萝莉社

H. Gilbert Welch, MD, MPH, says there鈥檚 a problem with cancer overdiagnosis that isn鈥檛 getting enough attention. The trend has resulted in misplaced fear, unnecessary treatment and misleading survival statistics.

Welch, a professor of medicine at the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, was the keynote speaker during Celebration of Research at the , held May 18 inside the Learning Resource Center. His presentation focused on the rate of cancer screening and diagnosis in the United States and abroad.

He places cancers into three main categories: 鈥渂irds鈥� (the cancers that progress rapidly), 鈥渞abbits鈥� (cancers that progress more slowly), and 鈥渢urtles鈥� (the ones that don鈥檛 grow at all or grow so slowly that they would never harm people during their lifetime). He said people with the rabbits are the ones who benefit greatly from screenings.

鈥淪creening can鈥檛 help with the birds. The birds are already gone,鈥� Welch said. 鈥淭he turtles don鈥檛 need to be found because these cancers aren鈥檛 going anywhere. Unfortunately, screening is really good at finding turtles.鈥�

Welch showed the audience various slides and charts that illustrate the rate of cancer diagnosis compared to cancer-related deaths over similar time periods. The data highlighted rising incidence of diagnosis, yet the mortality rate remained relatively stable.

Though treatments have improved, Welch said there鈥檚 too much diagnosis of 鈥渢urtles鈥� 鈥� leading to the belief that lives are being saved because of screening. He added that there鈥檚 a one-to-10 ratio of mortality benefit versus harm caused by overdiagnosis.

鈥淪ometimes we can all be misled by cancer survival statistics,鈥� Welch said. 鈥淪creening offers the potential benefit of avoiding advanced cancer and subsequent cancer death for a few. But it also produces the harms of false alarms, overdiagnosis and unnecessary treatment for many others. The overdiagnosis problem makes you realize you have to think about these cancer statistics differently.鈥�

Nuss Researcher/Scholar Award

, a professor of in the division of , won this year鈥檚 Robert C. Nuss Researcher/Scholar Award.

The award, named after the former 萝莉社 COMJ dean, is given annually to a 萝莉社 faculty member in Jacksonville who has a distinguished record of current research that places that person among the leaders in his or her respective academic discipline.

Leighton, who鈥檚 been at 萝莉社 COMJ since 2010, has focused his research on intermediary metabolism, diabetes and kidney disease. He has been investigating mechanisms involved in the development of diabetic nephropathy 鈥� including hexosamine pathway, inflammations and oxidative stress involvement in hyperglycemic kidney injury.

He is the co-principal investigator of an ongoing research study titled Mechano-Growth Factor (MGF) Roles in Diabetic Glomerulosclerosis: A New Factor Promoting Diabetic Kidney Disease. His research into the mechanism of diabetic nephropathy is key to understanding the various processes that contribute to this common cause of kidney failure and end-stage renal disease.

Poster and platform presentations

Of the residents and fellows who submitted presentations for Celebration of Research, six were chosen for poster presentation awards and six received platform presentation awards for their excellence:

Poster presentation winners

• 1st place: , oral and maxillofacial surgery; Quantitative Analysis of Facial Soft Tissue Perfusion During Hypotensive Anesthesia Using Spy Laser-Assisted Fluorescence Angiography Technology
• 2nd place: , emergency medicine; Influence of Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) Score in Predicting In-Hospital Mortality from Sepsis: Does the Type of Organ Failure Matter?
• 3rd place: , pediatrics; Comparison of Conventional and NAVA Ventilation in Preterm Infants
• 4th place: , obstetrics and gynecology; Pharmacy Access to Ulipristal Acetate in Jacksonville, FL: A Secret Shopper Survey
• 5th place: , medicine; The Effect of Atorvastatin on Thrombogenic, Lipogenic and Inflammatory Markers in Women with Metabolic Syndrome
• 6th place: , obstetrics and gynecology; The Implementation of a TDAP Vaccination Program for Low-income Pregnant Women at 萝莉社 Jacksonville

Platform presentation winners

• 1st place: , psychiatry; Effects of Teacher Gender on Child Emotional and Behavioral Ratings: An Epidemiological Study
• 2nd place: , obstetrics and gynecology; BMI, Operative Time, Anesthesia Time and Cost During Cesarean Delivery
• 3rd place: , surgery; It's D茅j脿 Vu All Over Again: Reassessing the Utility of CT Angiograms in Penetrating Injuries to the Extremities
• 4th place: , emergency medicine; Sonographic Measurement of the Inferior Vena Cava and Aorta Diameters in Children From 4 Months to 8 Years of Age Presenting to the Pediatric Emergency Department and the Utility of These Measurements in Assessing Dehydration in Children
• 5th place: , pathology and laboratory medicine; Pre-transfusion Test Result Comparison of Heel Stick Sample with Placental Blood Sample
• 6th place: , surgery; Superomedial Pedicle Reduction Mammaplasty: Increased Resection Weight Does Not Increase Nipple Necrosis

The event, sponsored by the , also included science presentations by students from nearby Darnell-Cookman Middle/High School of the Medical Arts. They were recognized during the awards portion of the program.

鈥淐ongratulations to everyone who was recognized and participated during Celebration of Research 2017,鈥� said , dean of 萝莉社 COMJ. 鈥淭he presentations were outstanding and highlighted medical discovery that continues to occur on our campus. In addition, we were treated to a great keynote presentation by Dr. Welch. The day was truly a success.鈥