What makes a biostatistician?

Biostatisticians play an important role in medical research. They are co-responsible for an appropriate and efficient study design, they are involved in monitoring the study conduct, they plan and perform the data analysis, and they are involved in interpreting and publishing the results. However, how are the biostatisticians prepared for their tasks and responsibilities? Graduate programs in biostatistics are being offered, but some practicing biostatisticians completed their studies in a mathematical or epidemiological program, or obtained their degree in subject-specific fields (such as medicine or biology). Therefore, the expertise and the competencies can vary widely between the individual biostatisticians, also depending on the application field. In this article, focusing on European and US practices, we discuss the required professional expertise for the main areas of applications in the medical field as well as the necessary soft skill competencies of a biostatistician.     

Pharmaceutical Marketing: Implications for Medical Residency Training

An educational intervention was developed to improve family practice residents' ability to obtain useful information from pharmaceutical representatives. The curriculum is based on the traditional one-on-one drug detail. The objectives are to develop residents' skills in controlling the interview, promote skills for critically analyzing drug-promotional material, and discuss ethical issues. The contents include an assessment tool, suggested readings, and interview questions with rationale. After 5 years, residents' confidence in all areas of the curriculum improved significantly.     

Combination of flavone acetic acid (FAA) with adriamycin,cis-platinum and difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) in vitro against human colon cancer cells

Summary Unresectable solid tumors in the metastatic stage are quite resistant to current chemotherapy and radiation therapy regimens. Flavone acetic acid (FAA) is a novel antitumor agent which appears to work through a different mechanism than the conventional chemotherapeutic agents. In preclinical studies it has shown effectiveness against a variety of transplantable murine and human tumors and appears to be solid tumor selective. It also has non-overlapping toxicities as compared to conventional agents. We therefore investigated FAA in vitro against human colon cancer cells and explored whether its effectiveness could be enhanced in combination with other agents such as adriamycin (ADR), cis-platinum (CP) and difluoromethyornithine (DFMO) — an inhibitor of polyamine biosynthesis. Addition of FAA for 24 hours in liquid media produced dose dependent growth inhibition. Using soft agar colony assay, growth was inhibited by 58% by 3mM FAA and only 1.4% by 0.375mM FAA. The combination of FAA and cis-platinum produced synergism at the lower doses tested. The combination of FAA and adriamycin produced antagonism at all doses tested and the combination of FAA with DFMO did not produce results significantly different from DFMO alone. We conclude that enhancement of FAA activity can be achieved in combination with conventional antitumor agents, but may be drug and dose specific.     

Albumin Adsorption and Retention on C18-Alkyl-Derivatized Polyurethane Vascular Grafts

The short-term albumin affinity and thrombo-resistance of a polyether polyurethane vascular graft have been improved. The method is based on the C18 alkylation of the polymer. Thrombus formation by a planimetric technique and albumin retention on wire-reinforced polyurethane tubes, both C18 alkylated and untreated, were measured in short-term (4-h) exposure at femoral arterial sites in the dog. 125I-Albumin was preabsorbed on tubes and then exposed to blood for successive 2-h periods. Albumin uptake on alkylated tubes prior to blood exposure and retention following 2 h of blood exposure were significantly greater than on controls. Following a fast desorption phase in blood, the remaining albumin was more slowly desorbed from alkylated than from control tubes. Reincubation with albumin and blood reexposure produced a similar tendency, suggesting blood conditioning does not reduce the albumin affinity-enhancing property of C18 alkylation in the short term. Blood-preconditioning experiments suggested endogenous albumin has a high affinity for the C18-alkylated surface. Scanning electron microscopic examination showed thrombus and platelet densities were higher on control than on alkylated surfaces. These results suggest in vivo albumin affinity is increased for C18-alkylated polyurethane, which may be linked to decreased thrombus formation on these surfaces.     

Toward a VA women’s health research agenda: Setting evidence-based priorities to improve the health and health care of women veterans

The expansion of women in the military is reshaping the veteran population, with women now constituting the fastest growing segment of eligible VA health care users. In recognition of the changing demographics and special health care needs of women, the VA Office of Research & Development recently sponsored the first national VA Women’s Health Research Agenda-setting conference to map research priorities to the needs of women veterans and position VA as a national leader in Women’s Health Research. This paper summarizes the process and outcomes of this effort, outlining VA’s research priorities for biomedical, clinical, rehabilitation, and health services research.