Scholars@Duke
Alex Bartholomew

Alex Bartholomew

House Staff
Surgery
alex.j.bartholomew@gmail.com
308 Research Drive-B320 LSRC, Box 91009, Durham, NC 27710
2301 Erwin Rd, Durham, NC 27707

Selected Publications

Evolution of Initial Treatment for Desmoid Tumors.

Journal Article Ann Surg Oncol · November 2024 INTRODUCTION: Desmoid tumors (DTs) are rare, fibroblastic cell proliferations that can exhibit locally aggressive behavior but lack metastatic potential. Initial management has traditionally involved upfront resection; however, contemporary guidelines and ... Full text Link to item Cite

Animal Models Within Surgical Simulation: A Novel Approach to the 3 Rs.

Journal Article J Surg Res · November 2024 INTRODUCTION: Development of technical skills is a vital component of surgical residency. The use of animal tissues for operative simulation leads to both the loss of animal life and financial costs for the institution. We hypothesized that maximizing tiss ... Full text Link to item Cite

Current patterns of care and outcomes for dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans: An international multi-institutional collaborative.

Conference Cancer · July 10, 2024 BACKGROUND: Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans (DFSP) is a cutaneous sarcoma with an infiltrative growth pattern that makes it challenging to clear margins. High quality data regarding DFSP natural history, management, and outcomes are limited. METHODS: Data ... Full text Link to item Cite

Contemporary trends and outcomes after liver transplantation and resection for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma.

Journal Article J Gastrointest Surg · May 2024 BACKGROUND: Liver transplantation (LT) has been shown to be superior to resection in highly selected patients with perihilar cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), yet has traditionally been contraindicated for intrahepatic CCA (iCCA). Herein, we aimed to examine conte ... Full text Link to item Cite

Expanded Indications for Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy and Immediate Breast Reconstruction in Patients Older Than 60 Years.

Journal Article Annals of plastic surgery · March 2024 IntroductionAlthough nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) and immediate breast reconstruction (IBR) have long been praised for excellent cosmetic results and the resultant psychosocial benefits, the feasibility and safety of these procedures in patient ... Full text Cite

Impact of primary tumor resection and metastasectomy among gastroentero-pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors with liver metastases only on survival.

Journal Article HPB (Oxford) · January 2024 BACKGROUND: Despite recommendations for primary tumor resection (PTR) with or without liver resection (LR) in the patients with gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs) and isolated liver metastases, there are conflicting data for their impa ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Tumor size and survival in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma treated with surgical resection or ablation.

Journal Article J Surg Oncol · December 2023 OBJECTIVES: We performed a retrospective analysis within a national cancer registry on outcomes following resection or ablation for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA). METHODS: The National Cancer Database was queried for patients with clinical stage I ... Full text Link to item Cite

Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy With Immediate Reconstruction After Breast-Conserving Therapy and Radiation: Complications and Oncologic Safety.

Journal Article Annals of plastic surgery · December 2023 IntroductionNipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) offers improved, patient-centered outcomes with demonstrated oncologic safety ( Ann Surg Oncol 2020;27:344-351). Indications for NSM continue to expand to patients outside of the traditional eligibility ... Full text Cite

Comparing Survival After Resection, Ablation, and Radiation in Small Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma.

Journal Article Ann Surg Oncol · October 2023 BACKGROUND: Hepatectomy is the cornerstone of curative-intent treatment for intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC). However, in patients unable to be resected, data comparing efficacy of alternatives including thermal ablation and radiation therapy (RT) rem ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite

Impact of Tumor Size and Management on Survival in Small Gastric Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors.

Journal Article J Gastrointest Surg · October 2023 BACKGROUND: Society guidelines remain inconsistent on the role of endoscopic and radiographic surveillance as an alternative to surgical resection of small gastric gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). Herein, we aimed to assess survival among patients ... Full text Link to item Cite

Outcomes of Immediate Multistaged Abdominal Wall Reconstruction of Infected Mesh: Predictors of Surgical Site Complications and Hernia Recurrence.

Journal Article Annals of plastic surgery · October 2023 BackgroundMesh infection is one of the most devastating complications after ventral hernia repair. To date, no clear consensus exists on the optimal timing of definitive abdominal wall reconstruction (AWR) after excision of infected mesh. We evalu ... Full text Cite

Trends in Receipt of Adjuvant Chemotherapy and its Impact on Survival in Resected Biliary Tract Cancers.

Journal Article Ann Surg Oncol · August 2023 BACKGROUND: Resection remains the cornerstone of curative-intent treatment for biliary tract cancers (BTCs). However, recent randomized data also support a role for adjuvant chemotherapy (AC). This study aimed to characterize trends in the use of AC and su ... Full text Link to item Cite

Direct-to-Implant versus Immediate Free Flap Reconstruction after Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy: A Propensity Score-Matched Analysis.

Conference Plastic and reconstructive surgery · June 2023 BackgroundBoth direct-to-implant (DTI) and immediate free flap (FF) breast reconstruction following nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) have been described in the literature. However, there is a paucity of comparative studies between these two techniq ... Full text Cite

Review of Autologous Fat Grafting in Postmastectomy Reconstruction Patients: Nonroutine Diagnostics and Oncologic Safety

Journal Article Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery - Global Open · October 28, 2022 Background: Autologous fat grafting (FG) is increasingly used as an adjunctive reconstruction technique to augment volume, achieve symmetry, and improve contour deformities. This study aims to characterize the oncologic and surgical safety of FG in women u ... Full text Cite

A Critical Appraisal of Late Complications of Prepectoral versus Subpectoral Breast Reconstruction Following Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy.

