Systematic Assessment of Factors Influencing Preferences of Crohn's Disease Patients in Selecting an Anti-TNF agent (CHOOSE TNF TRIAL)

Background a nd A ims: I nfliximab (IFX), adalimumab (ADA)and certolizumab pegol (CZP) have similar efficacy for inductionand maintenance of clinical response and remission in Crohn'sdisease (CD). Given the comparable nature of t hese drugs,patients' p references m ay i nfluence the choice o f the product.Goal: to identify factors contributing to CD patients' decision inselecting one anti-TNF agent over the others.Methods: A p rospectdive s urvey was performed a mong a nti-TNF-naïve CD patients. Prior to completion of a questionnaire,patients were provided with a description of the three anti-TNFagents f ocusing on indications, route of administration, s ideeffects, and scientific evidence of efficacy and safety.Results: One hundred patients (47f/53m, mean age 45±16yrs)completed the questionnaire. Disease location was ileal, colonicand ileocolonic in 33%, 40% and 27% of patients, respectively.Thirty-six percent preferred ADA as medication of choice, while28% and 2 5% p referred CZP and IFX; 11% were u ndecided.Patients' decision in selecting an anti-TNF drug was influencedby t he following f actors: side effects ( 76%), p hysician'srecommendation (66%), route of administration (54%), efficacydata (52%), time required for therapy administration (27%),recommendations by other CD patients (21%) and interactionswith other medications (12%).Conclusions: T he majority of p atients p referred anti-TNFmedications t hat were a dministered by s ubcutaneous i njectionrather t han b y intravenous i nfusion. Side effect profile andphysicians' r ecommendation are t wo m ajor factors influencingthe patients' s election of a specific anti-TNF d rug. Patients'concerns about safety and lifestyle habits should be taken intoaccount when prescribing anti-TNF drugs.

American Cancer Society guideline for the early detection of prostate cancer: update 2010.

In 2009, the American Cancer Society (ACS) Prostate Cancer Advisory Committee began the process of a complete update of recommendations for early prostate cancer detection. A series of systematic evidence reviews was conducted focusing on evidence related to the early detection of prostate cancer, test performance, harms of therapy for localized prostate cancer, and shared and informed decision making in prostate cancer screening. The results of the systematic reviews were evaluated by the ACS Prostate Cancer Advisory Committee, and deliberations about the evidence occurred at committee meetings and during conference calls. On the basis of the evidence and a consensus process, the Prostate Cancer Advisory Committee developed the guideline, and a writing committee drafted a guideline document that was circulated to the entire committee for review and revision. The document was then circulated to peer reviewers for feedback, and finally to the ACS Mission Outcomes Committee and the ACS Board of Directors for approval. The ACS recommends that asymptomatic men who have at least a 10-year life expectancy have an opportunity to make an informed decision with their health care provider about screening for prostate cancer after they receive information about the uncertainties, risks, and potential benefits associated with prostate cancer screening. Prostate cancer screening should not occur without an informed decision-making process. Men at average risk should receive this information beginning at age 50 years. Men in higher risk groups should receive this information before age 50 years. Men should either receive this information directly from their health care providers or be referred to reliable and culturally appropriate sources. Patient decision aids are helpful in preparing men to make a decision whether to be tested.

Randomised, multicentre, phase III, open-label study of alectinib vs crizotinib in treatment-naïve anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive advanced NSCLC (ALEX study).

