Social egg freezing (SEF) is a new reproductive technology that is increasingly used within ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities, stirring tensions between tradition and modernity. Based on in-depth semi-structured interviews, this study examined how ultra-Orthodox singles who employ SEF engage in social negotiations over gender- and body-related norms. Findings show that participants successfully assimilated SEF by establishing facts on the ground and discreetly spreading information while actively avoiding tensions that may threaten religious tradition. SEF did not push participants into modern individualism or dissolve their strong connection to the community. However they did modify social boundaries and articulated social criticism.

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Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, which lasted more than two years and included several waves, the present study focused on Jewish communities around the world, in order to understand the role of community during the pandemic. This study focused on the community mechanisms that helped community members to cope with the pandemic. To that end, between October 2021 and July 2022, in-person interviews were conducted with leaders and members of the following communities: Budapest, Hungary; Subotica, Serbia; Vienna, Austria; Bratislava, Slovakia; Vilna, Lithuania; Buenos Aires, Rosario, Salta, and Ushuaia in Argentina; and Mexico City and Cancun in Mexico. Each interview lasted between 45 min and 1.5 h. All of the interviews were audio-recorded and transcripts of those recordings were prepared. Three major themes emerged from the interviews: challenges, coping, and opportunities. Most of these themes were common to the different communities around the world. The findings of this work are discussed in terms of the concept of sense of community and resiliency theories.

OBJECTIVE: The COVID-19 pandemic has been associated with a range of negative responses, including emotional distress, as well as with positive changes, such as posttraumatic growth (PTG). Among the vulnerability factors the literature lists SES and being part of a minority group. The aim of this study is to identify patterns of responses among the ultra-Orthodox Jewish society in Israel, in terms of both emotional distress (anxiety and depression) and multiple dimensions of PTG.
METHODS: The data were collected during the second wave of COVID-19 in Israel, between May and November 2020. The sample included 369 participants, all belonging to the ultra-Orthodox society. Latent class analysis was used to establish heterogeneous classes of participants displaying similar response patterns, using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) for depression, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 index (JAD-7), and the 10-item version of the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI-10). Multinomial regression examined which of the predictors best distinguished between the classes.
RESULTS: Three classes were identified, termed here Resilience, Growth, and Distress. As differential predictors of class membership, the study identified age; gender; self-rated health; and COVID-19-related potential negative experiences: economic decline, concerns, and microaggression. The Resilience and Growth patterns were the most prominent. A small number of participants formed a class characterized by high levels of distress.
CONCLUSIONS: The findings contribute to understanding the psychological response patterns of a minority group to COVID-19. The characteristics of the three classes highlight the important role of potentially negative experiences related to COVID-19 in the response patterns. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

This article focuses on perceptions of the Jewish ultra-Orthodox population in Israel-a religious minority-regarding guidelines enacted by the Israeli Ministry of Health (MOH) during the country\'s second wave of COVID-19, and ways the community coped with the pandemic. Semi-structured interviews with 30 ultra-Orthodox individuals revealed five major discourses reflecting participants\' perceptions. Three discourses objected to MOH guidelines, while the other two aligned with them. The study\'s findings also indicate a lack of cooperation between the ultra-Orthodox population and state health authorities, emphasizing the need to implement culturally adapted health interventions. Study limitations are discussed, and future research recommendations are provided.

UNASSIGNED: Jewish suicides increased heavily under Nazi-rule. This research investigated risk factors for dying from suicide according to sociodemographic characteristics, local context, and time periods.
UNASSIGNED: Nazi-registration of Amsterdam residents of Jewish origin in 1941 linked to death and suicide lists. The added suicides after the Nazi-invasion (1940, n = 115) and the suicides when deportation trains ran (1942/1943, n = 182) were each matched to 25 controls using sex and age. Suicide was compared across migrant, occupational, marital, and religious status and neighborhood religiosity. Conditional logistic regression was applied, stratified by time period.
UNASSIGNED: In 1940, immigrant (cf. native born, odds ratio (OR) 1.89, 95%CI 1.21-2.96, p = .005) and married Jews (cf. previously married) showed higher suicide risk; members of Israelite Congregations (cf. nonmembers, OR 0.35, 95%CI 0.22-0.56, p < .001) showed reduced risk. Jews living in low synagogue rate neighborhoods showed higher risk compared to those living in neighborhoods without any synagogues (OR 2.48, 95%CI 1.65-3.72, p < .001) while those living in high synagogue rate neighborhoods showed no increased risk (OR 0.58, 95%CI 0.30-1.11, p = .10). In 1942/1943, the association between religious status (OR 1.07, 95%CI 0.67, 1.72, p = .77), synagogue rate (OR 1.27, 95%CI 0.91-1.77, p = .16), immigrant status (OR 1.30, 95%CI 0.92-1.84, p = .14) and suicide attenuated; Jews in managerial/professional occupations (cf. workers) or unmarried (cf. married) showed higher risk.
UNASSIGNED: In 1940, immigrants\' higher suicide risk likely indicates greater fear of Nazis while religious affiliation\'s lower risk might indicate a protective effect of religious belief. In 1942/1943, risk differences markedly attenuated likely indicating increased fear of Nazis among all Jews.HighlightsReligiously affiliated Jews showed reduced risk of dying from suicide after the Nazi-invasionJewish immigrants showed higher risk of dying from suicide after the Nazi-invasionBy 1942/1943, these risks attenuated indicating fear of the Nazis spread and nullified religion\'s protection.

