1.Do university students have high cardiovascular risk? A pilot study from Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS)
PY Lee ; TA Ong ; S Muna ; SAR Syed Alwi ; K Kamarudin
Malaysian Family Physician 2010;5(1):41-43
A health screening was done in UNIMAS in August 2008 for 237 undergraduate students. Body mass index (BMI), waist
circumference (WC) and blood pressure (BP) were measured for all subjects. Total cholesterol and glucose levels were
checked for those who fulfilled the screening criteria. The proportion of participants with cardiovascular (CVD) risk factors was high. The strategies for health promotion should not only be targeted to the older community but also to the younger community.
2.The Association Between Smoking Status and Breast Cancer Recurrence:A Systematic Review
Muna ALKHAIFI ; Adam CLAYTON ; Teruko KISHIBE ; Jory S SIMPSON
Journal of Breast Cancer 2022;25(4):278-287
Purpose:
To determine whether smoking status (active/passive) affects recurrence events after breast cancer (BC) diagnosis among women.
Methods:
A comprehensive literature search of MEDLINE, Cochrane Central, EMBASE, and Web of Science databases on smoking status and BC outcomes retrieved 5,940 articles. After reviewing the inclusion and exclusion criteria, we selected 14 articles for a full review and synthesis.
Results:
Five studies were cohort retrospective, 6 were case-control, 2 were prospective cohort studies, and 1 was a secondary analysis of a randomized control trial. Among the 8 articles that focused on active smoking, 6 showed an increased risk of BC recurrence, and 2 showed no evidence of such an association. Studies that examined former smokers found little evidence of an increased risk of BC recurrence. This association may be dose-dependent.
Conclusion
Given the current evidence, although limited, active smokers should quit smoking after BC diagnosis as trends indicate a positive association between active smoking and BC recurrence. More robust evidence is needed to assess such associations and examine the outcomes of quitting smoking in such patients.