Background: In ∼5% of advanced NSCLC tumours, ALK tyrosine kinase is constitutively activated after translocation of ALK. ALK+ NSCLC was shown to be highly sensitive to the first approved ALK inhibitor, crizotinib. However, all pts eventually relapse on crizotinib mainly due to secondary ALK mutations/amplification or CNS metastases. Alectinib is a highly selective, potent, oral next-generation ALK inhibitor. Clinical phase II alectinib data in 46 crizotinib-naïve pts with ALK+ NSCLC reported an objective response rate (ORR) of 93.5% and a 1-year progression-free rate of 83% (95% CI: 68-92) (Inoue et al. J Thorac Oncol 2013). CNS activity was seen: of 14 pts with baseline brain metastasis, 11 had prior CNS radiation, 9 of these experienced CNS and systemic PFS of >12 months; of the 3 pts without prior CNS radiation, 2 were >15 months progression free. Trial design: Randomised, multicentre, phase III, open-label study in pts with treatment-naïve ALK+ advanced, recurrent, or metastatic NSCLC. All pts must provide pretreatment tumour tissue to confirm ALK rearrangement (by IHC). Pts (∼286 from ∼180 centres, ∼30 countries worldwide) will be randomised to alectinib (600mg oral bid, with food) or crizotinib (250mg oral bid, with/without food) until disease progression (PD), unacceptable toxicity, withdrawal of consent, or death. Stratification factors are: ECOG PS (0/1 vs 2), race (Asian vs non-Asian), baseline CNS metastases (yes vs no). Primary endpoint: PFS by investigators (RECIST v1.1). Secondary endpoints: PFS by Independent Review Committee (IRC); ORR; duration of response; OS; safety; pharmacokinetics; quality of life. Additionally, time to CNS progression will be evaluated (MRI) for the first time in a prospective randomised NSCLC trial as a secondary endpoint. Pts with isolated asymptomatic CNS progression will be allowed to continue treatment beyond documented progression until systemic PD and/or symptomatic CNS progression, according to investigator opinion. Time to CNS progression will be retrospectively assessed by the IRC using two separate criteria, RECIST and RANO. Further details: ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02075840). Disclosure: T.S.K. Mok: Advisory boards: AZ, Roche, Eli Lilly, Merck Serono, Eisai, BMS, AVEO, Pfizer, Taiho, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis, GSK Biologicals, Clovis Oncology, Amgen, Janssen, BioMarin; board of directors: IASLC; corporate sponsored research: AZ; M. Perol: Advisory boards: Roche; S.I. Ou: Consulting: Pfizer, Chugai, Genentech Speaker Bureau: Pfizer, Genentech, Boehringer Ingelheim; I. Bara: Employee: F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd; V. Henschel: Employee and stock: F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd.; D.R. Camidge: Honoraria: Roche/Genentech. All other authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

Three essays in Swiss corporate governance

This dissertation is a combination of three relatively independent chapters on the subject of corporate governance. Corporate governance is presently at the epicenter of the global financial crisis. The lack of regulation and the misalignment of objectives have greatly contributed to the major crisis we are now in. Most governance research has been conducted in the United States in a context of widely held corporations and great executive power. It does not reflect the variety of situations around the world and we question the validity of this model in other contexts. The aim of this dissertation is to look at other governance models, in particular the Swiss corporate governance not only from a practical point of view, but also from a multi-theoretical approach. Traditional corporate governance literature has focused on the Anglo-American model that mainly follows the agency theory (Jensen and Meckling, 1976) in a shareholder-manager context, and overlooked other approaches. We focus on three different aspects of corporate governance using three different theories. First, we look at the ownership type of various corporations, using the agency theory in a context where issues between shareholders predominate over the typical shareholder-manager relationship. Second, we explore the adoption process of several governance mechanisms that, due to changes in legislation, has taken place in Switzerland since 2002. We use the institutional theory (DiMaggio and Powell, 1983), in a context where the environmental pressures are particularly high. Finally, we spotlight the board of directors as a key element of the governance of publicly listed corporations. Particularly, we focus on the independence of the board of directors, using a combination of the agency and resource dependence theories (Pfeffer, 1972; Pfeffer and Salancik, 1978).

Can Families Resist Managerial and Financial Revolutions? Swiss Family Firms in the Twentieth Century

The aim of this contribution is to highlight the long-term evolution of family capitalism in Switzerland during the twentieth century. We focus on 22 large companies of the machine, electrotechnical and metallurgy (MEM) sector whose boards of directors and general managers have been identified in five benchmark years across the twentieth century, which allows us to distinguish between family-owned and family-controlled firms. Our results show that family firms prevailed until the 1980s and thus contradict the dominance of 'managerial capitalism'. Although we observe a decline of family capitalism during the last decade of the century, the significant remaining presence of family firms in 2000 allows us to relativise the advent of investor capitalism.

