Dangers of Cell Phones
-Priya Gupta
A new observational study utilized emergency room data to analyze the effects cell phones have had on people’s health in the past twenty years. The researchers found that most of the injuries were due to texting while driving or walking, which leads to increased distractions. Distracted driving specifically led to 3,166 deaths in 2017.
The majority of injuries found had occurred in people aged 13-29. In this age bracket, they found about 2,500 people had gone to the emergency room to receive care for head or neck injuries somehow related to their cell phone use. The most common injuries were cuts to the face and head and bruises to brain. In addition, the study found that an increasing number of children under the age of thirteen were being injured by cell phones. Most of these kids were injured due to the cell phone unintentionally striking them, since today’s cell phones are large relative to the size of a small child.
While very significant, these injuries were not the main finding of the study. The more shocking conclusion was the result that cell phones can damage necks and upper backs. This occurs because people tend to look down at their phone, which doubles the pressure being put on the spine. Doing this for an extended period of time can strain the spine and even cause it to be misaligned. This results in the tissue eventually becoming inflamed. However, because this data is very new, the long term effects of this spinal misalignment are not known.
Although these results seem conclusive, the researchers admit to having some limitations in their study. For example, they did not evaluate the patients to see if they had any preexisting conditions which may have increased their risk of injury. In addition, they analyzed only emergency room data, so patients who were examined at an urgent care facility were not included.
Despite the discussed limitations, the results from this study still need to be considered. Due to this large increase in injury, cell phone safety has recently become a focus of public health professionals. While these injuries are very serious, they are also preventable. Spreading information to the public about how to reduce injuries from cell phones is the first step in decreasing these statistics.
December 4, 2019
The majority of injuries found had occurred in people aged 13-29. In this age bracket, they found about 2,500 people had gone to the emergency room to receive care for head or neck injuries somehow related to their cell phone use. The most common injuries were cuts to the face and head and bruises to brain. In addition, the study found that an increasing number of children under the age of thirteen were being injured by cell phones. Most of these kids were injured due to the cell phone unintentionally striking them, since today’s cell phones are large relative to the size of a small child.
While very significant, these injuries were not the main finding of the study. The more shocking conclusion was the result that cell phones can damage necks and upper backs. This occurs because people tend to look down at their phone, which doubles the pressure being put on the spine. Doing this for an extended period of time can strain the spine and even cause it to be misaligned. This results in the tissue eventually becoming inflamed. However, because this data is very new, the long term effects of this spinal misalignment are not known.
Although these results seem conclusive, the researchers admit to having some limitations in their study. For example, they did not evaluate the patients to see if they had any preexisting conditions which may have increased their risk of injury. In addition, they analyzed only emergency room data, so patients who were examined at an urgent care facility were not included.
Despite the discussed limitations, the results from this study still need to be considered. Due to this large increase in injury, cell phone safety has recently become a focus of public health professionals. While these injuries are very serious, they are also preventable. Spreading information to the public about how to reduce injuries from cell phones is the first step in decreasing these statistics.
December 4, 2019
Are Machines Racially Biased?
-James He
This past summer, one of my peers at the Jackson Laboratory attempted to teach a machine to diagnose certain pathological conditions based on histological analysis of tissue biopsies. By the end of ten weeks, a computer was capable of generating diagnoses with the same accuracy of a practicing pathologist. While my mother, a pathologist, was impressed with the technology, she couldn’t help but consider the implications on her job as a physician. To her relief, it seems that a future with computer doctors is still far off, as a recent article from ScienceNews came out stating that a health care algorithm called Impact Pro is racially biased.
Impact Pro is widely employed in the healthcare industry to identify patients for special programs aiming to alleviate chronic health conditions, such as diabetes. It takes in a patient’s past health costs to assign an individualized risk score that represents their health needs. In theory, patients with the same risk score should be equally ill, but there is a huge flaw-black patients have lower medical costs, but are equally, if not more, sick than white patients.
Through an analysis of over 50,000 patients from a hospital using Impact Pro, researchers found that black patients with risk scores above the 97th percentile, the threshold for automatic enrollment into a special program, had 26.3% more chronic illnesses than white patients with similar scores. Overall, one fifth of the patients above the 97th percentile were black, despite data showing them to become sicker, on average. As a consequence, many black patients won’t receive the medical attention they need. When the researchers adjusted the algorithm to assign risk scores based on the number of chronic illnesses, black patients represented 46.5% of individuals with scores above the 97th percentile, as opposed to 17.7% with the previous prediction metric. Given the right metrics, the algorithm can be very useful.
This recent study underscores two major issues with healthcare: patient costs and racial bias. The disparity in medical costs between different patient populations led to this racially biased algorithm, and the fact that patients of lower socioeconomic class require financial accommodation to meet their health needs can raise prices for more affluent patients. Racial bias is prevalent in our current society and impacts important decisions in the healthcare industry. If we aim to teach machines how to care for patients, we have to fix our own problems first.
December 4, 2019
Insulin Mix-Ups
-Priya Gupta
Jacquelyn House is a facility in Oklahoma that assists “intellectually and developmentally disabled” people. Last Wednesday, EMS and fire crews were called to the house for multiple unresponsive people. Upon arriving, they found ten patients, some of whom were unconscious, and others who were conscious but unable to vocalize their symptoms. The EMS staff was able to find the cause of this problem: The patients had been injected with insulin instead of the influenza vaccine they were supposed to receive. Insulin, a drug used to treat diabetes, can have serious side effects if taken when it is not needed. For instance, it can cause sweating, nervousness, and lightheadedness. As a result, all ten of the people who had received this incorrect injection were taken to the hospital and treated there. In addition to having many side effects, the insulin given was also long-acting, so many of these people remained in the hospital overnight.
At this time, the incident is believed to be accidental. The pharmacist who was contracted to administer the vaccines is thought to be the one who made this error.
While incidents such as this one are not routine, they have happened before. For example, in Indianapolis earlier this year, the students of a school district were required to have a tuberculosis test before on-site clinical hours for their local health science program. However, the sixteen students were actually injected with insulin instead of the TB test. In this situation, the students were again taken to the hospital due to the serious side effects increased insulin levels can cause.
Luckily, both these accidents were resolved without any serious complications or deaths. Despite this, it is still important to realize the severity of a mix-up like this and take measures to ensure it will not happen again.