Journal Article Annals of surgical oncology · December 2021 BackgroundNipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) offers improved aesthetics without compromising oncologic safety. Subpectoral breast reconstruction has long been standard practice, although prepectoral reconstruction has recently resurged in popularity. ... Full text Cite

Decreased postoperative pain and opioid use following prepectoral versus subpectoral breast reconstruction after mastectomy: A retrospective cohort study: Pain after pre- versus subpectoral reconstruction.

Journal Article Journal of plastic, reconstructive & aesthetic surgery : JPRAS · August 2021 BackgroundPrepectoral (PP) breast reconstruction is now commonly performed and minimizes dissection of the pectoralis major muscle. Data are lacking comparing the immediate postoperative recovery of these patients as compared with traditional subp ... Full text Cite

Acute Postoperative Complications in Prepectoral versus Subpectoral Reconstruction following Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy.

Journal Article Plastic and reconstructive surgery · December 2020 BackgroundNipple-sparing mastectomy is associated with improved aesthetics and oncologic safety. Recently, there has been a resurgence in prepectoral reconstruction. Because of limited data comparing complication rates on patients undergoing prepe ... Full text Cite

Unintended Consequences of Health Care Reform: Impact of Changes in Payor Mix on Patient Safety Indicators.

Journal Article Annals of surgery · October 2020 ObjectiveTo evaluate the impact of the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion on patient safety metrics at the hospital level by expansion status, across varying levels of safety-net burden, and over time.Summary background dataMedicaid ... Full text Cite

Opioid-free anesthesia for patients undergoing mastectomy: A matched comparison.

Journal Article The breast journal · September 2020 Opioid-free anesthesia (OFA) is being implemented in breast surgery due to increased awareness of adverse effects and the national opioid crisis. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of OFA on postoperative pain and postoperative nausea an ... Full text Cite

Physician Perspectives on Fertility Preservation Discussions with Premenopausal Breast Cancer Patients: Results from a Multihospital Health Care System.

Journal Article Annals of surgical oncology · October 2019 BackgroundTen percent of new breast cancer diagnoses occur in premenopausal women, and oncologic therapies may compromise fertility. Thus, fertility preservation discussions (FPDs) and referral to fertility specialists are imperative prior to init ... Full text Cite

Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy and Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy: Timing and Postoperative Complications.

Journal Article Annals of surgical oncology · September 2019 BackgroundAs the demand for nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) increases and surgeons expand the eligibility criteria, a subset of patients may become candidates following neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT). However, the impact of NACT on postoperative ... Full text Cite

Underuse of exon mutational analysis for gastrointestinal stromal tumors.

Journal Article The Journal of surgical research · November 2018 BackgroundTyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) have become the guideline-recommended therapy for high-risk resected and advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). Exon mutational analysis (EMA) is used to inform pretherapy response to TKI and m ... Full text Cite

Timing of radiation therapy in nipple-sparing mastectomy influences outcomes and patient-reported quality of life.

Journal Article The breast journal · November 2018 The aim of this study is to assess the complication profile and impact on patient-reported quality of life in those undergoing nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) with immediate breast reconstruction and subsequent prosthetic reconstruction in patients with pr ... Full text Cite

Meta-Analysis of Surgeon Burnout Syndrome and Specialty Differences.

Journal Article Journal of surgical education · September 2018 ObjectiveSurgeon burnout compromises the quality of life of physicians and the delivery of care to patients. Burnout rates and interpretation of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) complicates the interpretation of surgeon burnout. The purpose of ... Full text Cite

Positive Nipple Margin After Nipple-Sparing Mastectomy: An Alternative and Oncologically Safe Approach to Preserving the Nipple-Areolar Complex.

Journal Article Annals of surgical oncology · August 2018 BackgroundThe aim of this study is to describe a less aggressive approach to management of positive nipple margin following nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM), allowing for preservation of the nipple-areolar complex (NAC).Study designA singl ... Full text Cite

A prospective analysis of quality of life and toxicity outcomes in treating early breast cancer with breast conservation therapy and intraoperative radiation therapy

Journal Article Frontiers in Oncology · January 1, 2018 Introduction: Intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT) is a minimally invasive radiation option for select patients with early stage breast cancer. This prospective, single institution, pilot study summarizes patient-reported quality of life (QoL) outcomes ... Full text Cite

Factors affecting pitch discrimination performance in a cohort of extensively phenotyped healthy volunteers.

Journal Article Scientific reports · November 2017 Despite efforts to characterize the different aspects of musical abilities in humans, many elements of this complex area remain unknown. Musical abilities are known to be associated with factors like intelligence, training, and sex, but a comprehensive eva ... Full text Open Access Cite

Individual Differences in Scotopic Visual Acuity and Contrast Sensitivity: Genetic and Non-Genetic Influences.

Journal Article PLoS One · 2016 Despite the large amount of variation found in the night (scotopic) vision capabilities of healthy volunteers, little effort has been made to characterize this variation and factors, genetic and non-genetic, that influence it. In the largest population of ... Full text Link to item Cite

Analysis of Genetic and Non-Genetic Factors Influencing Timing and Time Perception.

Journal Article PloS one · January 2015 Performance on different psychophysical tasks measuring the sense of time indicates a large amount of individual variation in the accuracy and precision of timing in the hundredths of milliseconds-to-minutes range. Quantifying factors with an influence on ... Full text Cite

Individual variation in contagious yawning susceptibility is highly stable and largely unexplained by empathy or other known factors.

Journal Article PloS one · January 2014 The contagious aspect of yawning is a well-known phenomenon that exhibits variation in the human population. Despite the observed variation, few studies have addressed its intra-individual reliability or the factors modulating differences in the susceptibi ... Full text Open Access Cite