to their life quality. These were mainly psychological, but the physical and religious ones were also significant. A holistic approach to managing stoma patients is thus needed to help them have fulfilling lives.