November 12, 2019
At this time, the incident is believed to be accidental. The pharmacist who was contracted to administer the vaccines is thought to be the one who made this error.
While incidents such as this one are not routine, they have happened before. For example, in Indianapolis earlier this year, the students of a school district were required to have a tuberculosis test before on-site clinical hours for their local health science program. However, the sixteen students were actually injected with insulin instead of the TB test. In this situation, the students were again taken to the hospital due to the serious side effects increased insulin levels can cause.
Luckily, both these accidents were resolved without any serious complications or deaths. Despite this, it is still important to realize the severity of a mix-up like this and take measures to ensure it will not happen again.
November 12, 2019
Another Week, Another CRISPR Update: Revolutionizing Cancer Therapy
-James He
Just last week, I reported on current research investigating the use of CRISPR’s unique gene editing technology to combat harmful bacteria and viruses. Promising results from different studies have demonstrated a proof of concept, indicating that this method may have the potential to translate into a novel approach to antibiotics and antiviral therapies. This idea has led to a question of whether the same can be achieved to cancer therapy. Researchers and clinicians responded with intense determination and thorough investigation into the idea, and have now produced encouraging clinical results that point to the golden answer, “Yes.”
Researchers and doctors at the University of Pennsylvania Abramson Cancer Center are currently testing the efficacy of CRISPR-mediated gene therapy for three patients with advanced cancers. Taking advantage of CRISPR’s precise gene editing capabilities, the scientists developed an approach that involved editing each patient’s own immune cells to selectively target tumor cells. Specifically, T-cells were extracted from the blood of these patients and then modified through the addition of a “warhead” that would be directed towards a protein called NY-ESO-1 predominantly specific to cancer cells. Millions of these cells were then infused back into the patients, stimulating propagation of the newly introduced tumor surveillance system. Nine months later, these patients have experienced no adverse responses to this procedure, a positive sign for the possible expansion of this treatment for other cancer types. The next step will be to assess whether the patient’s modified T-cells are capable of doing what they’re designed to-kill tumor cells while leaving normal, healthy cells untouched.
Meanwhile, other CRISPR-mediated cancer therapeutics are being explored around the world, and the prospect of transforming grim prognoses into hopeful outcomes is attractive to researchers, physicians, and patients. The potential for this gene-editing technology certainly seems boundless at the moment. If it can parallel the positive outcomes of CAR-T cell therapy, CRISPR treatment may be the next FDA-approved gene editing therapy to enter the landscape of cancer therapeutics.
November 12, 2019
Researchers and doctors at the University of Pennsylvania Abramson Cancer Center are currently testing the efficacy of CRISPR-mediated gene therapy for three patients with advanced cancers. Taking advantage of CRISPR’s precise gene editing capabilities, the scientists developed an approach that involved editing each patient’s own immune cells to selectively target tumor cells. Specifically, T-cells were extracted from the blood of these patients and then modified through the addition of a “warhead” that would be directed towards a protein called NY-ESO-1 predominantly specific to cancer cells. Millions of these cells were then infused back into the patients, stimulating propagation of the newly introduced tumor surveillance system. Nine months later, these patients have experienced no adverse responses to this procedure, a positive sign for the possible expansion of this treatment for other cancer types. The next step will be to assess whether the patient’s modified T-cells are capable of doing what they’re designed to-kill tumor cells while leaving normal, healthy cells untouched.
Meanwhile, other CRISPR-mediated cancer therapeutics are being explored around the world, and the prospect of transforming grim prognoses into hopeful outcomes is attractive to researchers, physicians, and patients. The potential for this gene-editing technology certainly seems boundless at the moment. If it can parallel the positive outcomes of CAR-T cell therapy, CRISPR treatment may be the next FDA-approved gene editing therapy to enter the landscape of cancer therapeutics.
November 12, 2019
Does Your Cognitive Ability Change with Old Age?
-Sonya Srinath
Cognitive ability ebbs and flows throughout our lives, but can good cognitive ability when you’re young predict good cognitive ability throughout your life?
The reference article from Science Daily summarizes a longitudinal study done on 502 British participants. All were born in the same week in 1946. At eight years old, each participant took a series of tests to measure cognitive ability (memory tests, attention tests, language tests, etc). They were then given the same test again at age 70 to see what changed in each participant with age. There are a few major conclusions drawn from the study.
First, it was found that those who scored high on the cognitive tests at eight years old also scored high at 70 years old. This is an important point.
Second, certain factors contributed to a higher score. Those who received a college education scored better than those who did not complete schooling past sixteen years old (in Great Britain, students go on to further education after sixteen). Interestingly, women were found to perform better than men in tests measuring memory and speed of thought. Socioeconomic status was also very loosely correlated with a higher score on certain cognition tests.
It should be noted that the presence of amyloid plaques was also correlated with a lower score. Amyloid plaques are a characteristic signs of the development of Alzheimer’s Disease. Alzheimer’s Disease is a brain disorder that affects millions of people yearly. It is a devastating disorder--symptoms include loss of memory, atrophy of important areas of the brain, significantly decreased cognitive ability, and eventual loss of the ability to function in day-to-day life. In the study performed, each of the participants had PET scans and MRI’s done to check for the presence of amyloid plaques. It was found in the study that the presence of amyloid plaques did not necessarily mean that the participant displayed any symptoms of Alzheimer’s--in fact, amyloid plaques can develop well before the presentation of any symptoms of Alzheimer’s. This is an important discovery, and will no doubt aid scientists in finding the best possible treatment for the disorder.
The study was hugely limited by the fact that every single participant was white. Education, socioeconomic status, and childhood cognition differ within all races. Alzheimer’s does not discriminate, either--it affects people from all races and ethnicities. Race and ethnicity are factors that must be taken into account to properly study any disorder, not just Alzheimer’s. It is also important in studies like this one, because the sample in the study is not representative of the population (the population being all humans).
In a nutshell, the article suggests that childhood cognitive skills can result in greater cognitive ability in old age, when a person is likely to develop dementia or other issues with cognition--in other words, if it started high, it’s likely to be high even sixty years later. It’s important to take as many preventative measures as possible to delay a decline in cognitive ability. It’s important to remember the use it or lose it principle. The best measures one can take to delay the reduction of cognitive ability due to age is to exercise both the body and the mind. Keeping your skills sharpened and ready for use throughout life will help massively in the long run.
