Cooking meat provided a huge evolutionary benefit on the plains of Africa for Homo erectus 1.9 million years ago, allowing humans to become the dominant animal on this planet. And now, as billions of people in developing countries are lifted out of poverty, world meat consumption is rising dramatically. In the last half-century, consumption rose […]
Cancer
Managing Cancer at Work Program Wins Digital Health Award
Posted by Diana Cholakian | Perspectives in ResearchTelling a patient she has cancer has become part of my job as a resident physician. In gynecology, cancer can affect women at very young ages. Some of my patients who have cancer are my age. In fact, thinking about the day my patients had before being seen in clinic — leaving work in the […]
Oct 29, 2015
The Week of the Pancreas: Finding a Work-Life Balance
Posted by Ruchi Doshi | A Day in the LifeI vividly remember one particular week during my medicine subinternship as the Week of the Pancreas. On the wards, I was caring for two patients with pancreatitis: one acute, one chronic. Then, I admitted a third patient with heretofore-undiagnosed metastatic pancreatic cancer. To top it all off, midweek, I received a phone call from one […]
Sep 25, 2015
Consistent Spicy Food Consumption May Lower Risk of Death
Posted by michellekim | Perspectives in ResearchEggs are a great source of nutrients. Eggs are too high in cholesterol. Meat will make you strong. Meat will lead to heart disease. The cultural and medical messages regarding our diet are multitudinous and often contradictory. This is not surprising, given that moderation, especially when dealing with diet, is an ever-elusive virtue for many […]
Sep 23, 2015
Clinical trial to target cancer drugs to gene mutations for individualized therapy
Posted by Paul Sirajuddin | Perspectives in ResearchImagine a scenario where a patient comes into the clinic with a suspected cancer. The clinician not only confirms that the patient does indeed have cancer, but also identifies a specific gene abnormality that is driving the tumor. Without hesitating, the doctor prescribes a cancer drug that specifically targets the gene mutation responsible for the […]
Jul 20, 2015
Columbia Researchers Discover Contagious Cancer in Clams
Posted by Bree Yanagisawa | Perspectives in ResearchWhat comes to mind when you hear the word “contagious”? For most of us, it’s infectious agents, such as viruses and bacteria. However, recent evidence suggests that these agents may not be the only existing contagious elements in our world. In a recent article published in Cell, researchers at Columbia University discussed an investigation of […]
Jul 6, 2015
Johns Hopkins’ Dr. Donald Coffey Honored for Cancer Research, Mentoring
Posted by Paul Sirajuddin | Honor RollAt the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting this past April, Donald Coffey, Ph.D., was honored with the ninth annual Margaret Foti Award for Leadership and Extraordinary Achievements in Cancer Research. The award recognizes individuals whose leadership and achievements have demonstrated a major impact in the cancer research. The contributions Dr. Coffey has […]
Jun 22, 2015