Question

EPIDEMIOLOGY QUESTION

Recently, Australian researchers conducted a study of the relationship between optimism and colon cancer survival. Their hypothesis was that colon cancer patients who had a positive outlook on life would have a lower five-year cumulative incidence of mortality. The study included 100 recently diagnosed colon cancer patients who underwent psychological testing and were found to have a optimistic outlook on life and 100 recently diagnosed colon cancer patients who underwent the same psychological tests and were found to have a pessimistic outlook on life. By the end of five years of follow-up, 50 of the 100 patients with the optimistic outlook and 75 of the 100 patients with the pessimistic outlook had died from colon cancer.

• Set up and fill in the two by two table using these data.
• What is the prevalence of colon cancer in the study population?
• Compare the cumulative incidence of mortality in the optimistic group to the cumulative incidence of mortality in the pessimistic group using a ratio measure of association.
• State in words your interpretation of the result you found in part c.

Answer 1

ANSWER око Died Did hot die 1oo 60 optimistic 50 100 25 75 Pessimistic Total goo 195 The rate of death in optimistic People Covers Youse) was gou as opposed to 75). in pessimistic individuals using Relative Risk as measure of association RR = 0.75 10.5=1.5 Thus pessimists were 1.5 times more likely to die with in the syear period The risk difference is : RD=0.75 -0.5=0.95 in individuals with Colon Cancer there are as Excess deaths Pes loo in the peggimistic group us the nimistic wg rour anne