10.21
Health Sciences
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.
How many American cities protect the rights of employed breastfeeding mothers?
In the United States, the majority of women have to work. But of the 151 largest U.S. cities, only New York and Philadelphia safeguard their rights.
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.
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.
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.
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
Philadelphia Inquirer
Depression often goes undiagnosed. Researchers are turning to Facebook to change that
Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine co-authored a study on social media and mental illness. “Depression is a really debilitating disease and we have treatments that can help people,” said Raina Merchant. “We want to think of new ways to get people resources and identification for depression earlier.”
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CNN
Smoking featured in half of hip-hop videos, study finds
The Annenberg Public Policy Center’s Dan Romer offered commentary on a study of smoking in music videos. He noted that the study didn’t differentiate between marijuana and tobacco products or consider the role of product placement.
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Philadelphia Inquirer
Brown fat could help fight obesity. This Penn scientist is looking to harness its power
Patrick Seale of the Perelman School of Medicine discussed differing types of human fat: “white fat,” which stores energy, and “brown fat,” which burns it. Seale was recently awarded the Richard E. Weitzman Outstanding Early Career Investigator Award for his research on the subject.
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Time
How scientists are treating breast cancer using the immune system
The Abramson Cancer Center’s Robert Vonderheide described challenges in treating breast cancer. Most cases, he said, “fit into a category we call ‘cold’ immunological tumors, meaning the tumor has the ability to either exclude the immune system or hide from it altogether. That kind of cancer isn’t easily treated with current immunotherapies.”
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Philadelphia Inquirer
Is blackout drinking the same as passing out from alcohol? A Penn psychologist explains
The Perelman School of Medicine’s Reagan Wetherill discussed common misconceptions about alcohol-related blackouts. People in a blackout are “conscious and interacting with their environment,” she said. But their brains are “not creating memories” due to alcohol’s impact on the hippocampus.
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