Les parlementaires suisses entre démocratisation et professionnalisation (1910-2010). Biographie collective des élus fédéraux et réformes du Parlement helvétique

Notre travail de thèse vise à analyser, d'une part, les principales réformes du Parlement fédéral adoptées au cours du 20e siècle et, d'autre part, l'évolution du profil sociographique pour six cohortes d'élus fédéraux (1910, 1937, 1957, 1980, 2000 et 2010), sous l'angle de sa démocratisation et de sa professionnalisation. La thèse comprend trois axes de recherche principaux. Premièrement, nous nous penchons sur les deux réformes institutionnelles censées favoriser la démocratisation du recrutement parlementaire, à savoir l'adoption de la proportionnelle pour l'élection du Conseil national en 1918 et l'introduction du suffrage féminin à l'échelon fédéral en 1971. Nous abordons également les réformes du Parlement visant, depuis les années 1970, à sa revalorisation et à sa professionnalisation. Le deuxième axe porte sur la réalisation d'un portrait collectif des élus fédéraux pour la période 1910-1980, dans le but de vérifier l'impact des réformes des règles électorales (proportionnelle et suffrage féminin) sur le profil des députés et sénateurs. Enfin, dans le troisième axe, nous abordons les transformations du profil socio-professionnel des parlementaires pendant la période plus récente (1980-2010), en lien avec la professionnalisation accrue de l'Assemblée fédérale et les changements des rapports de force partisans. Nos résultats permettent de mettre en évidence plusieurs éléments de continuité (prédominance de la catégories des indépendants, notamment des avocats, des chefs d'entreprise et des agriculteurs, et sous-représentation des salariés du secteur public ; fort ancrage local), ainsi que certains facteurs de rupture (présence accrue des femmes, moindre importance de la carrière militaire). D'autres changements dans le profil sont liés au processus récent de professionnalisation, contesté et inachevé, qui a favorisé néanmoins l'émergence de nouveaux profils sociologiques d'élus, en termes de formation, de profession (apparition du groupe des parlementaires professionnels) et de cumul des mandats économiques et politiques, avec cependant de fortes variations entre les partis et entre les deux Chambres. - Our PhD thesis aims at analysing, on the one hand, the main reforms of the Federal Parliament adopted during the 20th century and, on the other hand, the evolution of sociographical profile for six cohorts of Swiss MPs (1910, 1937, 1957, 1980, 2000 and 2010) in terms of their democratization and professionalization. Our research is composed of three main parts. Firstly, we analyse two institutional reforms which intended to promote the democratization of parliamentary recruitment, namely the adoption of proportional representation (PR) in 1918 for the election of the National Council and the introduction of women's suffrage at the federal level in 1971. We also deal with parliamentary reforms that, since the 1970s, have aimed at reasserting the political status of the Federal Assembly and at professionalizing its members. Secondly, we carry out a collective biography of Swiss MPs during the period 1910-1980, in order to verify the impact of electoral reforms (PR and women's suffrage) on the profiles of deputies and senators. Finally, we discuss the transformation of the MPs' socio-_professional profiles during the recent period (1980-2010) in connection with the increased professionalization of the Federal Assembly and the changes of the power relations within the Parliament. Our results allow us to highlight several elements of continuity (the predominance of self-employed persons, especially lawyers, business managers and farmers, and the underrepresentation of public employees; stronger background in local politics), as well as some factors of discontinuity (increased presence of women and lesser importance of the military career). Other changes of the parliamentarians' profile are related to the recent process of professionalization. Although contested and unfinished, it has promoted new sociological profiles in terms of educational background, profession (growth of the professional parliamentarians) and number of political and economic mandates held simultaneously, however with important variations between parties and between Lower and Upper House.

Political representation in Switzerland : democratic or plutocratic ?

