Stephanie Barrera - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Stephanie Barrera

International journal of cancer. Journal international du cancer, 2008

Studies of vitamin E and cancer have focused on the α-tocopherol form of the vitamin. However, ot... more Studies of vitamin E and cancer have focused on the α-tocopherol form of the vitamin. However, other forms of vitamin E, in particular γ-tocopherol may have unique mechanistic characteristics relevant to lung cancer prevention. In an ongoing study of 1,088 incident lung cancer cases and 1,414 healthy matched controls, we studied the associations between 4 tocopherols (α-, β-, γ-, and δ-tocopherol) in the diet and lung cancer risk. Using multiple logistic regression analysis, the adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of lung cancer for increasing quartiles of dietary α-tocopherol intake were 1.0, 0.63 (0.50-0.79), 0.58 (0.44-0.76) and 0.39 (0.28-0.53), respectively (p-trend < 0.0001). For dietary intake of β-tocopherol, the OR and 95% CI for all subjects were: 1.0, 0.79 (0.63-0.98), 0.59 (0.45-0.78) and 0.56 (0.42-0.74), respectively (p-trend < 0.0001). Similar results for dietary γ-tocopherol intake were observed: 1.0, 0.84 (0.67-1.06), 0.76 (0.59-0.97) and 0.56 (0.42-0.75), respectively (p-trend = 0.0002). No significant association between δ-tocopherol intake and lung cancer risk was detected. When the 4 tocopherols were summed as total tocopherol intake, a monotonic risk reduction was also observed. When we entered the other tocopherols in our model, only the association with dietary α-tocopherol intake remained significant; i.e., increasing intake of dietary α-tocopherol accounted for 34-53% reductions in lung cancer risk. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the independent associations of the 4 forms of dietary tocopherol (α-, β-, γand δ-tocohperol) on lung cancer risk. Given the limitations with case-control studies, these findings need to be confirmed in further investigations.

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2009

N-nitroso compounds are recognized as important dietary carcinogens. Accurate assessment of Nnitr... more N-nitroso compounds are recognized as important dietary carcinogens. Accurate assessment of Nnitroso intake is fundamental to advancing research regarding its role with cancer. Previous studies have not used a quantitative database to estimate their intake. To address this gap a database of Nnitroso values was developed in conjunction with an existing food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). The purpose of this paper is to report on the relative validity of the FFQ instrument modified to estimate N-nitroso compounds. Intake estimates of 23 N-nitroso compounds from FFQ were compared with those from seven days of food records (7DFR) in a cross-sectional study conducted from January 2005 through June 2006. A sample of 98 healthy adult subjects (50.42 ± 12.84 years) completed a FFQ and then recorded foods and beverages consumed (7DFR). Crude and energyadjusted N-nitroso compounds intakes were significantly higher in the FFQ than the 7DFR(P < 0.001). Spearman correlations for crude and energy-adjusted N-nitroso intakes ranged from 0.004 to 0.48. By tertiles of N-ntiroso compounds, there was moderate agreement (Kappa >0.30) for five compounds. Higher estimates of N-nitroso compounds by FFQ was explained by a greater proportion of subjects who reported eating foods high in N-nitroso compounds on FFQ than reported on 7DFR. The modified FFQ with N-nitroso values is a useful tool for assessing N-nitroso intakes relative to a group, and captures all food items with N-nitroso compounds including those foods with high concentrations and eaten sporadically.

