Browsing by Author "Danaher Hacker, Eileen"

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    Breaking the Age Barrier: Physicians' Perceptions of Candidacy for Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation in Older Adults
    (Elsevier, 2021) Mishra, Asmita; Preussler, Jaime M.; Bhatt, Vijaya Raj; Bredeson, Christopher; Chhabra, Saurabh; D'Souza, Anita; Dahi, Parastoo B.; Danaher Hacker, Eileen; Gowda, Lohith; Hashmi, Shahrukh K.; Howard, Dianna S.; Jakubowski, Ann; Jayani, Reena; Koll, Thuy; Olin, Rebecca L.; Popat, Uday R.; Rodriguez, Cesar; Rosko, Ashley; Sabloff, Mitchell; Sorror, Mohamed L.; Sung, Anthony D.; Ustun, Celalettin; Wood, William A.; Burns, Linda; Artz, Andrew; School of Nursing
    Background: Despite continued increases in use of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT) among older adults, no standardized geriatric assessment (GA) has been established to risk-stratify for transplant-related morbidity. We conducted a survey of transplant physicians to determine perceptions of the impact of older age (≥60 years) on alloHCT candidacy, and utilization of tools to gauge candidacy. Methods: We conducted a 23-item, online cross-sectional survey of HCT physicians caring for adults in the United States between May and July 2019. Results: Of the 770 invited HCT physicians, 175 (22.7%) completed the survey. The majority of respondents were 41–60 years old, male, and practiced in a higher volume teaching hospital. When considering regimen intensity, 29 physicians (17%) stated they would consider a myeloablative regimen for patients ≥70 years, and 141 (82%) would consider reduced intensity/non-myeloablative conditioning for patients ≥70 years. Almost all (90%) endorsed the need for a specialized assessment of pre-HCT vulnerabilities to guide candidacy decisions for older adults. Most physicians reported their centers rarely (33%) or never (46%) utilize a dedicated geriatrician/geriatric-oncologist to assess alloHCT candidates ≥60 years. Common barriers to performing a GA included uncertainty about which tools to use, lack of knowledge and training, and lack of appropriate clinical support staff. Conclusions: Many alloHCT physicians will consider alloHCT in patients up to age 75 years and not uncommonly, in patients older than that. However, application of tools and domains varies widely to assess candidacy in older adults. Incorporation of a standardized pre-transplant health assessment tool for risk stratification is a significant unmet need.
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    Impact of risk for severe COVID-19 illness on physical activity during the pandemic
    (Elsevier, 2023) Wierenga, Kelly L.; Perkins, Susan M.; Forster, Anna K.; Alwine, Jennifer; Ofner, Susan; Mulkey, Malissa A.; Danaher Hacker, Eileen; Pressler, Susan J.; Moore, Scott Emory; School of Nursing
    Background: Precautions to mitigate spread of COVID-19 such as the closing of exercise facilities impacted physical activity behaviors. Varied risks for severe COVID-19 may have influenced participation in regular physical activity to maintain precautions. Objective: Describe differences in the amount and intensity of physical activity between adults at high versus low risk for severe COVID-19 illness during the pandemic. We hypothesized that over 13 months, 1) high-risk adults would have greater odds of inactivity than low-risk adults, and 2) when active, high-risk adults would have lower metabolic equivalent of task minutes (MET-min) than low-risk adults. Methods: This longitudinal observational cohort study surveyed U.S. adults' demographics, health history, and physical activity beginning March 2020 using REDCap. Using self-report, health history was assessed with a modified Charlson Comorbidity Index and physical activity with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Repeated physical activity measurements were conducted in June, July, October, and December of 2020, and in April of 2021. Two models, a logistic model evaluating physical inactivity (hypothesis 1) and a gamma model evaluating total MET-min for physically active individuals (hypothesis 2), were