Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Outbreak Of Rare Eye Cancer Mystifies Medical Experts
The Washington Post: Ocular Melanoma: Three Friends Among At Least 18 Diagnosed With Rare Eye Cancer
At least a dozen and a half people have been diagnosed with a rare form of eye cancer in two locations in North Carolina and Alabama, leaving medical experts mystified about the cause. Ocular melanoma occurs in about 6 out of every 1 million people, according to CBS News, and at least 18 people who have been diagnosed with the eye cancer have connections to Huntersville, N.C., Auburn, Ala., or both locations. Marlana Orloff, an oncologist at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, is studying the cases with her colleagues, according to CBS. (Rosenberg, 4/30)
Los Angeles Times: These Five Healthy Habits Could Extend Your Life By A Dozen Years Or More, Study Says
You know that getting exercise, eating vegetables and quitting smoking are good for you. A new study shows just how good they are, in terms of the number of years they can add to your life. American women who followed five "healthy lifestyle factors" lived about 14 years longer than women who followed none of them, according to a report published Monday in the journal Circulation. For men, the difference was about 12 years. The five healthy lifestyle factors identified in the study should come as no surprise to anyone: eating a nutritious diet, exercising at least 30 minutes a day, maintaining a healthy weight, not smoking, and drinking in moderation. (Kaplan, 4/30)
Los Angeles Times: Does Exposure To Animals During Childhood Buffer The Body's Response To Stress As Adults?
New research offers evidence for a claim made regularly by country music singers: Growing up with a little dirt under his nails may make a country boy a little shy. But compared to a born-and-bred city slicker, that country boy will grow up to be a stronger, healthier and more laid-back man. In ways large and small, farm kids and city kids grow up worlds apart from each other. A study published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences explores the possible consequences of that divergence for the health of modern men. (Healy, 5/1)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Alcohol Risk: Study Finds Higher Cancer, Bad Bacteria, Bugs Risk
Nights of hard drinking can lead to much more than just bad hangovers. In fact, new research suggests that heavy drinkers may actually experience higher levels of "bad" bacteria in their mouths, including bugs linked to gum disease, heart disease and cancer compared to moderate or non-drinkers. (Lemon, 4/30)
Sacramento Bee: NRA Gun Ban At Pence Speech Baffles Parkland Survivors
Guns won’t be allowed when Vice President Mike Pence speaks Friday at a National Rifle Association convention in Dallas in order to protect his safety. The NRA says the Secret Service ordered the ban, but survivors of the Parkland, Fla., school shooting are calling the move hypocritical, noting the organization’s fierce opposition to gun-free zones in most public places. (Sweeney, 4/29)
Boston Globe: BU Study Raises More Questions About Youth Tackle Football
Sounding another warning for parents of small children who play football, Boston researchers studying the donated brains of football players say they’ve found that playing tackle football before age 12 was associated with earlier onset of cognitive and emotional symptoms in those players. (Finucane, 4/30)
St. Louis Post Dispatch: Adults Living Longer With Congenital Heart Defects
More adults than children are now living with congenital heart disease, the most common birth defect that is diagnosed in 1 of 100 births. About 1.4 million adults with birth defects of the heart are advised to stay under the care of an expert in the field their whole lives, according to the Adult Congenital Heart Association. ... Washington University’s adult congenital heart disease program is one of 11 accredited centers in the country and the only one in Missouri that specializes in treating this population. The clinic follows about 2,500 adults with heart defects. (Bernhard, 4/30)
The Washington Post: Assisted Suicide: 104-Year-Old Australian Scientist David Goodall Wants To Die
Champagne bubbles danced in fancy glasses and birthday candles burned atop a cheesecake marking 104 years of a long and accomplished life.David Goodall listened quietly as his loved ones started to sing. Then he took a breath, made a wish and blew out the flames. But Goodall was not wholeheartedly celebrating the milestone this month in Perth, Australia. The botanist and ecologist, who is thought to be the country’s oldest scientist, said that he has lived too long. And now, he said, he is ready to die. (Bever, 4/30)
California Healthline: Family Caregivers Finally Get A Break — And Extra Coaching
For today, there are no doctor’s visits. No long afternoons with nothing to do. No struggles over bathing — or not. At the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., a group of older adults — some in wheelchairs, some with Alzheimer’s — and their caregivers sit in a semicircle around a haunting portrait of a woman in white.“Take a deep breath,” said Lorena Bradford, head of accessible programs at the National Gallery, standing before “The Repentant Magdalen” by Georges de La Tour. (Fetterman, 4/30)
California Healthline: Boom In Proton Therapy Is A Bust For Some. Blame A Shortage Of Patients.
On March 29, MedStar Georgetown University Hospital opened a proton-therapy cancer unit that is expected to treat about 300 patients a year at premium prices using what its proponents promote as the most advanced radiology for attacking certain tumors. At the facility’s heart is a 15-ton particle accelerator that bombards malignancies with beams of magnet-controlled, positively charged protons designed to stop at tumors rather than shoot through them like standard X-ray waves, mostly sparing healthy tissue. (Hancock, 5/1)
