Creating Wikipedia articles on health and technology topics can empower the writers and benefit the community

BACKGROUND

Publicly accessible information regarding imaging procedures is lacking, especially in non-English languages. Biomedical engineering students do not generally have opportunities to practice conveying scientific knowledge to the public.

METHODS

As part of a Techniques and Clinical Usage of Medical Imaging Devices course, for extra credit, several biomedical engineering students choose to create and edit Wikipedia articles in the local language (Hebrew). The goal of this activity was to serve the local community, while improving students' abilities and self-perception in reading and reporting scientific knowledge. Following task completion, individual interviews were conducted with the students to assess the impact of the task on student personal development, sense of meaning and their view of their role in educating the public.

RESULTS

Most students considered the task meaningful and impactful on society. Additional academic credit was not perceived as the most important incentive for participating.

CONCLUSIONS

Medical and other professional schools should seek to include tasks such as writing Wikipedia articles in their curricula. Educational assignments that integrate academic work, student identity development and direct community benefit can have a long-term beneficial impact on learners and society.

Treatment Modality and Second Primary Tumors of the Head and Neck

INTRODUCTION

Second primary tumors (SPTs) in head and neck cancer are thought to occur from premalignant lesions that are present at the time of the primary tumor diagnosis. The association of the modality used to treat the primary lesion with SPT occurrence is not clear.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the study was to assess the incidence of SPTs in patients with head and neck malignancies, according to treatment modality.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective cohort study. All patients who were treated at Soroka Medical Center between 2000 and 2013 for a head and neck squamous cell carcinoma were assessed. Data analysis included tumor site of the primary and second primary and treatment modality of the primary tumor. In addition, demographics as well as habits were recorded as well.

RESULTS

Of the 184 patients included in the cohort, SPT developed in 31 patients (17%) with a median time to diagnosis of 4.3 years. Smoking was reported in 74% of those with SPT and 78% of those without. The most common site for SPT was the lungs, with 13 cases, 42% of the total SPTs. Among patients who developed an SPT, for 12 of those with an index tumor in the oral cavity or oro-hypopharynx, 8 (67%) developed an SPT in the same location; for 18 of those with an index tumor in the larynx, 11 (61%) developed a SPT in the lungs and bronchi (p = 0.001). On multivariate analysis, the treatment modality used was not found to be associated with the occurrence of SPTs and the radiotherapy showed no protective or harmful effect (HR 0.64 p = 0.24).

CONCLUSION

Treatment modality used for head and neck cancer does not seem to be associated with the occurrence of SPTs.