used. Models were controlled for age, gender, and race. Results: The final sample consisted of 640 participants (mean age 42.7 ± 15.7, 78% women, 90% white), with n = 175 categorized as high-risk and n = 465 as low-risk. The odds of inactivity for the high-risk adults were 2.8 to 4.1 times as high than for low-risk adults at baseline and 13 months. Active high-risk adults had lower MET-min levels than low-risk adults in March (28%, p = 0.001), June (29%, p = 0.002), and July of 2020 (30%, p = 0.005) only. Conclusions: Adults at high risk of severe COVID-19 illness were disproportionately more likely to be physically inactive and exhibit lower MET-min levels than adults at low risk during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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    Transplant Physicians’ Attitudes on Candidacy for Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation (HCT) in Older Patients: The Need for a Standardized Geriatric Assessment (GA) Tool
    (Elsevier, 2020-03) Mishra, Asmita; Preussler, Jaime M.; Al-Mansour, Zeina; Bachanova, Veronika; Bhatt, Vijaya Raj; Bredeson, Christopher; Chhabra, Saurabh; D’Souza, Anita; Dahi, Parastoo B.; DeFilipp, Zack; Gowda, Lohith; Danaher Hacker, Eileen; Hashmi, Shahrukh K.; Howard, Dianna S.; Jakubowski, Ann A.; Jayani, Reena; Johnston, Laura; Koll, Thuy; Lin, Richard J.; McCurdy, Shannon R.; Michaelis, Laura C.; Muffly, Lori; Nathwani, Nitya; Olin, Rebecca L.; Popat, Uday R.; Rodriguez, Cesar; Rosko, Ashley; Runaas, Lyndsey; Sabloff, Mitchell; Shore, Tsiporah B.; Shune, Leyla; Sorror, Mohamed L.; Sung, Anthony D.; Ustun, Celalettin; Wood, William; Burns, Linda J.; Artz, Andrew S.; School of Nursing
    Background Despite improvements in conditioning regimens and supportive care having expanded the curative potential of HCT, underutilization of HCT in older adults persists (Bhatt VR et al, BMT 2017). Therefore, we conducted a survey of transplant physicians (TP) to determine their perceptions of the impact of older age (≥60 years) on HCT candidacy and utilization of tools to gauge candidacy. Methods We conducted a 23-item, online cross-sectional survey of adult physicians recruited from the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research between May and July 2019. Results 175/770 (22.7%) TP completed the survey; majority of respondents were 41-60 years old, male, and practicing in a teaching hospital. Over 75% were at centers performing ≥50 HCT per year. When considering regimen intensity, most (96%, n=168) had an upper age limit (UAL) for using a myeloablative regimen (MAC), with only 29 physicians (17%) stating they would consider MAC for patients ≥70 years. In contrast, when considering a reduced intensity/non-myeloablative conditioning (RIC/NMA), 8%, (n=13), 54% (n=93), and 20% (n=35) stated that age 70, 75, and 80 years respectively would be the UAL to use this approach, with 18% (n=31) reporting no UAL. TP agreed that Karnofsky Performance Score (KPS) could exclude older pts for HCT, with 39.1% (n=66), 42.6% (n=72), and 11.4% (n=20) requiring KPS of ≥70, 80, and 90, respectively. The majority (n=92, 52.5%) indicated an HCT-comorbidity index threshold for exclusion, mostly ranging from ≥3 to ≥ 5. Almost all (89.7%) endorsed the need for a better health assessment of pre-HCT vulnerabilities to guide candidacy for pts ≥60 with varied assessments being utilized beyond KPS (Figure 1). However, the majority of centers rarely (33.1%) or never (45.7%) utilize a dedicated geriatrician/geriatric-oncologist to assess alloHCT candidates ≥60 yrs. The largest barriers to performing GA included uncertainty about which tools to use, lack of knowledge and training, and lack of appropriate clinical support staff (Figure 2). Approximately half (n=78, 45%) endorsed GA now routinely influences candidacy. Conclusions The vast majority of TP will consider RIC/NMA alloHCT for patients ≥70 years. However, there is heterogeneity in assessing candidacy. Incorporation of GA into a standardized and easily applied health assessment tool for risk stratification is an unmet need. The recently opened BMT CTN 1704 may aid in addressing this gap.