November 12, 2019
The reference article from Science Daily summarizes a longitudinal study done on 502 British participants. All were born in the same week in 1946. At eight years old, each participant took a series of tests to measure cognitive ability (memory tests, attention tests, language tests, etc). They were then given the same test again at age 70 to see what changed in each participant with age. There are a few major conclusions drawn from the study.
First, it was found that those who scored high on the cognitive tests at eight years old also scored high at 70 years old. This is an important point.
Second, certain factors contributed to a higher score. Those who received a college education scored better than those who did not complete schooling past sixteen years old (in Great Britain, students go on to further education after sixteen). Interestingly, women were found to perform better than men in tests measuring memory and speed of thought. Socioeconomic status was also very loosely correlated with a higher score on certain cognition tests.
It should be noted that the presence of amyloid plaques was also correlated with a lower score. Amyloid plaques are a characteristic signs of the development of Alzheimer’s Disease. Alzheimer’s Disease is a brain disorder that affects millions of people yearly. It is a devastating disorder--symptoms include loss of memory, atrophy of important areas of the brain, significantly decreased cognitive ability, and eventual loss of the ability to function in day-to-day life. In the study performed, each of the participants had PET scans and MRI’s done to check for the presence of amyloid plaques. It was found in the study that the presence of amyloid plaques did not necessarily mean that the participant displayed any symptoms of Alzheimer’s--in fact, amyloid plaques can develop well before the presentation of any symptoms of Alzheimer’s. This is an important discovery, and will no doubt aid scientists in finding the best possible treatment for the disorder.
The study was hugely limited by the fact that every single participant was white. Education, socioeconomic status, and childhood cognition differ within all races. Alzheimer’s does not discriminate, either--it affects people from all races and ethnicities. Race and ethnicity are factors that must be taken into account to properly study any disorder, not just Alzheimer’s. It is also important in studies like this one, because the sample in the study is not representative of the population (the population being all humans).
In a nutshell, the article suggests that childhood cognitive skills can result in greater cognitive ability in old age, when a person is likely to develop dementia or other issues with cognition--in other words, if it started high, it’s likely to be high even sixty years later. It’s important to take as many preventative measures as possible to delay a decline in cognitive ability. It’s important to remember the use it or lose it principle. The best measures one can take to delay the reduction of cognitive ability due to age is to exercise both the body and the mind. Keeping your skills sharpened and ready for use throughout life will help massively in the long run.
November 12, 2019
Decline of EMS in America
-Priya Gupta
In America, every state has some form of an emergency medical service, or EMS, that provides prehospital care and transportation to patients. Ever since the publication of “Accidental Death and Disability: The Neglected Disease of Modern Society” by the National Academy of Sciences in 1966, also known as the “White Papers,” emergency medical responders have been a critical part of standard medical care. However, in some parts of the country, these systems are slowly collapsing. For many reasons, states are unable to support EMS systems, which can lead to patient care being significantly delayed. This problem is especially prevalent in rural parts of the United States. In these areas, there is a severe shortage of EMS workers, which makes the system inefficient.
One of the reasons why many EMS systems are short workers is that the majority of services are composed of volunteers rather than paid workers. This makes it difficult to attract new workers and keep the current ones. Since EMS workers typically have to go through expensive courses to become certified, some of them choose to work for commercial ambulance services rather than volunteer services, which are not available in many rural areas. Unlike fire and police departments, most states do not legally require EMS, meaning they also do not provide funding for them. In addition to the lack of paid positions, many rural areas are experiencing both an aging population and a decrease in population size. These two trends together means there are less people available to work in EMS.
In addition to the decline of EMS, many of these areas are also experiencing a decrease in hospitals, for some of the same reasons. These results in the few functioning ambulances having to drive even further to reach a hospital, which can have severe, even fatal, results for the patients. This means ambulances are taking longer to answer each call, so other patients must wait longer times.
Emergency medical services across the country are implementing various changes to combat this issue. One of the most prominent solutions has been to begin paying emergency medical responders. Although this is not possible in some areas due to lack of money, it has had some success in systems that have done this. As a way to raise more money, some services have even started transporting patients to appointments and between hospitals in addition to responding to 911 calls. Whatever the solution, the shortage in EMS is a serious problem that must be addressed quickly.
October 29, 2019
One of the reasons why many EMS systems are short workers is that the majority of services are composed of volunteers rather than paid workers. This makes it difficult to attract new workers and keep the current ones. Since EMS workers typically have to go through expensive courses to become certified, some of them choose to work for commercial ambulance services rather than volunteer services, which are not available in many rural areas. Unlike fire and police departments, most states do not legally require EMS, meaning they also do not provide funding for them. In addition to the lack of paid positions, many rural areas are experiencing both an aging population and a decrease in population size. These two trends together means there are less people available to work in EMS.
In addition to the decline of EMS, many of these areas are also experiencing a decrease in hospitals, for some of the same reasons. These results in the few functioning ambulances having to drive even further to reach a hospital, which can have severe, even fatal, results for the patients. This means ambulances are taking longer to answer each call, so other patients must wait longer times.
Emergency medical services across the country are implementing various changes to combat this issue. One of the most prominent solutions has been to begin paying emergency medical responders. Although this is not possible in some areas due to lack of money, it has had some success in systems that have done this. As a way to raise more money, some services have even started transporting patients to appointments and between hospitals in addition to responding to 911 calls. Whatever the solution, the shortage in EMS is a serious problem that must be addressed quickly.
October 29, 2019
Are CRISPR Antibiotics on the Horizon?
-James He
By now, you have probably heard of CRISPR, one of the most prominent gene editing techniques that has transformed biological research. The impact that CRISPR initially spurred on the scientific research community was so profound that it almost immediately asked the question of whether this could be used in a clinical setting to prevent drastic genetic diseases from ever manifesting in the first place. Widespread ethical debates contemplated the humanitarian boundaries that a direct use of this technology in a clinical setting should involve, as sticky situations may come with exploitation of such a powerful tool. Nevertheless, while this debate continues, scientists are exploring the ways CRISPR can be used to innovate healthcare.
