In a recent People article, Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek shared some good news. Diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer in March, Trebek said he was told that he has been responding very well to his chemotherapy regimen, and that he’s in “ne…
Category: Oncology/Hematology
What we can learn from Marcia Cross about HPV vaccination
Recently, Desperate Housewives star Marcia Cross made headlines by discussing her diagnosis of anal cancer and her husband’s diagnosis of throat cancer, revealing that both had been related to the human papillomavirus, or HPV. The move was brave, as th…
What we can learn from Marcia Cross about HPV vaccination
Recently, Desperate Housewives star Marcia Cross made headlines by discussing her diagnosis of anal cancer and her husband’s diagnosis of throat cancer, revealing that both had been related to the human papillomavirus, or HPV. The move was brave, as th…
Why so many doctors won’t break bad news to patients
After nearly 40 years as an internist, Dr. Ron Naito knew what the sky-high results of his blood test meant. And it wasn’t good. But when he turned to his doctors last summer to confirm the dire diagnosis — stage 4 pancreatic cancer — he learned the ne…
A physician diagnosed with cancer, and the importance of mentorship
An excerpt from Mirth is God’s Medicine: Coping with Cancer as a Physician. “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” – Proverbs 27:17 In the coming weeks, after the biopsy returns positive for cancer — and …
When constipation pain was worse than cancer pain
Coming in to meet the students, house staff, and patients for the first day on service always excites me. This Monday was no exception. What awaited me? How many patients would I need to see? What lessons could I impart? When I arrived, we had 11 patie…
MRI safety in breast cancer screening
The numbers are scary: The average woman has a 12 percent risk of developing breast cancer at some point in her life. For women with certain genetic mutations or risk factors, lifetime risk can climb to 85 percent. Even more terrifying than the numbers…
How this physician does her job while grieving
Two years ago, something happened that — not to be overly dramatic — changed my life, including my everyday experience of my job as an emergency specialist. My older brother, Martin died of a rare and aggressive form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma tha…
Celebrities are bringing a myriad of health conditions into the public consciousness
It seems now as if every day and every month is associated with a “national day” or an “awareness month.” Some such as “national taco day” may be less important than others, well depending on one’s priorities….
This story happens every week in clinics like mine and it’s got to stop
Jeanette Brown had lost twenty pounds, and she was worried. “I’m not trying,” she told me at her regular diabetes visit as I pored over her lab results. What I saw sent a chill down my spine: A normal weight, diet controlled diabetic for many years, he…
