I have sworn this oath several times throughout my military career, as did my wife and first daughter. A framed print of the oath of office adorned our living room for years. Often, when asked what I did for a living by a new acquaintance, I will state that I spent a career protecting and defending the United States Constitution. It is an occupation my family has been involved in for generations. Except for my family, nothing has been more fundamentally important to my identity and sense of purpose. Defense of our Constitution is the most important endeavor I have performed to protect my family, posterity and my country.
Indeterminate Liver Nodules Have a High but Variable Risk of HCC
DALLAS – For more than a decade, the Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS) has been used to standardize the interpretation and reporting of liver lesions in patients at high risk for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Yet, predicting what happens with...
Agent Orange Exposure Not Linked to Hepatocellular Carcinoma
LOS ANGELES -- Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and related mortality are on the rise. A recent study sought to determine if Agent Orange exposure is one of the factors affecting veterans. “Viral hepatitis and alcohol are leading risk factors; however, other risk...
Surveys: Better HCC Surveillance Seen as Key to Improved Survival Rates
PALO ALTO, CA -- Even though hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) surveillance in associated with improved survival, screening of cirrhosis patients is suboptimal, especially in primary care settings, according to recent surveys. A recent study in JAMA Network Open argued...
Congressional Testimony Puts Focus on TBIs Caused by Weapons Training
While traumatic brain injury (TBI) and its impact on the lives of servicemembers and veterans have received considerable attention, most of that attention has focused on TBIs incurred during combat.
Traumatic Brain Injury Associated With Increased Risk of Brain Cancer
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has been linked to poor long-term outcomes in the veteran population, including cardiovascular disease, dementia, epilepsy and mental health issues. A new study of post-9/11 veterans provides evidence of yet another concerning effect of TBI—an increased, although still low, risk of brain cancer.
Social Avoidance, Other Deficits Appear to Be Features of Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder, Not Just the Consequences of Social Isolation
While individuals with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder often have difficulty with relationships and being part of a community, a recent study involving U.S. veterans has found that social cognitive deficits and high social avoidance motivation appear to be actual features of the clinical conditions and not the result of living in social isolation.
RSV Is as Severe as COVID-19, Flu When Everyone’s Unvaccinated
A recent study suggested that RSV disease severity is similar to unvaccinated patients hospitalized with COVID-19 or influenza, but significantly more severe than patients hospitalized with those diseases who had been vaccinated.
Mounting Evidence of RSV Severity Bolsters Argument for Vaccination
Immunization levels against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) among older adults remained relatively low at around 24% as of late March. As a comparison, national coverage with influenza vaccines for all U.S. adults was 48.3% in the same time period, 2% higher than last year.
Overall Survival Improves With Adjuvant Pembrolizumab in RCC
A third prespecified interim analysis of the KEYNOTE-564 trial has determined that adjuvant pembrolizumab after surgery was associated with a significant and clinically meaningful improvement in overall survival, as compared with placebo, among participants with clear-cell renal-cell carcinoma at increased risk for recurrence after surgery.
Increased Molecular Identification Updates Renal Cell Carcinoma Classifications
Forty years ago, the only recognized form of kidney cancer was renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Today, RCC still accounts for more than 90% of malignancies in the kidney, but now the World Health Organization (WHO) delineates 21 subtypes, with significant differences in aggressiveness and treatment options.
VA Looks Deeper at Treatment Selection in Metastatic Prostate Cancer
Veterans face twice the risk of prostate cancer compared to those who have never served, with approximately 15,000 veterans diagnosed with the disease annually. Breakthroughs in treatment have allowed those patients to live longer than ever and swelled the number of veterans with prostate cancer receiving care through the VHA to nearly 500,000.
Environmental Exposure Linked to Blood Cancer Risk in Veterans
Study Shows Link Between Agent Orange and MPNs A recent study has linked the development of polycythemia vera and other MPNs—essential thrombocythemia (ET) and primary myelofibrosis (MF)—with exposure to the herbicide Agent Orange. Among patients with MPNs,...