International journal of cancer. Journal international du cancer, 2008

Previous reports show that obesity predicts biochemical failure after treatment for localized pro... more Previous reports show that obesity predicts biochemical failure after treatment for localized prostate cancer. Since obesity is associated with increased fat consumption, we investigated the role that dietary fat intake plays in modulating obesity-related risk of biochemical failure. We evaluated the association between saturated fat intake and biochemical failure among 390 men from a previously described prostatectomy cohort. Participants completed a food frequency questionnaire collecting nutrient information for the year prior to diagnosis. Because fat and energy intake are highly correlated, the residual method was used to adjust fat (total and saturated) intakes for energy. Biochemical-failure-free-survival rates were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Crude and adjusted effects were estimated using Cox proportional hazards models. During a mean follow-up of 70.6 months, 78 men experienced biochemical failure. Men who consumed highsaturated fat (HSF) diets were more likely to experience biochemical failure (p 5 0.006) and had significantly shorter biochemicalfailure-free-survival than men with low saturated fat (LSF) diets (26.6 vs. 44.7 months, respectively, p 5 0.002). After adjusting for obesity and clinical variables, HSF-diet patients were almost twice as likely to experience biochemical failure (hazard ratio 5 1.95, p 5 0.008) compared to LSF diet patients. Men who were both obese and consumed HSF diets had the shortest biochemicalfailure-free-survival (19 months), and nonobese men who consumed LSF diets had the longest biochemical-failure-free-survival (46 months, p < 0.001). Understanding the interplay between modifiable factors, such as diet and obesity, and disease characteristics may lead to the development of behavioral and/or targeted interventions for patients at increased risk of progression.

Carcinogenesis, 2008

Magnesium (Mg) is required for maintenance of genomic stability; however, data on the relationshi... more Magnesium (Mg) is required for maintenance of genomic stability; however, data on the relationship between dietary Mg intake and lung cancer are lacking. In an ongoing lung cancer casecontrol study, we identified 1139 cases and 1210 matched healthy controls with data on both diet and DNA repair capacity (DRC). Dietary intake was assessed using a modified Block-NCI food frequency questionnaire and DRC was measured using the hostcell reactivation assay to assess repair in lymphocyte cultures. After adjustment for potential confounding factors including DRC, the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for lung cancer with increasing quartiles of dietary Mg intake were 1.0, 0.83 (0.66-1.05), 0.64 (0.50-0.83) and 0.47 (0.36-0.61), respectively, for all subjects (P-trend < 0.0001). Similar results were observed by histology and clinical stage of lung cancer. Low dietary Mg intake was associated with poorer DRC and increased risk of lung cancer. In joint effects analyses, compared with those with high dietary Mg intake and proficient DRC, the OR (95% CI) for lung cancer in the presence of both low dietary Mg and suboptimal DRC was 2.36 (1.83-3.04). Similar results were observed for men and women. The effects were more pronounced among older subjects (>60 years), current or heavier smokers, drinkers, those with a family history of cancer in firstdegree relatives, small cell lung cancer and late-stage disease. These intriguing results need to be confirmed in prospective studies.

Oncology (Williston Park, N.Y.), 2009

Diet and nutritional factors play a large role in influencing both the quality and quantity of li... more Diet and nutritional factors play a large role in influencing both the quality and quantity of life after the diagnosis of cancer. The oncology nurse is well-positioned to: 1) help ensure that nutritional needs are met for patients who are newly diagnosed, undergoing active treatment, or have advanced disease; 2) facilitate referral of patients with more intensive nutritional needs to registered dietitians; and 3) promote the importance of weight management and a healthful plant-based diet, low in saturated fat and simple sugars, and high in fruits and vegetables and unrefined whole grains, to patients likely to join the ranks of an ever-expanding population of cancer survivors--who now constitute roughly 4% of the US population and number more than 11 million.

Translational Behavioral Medicine, 2010

Improved approaches and methodologies are needed to conduct comparative effectiveness research (C... more Improved approaches and methodologies are needed to conduct comparative effectiveness research (CER) in oncology. While cancer therapies continue to emerge at a rapid pace, the review, synthesis, and dissemination of evidence-based interventions across clinical trials lag in comparison. Rigorous and systematic testing of competing therapies has been clouded by age-old problems: poor patient adherence, inability to objectively measure the environmental influences on health, lack of knowledge about patients' lifestyle behaviors that may affect cancer's progression and recurrence, and limited ability to compile and interpret the wide range of variables that must be considered in the cancer treatment. This lack of data integration limits the potential for patients and clinicians to engage in fully informed decision-making regarding cancer prevention, treatment, and survivorship care, and the translation of research results into mainstream medical care. Particularly important, as noted in a 2009 report on CER to the President and Congress, the limited focus on health behavior-change interventions was a major hindrance in this research landscape (DHHS 2009). This paper describes an initiative to improve CER for cancer by addressing several of these limitations. The Cyberinfrastructure for Comparative Effectiveness Research (CYCORE) project, informed by the National Science Foundation's 2007 report "Cyberinfrastructure Vision for 21 st Century Discovery" has, as its central aim, the creation of a prototype for a user-friendly, open-source cyberinfrastructure (CI) that supports acquisition, storage, visualization, analysis, and sharing of data important for cancer-related CER. Although still under development, the process of gathering requirements for CYCORE has revealed new ways in which CI design can significantly improve the collection and analysis of a wide variety of data types, and has resulted in new and important partnerships among cancer researchers engaged in advancing health-related CI.

