Title: Post-Treatment Adverse Health Correlates among Prostate Cancer Survivors in a Sample of Men Residing in Atlantic Canada Journal: Current Oncology Authors: Gabriela Ilie, Rob Rutledge and Ellen Sweeney Abstract: Background: Recent large population-based studies have shed light on an association between prostate cancer (PCa) survivorship and mental health, which emerged when the comparison group was either men without a history of cancer or those with any other type of cancer except prostate. Here we examine the role of surgery alone, compared to other types of treatment modalities in this association in a population-based sample of men with prostate or other types of cancer. Methods: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted on a subsample of 632 male participants aged 36–69 from the 2009–2015 survey cycle of the Atlantic PATH cohort study. The primary outcomes were the presence of mild, moderate or severe depression or anxiety indicators and were assessed using the seven-item generalized anxiety disorder (GAD-7) scale and the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), respectively. The presence of a lifetime history of PCa or other form of cancer (except PCa) was the main predictor variable and was assessed in cancer treatment modality (surgery or other types of treatment modalities) stratified analyses. Covariates included age, marital status, household income, comorbidity, and survivorship time. Results: The presence of depression in this sample was prevalent among 17.7% of men, and of anxiety among 9.3% of men. Survivors who were treated with surgery for their PCa diagnosis had 7.55 statistically significantly higher odds of screening positive for current depression symptoms compared with those of other forms of cancer in controlled analyses. These differences were not observed for anxiety. Conclusions: These findings emphasize the need for multidisciplinary survivorship care plans among PCa patients, especially those who undergo surgery. Targeted programming aimed at prioritizing and delivering comprehensive mental health support to PCa survivors early in the survivorship journey is justified. https://doi.org/10.3390/curroncol28040246

Journal: Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation and Prevention Authors: Daniel Stevens, Pantelis Andreou, Daniel Rainham Abstract : Purpose: Physical activity (PA) predicts important health outcomes in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In the general population, environmental factors have the potential to influence PA; however, data are limited in this clinical population. Therefore, we sought to investigate associations between the environment and PA, sedentary behavior, and self-rated health in COPD. Methods: Sociodemographic, PA, sedentary behavior, and self-rated health data were collected from a prospective cohort of 418 individuals with COPD (65% female; 58 ± 8 yr), while environmental data were drawn from a national environmental data repository and individually matched to participant postal code. Environmental variables included social and material deprivation, urban form index, surrounding greenness, and air quality (concentrations of air pollution for fine particles, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, and sulphur dioxide). Logistic and multivariate linear regression models were used to investigate the strongest environmental predictors. Results: The models showed a statistically significant negative correlation between PA level and ozone pollution (P = .023; adjusted OR = 0.85: 95% CI, 0.74-0.98). Urban form index was also significantly associated with sedentary behavior (β = 0.113; t value = 1.71; P = .011). Self-rated health was significantly positively correlated with PA level (P = .006; adjusted OR = 2.22: 95% CI, 1.25-3.94), and significantly inversely correlated with sedentary behavior (β = −0.159; t value =−2.42; P = .016). Conclusion: These new data may identify barriers to PA and assist clinicians in the prescription of exercise for individuals living with COPD. doi: 10.1097/HCR.0000000000000628

Title: Age and Sex-Specific Associations in Health Risk Factors for Chronic Disease: Evidence from the Atlantic Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health (PATH) Cohort Journal: Canadian Journal on Aging Authors: Vanessa DeClercq and Ellen Sweeney Abstract: The objective of this study was to discern health risk factors for chronic disease by age and sex in a Canadian cohort. Participants of the Atlantic Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health (PATH) cohort with health risk factor data (physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, diet, body mass index [BMI]) were included (n = 16,165). Multivariable logistic regression models were used to evaluate the relationship among health risk factors, age, and sex. Regression analysis revealed that the odds of engaging in high levels of physical activity and having a BMI ≥ 25 was lower for females than males across all age groups, whereas the odds of abdominal obesity was substantially higher for females of all ages than for males. The odds of habitually consuming alcohol was lower for females of all ages than for males, and the odds of being a former/current smoker was lower for older (57–74 years of age) females than for males. The odds of consuming five or more servings of fruit and vegetables per day was higher for females of all ages than for males. There are evident differences in health risk factors for males and for females, as well as across age groups, and public health efforts need to account for the role played by sex and age in addressing chronic disease burden in Canadian adults.

Journal: Preventive Medicine Authors: Ellen Sweeney, Yunsong Cui, Zhijie Michael Yu, Trevor JB Dummer, Vanessa DeClercq, Cynthia Forbes, Scott A Grandy, Melanie R Keats, Anil Adisesh Abstract We evaluated the relationship between mental health and shift work in the Atlantic Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health (PATH) cohort study. In a matched study with 12,413 participants, including 4155 shift workers and 8258 non-shift workers, we utilized general linear models and logistic regression models to assess the differences in depression, anxiety, and self-rated health. Shift workers reported higher levels of each of the mental health-related domains compared to non-shift workers. There was a significant increased risk of depression (OR = 1.13, 95% CI, 1.00–1.27) and poor self-rated health (OR = 1.13, 95% CI, 1.14–1.55) among shift workers compared to non-shift workers. Shift workers were more likely to have increased rates of depression and poor self-rated health, as well as depressive and anxiety symptom scores compared to non-shift workers. As a result, shift workers may be at increased risk of comorbidity, poor quality of life, missed work, and early retirement.   Doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2021.106697