Summary
Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is a common cancer in white populations and its disease burden is often substantially underestimated. SCC occurs more often in men than women and ...increases dramatically with age; those affected often develop multiple primaries over time, which increases the burden. The main external cause is solar ultraviolet radiation (UVR), with immunosuppression being the other established risk factor, shown by the high SCC rates in organ transplant recipients. Sunbed use and certain genetic disorders and medical conditions are also associated with SCC, while associations with human papillomavirus infection and high bodyweight are not established. The presence of actinic keratoses (AKs) on sun‐damaged skin is one of the strongest predictors of SCC in unaffected people and a very small proportion of AKs are SCC precursors, although the true rate of malignant transformation of AKs is unknown. The mainstay of SCC prevention is protection of the skin from undue sun exposure by use of clothing cover and sunscreen during summer or in sunny places. Educational, behavioural and multicomponent interventions directed at individuals ranging from parents of newborns, to school children and adolescents, to outdoor workers, have repeatedly been shown to be effective in improving sun‐protective behaviours. Health policies can facilitate SCC prevention by setting standards for relevant behaviours to reduce UVR exposure, for example, by legislated restriction of the tanning industry. Skin cancer prevention initiatives are generally highly cost‐effective and public investment should be encouraged to control the growing public health problems caused by SCC.
What's already known about this topic?
Cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is a common cancer mostly caused by excessive exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation and immunosuppression.
What does this study add?
The epidemiology of cutaneous SCC is reviewed in detail, integrating available evidence regarding the natural history, population‐based incidence rates, causes and prevention. These skin cancers impose a largely unrecognized burden in white populations but are preventable by sun protection measures, restriction of indoor tanning and possibly by several chemopreventive agents.
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Protecting the world's freshwater resources requires diagnosing threats over a broad range of scales, from global to local. Here we present the first worldwide synthesis to jointly consider human and ...biodiversity perspectives on water security using a spatial framework that quantifies multiple stressors and accounts for downstream impacts. We find that nearly 80% of the world's population is exposed to high levels of threat to water security. Massive investment in water technology enables rich nations to offset high stressor levels without remedying their underlying causes, whereas less wealthy nations remain vulnerable. A similar lack of precautionary investment jeopardizes biodiversity, with habitats associated with 65% of continental discharge classified as moderately to highly threatened. The cumulative threat framework offers a tool for prioritizing policy and management responses to this crisis, and underscores the necessity of limiting threats at their source instead of through costly remediation of symptoms in order to assure global water security for both humans and freshwater biodiversity.
Summary
Background
Despite recent improvements in prevention, diagnosis and treatment, vast differences in melanoma burden still exist between populations. Comparative data can highlight these ...differences and lead to focused efforts to reduce the burden of melanoma.
Objectives
To assess global, regional and national melanoma incidence, mortality and disability‐adjusted life year (DALY) estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015.
Methods
Vital registration system and cancer registry data were used for melanoma mortality modelling. Incidence and prevalence were estimated using separately modelled mortality‐to‐incidence ratios. Total prevalence was divided into four disease phases and multiplied by disability weights to generate years lived with disability (YLDs). Deaths in each age group were multiplied by the reference life expectancy to generate years of life lost (YLLs). YLDs and YLLs were added to estimate DALYs.
Results
The five world regions with the greatest melanoma incidence, DALY and mortality rates were Australasia, North America, Eastern Europe, Western Europe and Central Europe. With the exception of regions in sub‐Saharan Africa, DALY and mortality rates were greater in men than in women. DALY rate by age was highest in those aged 75–79 years, 70–74 years and ≥ 80 years.
Conclusions
The greatest burden from melanoma falls on Australasian, North American, European, elderly and male populations, which is consistent with previous investigations. These substantial disparities in melanoma burden worldwide highlight the need for aggressive prevention efforts. The Global Burden of Disease Study results can help shape melanoma research and public policy.
What's already known about this topic?
Melanoma incidence and mortality has been assessed in the past for individual countries or world regions.
What does this study add?
As part of the Global Burden of Disease Study, melanoma burden was estimated at the global, regional and country level for incidence, mortality, prevalence, years lived with disability, years of life lost and disability‐adjusted life years.
These estimates can be used to guide prevention and treatment strategies, as well as resource allocation.