Les inégalités économiques se traduisent-elles dans des inégalités politiques à travers le processus de représentation électorale? Telle est la question centrale de cette thèse qui s'attache, par ailleurs, à investiguer les mécanismes qui tendent à produire une représentation biaisée des préférences politiques des citoyens en fonction de leur statut économique. Focalisé sur le cas de la Suisse et faisant usage des données de l'enquête postélectorale Selects de 2007, ce travail démontre que sur les rares sujets qui divisent les citoyens selon des clivages économiques - la redistribution des richesses et la sécurité sociale en particulier - les élus à l'Assemblée fédérale ont des préférences qui reflètent mieux les opinions des citoyens les plus riches. Cette sous-représentation des opinions des citoyens modestes et de ceux faisant partie du centre de la distribution des revenus peut en partie être attribuée à des différences dans les taux de participation et de connaissance politiques entre ces groupes de citoyens. La thèse met également en évidence le rôle joué par la représentation descriptive - autrement dit, la similitude en termes de statut économique entre les représentants et les représentés - dans la représentation des opinions et intérêts des citoyens. Par ailleurs, la structure du système partisan en Suisse ne reflétant pas la multidimensionnalité des préférences politiques des citoyens, les électeurs ne parviennent pas à traduire la complexité de leurs préférences politiques dans un choix de vote, ce qui, dans la configuration actuelle des forces politiques, tend à favoriser l'élection de représentants aux opinions proches de la droite sur les questions économiques. Enfin, une analyse de la représentation politique au niveau cantonal tend à soutenir la thèse selon laquelle le manque de régulation en matière de financement des partis en Suisse pourrait partiellement expliquer les inégalités dans la représentation des opinions politiques des citoyens aux revenus distincts. - Do economic inequalities translate into political inequalities through electoral representation? This is the central research question of this thesis, which also investigates the mechanisms that lead to potential economically based inequalities in the representation of citizens' policy preferences. Focusing on the case of Switzerland and making use of data provided by the post- electoral survey Selects 2007, this research demonstrates that regarding the rare policy domains in which the preferences of citizens are clearly linked to economic cleavages - redistribution and social security in particular - members of the Federal Assembly have policy preferences that best reflect the policy preferences of richer citizens. The under-representation of the opinions of relatively poor citizens and of those being the in the middle of the income distribution can be to some extent be explained by differences in political participation and political information across income groups. The thesis also puts forward the role played by descriptive representation - the similarity between representatives and represented in terms of their socioeconomic status - for the representation of citizens' preferences and interests. In addition, the structure of the party system in Switzerland does not reflect the multidimensionality of policy preferences among citizens who, as a result, have a hard time translating their complex preferences into a vote choice. Given the configuration of political actors, this tends to favour the election of representatives from the right who do not represent the preferences of their voters on economic issues. Finally, an analysis of representation at the cantonal level tends to confirm that the lack of party finance regulations in Switzerland may partially explain inequalities in the representation of citizens with different levels of income.

6

Corporations do not exist in a vacuum, they are embedded in a socio-political context. This context shapes our ideas about what managers within corporations and corporations within society do or should do. The rise of a global world order at the threshold of the 21st century is transforming our society at high speed. Questions of business integrity and sustainability move center stage. This book, written on the occasion of the HEC Lausanne centennial by some thirty professors, discusses various aspects of responsible management practices for the 21st century and provides some key insights for managers today and tomorrow.

