Kidney cancer usually gets caught during an unrelated medical procedure — picked up, say, during a CT scan after a case of appendicitis or a car accident. It’s uncommon in people younger than 50, and when it’s found early, the patient is
It’s tucked deep within the body, nestled between the bladder and penis, an elusive gland roughly the size of a Ping-Pong ball. Many people don’t know what, if any, purpose the prostate serves — most of what we hear about it revolves
There hasn’t been a major breakthrough in the treatment of heart disease since the 1970s, when two University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center scientists discovered the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor, which controls the level of cholesterol in the blood and in
The letters and emails to Dr. Eric Olson come from all over the world, arriving nearly every day. They follow a pattern. It’s almost always the mother who writes. Usually there’s a picture of a boy or a young man, often
It is common for children and adolescents to think about killing themselves. Around 15 to 18 percent of teenagers in high school admit to having had some thoughts about suicide. The growing problem facing parents, teachers, doctors, and other adults responsible for
A little after 10 a.m. on June 5, police responded to a call made by a housekeeper at an upscale Manhattan apartment. Inside, they found the body of legendary fashion designer Kate Spade, who had hanged herself in apparent suicide. Spade left behind a
Night after night, Todd Ewen made his living when the gloves came off and the fists went up. From 1986 to 1997, he was an enforcer in the NHL. He was never a star, but his nickname, “The Animal,” was a testament
Gao is a scientist. Sumer is a surgeon. Mostly, Gao says, scientists and doctors “tend to stay siloed in their areas of expertise.” But Gao says it is necessary to put the two in the same room: Sumer provides insight into what would
It’s 2004, and every patient in a particular medical trial has an early-stage form of lung cancer that’s medically inoperable. It isn’t a death sentence but it’s close. Three-year survival rates hover between 20 and 35 percent, and the rate of
