Introduction The degree of generalisability of patient databases to the general population is important for interpreting database research. This report describes the representativeness of The Health Improvement Network (THIN), a UK primary care database, of the UK population. Methods Demographics, deprivation (Townsend), Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) condition prevalence and deaths from THIN were compared with national statistical and QOF 2006/ 2007 data. Results Demographics were similar although THIN contained fewer people aged under 25 years. Condition prevalence was comparable, e.g. 3.5% diabetes prevalence in THIN, 3.7% nationally. More

This is the first time that an external standard has been used to assess completeness of mortality in automated primary care data. The resulting AMR year provides a natural filter for research and avoids biases associated with 'immortal periods', record updating and under-reporting.

There are strong associations between recent respiratory infection and major cardiovascular events, for MI at all levels of underlying risk. The benefits of reducing respiratory infection either through immunization or treating or preventing infection may be substantial.

Constitutive phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt activation is common in T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL). Although four distinct class I PI3K isoforms (α, β, γ, δ) could participate in T-ALL pathogenesis, none has been implicated in this process. We report that in the absence of PTEN phosphatase tumor suppressor function, PI3Kγ or PI3Kδ alone can support leukemogenesis, whereas inactivation of both isoforms suppressed tumor formation. The reliance of PTEN null T-ALL on the combined activities of PI3Kγ/δ was further demonstrated by the ability of a dual inhibitor to reduce disease burden and prolong survival in mice as well as prevent proliferation and promote activation of proapoptotic pathways in human tumors. These results support combined inhibition of PI3Kγ/δ as therapy for T-ALL.

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