Five essays on bankruptcy

Chapter 2 Bankruptcy Initiation In The New Era of Chapter 11 2.1 Abstract The bankruptcy act of 1978 placed corporate managers (as debtor in possession) in control of the bankruptcy process. Between 2000 and 2001 managers apparently lost this control to secured creditors. This study examines financial ratios of firms filing for bankruptcy between 1993 and 2004 and tests the hypothesis that the change from manager to creditor control created or exacerbated the managerial (and dominant creditor) incentive to delay bankruptcy filing. We find a clear deterioration in the financial conditions of firms filing after 2001. This is consistent with managers (or creditors who control them) delaying filing for bankruptcy. We also observe patterns of operating losses and liquidations that suggest adverse economic consequences from such delay. Chapter 3 Bankruptcy Resolution: Priority of Claims with the Secured Creditor in Control 3.1 Abstract We present new evidence on the violation of priority of claims in bankruptcy using a sample of 222 firms that tiled for Chapter 11 bankruptcy over the 1993-2004 period. Our study reveals a dramatic reduction in the violations of priority of claims compared to research on prior periods. These results are consistent with changes in both court practices and laws transferring power to the secured creditors over our sample period. We also find an increase in the time from the date of a bankruptcy filing to reaching plan confirmation where priority is not violated. Chapter 4 Bankruptcy Resolution: Speed, APR Violations and Delaware 4.1 Abstract We analyze speed of bankruptcy resolution on a sample of 294 US firms filing for bankruptcy in the 1993-2004 period. We find strong association between type of Chapter II filing and speed of bankruptcy resolution. We also find that violations to the absolute priority rule reduce the time from bankruptcy filing to plan confirmation. This is consistent with the hypothesis that creditors are willing to grant concessions in exchange for faster bankruptcy resolution. Furthermore, after controlling for the type of filing and violations to the absolute priority rule, we do not find any difference in the duration of the bankruptcy process for firms filing in Delaware, New York, or other bankruptcy districts. Chapter 5 Financial Distress and Corporate Control 5.1 Abstract We examine the replacement rates of directors and executives in 63 firms filing for bank ruptcy during the 1995-2002 period. We find that over 76% of directors and executives are replaced in the four year period from the year prior to the bankruptcy filing through three years after. These rates are higher than those found in prior research and is consistent with changes in bankruptcy procedures and practice (i.e. the increased secured creditors control over the process due to both DIP financing and changes in the Uniform Commercial Code) having a significant impact on the corporate governance of firms in financial distress. Chapter 6 Financial Statement Restatements: Decision to File for Bankruptcy 6.1 Abstract On a sample of 201 firms that restated their financial statements we analyze the process of regaining investor trust in a two year period after the restatement. We find that 20% of firms that restate their financial statements tile for bankruptcy or restructure out of court. Our results also indicate that the decisions to change auditor or management is correlated with a higher probability of failure. Increased media attention appears to partly explain the decision of firms to restructure their debt or tile for bankruptcy.

Du capitalisme familial au capitalisme financier? : le cas de l'industrie suisse des machines, de l'électrotechnique et de la métallurgie au 20e siècle

L'objectif principal de cette thèse consiste à mettre en évidence la persistance du capitalisme familial en Suisse au cours du 20e siècle, et sa résistance aux capitalismes managérial et financier qui sont censés lui avoir succédé. Pour ce faire, nous avons retenu vingt-deux grandes entreprises du secteur des machines, de l'électrotechnique et de la métallurgie - principale branche de l'industrie suisse pour la période considérée -, pour lesquelles ont été recensés les membres des conseils d'administration et les principaux dirigeants exécutifs pour cinq dates- repère couvrant le siècle (1910, 1937, 1957, 1980 et 2000). Cette thèse s'inscrit dans une démarche pluridisciplinaire qui relève à la fois de l'histoire d'entreprise et de la sociologie des dirigeants, et fait appel à différentes méthodes telles que l'analyse de réseau et l'analyse prosopographique. Elle s'articule autour de trois axes de recherche principaux : le premier vise à mettre en évidence l'évolution des modes de gouvernance dans notre groupe d'entreprises, le second investit la question de la coordination patronale et le troisième a pour but de dresser un portrait collectif des élites à la tête de nos vingt-deux firmes. Nos résultats montrent que durant la majeure partie du siècle, la plupart de nos entreprises sont contrôlées par des familles et fonctionnent sur un mode de coordination hors marché qui repose notamment sur un réseau dense de liens interfirmes, le profil des dirigeants restant dans l'ensemble stable. Si la fin du siècle est marquée par plusieurs changements qui confirment l'avènement d'un capitalisme dit financier ou actionnarial et la mise en place de pratiques plus concurrentielles parmi les firmes et les élites industrielles, le maintien du contrôle familial dans plusieurs entreprises et la persistance de certains anciens mécanismes de coopération nous incitent cependant à nuancer ce constat. - The main objective of this research is to highlight the persistence of family capitalism in Switzerland during the 20th century and its resistance to managerial and financial capitalisms that succeeded. For this purpose, we focus on twenty- two big companies of the machine, electrotechnical and metallurgy sector - the main branch of the Swiss industry for the considered period - whose boards of directors and executive managers have been identified for five benchmarks across the century (1910, 1937, 1957, 1980 and 2000). This thesis relates to business history and elites sociology, and uses different methods such as network analysis and prosopography. It is articulated around three main parts. The aim of the first one is to identify the evolution of corporate governance in our twenty-two enterprises, the second part concentrates on interfirms coordination and the objective of the last one is to highlight the profile of the corporate elite leading our firms. Our results show that during the main part of the century, most of the companies were controlled by families and were characterized by non-market mechanisms of coordination such as interlocking directorates ; moreover, the profile of the corporate elite remained very stable. Although some major changes that took place by the end of the century confirmed a transition towards financial capitalism and more competitive interaction among firms and the corporate elite, the persistence of family control in several companies and the maintaining of some former mechanisms of coordination allow us to put this evolution into perspective.

