Cancer Screening Rates and Outcomes for Justice-Involved Individuals: A Scoping Review.

Individuals who have been incarcerated or under community supervision have elevated cancer mortality. This review summarizes existing knowledge on implementation and outcomes of cancer screening for justice-involved individuals to identify opportunities for reducing cancer disparities. This scoping review identified 16 studies published between January 1990 and June 2021 that reported cancer screening rates and outcomes in U.S. jails or prisons or for individuals under community supervision. Most studies evaluated cervical cancer screening, while fewer studies evaluated screening for breast, colon, prostate, lung, and hepatocellular cancers. Although incarcerated women are often up to date with cervical cancer screening, only about half had recent mammograms and only 20% of male patients were up to date with colorectal cancer screening. Justice-involved patients are at high risk of cancer, yet few studies have evaluated cancer screening for these populations and screening rates for many cancers appear low. The findings suggest that intensification of cancer screening for justice-involved populations may address cancer disparities.

Disparities in cancer prevalence, incidence, and mortality for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated patients: A scoping review.

BACKGROUND: Racial and ethnic minority status, structural racism, low educational attainment, and poverty are consistently associated with cancer disparities and with higher rates of incarceration. The objective of this scoping review is to conduct a qualitative synthesis of the literature on cancer prevalence, incidence, mortality, and disparities in these outcomes for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated patients, as this literature is fragmented and heterogenous. METHODS: This scoping review included Bureau of Justice Statistics reports and searched PubMed in May 2021 for all English language studies published between 1990 and 30 April 2021, that reported on cancer prevalence, incidence, or mortality for incarcerated or formerly incarcerated individuals in the United States. RESULTS: Twenty studies were selected. Data on cancer prevalence and incidence were scarce but suggested that incarcerated and formerly incarcerated patients have a similar overall risk of cancer diagnosis as the general population, but elevated risk of certain cancers such as cervical, lung, colorectal, and hepatocellular carcinoma for which effective prevention and screening interventions exist. Cancer mortality data in state and local jails as well as prisons were robust and suggests that both incarcerated and formerly incarcerated patients have higher cancer mortality than the general population. CONCLUSIONS: Incarcerated and formerly incarcerated patients likely have a higher risk of dying from cancer than the general population, but important gaps in our knowledge about the extent and drivers of disparities for this population remain. Additional research is needed to guide interventions to reduce cancer disparities for patients experiencing incarceration.

Corneal Donation: Current Guidelines and Future Direction.

PURPOSE: This review aims to outline current practices and guidelines of corneal donation and eye banking, describes the implications of COVID-19 and emerging diseases on the corneal donor pool, and discusses future trends to improve and increase the efficiency of the processes involved in corneal donation and eye banking. SUMMARY: Corneal screening, preservation, corneal storage, and prevention of systemic disease transmission from donor to recipient have been crucial in shaping the policies of the FDA and eye banks across the world. Eye banks globally have developed varying guidelines and criteria for evaluating the viability of donor corneas. Variables such as the age of the donor, medical history, and potential disease transmission are important screening parameters. While known infectious diseases may be transmissible through the cornea, emerging infectious diseases that are not well studied may be more transmissible than other infections. In particular, coronavirus has impacted corneal transplantation as SARS-CoV-2 expression has been detected in corneal tissue and conjunctiva. In recent years, partial-thickness corneal transplantations have been introduced. Lamellar grafts and other corneal layers are now utilized for transplantation of the specific areas that are damaged.