We examine narratives of cancer from the perspective of families with the condition and look at responses from professionals in the field.

This study presents an empirical analysis of the importance of absolute, reference and relative income on individual well-being in Ireland. Four primary hypotheses are tested: First, whether individual income results in a positive effect on individual well-being; Second, whether reference group income results in a negative effect on individual wellbeing; Third, whether relative income results in a positive effect on individual well-being and finally, whether the effect of income on well-being is affected by the different definitions of well-being; namely that of happiness and life satisfaction. A subjective self-reported measure of life satisfaction and happiness is used in order to measure individual well-being levels. The ordered probit technique is applied to data from the European Values Study 2008 to estimate the well-being equation. Results find a statistically significant positive absolute income coefficient. This illustrates that higher household income results in higher subjective well-being. Thus, in Ireland richer individuals are found to report higher levels of well-being than co-citizens at the bottom of the income distribution. Reference income results find a negative coefficient illustrating that higher reference group income results in lower subjective well-being. Therefore, this study finds that in Ireland an increase in reference group income results in a reduction in individual well-being. This study finds a positive relative income coefficient. Hence, this study finds that in Ireland the richer a particular individual is compared to his/her reference group the higher subjective wellbeing that individual will possess. This study identifies that, in the context of considerable similarity, particular variations between the happiness and life satisfaction regression results are found. Primarily, findings illustrate that non-economic conditions have a larger effect on happiness than life satisfaction. Economic conditions however, depict a larger effect on life satisfaction than happiness.

Introduction: Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is an important part of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) treatment. Recent trials of MT beyond the 6-hour window have utilized RAPID perfusion imaging for patient selection. The utility of this method is established in patients with large vessel occlusions (LVO) but screening efficiency in real-world practice remains unknown. We present the experience of a single, large volume, Comprehensive Stroke Center (CSC) utilizing RAPID to screen patients for LVO and MT. Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected consecutive patients who presented to our emergency department (ED) between 01/2018 to 06/2019 with suspected LVO. Protocol was based on 2018 AHA guideline Level IA recommendations and followed DAWN and DEFUSE-3 time and imaging parameters. Patients who underwent RAPID imaging were selected for inclusion. Results: 865 patients met criteria for RAPID perfusion imaging (median age 67, females 52%, outside hospital transfers 29%). Of these, 178 (21% of total) were confirmed to have an LVO (40% ED presentation, 10% inpatient, 50% transfer). For patients presenting to the ED (N=509), 14% had an LVO (median NIHSS 13 [IQR 8-19]), of which 41% underwent MT. Mean CTP core and penumbra volume was 25mL and 100mL respectively. Number needed-to-screen in the ED cohort was 7 to detect LVO and 17 to perform MT. Transfer patients showed no significant difference in LVO detection or MT rates compared to ED patients (56%, p=0.3). Conclusions: In ED-presenting patients at a CSC, the number of RAPID perfusion imaging studies needed to detect an additional case of LVO was 7.1, and to perform an additional MT was 17.4. Current AHA Class IA recommendations for evaluation and treatment of AIS yield a reasonably high rate of LVO detection and subsequent MT in real-world practice. Additional multicenter data will be useful to establish benchmarks and improve screening efficiency.

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