Medical Bulletin 21/October/2022

What's more, a higher percentage of those who worked a large number of hours had scores high enough to qualify for a diagnosis of moderate to severe depression -- serious enough to warrant treatment - compared with those working fewer hours.

The research team, based at the University of Michigan, used advanced statistical methods to emulate a randomized clinical trial, accounting for many other factors in the doctors' personal and professional lives. They found a "dose response" effect between hours worked and depression symptoms, with an average symptom increase of 1.8 points on a standard scale for those working 40 to 45 hours, ranging up to 5.2 points for those working more than 90 hours. They conclude that, among all the stressors affecting physicians, working a large number of hours is a major contributor to depression.

Reference:

Amy Bohnert, et al,Work Hours and Depression in U.S. First-Year Physicians,New England Journal of Medicine,DOI:10.1056/NEJMc2210365

Two drugs reverse inhibit pancreatic cancer progression

Pancreatic cancer's stealth-like nature has the attention of University of Florida scientists, who have discovered a way to reverse a key cellular process involved in its progression. UF researchers identified two small molecules that inhibit precancerous cell progression. The molecules also reversed a process known as acinar ductal metaplasia, or ADM, which precedes pancreatic cancer.

According to the National Cancer Institute, more than 60,000 Americans will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer this year, and only about 1 in 10 of those diagnosed will survive the next five years. ADM often occurs when inflammation is present. It is a defense mechanism to avoid having the pancreas make too many digestive enzymes and destroy itself. During ADM, stable, enzyme-making acinar cells turn into protective ductal cells that line the pancreatic duct. If certain genes mutate during the transition, then the cells can become precancerous and eventually develop into cancer.

Reference:

Tom Schmittgen et al,Pharmacological inhibition and reversal of pancreatic acinar ductal metaplasia,Cell Death Discovery,DOI:10.1038/s41420-022-01165-4