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The emerging understanding of gut microbiota as 'metabolic machinery' influencing many aspects of physiology has gained substantial attention in the field of psychiatry. This is largely due to the ...many overlapping pathophysiological mechanisms associated with both the potential functionality of the gut microbiota and the biological mechanisms thought to be underpinning mental disorders. In this systematic review, we synthesised the current literature investigating differences in gut microbiota composition in people with the major psychiatric disorders, major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD) and schizophrenia (SZ), compared to 'healthy' controls. We also explored gut microbiota composition across disorders in an attempt to elucidate potential commonalities in the microbial signatures associated with these mental disorders. Following the PRISMA guidelines, databases were searched from inception through to December 2021. We identified 44 studies (including a total of 2510 psychiatric cases and 2407 controls) that met inclusion criteria, of which 24 investigated gut microbiota composition in MDD, seven investigated gut microbiota composition in BD, and 15 investigated gut microbiota composition in SZ. Our syntheses provide no strong evidence for a difference in the number or distribution (α-diversity) of bacteria in those with a mental disorder compared to controls. However, studies were relatively consistent in reporting differences in overall community composition (β-diversity) in people with and without mental disorders. Our syntheses also identified specific bacterial taxa commonly associated with mental disorders, including lower levels of bacterial genera that produce short-chain fatty acids (e.g. butyrate), higher levels of lactic acid-producing bacteria, and higher levels of bacteria associated with glutamate and GABA metabolism. We also observed substantial heterogeneity across studies with regards to methodologies and reporting. Further prospective and experimental research using new tools and robust guidelines hold promise for improving our understanding of the role of the gut microbiota in mental and brain health and the development of interventions based on modification of gut microbiota.
We adopt a physics‐based technique to infer chorus wave amplitudes from the low‐altitude electron population (30–100 keV) measured by multiple Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellites (POES), which ...provide extensive coverage over a broad region in L‐shell and magnetic local time (MLT). This technique is validated by analyzing conjunction events between the Van Allen Probes measuring chorus wave amplitudes near the equator and POES satellites measuring the 30–100 keV electron population at the conjugate low altitudes. We apply this technique to construct the chorus wave distributions during the 8–9 October storm in 2012 and demonstrate that the inferred chorus wave amplitudes agree reasonably well with conjugate measurements of chorus wave amplitudes from the Van Allen Probes. The evolution of the chorus wave intensity inferred from low‐altitude electron measurements can provide real‐time global estimates of the chorus wave intensity, which cannot be obtained from in situ chorus wave measurements by equatorial satellites alone, but is crucial in quantifying radiation belt electron dynamics.
Key Points
Chorus‐driven pitch angle scattering causes electron precipitation
Two directional electron measurement is used to infer chorus wave intensity
Physics‐based technique provides real‐time estimates on chorus wave intensity
Abstract
This paper defines the UK Infra-Red Telescope (UKIRT) Hemisphere Survey (UHS) and release of the remaining ∼12 700 deg2 of J-band survey data products. The UHS will provide continuous J- and ...K-band coverage in the Northern hemisphere from a declination of 0° to 60° by combining the existing Large Area Survey, Galactic Plane Survey and Galactic Clusters Survey conducted under the UKIRT Infra-red Deep Sky Survey (UKIDSS) programme with this new additional area not covered by UKIDSS. The released data include J-band imaging and source catalogues over the new area, which, together with UKIDSS, completes the J-band UHS coverage over the full ∼17 900 deg2 area. 98 per cent of the data in this release have passed quality control criteria. The remaining 2 per cent have been scheduled for re-observation. The median 5σ point source sensitivity of the released data is 19.6 mag (Vega). The median full width at half-maximum of the point spread function across the data set
is 0.75 arcsec. In this paper, we outline the survey management, data acquisition, processing and calibration, quality control and archiving as well as summarizing the characteristics of the released data products. The data are initially available to a limited consortium with a world-wide release scheduled for 2018 August.
We examined the association between betapapillomavirus (betaPV) infection and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in organ transplant recipients. A total of 210 organ transplant recipients with ...previous SCC and 394 controls without skin cancer were included. The presence of 25 betaPV types in plucked eyebrow hairs was determined using a human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA genotyping assay, and antibodies for the 15 most prevalent betaPV types were detected using multiplex serology. We used multivariate logistic regression models to estimate associations between various measures of betaPV infection and SCC. BetaPV DNA was highly prevalent (>94%) with multiple types frequently detected in both groups. We found a significant association between SCC and the concordant detection of both antibodies and DNA for at least one betaPV type (adjusted OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.1;2.5). A borderline‐significant association with SCC was found for HPV36 (adjusted OR 2.4; CI 1.0;5.4), with similar associations for HPV5, HPV9 and HPV24. These data provide further evidence of an association between betaPV infection and SCC in organ transplant recipients. Confirmation of a betaPV profile predictive of risk for SCC may pave the way for clinically relevant pretransplant HPV screening and the development of preventive and therapeutic HPV vaccination.
In a case‐control study from Europe, DNA testing on eyebrow hairs and analysis of serum antibodies to L1 proteins taken as a combined measure of beta‐papillomavirus (betaPV) infection show an association between betaPV infection and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma in organ transplant recipients.
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