Ironically, recent focuses of CRISPR technology are directed towards attacking bacteria, the microorganisms from which CRISPR was originally discovered. A research team led by Dr. David Edgell at the Western University in London, Ontario harnessed the power of CRISPR as well as an associated enzyme called Cas9 to eradicate a species of Salmonella. Akin to a bacteria’s endogeneous ability to use CRISPR methods to target previously recognized viral DNA and effectively remove the virus, the research team encoded instructions for Cas9 to search specifically for Salmonella DNA. If found, a CRISPR-Cas9 complex would cleave it out, ultimately leading to death of the bacteria. Cleverly, they inserted these directions into E. coli bacteria that is expected to exist in a healthy gut microbiome. After adding in Salmonella to a petri dish with the genetically engineered E. coli, almost all of the Salmonella bacteria was gone while the E. coli remained unscathed.
This promising result is one of many CRISPR-related approaches to synthesizing new antimicrobial products. Scientists at the Broad Institute of M.I.T. and Harvard have expanded the concept to targeting notable single-stranded RNA viruses that plague humans, such as influenza A. Positive results seen with CRISPR-mediated targeting of bacteria as well as viruses have excited scientists and healthcare professionals. Although further testing needs to be done in live animals and even humans before a CRISPR antibiotic is prescribed, it’s clear that the flexibility and accuracy of CRISPR technology may very well transform healthcare.
October 29, 2019
Ironically, recent focuses of CRISPR technology are directed towards attacking bacteria, the microorganisms from which CRISPR was originally discovered. A research team led by Dr. David Edgell at the Western University in London, Ontario harnessed the power of CRISPR as well as an associated enzyme called Cas9 to eradicate a species of Salmonella. Akin to a bacteria’s endogeneous ability to use CRISPR methods to target previously recognized viral DNA and effectively remove the virus, the research team encoded instructions for Cas9 to search specifically for Salmonella DNA. If found, a CRISPR-Cas9 complex would cleave it out, ultimately leading to death of the bacteria. Cleverly, they inserted these directions into E. coli bacteria that is expected to exist in a healthy gut microbiome. After adding in Salmonella to a petri dish with the genetically engineered E. coli, almost all of the Salmonella bacteria was gone while the E. coli remained unscathed.
This promising result is one of many CRISPR-related approaches to synthesizing new antimicrobial products. Scientists at the Broad Institute of M.I.T. and Harvard have expanded the concept to targeting notable single-stranded RNA viruses that plague humans, such as influenza A. Positive results seen with CRISPR-mediated targeting of bacteria as well as viruses have excited scientists and healthcare professionals. Although further testing needs to be done in live animals and even humans before a CRISPR antibiotic is prescribed, it’s clear that the flexibility and accuracy of CRISPR technology may very well transform healthcare.
October 29, 2019
Can Doctors' Beliefs About Treatment Act As A Placebo For Patients?
-Veolette Hanna
The placebo effect is known as the phenomena that occurs when a patient’s beliefs about an inert treatment seem to still cause some sort of physical relief or cure. An example of a placebo can be a sugar pill used as a control in a drug experiment. Researchers have recently found that another placebo effect is caused by doctors and the social cues they may subconsciously display to their patients. Luke Chang, the director of the Computational Social Affective Neuroscience Laboratory at Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH, is the author of the study. Researchers tested two different creams that were meant to relieve heat-induced pain by targeting pain receptors on the participants' skin. The experiments were unique in that while the two creams were claimed to be thermedol and a control cream, and they both had different appearances, they were both placebos: petroleum jelly. The researchers asked undergraduate students to play the roles of "doctors" and "patients." They informed the "doctors" of the creams' benefits and conditioned them to believe that thermedol was better at relieving pain than the control cream. Researchers applied the creams to the participants' arms, followed by pain-inducing heat, in order to evaluate the effects of the cream. All patients received the same amount of heat. All participants wore cameras that recorded their facial expressions in the doctor-patient interactions. Using a machine-learning algorithm trained on facial signals of pain, the researchers were able to examine the effect of cues such as raised eyebrows, raised upper lips, or nose wrinkling on the perceived effectiveness of the treatments.
In the first experiment, there were 24 doctor-patient pairs, and the patient did not know of any difference between creams, but the doctor was told which cream was the effective one. It was found that the patients reported experiencing less pain with thermedol, and skin conductance tests and analysis of their facial expressions also reflected this result. This indicates a social transfer of the placebo effect.
There were two more experiments done, where doctors were led to believe that they were using thermodol when it was the control cream, and vice versa. It was a double blind study, because this was based on the order of cream application, and the experimenters themselves did not know which cream was which. The same results were found: that whichever cream the doctor was told was effective and not a control had an effect on the patient’s experience of pain. Additional research will have to be done to determine what exact facial cues are being transmitted as subliminal signals from the doctor to the patient.
From the words of Luke Chang, "These findings demonstrate how subtle social interactions can impact clinical outcomes. You can imagine that in a real clinical context, if the healthcare providers seemed competent, empathetic, and confident that a treatment may work, the impact on patient outcomes could be even stronger."
October 29, 2019
In the first experiment, there were 24 doctor-patient pairs, and the patient did not know of any difference between creams, but the doctor was told which cream was the effective one. It was found that the patients reported experiencing less pain with thermedol, and skin conductance tests and analysis of their facial expressions also reflected this result. This indicates a social transfer of the placebo effect.
There were two more experiments done, where doctors were led to believe that they were using thermodol when it was the control cream, and vice versa. It was a double blind study, because this was based on the order of cream application, and the experimenters themselves did not know which cream was which. The same results were found: that whichever cream the doctor was told was effective and not a control had an effect on the patient’s experience of pain. Additional research will have to be done to determine what exact facial cues are being transmitted as subliminal signals from the doctor to the patient.
From the words of Luke Chang, "These findings demonstrate how subtle social interactions can impact clinical outcomes. You can imagine that in a real clinical context, if the healthcare providers seemed competent, empathetic, and confident that a treatment may work, the impact on patient outcomes could be even stronger."
October 29, 2019
EDs and Pregnancy
-Nidhi Patel
Pregnancy is portrayed as a beautiful and typical process in a woman’s life. However, the changes in body image are not commonly focused on in pregnant women whether it be during pregnancy or postpartum.
Women’s bodies undergo significant physical changes during pregnancy as well as after. There is a very rapid weight gain during the trimesters of pregnancy, and often rapid weight loss during postpartum. This could have a significant impact on pregnant women who have a diagnosed eating disorder, or even body dysmorphia in general. These changes in pregnancy become even more apparent for them as they are constantly thinking about their body image. Although many women are accepting of these changes, this study discusses the interaction between eating disorders and pregnancy and how this can impact both mother and baby.