Should Cytoreductive Therapy Be Used in Younger PV Patients?
Younger patients with polycythemia vera are often symptomatic and suffer impaired quality of life, reduced work productivity and excess mortality compared with age-matched controls, according to a new study.
Psychoactive Drug Ibogaine Effectively Treats TBI Complications
The signature injury of U.S. veterans from recent military conflicts, traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of injury-related disability.
Buprenorphine for Post-Surgical Pain, OK for Opioid-Use Disorder Patients
Opioid-use disorder (OUD) has been referred to as a battle that takes more lives every year than the Vietnam or Korean wars.
Lung Cancer Survival Rates in Federal Medicine Compare Well to Community
Survival rates are rising for veterans diagnosed with lung cancer within the VHA and, unlike in the general population, Black veterans are benefiting as much or more than white ones.
Intensive Therapy Is Effective Treatment for Frail Multiple Myeloma Patients
For frail patients with multiple myeloma, receiving more intensive therapy, triplet bortezomib-lenalidomide-dexamethasone (VRd) rather than doublet lenalidomide-dexamethasone (Rd), is a more-effective treatment, according to a recent study of patients treated in VA facilities.
Monoclonal Antibodies Are Promising for Improving MM Survival Time
The last 20 years have brought many more therapeutics for multiple myeloma (MM).
CDC: More Research Needed on High Melanoma Rates in AI/AN People
Non-Hispanic American Indian/ Alaskan Native (AI/AN) people have the second-highest rate of melanoma in the United States after non-Hispanic white people.
Editorial Director
Thanks to cutting-edge efforts to use targeted testing and strict guideline-adherence, the care of patients with serious illnesses is arguably better than ever at the VA and military healthcare systems.
Mortality Up in VHA Inpatients With COVID-19 Plus Hospital-Acquired Infections
Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA), an opportunistic pathogen commonly associated with healthcare-associated infections, has a high mortality rate. The organism’s high virulence and ability to rapidly acquire resistance to antibiotics make PA infections a treatment challenge.
Nearly 20% of Veterans Showed Decline During COVID-19 Pandemic
While most U.S. veterans maintained or improved physical and mental function a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, almost 20% showed a decline, according to a new study.
Gout Largely Treatable, but a Considerable Burden in Older Veterans
One of the earliest recorded and most intensely painful diseases, gout was historically called the “disease of kings.” For centuries, it was thought to affect only the wealthy and aristocratic.
VA Clinicians Tackle Issue of Defining and Combatting ‘Diabetes Distress’
The term “diabetes distress” is used to describe the emotional response to living with diabetes, a life-threatening illness that requires chronic and demanding self-management.
Targeted Therapies for CLL Widely Used at VA; Prolonged Survival
U.S. military veterans with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) routinely received therapies in line with current evidence-based treatment practices over the past two decades, and those who were treated with targeted therapies had longer overall survival, according to a national VA study with more than 20 years of clinical data.
New Guidelines Address Use of Topical Ruxolitinib in Atopic Dermatitis
Using topical ruxolitinib cream to treat atopic dermatitis decreases the need for other AD treatments, according to new research.
Atopic Dermatitis, Other Skin Issues Are Challenging for U.S. Military
Military servicemembers are often exposed to drastic climates, environments, and living conditions which may make them more susceptible to cutaneous diseases, according to a new study.
NIH Study Leads to First FDA Approval for Rare Immunodeficiency Syndrome
A phase III study led by a researcher at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has resulted in the first approval of a drug for activated phosphoinositide 3-kinase delta (PI3Kδ) syndrome (APDS), a rare congenital immunodeficiency syndrome.
Bladder, Kidney Cancer Rates Lower in Younger Servicemembers vs. Civilians
Younger military servicemembers have lower rates of bladder and kidney cancer than a similar civilian cohort, but that appears to change with age.