Loneliness has been associated with poor health. Social capital (SC) could possibly prevent the ill effects of loneliness. The study aims to assess the association of loneliness with physical and mental health in four different communities in Israel and study the impact of structural and cognitive SC on that association. A cross-sectional face-to-face survey with 4620 adults in four towns was conducted. The questionnaire included self-rated health (SRH), mental health (MH), loneliness, cognitive and structural SC and socioeconomic characteristics. Logistic regression analysis and mediation and moderation effects were calculated. Loneliness was associated with worse SRH (OR = 0.4-0.5) and worse MH (OR = 2.0-10). Both SC variables were associated with health. However, towns differ in these associations. Structural SC serves as a significant mediator between loneliness and SRH in all towns and is a mediator between loneliness and MH in two towns. Cognitive social capital was a moderator between loneliness and MH in two towns. This study suggests that increasing SC could possibly compensate for loneliness and buffer its effect on health. The study reinforces the need for the performance of separate health profiles to assess possible interventions for each community, as not always can we generalize these results to all communities.

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BACKGROUND: Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer syndrome (HBOC) and Lynch syndrome (LS), the most common inherited cancer syndromes, are attributed to a single heterozygous pathogenic variant (PV) in BRCA1/2 or in a DNA MMR gene, respectively. Little is known about the phenotype in double heterozygotes who carry PVs in both genes.
METHODS: Carriers of double-PVs in any DNA MMR gene and BRCA1/2 attending one of three tertiary oncogenetic clinics between 1/2005 and 1/2020 were identified by database search, and their relevant data were retrieved and analyzed.
RESULTS: Eleven double carriers from four seemingly unrelated Ashkenazi Jewish families were evaluated. All carried an Ashkenazi Jewish founder BRCA PV, BRCA2 c.5946delT/c.6174delT (n = 10) or BRCA1 c.185delAG (n = 1). Four carried the MSH2 c.1906G > C founder PV, and 3, the MSH6 c.3984_3987dupGTCA founder PV; 3 patients had the MSH6 c.3956_3957dup PV. Eight double carriers (73%) had cancer: breast cancer (5 cases, 2 bilateral), melanoma (2 cases), urothelial cancer (2 cases), and colon, endometrial, prostate, cutaneous squamous cell cancer, glioblastoma, gastric stromal tumor, and lymphoma (1 case each). Six carriers had 1-2 tumors, one had 3 tumors, and one had 5 primary tumors. Age at diagnosis of the first tumor was 36-76 years. All carriers met NCCN BRCA1/2 testing criteria, and 3 met the revised Bethesda guidelines.
CONCLUSIONS: This case series, supported by the literature, suggests that the phenotype of double MSH2/6 and BRCA1/2 carriers is not associated with early disease onset or a more severe phenotype. The findings have implications for improved genetic testing guidelines and treatment strategies.

According to Jewish law/ethics, continuous life-sustaining therapy may not be withdrawn after its introduction, unless the patient has improved and no longer has a medical indication for the treatment. We report the case of an 88-year-old Orthodox Jewish patient, on invasive mechanical ventilation, with severe anoxic brain injury after multiple cardiac arrests. Although the patient\'s son informed the palliative care team that his father did not want to be in pain or to linger in a vegetative state when terminally ill, the mechanical ventilation was keeping him alive with a poor neurological prognosis. Additionally, the patient had previously stated his wish to observe Orthodox Jewish principles regarding end-of-life care. After extensive discussion, the family Rabbi clarified that it would be acceptable to withdraw mechanical ventilation if there were a \"reasonable expectation\" he would breathe on his own for a \"reasonable amount of time.\" Thus, if the patient\'s death were to occur, it would not be an immediate consequence the normal ventilator weaning process. Following intermediation by the hospital Rabbi, the definition of what would be a \"reasonable expectation\" and \"reasonable amount of time\" was established by the family Rabbi as \"over 50%\" and \"on the order of hours,\" respectively. Following pulmonary consultation, the patient underwent palliative extubation and, 12 hours after the procedure, died comfortably surrounded by the family. In conclusion, the collaborative and interdisciplinary work among the family Rabbi, hospital Rabbi, and the various medical teams allowed the development of a plan that met all of the patient\'s personal and religious wishes and beliefs.