This study focuses on women who have had a diagnosed eating disorder, anorexia nervosa, before getting pregnant and review early intervention strategies for how to manage these pregnant women with eating disorders. The study aims to have a multidisciplinary approach on how to treat these patients.
There are mental health evaluations for mothers in place, especially for postpartum with, for example, postpartum depression. Many women know about this and its strong possibility of arising. However, body image is almost scarcely thought about and evaluated in pregnant women and mothers, which is a disparity that should be bridged, especially within this society that currently pushes a specific body image on females.
October 29, 2019
Women’s bodies undergo significant physical changes during pregnancy as well as after. There is a very rapid weight gain during the trimesters of pregnancy, and often rapid weight loss during postpartum. This could have a significant impact on pregnant women who have a diagnosed eating disorder, or even body dysmorphia in general. These changes in pregnancy become even more apparent for them as they are constantly thinking about their body image. Although many women are accepting of these changes, this study discusses the interaction between eating disorders and pregnancy and how this can impact both mother and baby.
This study focuses on women who have had a diagnosed eating disorder, anorexia nervosa, before getting pregnant and review early intervention strategies for how to manage these pregnant women with eating disorders. The study aims to have a multidisciplinary approach on how to treat these patients.
There are mental health evaluations for mothers in place, especially for postpartum with, for example, postpartum depression. Many women know about this and its strong possibility of arising. However, body image is almost scarcely thought about and evaluated in pregnant women and mothers, which is a disparity that should be bridged, especially within this society that currently pushes a specific body image on females.
October 29, 2019
Homeopathy: Miracle Cure or Pseudoscience?
-Sonya Srinath
Fighting my asthma was an uphill battle for me growing up. In the September following the start of third grade, I had my first asthma attack. Asthma changed my entire life. Something as simple as the dust on top of the fridge could set off my allergies. Pet dander, dust bunnies, and pollen became my enemies. While early fall and spring promised beautiful weather, they also ensured that my inhaler would be my constant companion for the next few months. My summers were spent with family in India—specifically, in highly-polluted cities. My days started with an allergy pill and two puffs from my inhaler, and usually ended with my eyes being so swollen I couldn’t see and my throat so scratchy it became difficult to eat. My mother, desperate for a cure, took me to a doctor my grandmother’s best friend recommended. He cured my arthritis, she’d said. He can cure anything.
When I turned 12, my mother put me in swimming goggles and a surgical mask and took me to a hole-in-the-wall practice in a small Bangalore neighborhood. An elderly man with a scowl on his face entered the room with a clip board. He shook my hand and we sat down to discuss my condition. He was very straightforward, very abrupt—asked my mother and me to keep our answers to his questions as brief and concise as possible. This wasn’t like any doctor’s appointment I’d ever had in my life. He asked me and my mom questions about my habits, my daily routine, my likes, my dislikes, my personality, academic standing… a lot of information that was decidedly not about my condition. Only his last few questions were about my asthma—how long I’d had asthma, the symptoms I was experiencing, and my triggers.
The appointment was over in fifteen minutes. He handed my mother a small bottle full of tiny, round pills. He instructed that I drink a liter of warm water mixed with raw honey and fresh lemon juice first thing in the morning every morning, then take three of the tiny pills daily. My mother thanked him and we left.
The doctor we saw that day prescribed homeopathic medicine. He was a homeopathic doctor. I didn’t know anything about allopathic or homeopathic medicine at the time—all we were hoping for was something that worked. I followed his prescribed routine to a T for the duration of my stay in India. After about a week, my symptoms began to clear up. There was no one as shocked as I was. Upon return to the US, without the sweet, tiny pills, I continued the lemon water routine for a year. By the time I turned 13, my asthma was gone. I’d heard stories of people growing out of their childhood asthma, but my doctor had told us my asthma was likely too severe for this to happen. This is something that perplexes me to this day. Was it a crazy coincidence, or a perfect cure?
Recalling this experience has lead me to do research on homeopathy. It’s a form of alternative medicine—other forms of alternative medicine may include practices such as crystal therapy, herbal remedies, or electromagnetic therapy.
According to the American Journal of Medicine, homeopathy operates on two basic principles: like cures like, and the memory of water. Like cures like refers to the idea that the substance that causes a certain set of symptoms can cure that same set of symptoms. Say a patient comes to a homeopathic doctor with a rash—it’s raging, red, and insufferably itchy. To cure it, the doctor would use something that would trigger the same set of symptoms—rubbing the rash with poison ivy should do the trick. The memory of water phenomenon states, in a nutshell, that a set of ingredients that are said to cure a patient should be diluted so much that they shouldn’t be detectable in the solution.
Homeopathy is a practice that rejects any progressions made in physics and chemistry. No advances are made in this field. Generally, it is said to work mainly for “self-limiting” conditions—or, in other words, conditions that solve themselves. There is no hard evidence that homeopathy works. This could be due a lack of funding for research… or it could be due to the fact that homeopathy is not an effective treatment for illness. An article associated with the University of Minnesota mentions a study done stating that homeopathic remedies cured the flu in a group of patients. Within a 48-hour period, 17% of patients treated with homeopathic remedies had recovered, and 10% of patients given a placebo had recovered. Can these results be explained? Can these results be replicated? How do we factor in the power of placebo?
Allopathic medicine, on the other hand, relies on progression in several scientific fields—biology, physics, psychology, chemistry, etc. etc. Advances are made daily in medicine—especially in first-world countries like the U.S. Discoveries are made using the scientific method, with careful research and experimentation. Allopathic remedies, unlike homeopathic remedies, are proven to treat serious conditions. Cancer is not a self-resolving condition. Cystic fibrosis is not a self-resolving condition. A serious case of salmonella is not self-resolving. Asthma is not entirely self-resolving. How could the principles of homeopathy be used to treat these issues? No—the proper question is the following: is it even possible to use the principles of homeopathy to treat these issues? With no properly-demonstrated efficacy, it’s very difficult to answer this question.
October 29, 2019
When I turned 12, my mother put me in swimming goggles and a surgical mask and took me to a hole-in-the-wall practice in a small Bangalore neighborhood. An elderly man with a scowl on his face entered the room with a clip board. He shook my hand and we sat down to discuss my condition. He was very straightforward, very abrupt—asked my mother and me to keep our answers to his questions as brief and concise as possible. This wasn’t like any doctor’s appointment I’d ever had in my life. He asked me and my mom questions about my habits, my daily routine, my likes, my dislikes, my personality, academic standing… a lot of information that was decidedly not about my condition. Only his last few questions were about my asthma—how long I’d had asthma, the symptoms I was experiencing, and my triggers.
