Q. I’m 71 and have taken 20 milligrams (mg) of atorvastatin (Lipitor) since 2010, after an angiogram showed a 90% blockage of a small coronary artery. But I’ve never had angina or a heart attack. My LDL is 70 mg/dL. Should I switch to 20 mg of rosuvastatin (Crestor), which I understand is a higher-intensity […]
Lessons learned from COVID
More than three years after COVID emerged, people are anxious to resume their pre-pandemic lifestyle. But don’t be too quick to return to old habits. “Even though COVID brought stress and anxiety, it also changed how we live and approach our health, and in many ways, for the better,” says Dr. Edward Phillips, founder and […]
A new treatment for advanced prostate cancer improves survival in phase 3 clinical trial
Radiation therapy is getting more precise, enabled by technologies that make it easier to kill tumors while sparing their surrounding tissues. Some newer therapies are even given intravenously instead of by machines, and they deliver radiation particles directly to the cancer cell itself. One of these new therapies — a sort of smart bomb targeted […]
Treating the primary tumor can improve survival in men whose prostate cancer has spread
By: Charles Schmidt New research has shaken up a time-honored strategy for treating advanced prostate cancer that’s begun to metastasize, or spread. Doctors ordinarily treat these cases with systemic therapies designed to kill off metastatic tumors appearing throughout the body. But they don’t use local therapy to treat the primary tumor in the prostate. That’s […]
Salty diet linked to narrowed arteries in the heart and neck
The more salt people eat, the greater their risk of clogged heart and neck arteries, a new study suggests. Arteries narrowed by plaque (atherosclerosis) can lead to heart attacks and strokes. The study, published in March 2023 in the European Heart Journal Open , included 10,788 people ages 50 to 64. Researchers estimated each participant’s […]
Is sugar unhealthy?
It depends on the amount and the food source. Sugar has a complex relationship with health. On one hand, many healthy whole foods contain natural sugar. But the greater concern is the abundance of refined sugar often added to processed foods. “Sugar is a carbohydrate that provides the body with energy, so it has an […]
Women more likely than men to show atypical stroke symptoms
Research we’re watching Women are more likely than men to have stroke symptoms such as confusion and weakness in addition to “classic” signs such as movement and speech problems, a new analysis suggests. The study, published online April 12, 2022, by the International Journal of Stroke , looked at data on nearly 37,000 people diagnosed […]
Have lupus? What to know about birth control
If you’re living with an autoimmune disorder, you’re certainly not alone. An estimated 7% of Americans have an autoimmune disease such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, or multiple sclerosis — there are more than 80 . For reasons that remain mysterious, autoimmune disorders tend to disproportionately affect women. Often, they begin before or during potential child-bearing […]
Embryo donation: One possible path after IVF
For decades, in vitro fertilization (IVF) has enabled countless people to have children, often after years of disappointment. It’s a complex process, medically and emotionally. Those embarking on an IVF cycle are often laser-focused on the baby they long for. Most hope a cycle will yield several embryos, because it frequently takes more than one […]
Asking about guns in houses where your child plays
Guns hurt and kill; it’s a simple fact. And while most gun injuries and deaths are the result of an assault or suicide, unintentional injuries happen all the time, including to children and between them. In the six-year span between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2020, there were at least 2,070 unintentional shootings by […]