Psycho-Oncology, 2012

Objective-Cancer coping styles have been associated with several cancer-related outcomes. We exam... more Objective-Cancer coping styles have been associated with several cancer-related outcomes. We examined whether baseline lifestyle behaviors differed between cancer survivors with fatalistic vs fighting-spirit coping styles, and whether there was differential response to two diet-exercise mailed-print interventions, one standardized and another individually tailored.

Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, 2009

Dietary N-nitroso compounds are carcinogens synthesized during food processing from two main clas... more Dietary N-nitroso compounds are carcinogens synthesized during food processing from two main classes of precursors, oxides of nitrogen and amines or amides. Quantification of the dietary intake of N-nitroso compounds is significant to human cancers, including those of the stomach and upper gastro-intestinal tract, colon, and brain. Previous studies investigating these cancers primarily used proxy estimates of N-nitroso intake and not a full and complete database. In this report, we describe the development of a database to be used in conjunction with a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) or twenty-four hour dietary records. Published analytical data for N-nitroso compounds were compiled and evaluated for inclusion in the database. The final database consisted of 23 different Nnitroso compounds for 500 foods from 39 different food subgroups. Next, database foods were matched to foods in a standard FFQ by imputation, or calculated value, or assumed zero. Using the FFQ modified with N-nitroso values, we evaluated the ability to compute N-nitroso intakes for a sample of healthy control subjects of cancer epidemiological studies. N-nitroso content of food items ranged from <0.01μg/100 g. to 142 μg/100 g and the richest sources were sausage, smoked meats, bacon, and luncheon meats. The database is useful to quantify N-nitroso intake for observational and epidemiological studies.

International Journal of Cancer, 2006

Zinc, copper and selenium are important cofactors for several enzymes that play a role in maintai... more Zinc, copper and selenium are important cofactors for several enzymes that play a role in maintaining DNA integrity. However, limited epidemiologic research on these dietary trace metals and lung cancer risk is available. In an ongoing study of 1,676 incident lung cancer cases and 1,676 matched healthy controls, we studied the associations between dietary zinc, copper and selenium and lung cancer risk. Using multiple logistic regression analysis, the odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of lung cancer for all subjects by increasing quartiles of dietary zinc intake were 1.0, 0.80 (0.65-0.99), 0.64 (0.51-0.81), 0.57 (0.42-0.75), respectively (p trend 5 0.0004); similar results were found for men. For dietary copper, the ORs and 95% CI for all subjects were 1.0, 0.59 (0.49-0.73), 0.51 (0.41-0.64), 0.34 (0.26-0.45), respectively (p trend < 0.0001); similar reductions in risk and trend were observed by gender. Dietary selenium intake was not associated with risk, except for a significant inverse trend (p 5 0.04) in men. Protective trends (p < 0.05) against lung cancer with increased dietary zinc intake were also found for all ages, BMI > 25, current smokers, pack-years 30, light drinkers and participants without emphysema. Increased dietary copper intake was associated with protective trends (p < 0.05) across all ages, BMI, smoking and vitamin/ mineral supplement categories, pack-years 30 and 30.1-51.75 and participants without emphysema. Our results suggest that dietary zinc and copper intakes are associated with reduced risk of lung cancer. Given the known limitations of case-control studies, these findings must be interpreted with caution and warrant further investigation. ' 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