The appointment was over in fifteen minutes. He handed my mother a small bottle full of tiny, round pills. He instructed that I drink a liter of warm water mixed with raw honey and fresh lemon juice first thing in the morning every morning, then take three of the tiny pills daily. My mother thanked him and we left.
The doctor we saw that day prescribed homeopathic medicine. He was a homeopathic doctor. I didn’t know anything about allopathic or homeopathic medicine at the time—all we were hoping for was something that worked. I followed his prescribed routine to a T for the duration of my stay in India. After about a week, my symptoms began to clear up. There was no one as shocked as I was. Upon return to the US, without the sweet, tiny pills, I continued the lemon water routine for a year. By the time I turned 13, my asthma was gone. I’d heard stories of people growing out of their childhood asthma, but my doctor had told us my asthma was likely too severe for this to happen. This is something that perplexes me to this day. Was it a crazy coincidence, or a perfect cure?
Recalling this experience has lead me to do research on homeopathy. It’s a form of alternative medicine—other forms of alternative medicine may include practices such as crystal therapy, herbal remedies, or electromagnetic therapy.
According to the American Journal of Medicine, homeopathy operates on two basic principles: like cures like, and the memory of water. Like cures like refers to the idea that the substance that causes a certain set of symptoms can cure that same set of symptoms. Say a patient comes to a homeopathic doctor with a rash—it’s raging, red, and insufferably itchy. To cure it, the doctor would use something that would trigger the same set of symptoms—rubbing the rash with poison ivy should do the trick. The memory of water phenomenon states, in a nutshell, that a set of ingredients that are said to cure a patient should be diluted so much that they shouldn’t be detectable in the solution.
Homeopathy is a practice that rejects any progressions made in physics and chemistry. No advances are made in this field. Generally, it is said to work mainly for “self-limiting” conditions—or, in other words, conditions that solve themselves. There is no hard evidence that homeopathy works. This could be due a lack of funding for research… or it could be due to the fact that homeopathy is not an effective treatment for illness. An article associated with the University of Minnesota mentions a study done stating that homeopathic remedies cured the flu in a group of patients. Within a 48-hour period, 17% of patients treated with homeopathic remedies had recovered, and 10% of patients given a placebo had recovered. Can these results be explained? Can these results be replicated? How do we factor in the power of placebo?
Allopathic medicine, on the other hand, relies on progression in several scientific fields—biology, physics, psychology, chemistry, etc. etc. Advances are made daily in medicine—especially in first-world countries like the U.S. Discoveries are made using the scientific method, with careful research and experimentation. Allopathic remedies, unlike homeopathic remedies, are proven to treat serious conditions. Cancer is not a self-resolving condition. Cystic fibrosis is not a self-resolving condition. A serious case of salmonella is not self-resolving. Asthma is not entirely self-resolving. How could the principles of homeopathy be used to treat these issues? No—the proper question is the following: is it even possible to use the principles of homeopathy to treat these issues? With no properly-demonstrated efficacy, it’s very difficult to answer this question.
October 29, 2019
New Side Effects of Vaping
-Priya Gupta
Vaping has continued to be a serious problem in the United States for the past few years. Recently, many new studies have tried to determine what the side effects of vaping really are, and how fatal they may be. In a study led by a doctor at Ohio State University, it was found that chemicals in the vaping liquid may be linked to inflammation in the lungs. The liquid used in vapes contain many chemicals, including propylene glycol and glycerin. These two chemicals, when inhaled, may increase the inflammatory cell counts in the lungs.
In this study, the adult participants had a bronchoscopy to allow the researchers to observe the lung tissue and determine their baseline lung tissue health. One group of these participants formed a control group, and the others took twenty puffs of a vape twice a day for an entire month. The liquid used in this study contained only the chemicals of choice (propylene glycol and vegetable glycerine), so the results seen in this study were not contributed to by nicotine or flavors. After the month was over, the adults underwent a second bronchoscopy so that the researchers could again analyze their lung health.
When the researchers compared the lung health of the control group and that of the experimental group, there was no significant differences in inflammatory cells. When the researchers examined the lungs of only the experimental group, however, they found a significant correlation between the amount of propylene glycol inhaled and the amount of inflammatory cells in their lungs. So, it is possible that using vapes over a long period of time would increase inflammation in the person’s lungs, leading to serious health conditions.
While this study does seem to indicate that the chemicals in vaping e-liquid can lead to inflammation in the lungs, it is not conclusive. This study had a fairly small sample size, and the time period was relatively short. Despite this, it is another sign that vaping is a fatal issue in the United States.
October 17, 2019
In this study, the adult participants had a bronchoscopy to allow the researchers to observe the lung tissue and determine their baseline lung tissue health. One group of these participants formed a control group, and the others took twenty puffs of a vape twice a day for an entire month. The liquid used in this study contained only the chemicals of choice (propylene glycol and vegetable glycerine), so the results seen in this study were not contributed to by nicotine or flavors. After the month was over, the adults underwent a second bronchoscopy so that the researchers could again analyze their lung health.
When the researchers compared the lung health of the control group and that of the experimental group, there was no significant differences in inflammatory cells. When the researchers examined the lungs of only the experimental group, however, they found a significant correlation between the amount of propylene glycol inhaled and the amount of inflammatory cells in their lungs. So, it is possible that using vapes over a long period of time would increase inflammation in the person’s lungs, leading to serious health conditions.
While this study does seem to indicate that the chemicals in vaping e-liquid can lead to inflammation in the lungs, it is not conclusive. This study had a fairly small sample size, and the time period was relatively short. Despite this, it is another sign that vaping is a fatal issue in the United States.
October 17, 2019
Neurofeedback: A Novel Means of Treating Mental Depression
-James He
As depression and other mental health conditions are becoming much better defined, their prevalence has increased within the past decade, particularly amongst millennials. Consequently, significant research efforts have been made to identify the neurological and behavioral bases of these diseases, which has led to the development of antidepressants and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in the treatment of depression. However, one problem that arises with treating a mental condition with a recurring daily dosage of medication is that a lack of regularity in taking the medication will severely lower the effectiveness of the treatment. Perhaps a more immediate option can circumvent or supplement this issue.
