1.
Health related quality of life in children with sickle cell disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Stokoe M, Zwicker HM, Forbes C, Abu-Saris Nelh, Fay-McClymont TB, Désiré N, Guilcher GMT, Singh G, Leaker M, Yeates KO, et al
Blood reviews. 2022;:100982
Abstract
This review had three aims: 1) describe the measures used to assess health-related quality of life (HRQL) in pediatric patients diagnosed with sickle cell disease (SCD); 2) document the biopsychosocial factors related to HRQL in pediatric patients diagnosed with SCD; and 3) complete a meta-analysis comparing HRQL in pediatric patients diagnosed with SCD to healthy controls. Included studies were published in English, quantitatively assessed HRQL as a primary aim, in both SCD and controls, and included participants between 0 and 21 years of age. The final review included 66 articles, with a total of 8642 participants with SCD, 4 months-21 years of age, and 62,458 controls, 5-27 years of age. HRQL was predominately measured using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory Generic Core and Sickle Cell Disease Module. Meta-analyses revealed children with SCD had significantly worse HRQL compared to healthy controls (standardized mean difference = -0.93, 95% CI = -1.25, -0.61, p < 0.00001). Worse HRQL was associated with more severe SCD, female sex, and pain. The findings indicate that children with SCD are at risk for worse HRQL compared to their healthy peers and their HRQL may be impacted by several biopsychosocial factors. Future research is needed to examine how sociocultural factors uniquely impact this population and their overall quality of life.
2.
Blood transfusions may adversely affect survival outcomes of patients with lung cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Cho S, Park J, Lee M, Lee D, Choi H, Gim G, Kim L, Kang CY, Oh Y, Viveiros P, et al
Translational lung cancer research. 2021;10(4):1700-1710
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite common use in clinical practice, the impact of blood transfusions on prognosis among patients with lung cancer remains unclear. The purpose of the current study is to perform an updated systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the influence of blood transfusions on survival outcomes of lung cancer patients. METHODS We searched PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Ovid MEDLINE for publications illustrating the association between blood transfusions and prognosis among people with lung cancer from inception to November 2019. Overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) were the outcomes of interest. Pooled hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were computed using the random-effects model. Study heterogeneity was evaluated with the I(2) test. Publication bias was explored via funnel plot and trim-and-fill analyses. RESULTS We included 23 cohort studies with 12,175 patients (3,027 cases and 9,148 controls) for meta-analysis. Among these records, 22 studies investigated the effect of perioperative transfusions, while one examined that of transfusions during chemotherapy. Two studies suggested the possible dose-dependent effect in accordance with the number of transfused units. In pooled analyses, blood transfusions deleteriously influenced both OS (HR=1.35, 95% CI: 1.14-1.61, P<0.001, I(2)=0%) and DFS (HR=1.46, 95% CI: 1.15-1.86, P=0.001, I(2)=0%) of people with lung cancer. No evidence of significant publication bias was detected in funnel plot and trim-and-fill analyses (OS: HR=1.26, 95% CI: 1.07-1.49, P=0.006; DFS: HR=1.35, 95% CI: 1.08-1.69, P=0.008). CONCLUSIONS Blood transfusions were associated with decreased survival of patients with lung cancer.