Publications

Flaring from Unconventional Oil and Gas Development and Birth Outcomes in the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas

Published in Environmental Health Perspectives, 2020

Exposure to a high number of nightly flare events was associated with a 50% higher odds of preterm birth and shorter gestation compared with no exposure. Effect estimates were slightly reduced after adjustment for the number of wells within 5km. In stratified models these associations were present only among Hispanic women. Flaring and fetal growth outcomes were not significantly associated. Women exposed to a high number of wells vs. no wells within 5km had a higher odds of preterm birth, shorter gestation, and lower average birthweight.

Recommended citation: L Cushing, K Vavra-Musser, K Chau et al. (2020). "Flaring from Unconventional Oil and Gas Development and Birth Outcomes in the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas." Environmental Health Perspectives. 128(7). https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/full/10.1289/EHP6394

Effects of Exposure to Flaring from Unconventional Oil Wells on Adverse Birth Outcomes

Published in Environmental Epidemiology, 2019

Preliminary results suggest that compared to the unexposed, women in the third tertile of exposure to flaring within 5km of their residence have a 30% higher odds of preterm birth (OR= 1.3, p <0.05) and pregnancies that are on average 1 day shorter (p < 0.05).

Recommended citation: L Cushing, K Vavra-Musser, et al. (2019). "Effects of Exposure to Flaring from Unconventional Oil Wells on Adverse Birth Outcomes." Environmental Epidemiology. 3(86). https://journals.lww.com/environepidem/Fulltext/2019/10001/Effects_of_exposure_to_flaring_from_unconventional.258.aspx

Life Expectancy in Pancreatic Neuroendocrine Cancer

Published in Clinics and Research in Hepatology and Gastroenterology, 2019

Life expectancies of patients with PNETs may be markedly reduced from normal, but even in the worst cases their prognoses remain significantly better than that of patients with the more common pancreatic adenocarcinomas. In some very favorable cases, the life expectancy is near-normal, especially amongst 1- and 5-year survivors. This information can be used to counsel patients.

Recommended citation: J Brooks, R Shavelle, K Vavra-Musser, et al. (2019). "Life Expectancy in Pancreatic Neuroendocrine Cancer." Clinics and Research in Hepatology and Gastroenterology. 43(1):88-97. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2210740118301517

Life Expectancy in Pleural and Peritoneal Mesothelioma

Published in Lung Cancer International, 2017

Data on 10,258 pleural and 1,229 peritoneal patients from the SEER US national cancer database, 1973–2011, were analyzed using the Cox proportional hazards regression model. The major factors related to survival were age, sex, stage, grade, histology, and treatment. Survival improved only modestly over the study period: 0.5% per year for pleural and 2% for peritoneal.

Recommended citation: R Shavelle, K Vavra-Musser, et al. (2017). "Life Expectancy in Pleural and Peritoneal Mesothelioma." Lung Cancer International. https://downloads.hindawi.com/archive/2017/2782590.pdf