Recently, researchers from Brazil and the United Kingdom have been investigating the efficacy of neurofeedback therapy using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). This employs the use of neuroimaging to reinforce behaviors that will aid in their treatment. Specifically, the team examined the possibility of using neurofeedback to treat participants with a history of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), one of the most prevalent forms of mental illness.
Prior research showed that those with a history of MDD experience feelings of guilt or excessive self-blame throughout and after a period of MDD, manifesting in decreased connectivity between the right anterior superior temporal lobe (ATL) and anterior subgenual cingulate (SCC), two regions of the brain involved in social interpretation of behavior. This occurrence may precede the onset or recurrence of depression.
Through an analysis of 28 participants with a history of MDD, the researchers observed an improvement in the connectivity of the ATL and SCC in participants receiving an active intervention where they could receive feedback on the connectivity as they described their feelings when recounting an instance of guilt as well as resentment towards others.
Though still in its early stages, this research is a preliminary justification for the potential for neurofeedback to treat a major mental disorder in depression, and further research will further expand this to other diseases and symptoms. With greater proof of concept, the potential for such a method will reap incredible benefits for affected individuals.
October 17, 2019
Recently, researchers from Brazil and the United Kingdom have been investigating the efficacy of neurofeedback therapy using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). This employs the use of neuroimaging to reinforce behaviors that will aid in their treatment. Specifically, the team examined the possibility of using neurofeedback to treat participants with a history of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), one of the most prevalent forms of mental illness.
Prior research showed that those with a history of MDD experience feelings of guilt or excessive self-blame throughout and after a period of MDD, manifesting in decreased connectivity between the right anterior superior temporal lobe (ATL) and anterior subgenual cingulate (SCC), two regions of the brain involved in social interpretation of behavior. This occurrence may precede the onset or recurrence of depression.
Through an analysis of 28 participants with a history of MDD, the researchers observed an improvement in the connectivity of the ATL and SCC in participants receiving an active intervention where they could receive feedback on the connectivity as they described their feelings when recounting an instance of guilt as well as resentment towards others.
Though still in its early stages, this research is a preliminary justification for the potential for neurofeedback to treat a major mental disorder in depression, and further research will further expand this to other diseases and symptoms. With greater proof of concept, the potential for such a method will reap incredible benefits for affected individuals.
October 17, 2019
Can a Healthy Diet Cure Clinical Depression?
-Veolette Hanna
Peer-reviewed scientific studies have shown that the Mediterranean diet is made up of foods full of nutrients and antioxidants that can improve overall health and wellness. A recent study conducted on college young adults, the average age of the participant being 19 years old, has shown that “cutting down processed food intake and increasing fruit, vegetable(s) and fish resulted in improvements in depression symptoms,” according to Heather Francis, Australian neuropsychologist and lead author of the study. Heather hypothesized that the elimination of processed foods can alleviate symptoms of depression because processed foods have been proven to increase inflammation, which is a risk factor of depression. In addition to eliminating processed foods, participants were asked to eat more foods with anti-inflammatory properties. Every day they were asked to eat five servings of vegetables, two to three fruits, three servings of grains, three servings of protein, such as lean meat, poultry, eggs, tofu, or fish (up to three times a week), three servings of unsweetened dairy, three tablespoons of nuts and seeds, two tablespoons of olive oil, and one teaspoon of turmeric and cinnamon.
After 3 months, participants who stuck to the diet had an improved outlook on life and less depressive symptoms. Francis said, “Teens in the study who had the greatest increase in fruit and vegetable consumption showed the most improvement, and those who did not change their diet had no change in their depression from the start of the study.”
A past study conducted on older adults in Australia in 2018 involved a similar diet change and found that 32% of the participants who stuck to the diet lost their depression symptoms and no longer met the criteria for depression. This happened to 8% of the participants who only received social support and did not change their diet. As more researchers conduct these studies, they emphasize the importance of encouraging modest and affordable changes to one’s diet so that patients do not become stressed, discouraged, or overwhelmed. However, increasing data is proving that these dietary changes can have powerful and long-lasting benefits for our mental health when they are followed with dedication and commitment.
October 17, 2019
After 3 months, participants who stuck to the diet had an improved outlook on life and less depressive symptoms. Francis said, “Teens in the study who had the greatest increase in fruit and vegetable consumption showed the most improvement, and those who did not change their diet had no change in their depression from the start of the study.”
A past study conducted on older adults in Australia in 2018 involved a similar diet change and found that 32% of the participants who stuck to the diet lost their depression symptoms and no longer met the criteria for depression. This happened to 8% of the participants who only received social support and did not change their diet. As more researchers conduct these studies, they emphasize the importance of encouraging modest and affordable changes to one’s diet so that patients do not become stressed, discouraged, or overwhelmed. However, increasing data is proving that these dietary changes can have powerful and long-lasting benefits for our mental health when they are followed with dedication and commitment.
October 17, 2019
Peanut Allergy Breakthrough
-Priya Gupta
Peanuts are one of the most common allergens for children in the United States, affecting around 1.2 million people. This allergy is a serious concern and can cause severe reactions, including anaphylactic shock. Despite its serious nature, there are no treatment options that have been approved to cure allergies. The only option most children have is to use epipens, which contain epinephrine. These epipens do not prevent reactions, however, they only treat the symptoms once an anaphylactic attack has begun.
Recently, a new drug called Palforzia has been recommended for approval by the FDA. This drug does not cure the allergy, but it has been proven to treat it. The drug is considered an oral immunotherapy regimen, which means that it targets the immune system. This regimen is given over six months, and it gradually exposes the patient to very small amounts of peanuts. It is made of peanut flour, which gives the person’s body small doses of peanuts until they can eventually handle eating two peanuts. This process works under the idea of developing a tolerance. As the child consumes more peanuts, their body should eventually get used to it. So, the process starts off with only trace amounts of peanuts and works up from there.
Besides possibly saving children from having life-threatening allergic reactions, this drug regimen will change the lifestyles of many parents. Parents of children with severe, anaphylactic peanut allergies live in fear of their child having a reaction. In addition, both children and their parents have to monitor their diets very closely. This treatment, while it will not cure the allergy, will allow children more freedom in what they can eat and will reduce the risk associated with accidentally consuming peanuts.
