Contrary to expectations, most metastatic tumors are seeded not by single cells from the primary tumor but by clusters of cancer cells. Joan Brugge (HMS) is quoted.
Last year, HMS debuted Pathways, a revised curriculum. Students and professors alike said the demands outside the classroom have increased, and the education at the School better prepares students for their medical careers. Nancy Oriol (HMS), Richard Schwartzstein (Beth Israel Deaconess) and HMS students are quoted.
In order to improve treatment strategies for common conditions among former football players, the Football Players Health Study—led by a team of Harvard researchers —launched TeamStudy, an app that allows larger numbers of participants to be surveyed. Researchers will be able to compare data from former professional players with data from a control group from the general public. Alvaro Pascual-Leone (Beth Israel Deaconess) is quoted. Download the app here.
Lance Munn (Mass General) and Rakesh Jain (Mass General) co-authored this article about research done in the past 15 years that has identified diverse sources of increased pressure in tumors, which may serve as possible targets for cancer therapy.
Any stress on the body—whether a broken leg or bronchitis—in people who have underlying heart disease may cause a heart attack. Pradeep Natarajan (Mass General) is quoted.
New abortion restrictions, including one signed into law in Utah, require doctors to administer anesthesia to women seeking abortions at the 20th week of pregnancy or after. Steven Ralston (Beth Israel Deaconess) is quoted.
The U.S. is one of only two developed countries in the world that allow drug companies to advertise their products on television. This article discusses the specifics of a sleeping pill campaign. Aaron Kesselheim (Brigham and Women’s) is quoted.
A mysterious new form of chronic kidney disease of unknown etiology is affecting mainly poor agricultural areas in the tropics. It takes its heaviest toll in Central America, but it has now been reported in other regions. Ajay K. Singh (Brigham and Women’s) is quoted.
