News Release

Are arm measurements better than BMI to assess nutrition status in child cancer survivors?

Peer-Reviewed Publication

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News

<em>Journal of Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology</em>

image: Journal of Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology (JAYAO) is a quarterly peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the promotion of interdisciplinary research, education, communication, and collaboration between health professionals in AYA oncology. view more 

Credit: Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers

New Rochelle, NY, March 23, 2017--Arm anthropometry is a simple method to determine if a person is overweight or obese, and because it can distinguish between fat and muscle mass, unlike body mass index (BMI), it is a valuable method for assessing muscle loss in long-term survivors of childhood cancer. A new study that compares two arm anthropometry measures to BMI to determine the nutritional status of leukemia survivors is published in Journal of Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology (JAYAO), a multidisciplinary peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the JAYAO website.

In the article "Anthropometry in Long-Term Survivors of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Childhood and Adolescence," the researchers discuss the value of this easy approach to evaluating for obesity and loss of muscle mass in this at-risk population, especially in lower socioeconomic populations where access to more costly tools for measuring body composition may not be available.

Laura Collins, Amy Cranston, Stefanie Savoie, Trishana Nayiager, and Ronald Barr, MB ChB, MD, McMaster Children's Hospital and McMaster University, and Lesley Beaumont, Hamilton Health Sciences (Hamilton, Ontario, Canada) compared BMI to two different arm measures: triceps skin fold thickness, which indicates a person's fat mass; and mid-upper arm circumference, which correlates to lean body mass.

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About the Journal

Journal of Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology (JAYAO) is a quarterly peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the promotion of interdisciplinary research, education, communication, and collaboration between health professionals in AYA oncology. JAYAO provides a forum for AYA cancer research and practice advances for all professional participants and researchers in care for AYA-aged cancer patients and survivors. The Journal's multidisciplinary editorial board and readership includes but is not limited to: pediatric, medical, and surgical oncologists of all types and specialties; oncology nurses and advanced practice staff; psychosocial and supportive care providers including psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers; translational cancer researchers; and academic- and community-based pediatric and adult cancer institutions. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Journal of Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology (JAYAO) website.

About the Society

The Society for Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology (SAYAO) is an international professional organization dedicated to improving adolescent and young adult cancer care through the promotion of interdisciplinary research, education, communication, and collaboration among health professionals. Patients and survivors aged 15-39 are a distinct patient population within oncology, and SAYAO focuses on the unique biological, clinical, psychosocial, and survivorship issues of this age group.

About the Publisher

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative medical and biomedical peer-reviewed journals, including Journal of Palliative Medicine and Cancer Biotherapy and Radiopharmaceuticals. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 80 journals, newsmagazines, and books is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.


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