The Half-Life of Election Pledges : What makes MPs change their positions?

"Thou shalt not bear false witness," as we all know. Yet changing one's mind in case of respectable reasons seems to be allowed. Which is good news for politicians, but reduces the effectiveness of prospective voting, i.e. the focus on "the commitments of candidates to take actions that citizens desire to be taken" (Powell 2000: 9). This may be bad news for voters. By comparing pre-election commitments of Swiss members of parliament (MPs) with actual voting behaviour in the lower house of parliament, the following article explores the question how much confidence voters can have in prospective voting and what factors explain (non-)fulfilment of election pledges.

Pre-Election Positions and Voting Behaviour in Parliament: Consistency among Swiss MPs

This article examines the determinants of positional incongruence between pre-election statements and post-election behaviour in the Swiss parliament between 2003 and 2009. The question is examined at the individual MP level, which is appropriate for dispersion-of-powers systems like Switzerland. While the overall rate of political congruence reaches about 85%, a multilevel logit analysis detects the underlying factors which push or curb a candidate's propensity to change his or her mind once elected. The results show that positional changes are more likely when (1) MPs are freshmen, (2) individual voting behaviour is invisible to the public, (3) the electoral district magnitude is not small, (4) the vote is not about a party's core issue, (5) the MP belongs to a party which is located in the political centre, and (6) if the pre-election statement dissents from the majority position of the legislative party group. Of these factors, the last one is paramount.

The Strength of Promissory Representation : What Makes MPs Change their Positions ?

The paper analyses the positional congruence between pre-election statements in the Swiss voting assistance application "smartvote" and post-election behaviour in the Swiss lower house between 2003 and 2009. For this purpose, we selected 34 smartvote questions which subsequently came up in parliament. Unlike previous studies which assessed the program-to-policy linkage of governments or party groups the paper examines the question at the level of individual MPs which seems appropriate for political systems which follow the idea of power dispersion. While the average rate of political congruence is at some 85 percent, a multivariate analysis detects the underlying factors which push or curb a candidate's propensity to change his or her mind once elections are over. The results show that positional changes are more likely if (1) MPs are freshmen, (2) individual voting behaviour is invisible to the public, (3) the vote is not about a party's core issue, (4) the MP belongs to a party which is located in the political centre, and (5) if the pre-election statement is in disagreement with the majority position of the legislative party group. The last-mentioned factor is paramount: the farer away a candidate's pre-election profile from his or her party is located, the weaker turns out to be the electoral link of promissory representation.

Obesity prevention opinions of school stakeholders: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: In general, schools are an important setting to implement current recommendations for obesity prevention in children because the vast majority of children attend school. This study investigated the opinions of different school stakeholders on the feasibility and acceptability of current obesity prevention strategies that could be implemented in Swiss schools. METHODS: Research methods were comprised of a qualitative study which included school directors, physical education teachers, catering staff, school nurses and health educators, parents of young adolescents, and young adolescents interviewed (N = 40) categorized into 6 focus groups. Open-ended questions were used to determine the participants' opinion regarding current obesity prevention recommendations, and healthy eating and physical activity promotion strategies. RESULTS: All participants approved the implementation of nutritional standards for food and drinks sold in schools, but thought that increasing the attractiveness of healthy options was the best strategy to improve eating habits. Enjoying participation in physical activity classes or after-school activities was stressed. Participants suggested offering classes for all students with poor physical condition, independent of weight status. Stakeholders called for governmental support and global coordination of interventions balanced with providing schools with enough autonomy to adapt programs relevant to their individual circumstances. They recommended integrating all school stakeholders in obesity prevention initiatives, with special attention to students and local authorities. CONCLUSIONS: Participants agreed that schools are a crucial setting to implement childhood obesity prevention strategies. They called on school stakeholders to join efforts aiming to encourage healthy behaviors and to support and reinforce parents' efforts by spreading consistent and coherent health messages.