8.17
Health Sciences
Bringing nursing to the most remote places
Registered nurse Nancy Bonalumi teamed up with Project Helping Hands, a nonprofit organization that deploys volunteer medical teams to remote areas in developing nations, from Nepal to Kenya, and recently returned from her fifth visit to Bolivia.
A whol(istic) new approach to cancer treatment
At Pennsylvania Hospital, the Abramson Cancer Center’s seven-week Holistic Living Challenge program provides free access to holistic and traditional Chinese medicine resources, encouraging patients to focus on adopting wellness practices in a supportive group environment.
Making hepatitis C-infected organs safe for transplantation
Twenty patients at Penn Medicine have been cured of the hepatitis C virus following lifesaving kidney transplants from deceased donors who were infected with the disease. The kidney transplants for these patients, too, are functioning just as well as kidneys that are transplanted from similar donors without HCV.
Architects of innovation
The Pavilion at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania is rising as a towering example of the value of behavioral research in health-care building design.
Two students’ paths to White Coat Day
Ralph St. Luce & Rotem Kimia, two members of a new class of medical students at the Perelman School of Medicine, discuss what brought them to medicine, in anticipation of the school's annual White Coat Ceremony.
Drugs in development for cancer may also fight brain diseases, including ALS
In a study done by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine and the School of Arts and Sciences, PARP inhibitors, which are used for fighting cancer, can be useful for the treatment and prevention of brain disorders such as ALS.
Cancer cells send out ‘drones’ to battle the immune system from afar
Checkpoint inhibitor therapies have made metastatic melanoma and other cancers a survivable condition, but only for some patients. Researchers uncovered a novel mechanism by which tumors suppress the immune system, raising the possibility that a straightforward blood test could predict which patients could respond to immunotherapy.
Bringing art to inner city teens
Renee Andrea Mills of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania has a passion for helping people and a passion for art, and for the past 25 years, she has combined both in community outreach, sharing the joy of creativity.
Ensuring equality with a framework for workforce inclusion
A study published in JAMA Network Open from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine identifies six factors that measure workforce inequality in delivering health care, as part of Office of Inclusion and Diversity’s equality mission.
Mentoring program introduces high school students to dentistry
The Summer Mentorship Program introduces first-generation and under-represented high school students in Philadelphia to higher education possibilities, including Penn Dental School's four-week immersion program that includes hands-on experience and mentorship with current dental students.
In the News
The Washington Post
Study: When a city’s trashy lots are cleaned up, residents’ mental health improves
Eugenia South of the Perelman School of Medicine discussed the numerous benefits of cleaning vacant lots in urban neighborhoods. “We can make an impact on the entrenched health problems that we have,” said South.
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Associated Press
3 scientists share $500,000 prize for work on cancer therapy
Carl June of the Perelman School of Medicine was awarded the Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research for his work developing CAR-T cell therapies for treating cancer.
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Philadelphia Inquirer
‘Three Identical Strangers’ and the real science of nature vs. nurture
Rebecca Waller of the School of Arts and Sciences discussed epigenetics, the study of how a person’s environment can effect gene expression.
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Philadelphia Inquirer
New hepatitis C drugs mean diseased organs can be used for transplants
The Perelman School of Medicine’s Peter Reese discussed the possibility of increased rejection in patients who’ve received infected kidneys, saying “we can’t rule it out. It’s possible there’s more immunological injury with hep C infection.”
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The New York Times
Clues to your health are hidden at 6.6 million spots in your DNA
Daniel Rader of the Perelman School of Medicine discussed the availability of genetic screening for early indicators of heart disease.
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