Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (commonly referred to as CLINIC) is the USA’s largest network of non-profit immigration activist programs. In its 1986 pastoral statement “Together a New People,” the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) observed that the church’s ministry to immigrants reflects the “biblical understanding of the justice of God reaching out to all peoples and rectifying the situation of the poor, the orphans, the widows, the disadvantaged, and especially in the Old Testament, the alien and the stranger.” Two years later, USCCB established CLINIC as a legally distinct 501(c)(3) non-profit organization to support a rapidly growing need for community-based programs dedicated to serve indigent and low-income immigrants. CLINIC's network originally comprised seventeen diocesan affiliates and has since increased to over 200 Catholic and community-based immigration programs with 290 field offices in 47 states, Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico. In addition, the network affiliates employ roughly 1,200 Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) accredited attorneys who serve over 600,000 low-income immigrants each year. CLINIC affiliated agencies represent low-income immigrants without reference to their race, religion, gender, ethnic group, or other distinguishing characteristics.
The ESMO Congress 2025 highlighted major advances in breast cancer, with numerous clinically relevant abstracts, some of which were immediately practice-changing. In hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer, adjuvant abemaciclib has now demonstrated an overall survival benefit in the monarchE study, while the 5‑year update from the NATALEE trial showed a sustained benefit with adjuvant ribociclib. These findings suggest a durable carryover effect of CDK4/6 inhibition beyond the treatment period in the adjuvant treatment of hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer. In HER2-positive breast cancer, trastuzumab deruxtecan is emerging as a treatment option in both adjuvant and neoadjuvant settings, based on data from the DESTINY-Breast05 and DESTINY-Breast11 trials. In metastatic triple-negative breast cancer, both sacituzumab govitecan and datopotamab deruxtecan have demonstrated superiority over conventional chemotherapy, and antibody–drug conjugates are now considered the standard of care in the first-line setting.
Background Child abuse constitutes a major public health concern. This study examined cases of girls and female adolescents treated at the Vienna General Hospital over the past decade who were exposed to sexual violence and harmful practices such as female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), aiming to provide insight into gender-based violence and its current development among female child victims. Methods Data for this study were collected from girls aged 0–18 years who presented to the Children and Victim Protection Center (CAVPC) at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Vienna General Hospital, between 2014- 2024, after having been subjected to sexual violence, drug-facilitated assault (DFA) or were referred to for the evaluation of FGM/C For all cases, baseline characteristics were collected, including age, reason for presentation, and symptoms. Annual prevalence rates were analyzed as the primary outcome, while secondary analyses focused on violence-related characteristics. Ethical approval for this study was obtained from the Ethics Committee of the Medical University Vienna. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS (version 31.0.0.0; IBM). Results A total of 484 cases of sexual violence and DFAs, along with 33 cases of FGM/C, were reported during the study period. The annual prevalence of sexual violence and DFA cases increased significantly over the last decade (p = 0.001). Adolescents aged 13–18 years represented the most affected age group (p < 0.001). Further baseline and assault-related characteristics (e.g., location of crime, relationship to the perpetrator) are currently under analysis. Among the 33 FGM/C cases, annual prevalence peaked in 2017-2018, declined during 2019-2020 - likely due to COVID-19 restrictions - and rose again in 2023-2024 (p=0.03). The median age at presentation was 11 years (range 3-15 years). Most patients presented on a self-referral basis, and 74% reported ongoing health problems. Clinical examination classified 37% of cases as type I, 26% as type II, 30% as type III, and 7% as type IV FGM/C. Notably, 75% of patients with type III FGM/C required surgical intervention. Conclusion Violence against girls and female adolescents, including FGM/C, has demonstrated a continuing upward trend over the past decade. Our findings underscore the urgent need for accessible support services and adequately trained personnel to ensure comprehensive care for victims.
