David S. Gierada, MD and Lawrence M. Kotner, Jr., MD
Despite strong supportive evidence on and professional society endorsement of CT screening for lung cancer, there is minimal demand from patients or physicians.
Comparative effectiveness research (CER) may become an important factor in Medicare coverage decisions, and the new health care law may make it more easily available to the public to help in medical decision making.
Conducting community-based research in the community where one resides demands careful planning, sensitivity to community members’ privacy, and a strong commitment to full and respectful communication.
The differences between CBPR and traditional research have been enumerated, but how to overcome them is still up for discussion, collaboration with community members is advocated, and examples are given.
An evidence-based, patient-centered approach is the best way to convince colleagues accustomed to older practice methods of the value of instituting cost-effective screening practices.
Elizabeth Lee Daugherty, MD, MPH and Douglas B. White, MD, MA
Opportunities to advance scientific knowledge may arise during humanitarian crises, but their presence does not justify suspension of the ethical foundations governing human subjects research.
Does a surgeon’s complication rate in a randomized controlled trial constitute a “significant new finding” that must be reported to patients during the consent process?
How hepatitis C is diagnosed and treated and why treatment of most prisoners with the virus may be safely postponed until after their release from prison.