International Journal of Cancer, 2008

Studies of vitamin E and cancer have focused on the α-tocopherol form of the vitamin. However, ot... more Studies of vitamin E and cancer have focused on the α-tocopherol form of the vitamin. However, other forms of vitamin E, in particular γ-tocopherol may have unique mechanistic characteristics relevant to lung cancer prevention. In an ongoing study of 1,088 incident lung cancer cases and 1,414 healthy matched controls, we studied the associations between 4 tocopherols (α-, β-, γ-, and δ-tocopherol) in the diet and lung cancer risk. Using multiple logistic regression analysis, the adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of lung cancer for increasing quartiles of dietary α-tocopherol intake were 1.0, 0.63 (0.50-0.79), 0.58 (0.44-0.76) and 0.39 (0.28-0.53), respectively (p-trend < 0.0001). For dietary intake of β-tocopherol, the OR and 95% CI for all subjects were: 1.0, 0.79 (0.63-0.98), 0.59 (0.45-0.78) and 0.56 (0.42-0.74), respectively (p-trend < 0.0001). Similar results for dietary γ-tocopherol intake were observed: 1.0, 0.84 (0.67-1.06), 0.76 (0.59-0.97) and 0.56 (0.42-0.75), respectively (p-trend = 0.0002). No significant association between δ-tocopherol intake and lung cancer risk was detected. When the 4 tocopherols were summed as total tocopherol intake, a monotonic risk reduction was also observed. When we entered the other tocopherols in our model, only the association with dietary α-tocopherol intake remained significant; i.e., increasing intake of dietary α-tocopherol accounted for 34-53% reductions in lung cancer risk. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the independent associations of the 4 forms of dietary tocopherol (α-, β-, γand δ-tocohperol) on lung cancer risk. Given the limitations with case-control studies, these findings need to be confirmed in further investigations.

Improved approaches and methodologies are needed to conduct comparative effectiveness research (C... more Improved approaches and methodologies are needed to conduct comparative effectiveness research (CER) in oncology. While cancer therapies continue to emerge at a rapid pace, the review, synthesis, and dissemination of evidence-based interventions across clinical trials lag in comparison. Rigorous and systematic testing of competing therapies has been clouded by age-old problems: poor patient adherence, inability to objectively measure the environmental influences on health, lack of knowledge about patients’ lifestyle behaviors that may affect cancer’s progression and recurrence, and limited ability to compile and interpret the wide range of variables that must be considered in the cancer treatment. This lack of data integration limits the potential for patients and clinicians to engage in fully informed decision-making regarding cancer prevention, treatment, and survivorship care, and the translation of research results into mainstream medical care. Particularly important, as noted in a 2009 report on CER to the President and Congress, the limited focus on health behavior-change interventions was a major hindrance in this research landscape (DHHS 2009). This paper describes an initiative to improve CER for cancer by addressing several of these limitations. The Cyberinfrastructure for Comparative Effectiveness Research (CYCORE) project, informed by the National Science Foundation’s 2007 report “Cyberinfrastructure Vision for 21st Century Discovery” has, as its central aim, the creation of a prototype for a user-friendly, open-source cyberinfrastructure (CI) that supports acquisition, storage, visualization, analysis, and sharing of data important for cancer-related CER. Although still under development, the process of gathering requirements for CYCORE has revealed new ways in which CI design can significantly improve the collection and analysis of a wide variety of data types, and has resulted in new and important partnerships among cancer researchers engaged in advancing health-related CI.

Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention, 2007

El presente trabajo tiene como fin describir la relación entre retórica y hermenéutica en la obra... more El presente trabajo tiene como fin describir la relación entre retórica y hermenéutica en la obra de Hans-Georg Gadamer. Un primer paso consiste en reconocer los elementos de la retórica en el contexto de Verdad y Método. A partir de allí se intentará mostrar lo que Gadamer entiende por la recuperación hermenéutica de la retórica antigua sobre la base de tres tópicos. El primero radica en mostrar que la retórica, al igual que la hermenéutica, alcanza un estatus ontológico. En segundo lugar, que la retórica es parte fundamental en la formación de los conceptos mediante el elemento de la analogía. Y en tercer lugar, la íntima relación que mantiene la hermenéutica con la retórica a un nivel de argumentación racional sobre la base de la noción de verosimilitud (eikós).

