Welcome to the June 2019 edition of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center’s (BIDMC) Research & Health News Digest.
This edition’s update includes:
- Innovative surgery provides new option for bladder cancer (Urologic Surgery)
- A health number men should know (Urologic Surgery)
- Five tips for improving men’s health (Urologic Surgery)
- Mapping a mysterious brain disorder points toward therapeutic target (Neurology)
- Hormone produced during pregnancy repurposed to treat painful joint conditions (Orthopedics)
- An ounce of prevention: Preoperative management of inflammation may stave off cancer recurrences (Cancer)
If any of these briefs pique your interest and you’d like to speak with one of our experts, please contact us at [email protected] or at 617-667-7300. You can also reach the BIDMC communications team member on call through the BIDMC page operator at (617) 667-4700 and asking for pager ID #33880.
The BIDMC Media Relations Team
BIDMC Research & Health News Digest: June 2019
Innovative Surgery Provides New Option for Bladder Cancer
Expert urologic surgeons at the Cancer Center at BIDMC, Peter Chang, MD, and Andrew Wagner, MD, discuss an innovative procedure offered at BIDMC in which they build a new bladder for their patients with bladder cancer. Both surgeons have been performing this procedure for more than five years and they have the area’s deepest expertise experience with this procedure, having performed over 100 surgeries.
A Health Number Men Should Know
Aria Olumi, MD, Chief of Urologic Surgery at BIDMC, explains the importance of men knowing their prostate-specific antigen (PSA) number. Doctors use the PSA test to check for any abnormalities within the prostate, a male reproductive gland.
Five Tips for Improving Men’s Health
James Heckman, MD, Assistant Medical Director of Healthcare Associates at BIDMC, and Aria Olumi, MD, Chief of Urologic Surgery at BIDMC, share tips for improving men's health.
Mapping a Mysterious Brain Disorder Points toward Therapeutic Target
In a new study published in the journal BRAIN, a team of BIDMC neurologists led by Michael Fox, MD, PhD, used brain lesion network mapping to find the anatomical origins of cervical dystonia.
Hormone Produced During Pregnancy Repurposed to Treat Painful Joint Condition
In a first-of-its-kind study, Edward Rodriguez, MD, PhD, Chief of Orthopedic Trauma in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at BIDMC, and colleagues including co-senior author Ara Nazarian, PhD, a principal investigator in the Center for Advanced Orthopaedic Studies at BIDMC, investigated whether relaxin’s joint-loosening properties could be applied to alleviate symptoms of arthrofibrosis. The team found that multiple injections of human relaxin directly into the afflicted joint restored range of motion and improved tissue health in an animal model of frozen shoulder, a painful and debilitating form of arthrofibrosis particularly common among middle aged, often diabetic women. The findings are published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
https://www.bidmc.org/about-bidmc/news/2019/06/relaxin-alleviates-symptoms-of-arthrofibrosis
An Ounce of Prevention: Preoperative Management of Inflammation May Stave Off Cancer Recurrences
A growing body of evidence suggests that traditional cancer treatments can paradoxically promote new tumor growth. Now, a team of scientists led by Dipak Panigrahy, MD, and Allison Gartung, PhD, of the Cancer Center at BIDMC, has demonstrated that administration of treatments that prevent inflammation as well as tamp down the body’s inflammatory response to surgery or chemotherapy can promote long-term survival in experimental animal cancer models. The paper was published online in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.
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Urologic Surgery; Neurology; Orthopedics; Cancer