INTRODUCTION:Injection drug use (IDU) poses significant public health risks, including the transmission of blood-borne infections such as hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV). This study aims to evaluate the prevalence of risk behaviors associated with IDU and the prevalence of HBV and HCV among people who inject drugs (PWID) in Georgia. METHODS:A cross-sectional study was conducted in seven cities of Georgia in 2022, involving 2005 PWID aged ≥18 years. Participants were recruited using respondent-driven sampling. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews and blood samples were collected for HCV/HBV testing. RESULTS:The majority of study participants (98.6%) were males, 63.2% were older than 40 years, and 51.3% had a history of imprisonment. 24.4% reported using a needle/syringe previously used by someone else. HCV seropositivity was found in 58.1% of respondents, with 32.1% of anti-HCV positive individuals testing positive for HCV RNA. HBV surface antigen was detected in 2.5%. Only 7.5% reported being vaccinated for hepatitis B and 27.8% expressed willingness to be vaccinated. 33.9% had HCV treatment history. HCV prevalence was significantly higher among males, older PWID, those with a history of incarceration and history of sharing needles used by others. CONCLUSION:Our findings highlight the high prevalence of HCV and low HBV vaccination rates among PWID in Georgia, emphasizing the need for strengthened harm reduction strategies. Expanding sterile injection access, integrating HBV vaccination, and removing structural barriers are key to improving prevention and testing efforts and linkage to care.
Abstract Background Patients with TB disease in Georgia are not routinely tested for HBV and the prevalence of chronic HBV among TB patients is unknown. We aimed to assess the prevalence of HBV coinfection and immunity among persons with TB in Georgia and evaluate their HBV-related knowledge and attitudes toward vaccination. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study among persons with active TB disease at the National Center for Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases in Georgia from September 20, 2024 to February 20, 2025. Participants underwent serologic testing (HBsAg, anti-HBs, anti-HBc) and completed a questionnaire on HBV knowledge, vaccination history, and willingness to vaccinate. Results We enrolled 110 participants (median age = 44.0, IQR:35.0-56.3), of which 63.6% were male. Four participants (3.6%) were HBsAg positive. HBV test results showed 14 (12.7%) had past HBV infection with anti-HBc+/anti-HBs+, and 7 (6.4%) had isolated anti-HBc positivity (anti-HBc+/anti-HBs-). Another seven (6.4%) had vaccine-induced immunity (anti-HBc-/anti-HBs+), and 82 (74.5%) were susceptible to HBV infection. While 74.5% reported having heard of HBV, only 50.0% correctly identified transmission routes. Only 16 patients (14.5%) were willing to receive vaccination. Among those unwilling, the main barriers were concerns about vaccine safety (34.9%), effectiveness (23.3%), and perceived infection risk (20.9%). Participants aged ≤ 40 years were significantly more likely to be aware of HBV compared to those over 40 (OR=3.39, 95% CI: 1.25–9.20). Conclusion TB-HBV coinfection observed in this study suggests that routine HBV screening among TB patients in Georgia may be beneficial. Low vaccination coverage and limited knowledge highlight the importance of integrating HBV education and vaccination into TB programs to improve outcomes.
Introduction: Steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome (SRNS) represents a severe and challenging form of pediatric nephrotic syndrome and is associated with a high risk of progression to end-stage kidney disease. Calcineurin inhibitors (CNIs) are the standard second-line therapy; however, their use is limited by frequent relapses and long-term nephrotoxicity. Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) offers a more favorable safety profile and a complementary mechanism of action; however, the clinical utility of combining MMF with CNIs remains largely under-explored in this population. Case Presentation: We describe a series of nine pediatric patients with steroid-resistant or steroid-dependent nephrotic syndrome who were refractory to cyclosporine monotherapy. These patients were treated with a combination regimen of cyclosporine (4–5 mg/kg/day; target trough levels of 75–150 ng/mL) and MMF (600 mg/m2/day). This therapeutic approach was associated with a reduction in corticosteroid dosage and a decrease in the annual number of relapses in most patients. Conclusions: In this small case series of pediatric patients with corticosteroid-dependent or steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome refractory to cyclosporine monotherapy, the addition of mycophenolate mofetil was associated with a reduction in relapse frequency and corticosteroid requirements. Despite the limited sample size, these findings suggest that combination therapy may be a therapeutic option in difficult-to-treat pediatric nephrotic syndrome and warrant further evaluation in controlled studies.