International journal of cancer. Journal international du cancer, 2008

Studies of vitamin E and cancer have focused on the α-tocopherol form of the vitamin. However, ot... more Studies of vitamin E and cancer have focused on the α-tocopherol form of the vitamin. However, other forms of vitamin E, in particular γ-tocopherol may have unique mechanistic characteristics relevant to lung cancer prevention. In an ongoing study of 1,088 incident lung cancer cases and 1,414 healthy matched controls, we studied the associations between 4 tocopherols (α-, β-, γ-, and δ-tocopherol) in the diet and lung cancer risk. Using multiple logistic regression analysis, the adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of lung cancer for increasing quartiles of dietary α-tocopherol intake were 1.0, 0.63 (0.50-0.79), 0.58 (0.44-0.76) and 0.39 (0.28-0.53), respectively (p-trend < 0.0001). For dietary intake of β-tocopherol, the OR and 95% CI for all subjects were: 1.0, 0.79 (0.63-0.98), 0.59 (0.45-0.78) and 0.56 (0.42-0.74), respectively (p-trend < 0.0001). Similar results for dietary γ-tocopherol intake were observed: 1.0, 0.84 (0.67-1.06), 0.76 (0.59-0.97) and 0.56 (0.42-0.75), respectively (p-trend = 0.0002). No significant association between δ-tocopherol intake and lung cancer risk was detected. When the 4 tocopherols were summed as total tocopherol intake, a monotonic risk reduction was also observed. When we entered the other tocopherols in our model, only the association with dietary α-tocopherol intake remained significant; i.e., increasing intake of dietary α-tocopherol accounted for 34-53% reductions in lung cancer risk. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the independent associations of the 4 forms of dietary tocopherol (α-, β-, γand δ-tocohperol) on lung cancer risk. Given the limitations with case-control studies, these findings need to be confirmed in further investigations.

Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2009

N-nitroso compounds are recognized as important dietary carcinogens. Accurate assessment of Nnitr... more N-nitroso compounds are recognized as important dietary carcinogens. Accurate assessment of Nnitroso intake is fundamental to advancing research regarding its role with cancer. Previous studies have not used a quantitative database to estimate their intake. To address this gap a database of Nnitroso values was developed in conjunction with an existing food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). The purpose of this paper is to report on the relative validity of the FFQ instrument modified to estimate N-nitroso compounds. Intake estimates of 23 N-nitroso compounds from FFQ were compared with those from seven days of food records (7DFR) in a cross-sectional study conducted from January 2005 through June 2006. A sample of 98 healthy adult subjects (50.42 ± 12.84 years) completed a FFQ and then recorded foods and beverages consumed (7DFR). Crude and energyadjusted N-nitroso compounds intakes were significantly higher in the FFQ than the 7DFR(P < 0.001). Spearman correlations for crude and energy-adjusted N-nitroso intakes ranged from 0.004 to 0.48. By tertiles of N-ntiroso compounds, there was moderate agreement (Kappa >0.30) for five compounds. Higher estimates of N-nitroso compounds by FFQ was explained by a greater proportion of subjects who reported eating foods high in N-nitroso compounds on FFQ than reported on 7DFR. The modified FFQ with N-nitroso values is a useful tool for assessing N-nitroso intakes relative to a group, and captures all food items with N-nitroso compounds including those foods with high concentrations and eaten sporadically.

