Smoking as a risk factor for the development of breast cancer

INTRODUCTION: Smoking is considered a public health problem and in many cases is responsible for the development of lung diseases and cancer. One of the mechanisms by which tobacco can induce cancer is through the generation of free radicals, establishing an oxidative stress status in smokers. With increasing smoking among women, much evidence in the literature has shown a relation between smoking and breast cancer development. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this review was to analyze the available studies in literature that demonstrate the association between smoking and the risk of breast cancer development. METHODS: We performed a review from the literature based on the search results in PubMed and Scielo. The selected works were composed by current articles according to their relevance and human application. RESULTS: The literature revealed several published studies linking smoking to oxidative stress through the action of free radicals that are generated by toxic compounds found in cigarettes. There are few studies relating smoking with breast cancer, which is a relatively more recent research line, where the vast majority of works includes epidemiological and controversial studies. CONCLUSIONS: The selected works show that, although controversial, smoking is considered a risk factor for developing breast cancer.

Aspects related to oxidative stress-mediated toxicity of doxorubicin during chemotherapy treatment

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to describe the main toxic effects mediated by oxidative stress associated with treatment with doxorubicin in scientific research articles available in the literature. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This study employed a descriptive review methodology applied to the literature. For the theoretical scientific background, we used the electronic PubMed search engines. CONCLUSION: The toxicity of chemotherapy treatment with doxorubicin causes damage in various organs of patients who are in uninterrupted treatment with this antineoplastic agent. Anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity has been investigated to a great degree and is especially indicated as the principal side effect. Therefore, care needs to be given to other damage caused by this medication as important as myocardial toxicity, such as renal, pulmonary and liver toxicity, among others. There is a need for further studies to prevent or even encounter a way to control the damage caused by these toxicities in various tissues.

Autopercepção da saúde e desempenho cognitivo em idosos residentes na comunidade / Self-perception of health and cognitive performance in community-dwelling elderly

CONTEXTO: A autopercepção de saúde contempla vários aspectos da saúde física, cognição e capacidade funcional. OBJETIVO: Comparar idosos com e sem evidência de declínio cognitivo/demência quanto a autopercepção de saúde e variáveis sociodemográficas, destacando as variáveis associadas à autopercepção de saúde positiva e negativa dentro destes grupos. MÉTODOS: Noventa e oito idosos residentes na comunidade foram avaliados em visitas domiciliares para este trabalho. A avaliação cognitiva e funcional foi feita por meio da aplicação do Mini-Exame do Estado Mental (MEEM), do Teste do Desenho do Relógio (TDR), da Escala de Demência de Blessed (EDB) e do Questionário do Informante de Declínio Cognitivo em Idosos (IQCODE). A autopercepção da saúde foi avaliada por intermédio de um questionário adaptado do Brazil Old Age Schedule. RESULTADOS: Vinte e seis idosos (26 por cento) apresentaram quadro de declínio cognitivo. Autopercepção de saúde negativa e menor participação em atividades físicas e recreativas se associaram significativamente a declínio cognitivo nesta amostra (p = 0,006, p = 0,05, p = 0,03, respectivamente). No grupo de sujeitos sem evidência de declínio cognitivo, a história prévia de eventos cerebrovasculares se relacionou à maior frequência de autopercepção negativa da saúde. CONCLUSÃO: A autopercepção negativa da saúde está relacionada ao provável diagnóstico de demência. Nos idosos com declínio cognitivo, a autopercepção positiva de saúde associa-se a quadros mais graves, refletindo possivelmente menor insight quanto ao estado mórbido.

BACKGROUND: The self-perception of health can approach several aspects of physical health, cognition and functional abilities. OBJECTIVE: To compare elderly subjects wit and without evidence of cognitive decline in relation to health self-perception and socio-demographic variables, highlighting the variables associated with positive or negative health self-perception in these groups. METHODS: Ninety eight community-dwelling subjects were assessed in this study. Cognitive and functional abilities were tested using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Clock Drawing Test (CDT), the Blessed Dementia Scale (BDS), and the Informant Questionnaire of Cognitive Decline in the Elderly (IQCODE). Self-perception of health evaluation was performed with the use of an adapted questionnaire of the Brazil Old Age Schedule. RESULTS: Twenty-six subjects (26 percent) had evidence of cognitive decline in this sample. Negative health self-perception and lower levels of physical and leisure activity were significantly associated with cognitive decline in this sample (p = 0.006, p = 0.05, p = 0.03, respectively). In the group of subjects without evidence of dementia, history of cerebrovascular disease was associated with negative health perception. DISCUSSION: Dementia was associated with worse health self-perception evaluation. In addition, elders with evidence of dementia and good health self-perception evaluation had higher IQCODE scores, suggesting lack of judgment regarding health status.

O serviço de atenção domiciliar na perspectiva dos familiares e cuidadores / The home care service in the perspective of relatives and caregivers

Serviços de atenção domiciliar são incipientes no país, e a maioria dos doentes incapacitados é cuidada por familiares de modo informal. A experiência de cuidar de pacientes dependentes no domicílio, mesmo com o suporte dos serviços, acarreta desgaste para os familiares e, principalmente, para o cuidador. O objetivo do trabalho é analisar a experiência de um programa de atenção domiciliar, procurando compreender o significado da presença do doente dependente para os familiares. Métodos: Foram acompanhados sete pacientes, com doença crônica avançada, atendidos no domicílio por equipe de um hospital-escola de 8elo Horizonte, MG. Utilizou-se entrevista e observação etnográfica para a coleta de dados. Resultados: As dificuldades enfrentadas pelos familiares com o doente dependente em casa caracterizam- se pela angústia de não poderem interagir com o paciente, de acompanharem sua degeneração e pelas restrições financeiras para sustentar as necessidades do doente. A figura do cuidador informal se estrutura por valores culturais relativos ao gênero e ao trabalho e pela história das relações afetivas anteriores. O cuida- dor fica sobrecarregado, o que se traduz em efeitos psicossociais em sua vida. Conclusões: Apesar de o serviço de atenção domiciliar ser ainda um privilégio para os usuários do sistema público de saúde, as exigências do cuidado em casa devem ser contempladas nas definições políticas de extensão de sua cobertura. A necessidade e a urgência de se definirem as responsabilidades desses serviços estão evidentes em razão da crescente demanda resultante do envelhecimento da população e do prolongamento da vida pelo uso das tecnologias médicas.

The home care services are incipient in Brazil and the majority of care for the disabled is given informally by rel- atives. Taking care of the ill at home requires constant effort from the family and mainly from the caregiver, even with the home care services support. Aim: To analyze cases of patients attended by the Home Care Program, looking for the meaning of the disabled at home to their families. Methods: Seven patients attended by the Home Care Program of a School-Hospital in Belo Horizonte, MG, who presented advanced chronic diseases, were followed by means of interviews and ethno-graphic observation to collect data. Results: The difficulties faced by the families with a sick and dependent rela- tive at home are characterized by distress for not beingable to interact with the diseased, follow their degrada- tion and by financial restrictions to support the ill's needs. The informal caregiver's profile is determined by cultural values related to gender, work and previous affective history. The caregiver is overwhelmed and this results in psychosocial effects on life. Conclusions: Despite the fact that the home care service is a privilege for the users of the public health system, the demands on home care should be considered by the political definitions concerning the extent of its coverage. The necessity and urgency in defin- ing the responsibilities of these services are evident as a consequence of the growing demand for home care attention due to aging and postponemem of death as a result of the use of medical technologies.