Rare Group Of Active NFL Players Lines Up Against Their Employers, Speak Up About Their Health Concerns

The New York Times: ‘Emboldened’ N.F.L. Players Value Health Over Paychecks
One player defied his team and had surgery on his damaged shoulder. Another blamed his club for not spotting a rare form of cancer sooner. Still another, according to media reports, disputed his team’s assertion that his concussion symptoms had abated. The players — former Jets guard Kelechi Osemele, Washington Redskins tackle Trent Williams and Cincinnati Bengals tackle Cordy Glenn — had very different ailments. But what they had in common was a willingness to question their employers over how their injuries were handled, and all of them appear to have paid a financial price. (Belson, 11/13)

The Baltimore Sun: What Is Thymic Carcinoma, The Rare Cancer That Afflicted Rep. Elijah Cummings?
Rep. Elijah Cummings had a rare form of cancer called thymic carcinoma when he died Oct. 17 at 68, according to his wife, Maya Rockeymoore Cummings. ...She did not say whether cancer was the cause of death, though she said it “had become a chronic thing.” Living with chronic thymic carcinoma for so long, however, may have been more rare than having the disease at all. Fewer than 400 people are diagnosed a year with the cancer, which occurs when malignant cells form on the thymus, a gland in the upper chest that is part of the lymph system, said Dr. Kevin Cullen, director of the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center. (Cohn, 11/13)

The Wall Street Journal: These People Got The Flu So You Won’t Have To
Amy Edwards got the flu precisely 2½ hours ago. It was injected into her nostrils, one at a time. “They took a syringe filled with the flu virus that they defrosted,” says the 37-year-old. “They shot one into each nostril and had us lie down.” Ms. Edwards and 19 strangers are confined to an isolation unit at the University of Maryland School of Medicine for at least a week. They’re participating in a federally funded human influenza study that is a key part of an effort to develop a better and longer-lasting flu vaccine. (Reddy, 11/12)

The New York Times: A Black Paratrooper’s First Veterans Day, And His Last
On Monday, for the first time in his life, Needham Mayes was a veteran on Veterans Day. His hospital bed was far from any parade, but the nation’s recognition of his service was no different from that of his fellow officers marching beneath flying flags. It was an honor hard fought, one that had taken the 85-year-old man’s entire adult life to arrive. He had been a paratrooper in the Army, among the first black soldiers at Fort Bragg, N.C., after the military was desegregated. He had an exemplary record for more than two years. It all ended in a bar fight in 1955. (Wilson, 11/12)

The New York Times: Another Reason To Take Your Blood Pressure Drugs: Lower Dementia Risk
Controlling blood pressure in middle age may reduce the risk for dementia. The benefits of reducing blood pressure to lower the risk for cardiovascular disease are well known, but the role of blood pressure control in dementia has been less certain. Now pooled data from six large observational studies suggests that antihypertensive medicines may lower the risk for Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. The review is in Lancet Neurology. (Bakalar, 11/12)

St. Louis Public Radio: How An Influential And Flawed Psychiatric Study Changed The Course Of Modern Medicine
In 2009, New York Post reporter Susannah Cahalan suddenly experienced hallucinations, paranoia, seizures and catatonia. She was misdiagnosed for a month before she was finally treated for a rare autoimmune disease that can attack the brain, anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis. (Woodbury, 11/12)

NPR: Drug Pipeline To Fight Antibiotic Resistance Is Running Low
Five years ago, Mary Millard went to the hospital for heart surgery. A contaminated medical instrument gave her an infection that led to septic shock. Her heart struggled and her lungs and kidneys started to fail. "What I caught was pseudomonas, and it's a very virulent superbug," says the 60-year-old former nurse who lives in Baton Rouge, La. This bacterium no longer responds to most antibiotics, and "it lives in you permanently, so I'm on lifetime antibiotics," she says. (Harris, 11/13)

Cleveland Plain Dealer: Racism Kills Black Newborns -- And Does A Number On Black Adults, Too
In Cuyahoga County, black babies are four times more likely than white babies to die before their first birthday. Half the babies born in Cuyahoga County in 2018 were white, according to First Year Cleveland, a community movement formed to address one of the country’s highest infant mortality rates. But of the 118 babies who died in their first year, 67 percent of them were black. (DeBerry, 11/12)

The Washington Post: Giving Into Arthritis Pain Will Only Make Things Worse. Here’s How To Keep Moving.
Some days, it seems regular exercise has become a panacea — good for the heart, good for blood pressure, good for glucose levels, good to limit sad days and depression. But what about people tormented with the pain and stiffness of osteoarthritis, particularly in the knees and hips? What are they supposed to do? There was an era when ethical medical practice demanded a no-movement solution for people in pain. Not anymore. Today, the more than 50 million adult Americans with arthritis are advised to seek the same 150 minutes a week of moderate exercise as everyone else. (Burfoot, 11/12)