International journal of cancer. Journal international du cancer, 2008

Previous reports show that obesity predicts biochemical failure after treatment for localized pro... more Previous reports show that obesity predicts biochemical failure after treatment for localized prostate cancer. Since obesity is associated with increased fat consumption, we investigated the role that dietary fat intake plays in modulating obesity-related risk of biochemical failure. We evaluated the association between saturated fat intake and biochemical failure among 390 men from a previously described prostatectomy cohort. Participants completed a food frequency questionnaire collecting nutrient information for the year prior to diagnosis. Because fat and energy intake are highly correlated, the residual method was used to adjust fat (total and saturated) intakes for energy. Biochemical-failure-free-survival rates were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Crude and adjusted effects were estimated using Cox proportional hazards models. During a mean follow-up of 70.6 months, 78 men experienced biochemical failure. Men who consumed highsaturated fat (HSF) diets were more likely to experience biochemical failure (p 5 0.006) and had significantly shorter biochemicalfailure-free-survival than men with low saturated fat (LSF) diets (26.6 vs. 44.7 months, respectively, p 5 0.002). After adjusting for obesity and clinical variables, HSF-diet patients were almost twice as likely to experience biochemical failure (hazard ratio 5 1.95, p 5 0.008) compared to LSF diet patients. Men who were both obese and consumed HSF diets had the shortest biochemicalfailure-free-survival (19 months), and nonobese men who consumed LSF diets had the longest biochemical-failure-free-survival (46 months, p < 0.001). Understanding the interplay between modifiable factors, such as diet and obesity, and disease characteristics may lead to the development of behavioral and/or targeted interventions for patients at increased risk of progression.

Carcinogenesis, 2008

Magnesium (Mg) is required for maintenance of genomic stability; however, data on the relationshi... more Magnesium (Mg) is required for maintenance of genomic stability; however, data on the relationship between dietary Mg intake and lung cancer are lacking. In an ongoing lung cancer casecontrol study, we identified 1139 cases and 1210 matched healthy controls with data on both diet and DNA repair capacity (DRC). Dietary intake was assessed using a modified Block-NCI food frequency questionnaire and DRC was measured using the hostcell reactivation assay to assess repair in lymphocyte cultures. After adjustment for potential confounding factors including DRC, the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for lung cancer with increasing quartiles of dietary Mg intake were 1.0, 0.83 (0.66-1.05), 0.64 (0.50-0.83) and 0.47 (0.36-0.61), respectively, for all subjects (P-trend < 0.0001). Similar results were observed by histology and clinical stage of lung cancer. Low dietary Mg intake was associated with poorer DRC and increased risk of lung cancer. In joint effects analyses, compared with those with high dietary Mg intake and proficient DRC, the OR (95% CI) for lung cancer in the presence of both low dietary Mg and suboptimal DRC was 2.36 (1.83-3.04). Similar results were observed for men and women. The effects were more pronounced among older subjects (>60 years), current or heavier smokers, drinkers, those with a family history of cancer in firstdegree relatives, small cell lung cancer and late-stage disease. These intriguing results need to be confirmed in prospective studies.

Oncology (Williston Park, N.Y.), 2009

Diet and nutritional factors play a large role in influencing both the quality and quantity of li... more Diet and nutritional factors play a large role in influencing both the quality and quantity of life after the diagnosis of cancer. The oncology nurse is well-positioned to: 1) help ensure that nutritional needs are met for patients who are newly diagnosed, undergoing active treatment, or have advanced disease; 2) facilitate referral of patients with more intensive nutritional needs to registered dietitians; and 3) promote the importance of weight management and a healthful plant-based diet, low in saturated fat and simple sugars, and high in fruits and vegetables and unrefined whole grains, to patients likely to join the ranks of an ever-expanding population of cancer survivors--who now constitute roughly 4% of the US population and number more than 11 million.

Translational Behavioral Medicine, 2010

Improved approaches and methodologies are needed to conduct comparative effectiveness research (C... more Improved approaches and methodologies are needed to conduct comparative effectiveness research (CER) in oncology. While cancer therapies continue to emerge at a rapid pace, the review, synthesis, and dissemination of evidence-based interventions across clinical trials lag in comparison. Rigorous and systematic testing of competing therapies has been clouded by age-old problems: poor patient adherence, inability to objectively measure the environmental influences on health, lack of knowledge about patients' lifestyle behaviors that may affect cancer's progression and recurrence, and limited ability to compile and interpret the wide range of variables that must be considered in the cancer treatment. This lack of data integration limits the potential for patients and clinicians to engage in fully informed decision-making regarding cancer prevention, treatment, and survivorship care, and the translation of research results into mainstream medical care. Particularly important, as noted in a 2009 report on CER to the President and Congress, the limited focus on health behavior-change interventions was a major hindrance in this research landscape (DHHS 2009). This paper describes an initiative to improve CER for cancer by addressing several of these limitations. The Cyberinfrastructure for Comparative Effectiveness Research (CYCORE) project, informed by the National Science Foundation's 2007 report "Cyberinfrastructure Vision for 21 st Century Discovery" has, as its central aim, the creation of a prototype for a user-friendly, open-source cyberinfrastructure (CI) that supports acquisition, storage, visualization, analysis, and sharing of data important for cancer-related CER. Although still under development, the process of gathering requirements for CYCORE has revealed new ways in which CI design can significantly improve the collection and analysis of a wide variety of data types, and has resulted in new and important partnerships among cancer researchers engaged in advancing health-related CI.