Although this drug sounds like a great option, it is not officially approved yet. In the ongoing trial stages, around 14% of patients experienced serious allergic reactions while taking this drug. In addition, there are some serious side effects to taking this drug. One in five children had to stop due to side effects, such as a disease of the esophagus known as eosinophilic esophagitis, which is triggered by the peanut flour. However, for about two-thirds of the patients involved in the trial, the drug was a success, making it worth looking into.
Recently, a new drug called Palforzia has been recommended for approval by the FDA. This drug does not cure the allergy, but it has been proven to treat it. The drug is considered an oral immunotherapy regimen, which means that it targets the immune system. This regimen is given over six months, and it gradually exposes the patient to very small amounts of peanuts. It is made of peanut flour, which gives the person’s body small doses of peanuts until they can eventually handle eating two peanuts. This process works under the idea of developing a tolerance. As the child consumes more peanuts, their body should eventually get used to it. So, the process starts off with only trace amounts of peanuts and works up from there.
Besides possibly saving children from having life-threatening allergic reactions, this drug regimen will change the lifestyles of many parents. Parents of children with severe, anaphylactic peanut allergies live in fear of their child having a reaction. In addition, both children and their parents have to monitor their diets very closely. This treatment, while it will not cure the allergy, will allow children more freedom in what they can eat and will reduce the risk associated with accidentally consuming peanuts.
Although this drug sounds like a great option, it is not officially approved yet. In the ongoing trial stages, around 14% of patients experienced serious allergic reactions while taking this drug. In addition, there are some serious side effects to taking this drug. One in five children had to stop due to side effects, such as a disease of the esophagus known as eosinophilic esophagitis, which is triggered by the peanut flour. However, for about two-thirds of the patients involved in the trial, the drug was a success, making it worth looking into.
September 17, 2019
The Unknown and Confusing World of Cancer Proteins
-James He
At the turn of the 21st century, the fight against cancer was taking on a new focus. Previously, cancer therapies were debilitating by nature, as they attacked normal cells along with the cancer cells they were designed to target. While these therapies showed some success, the side effects greatly diminished the quality and duration of life of patients receiving the therapy.
With an ever increasing incidence of the disease, major efforts were made to transform the therapeutic landscape for cancer, centered around the development of drugs that could selectively target cancer cells and leave normal, healthy cells alone. Compared to two decades ago, our knowledge of the disease has expanded by several orders of magnitude, leading to the development of novel treatments.
Yet, just 3% of cancer drugs tested in clinical trials between the years of 2000 and 2015 have translated to a clinical setting under Federal Drug Administration guidelines. Even with so much knowledge available, could it be that our efforts are misled and the targeted therapies under investigation are directed towards the wrong targets?
Research conducted by Jason Sheltzer, a cancer biologist at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, is a prime example of such a scenario. Sheltzer’s lab is attempting to take advantage of the fact that cancer cells produce elevated levels of a protein called MELK. Under the belief that taking out the gene that produces the protein would prevent the proper functioning of these cancer cells, undergraduate researchers in the lab used CRISPR gene editing technology to clip out the gene. What they found was the opposite-deleting the gene had no effect on the cancer cells. Even more intriguing, when they administered a MELK-targeting drug to these cells, the cancer cells died off, despite their lack of the targeted gene involved in producing MELK.
Puzzled by the result, Dr. Sheltzer expanded the analysis with other protein-targeting drugs under investigation, and observed the same results. Halting the production of essential proteins for the cancer cells had no effect, but the administration of drugs designed to target these proteins were successful in killing off the cancer cells. Diving deeper, Dr. Sheltzer looked at the DNA sequences of the cells that survived the drug treatment. He discovered a common mutation in the CDK11B protein-encoding gene across all of these drug-resistant cells.
Now, applying the same procedure as before, Dr. Sheltzer’s lab cut out the gene producing CDK11B proteins, but this time, they observed a different result. The cells died, indicating that this protein is essential to these cancer cells.
This case from Dr. Sheltzer’s lab exemplifies two important facts regarding cancer therapy. Principally, old drugs that were designed to target specific cancer proteins may not be as precise as hoped since they relied on older technology called RNAi. Additionally, there is still a plethora of targetable proteins in cancer cells that are still unknown. Unlocking the full potential of modern technologies and the biological landscape in cancer cells may help transform cancer therapy to new levels.
With an ever increasing incidence of the disease, major efforts were made to transform the therapeutic landscape for cancer, centered around the development of drugs that could selectively target cancer cells and leave normal, healthy cells alone. Compared to two decades ago, our knowledge of the disease has expanded by several orders of magnitude, leading to the development of novel treatments.
Yet, just 3% of cancer drugs tested in clinical trials between the years of 2000 and 2015 have translated to a clinical setting under Federal Drug Administration guidelines. Even with so much knowledge available, could it be that our efforts are misled and the targeted therapies under investigation are directed towards the wrong targets?
Research conducted by Jason Sheltzer, a cancer biologist at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, is a prime example of such a scenario. Sheltzer’s lab is attempting to take advantage of the fact that cancer cells produce elevated levels of a protein called MELK. Under the belief that taking out the gene that produces the protein would prevent the proper functioning of these cancer cells, undergraduate researchers in the lab used CRISPR gene editing technology to clip out the gene. What they found was the opposite-deleting the gene had no effect on the cancer cells. Even more intriguing, when they administered a MELK-targeting drug to these cells, the cancer cells died off, despite their lack of the targeted gene involved in producing MELK.
Puzzled by the result, Dr. Sheltzer expanded the analysis with other protein-targeting drugs under investigation, and observed the same results. Halting the production of essential proteins for the cancer cells had no effect, but the administration of drugs designed to target these proteins were successful in killing off the cancer cells. Diving deeper, Dr. Sheltzer looked at the DNA sequences of the cells that survived the drug treatment. He discovered a common mutation in the CDK11B protein-encoding gene across all of these drug-resistant cells.
Now, applying the same procedure as before, Dr. Sheltzer’s lab cut out the gene producing CDK11B proteins, but this time, they observed a different result. The cells died, indicating that this protein is essential to these cancer cells.
This case from Dr. Sheltzer’s lab exemplifies two important facts regarding cancer therapy. Principally, old drugs that were designed to target specific cancer proteins may not be as precise as hoped since they relied on older technology called RNAi. Additionally, there is still a plethora of targetable proteins in cancer cells that are still unknown. Unlocking the full potential of modern technologies and the biological landscape in cancer cells may help transform cancer therapy to new levels.
September 17, 2019