Psycho-Oncology, 2012

Objective-Cancer coping styles have been associated with several cancer-related outcomes. We exam... more Objective-Cancer coping styles have been associated with several cancer-related outcomes. We examined whether baseline lifestyle behaviors differed between cancer survivors with fatalistic vs fighting-spirit coping styles, and whether there was differential response to two diet-exercise mailed-print interventions, one standardized and another individually tailored.

Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, 2009

Dietary N-nitroso compounds are carcinogens synthesized during food processing from two main clas... more Dietary N-nitroso compounds are carcinogens synthesized during food processing from two main classes of precursors, oxides of nitrogen and amines or amides. Quantification of the dietary intake of N-nitroso compounds is significant to human cancers, including those of the stomach and upper gastro-intestinal tract, colon, and brain. Previous studies investigating these cancers primarily used proxy estimates of N-nitroso intake and not a full and complete database. In this report, we describe the development of a database to be used in conjunction with a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) or twenty-four hour dietary records. Published analytical data for N-nitroso compounds were compiled and evaluated for inclusion in the database. The final database consisted of 23 different Nnitroso compounds for 500 foods from 39 different food subgroups. Next, database foods were matched to foods in a standard FFQ by imputation, or calculated value, or assumed zero. Using the FFQ modified with N-nitroso values, we evaluated the ability to compute N-nitroso intakes for a sample of healthy control subjects of cancer epidemiological studies. N-nitroso content of food items ranged from <0.01μg/100 g. to 142 μg/100 g and the richest sources were sausage, smoked meats, bacon, and luncheon meats. The database is useful to quantify N-nitroso intake for observational and epidemiological studies.

International Journal of Cancer, 2006

Zinc, copper and selenium are important cofactors for several enzymes that play a role in maintai... more Zinc, copper and selenium are important cofactors for several enzymes that play a role in maintaining DNA integrity. However, limited epidemiologic research on these dietary trace metals and lung cancer risk is available. In an ongoing study of 1,676 incident lung cancer cases and 1,676 matched healthy controls, we studied the associations between dietary zinc, copper and selenium and lung cancer risk. Using multiple logistic regression analysis, the odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of lung cancer for all subjects by increasing quartiles of dietary zinc intake were 1.0, 0.80 (0.65-0.99), 0.64 (0.51-0.81), 0.57 (0.42-0.75), respectively (p trend 5 0.0004); similar results were found for men. For dietary copper, the ORs and 95% CI for all subjects were 1.0, 0.59 (0.49-0.73), 0.51 (0.41-0.64), 0.34 (0.26-0.45), respectively (p trend < 0.0001); similar reductions in risk and trend were observed by gender. Dietary selenium intake was not associated with risk, except for a significant inverse trend (p 5 0.04) in men. Protective trends (p < 0.05) against lung cancer with increased dietary zinc intake were also found for all ages, BMI > 25, current smokers, pack-years 30, light drinkers and participants without emphysema. Increased dietary copper intake was associated with protective trends (p < 0.05) across all ages, BMI, smoking and vitamin/ mineral supplement categories, pack-years 30 and 30.1-51.75 and participants without emphysema. Our results suggest that dietary zinc and copper intakes are associated with reduced risk of lung cancer. Given the known limitations of case-control studies, these findings must be interpreted with caution and warrant further investigation. ' 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

International Journal of Cancer, 2008

Studies of vitamin E and cancer have focused on the α-tocopherol form of the vitamin. However, ot... more Studies of vitamin E and cancer have focused on the α-tocopherol form of the vitamin. However, other forms of vitamin E, in particular γ-tocopherol may have unique mechanistic characteristics relevant to lung cancer prevention. In an ongoing study of 1,088 incident lung cancer cases and 1,414 healthy matched controls, we studied the associations between 4 tocopherols (α-, β-, γ-, and δ-tocopherol) in the diet and lung cancer risk. Using multiple logistic regression analysis, the adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of lung cancer for increasing quartiles of dietary α-tocopherol intake were 1.0, 0.63 (0.50-0.79), 0.58 (0.44-0.76) and 0.39 (0.28-0.53), respectively (p-trend < 0.0001). For dietary intake of β-tocopherol, the OR and 95% CI for all subjects were: 1.0, 0.79 (0.63-0.98), 0.59 (0.45-0.78) and 0.56 (0.42-0.74), respectively (p-trend < 0.0001). Similar results for dietary γ-tocopherol intake were observed: 1.0, 0.84 (0.67-1.06), 0.76 (0.59-0.97) and 0.56 (0.42-0.75), respectively (p-trend = 0.0002). No significant association between δ-tocopherol intake and lung cancer risk was detected. When the 4 tocopherols were summed as total tocopherol intake, a monotonic risk reduction was also observed. When we entered the other tocopherols in our model, only the association with dietary α-tocopherol intake remained significant; i.e., increasing intake of dietary α-tocopherol accounted for 34-53% reductions in lung cancer risk. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the independent associations of the 4 forms of dietary tocopherol (α-, β-, γand δ-tocohperol) on lung cancer risk. Given the limitations with case-control studies, these findings need to be confirmed in further investigations.

Improved approaches and methodologies are needed to conduct comparative effectiveness research (C... more Improved approaches and methodologies are needed to conduct comparative effectiveness research (CER) in oncology. While cancer therapies continue to emerge at a rapid pace, the review, synthesis, and dissemination of evidence-based interventions across clinical trials lag in comparison. Rigorous and systematic testing of competing therapies has been clouded by age-old problems: poor patient adherence, inability to objectively measure the environmental influences on health, lack of knowledge about patients’ lifestyle behaviors that may affect cancer’s progression and recurrence, and limited ability to compile and interpret the wide range of variables that must be considered in the cancer treatment. This lack of data integration limits the potential for patients and clinicians to engage in fully informed decision-making regarding cancer prevention, treatment, and survivorship care, and the translation of research results into mainstream medical care. Particularly important, as noted in a 2009 report on CER to the President and Congress, the limited focus on health behavior-change interventions was a major hindrance in this research landscape (DHHS 2009). This paper describes an initiative to improve CER for cancer by addressing several of these limitations. The Cyberinfrastructure for Comparative Effectiveness Research (CYCORE) project, informed by the National Science Foundation’s 2007 report “Cyberinfrastructure Vision for 21st Century Discovery” has, as its central aim, the creation of a prototype for a user-friendly, open-source cyberinfrastructure (CI) that supports acquisition, storage, visualization, analysis, and sharing of data important for cancer-related CER. Although still under development, the process of gathering requirements for CYCORE has revealed new ways in which CI design can significantly improve the collection and analysis of a wide variety of data types, and has resulted in new and important partnerships among cancer researchers engaged in advancing health-related CI.

Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention, 2007

El presente trabajo tiene como fin describir la relación entre retórica y hermenéutica en la obra... more El presente trabajo tiene como fin describir la relación entre retórica y hermenéutica en la obra de Hans-Georg Gadamer. Un primer paso consiste en reconocer los elementos de la retórica en el contexto de Verdad y Método. A partir de allí se intentará mostrar lo que Gadamer entiende por la recuperación hermenéutica de la retórica antigua sobre la base de tres tópicos. El primero radica en mostrar que la retórica, al igual que la hermenéutica, alcanza un estatus ontológico. En segundo lugar, que la retórica es parte fundamental en la formación de los conceptos mediante el elemento de la analogía. Y en tercer lugar, la íntima relación que mantiene la hermenéutica con la retórica a un nivel de argumentación racional sobre la base de la noción de verosimilitud (eikós).