Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Renowned Scientist With Narcolepsy: Having A Neurological Condition Can Actually Be A Boon
Stat: George Church Ascribes His Visionary Ideas To Narcolepsy
It’s no secret that he has narcolepsy, the condition defined by sudden bouts of sleep. He lists it as part of his personal history, intriguing his fans enough that “How does George Church manage his narcolepsy?” is a question on Quora, a question-and-answer website. But because he has never discussed it in depth, the question has gone unanswered. STAT is happy to step into the breach: He doesn’t eat from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., and stands whenever possible. “I have to constantly shift my weight and balance,” stimulating the nervous system in a way that prevents nodding off, the 6-foot-5 Church said. (Begley, 6/8)
NPR: Early Breast Cancer May Not Carry High Risk
Scientists say they may have solved a big medical mystery: why mammograms don't save more lives. A study involving thousands of breast cancer cases, released Wednesday, concludes that a significant proportion of tumors detected through mammography are not small because they are found early. Instead, the tumors are small because they are biologically prone to slow growth. (Stein, 6/7)
The New York Times: With Melanoma, Lymph Node Removal May Not Improve Survival
In cases of melanoma, the most serious form of skin cancer, doctors will determine its spread by examining a lymph node. If malignant cells are found, the standard treatment is to surgically remove all the lymph nodes in the same area. But a clinical trial has now called this procedure into question. (Bakalar, 6/7)
The Washington Post: Fathers Sing More To Daughters And Roughhouse With Sons, Study Finds
The idea that fathers have a sweet spot for their daughters and are stricter with their sons is something of a cliche. Researcher Jennifer Mascaro wanted to find out to what extent this was true. So she persuaded 52 new dads to give her an intensely intimate glimpse at 48 hours of their lives through recording devices that documented interactions with their children, who were ages 1 to 2. Mascaro and her colleagues at Emory University and the University of Arizona took apart each exchange and coded them to see whether there were any patterns based on the children's genders. The differences were startling. (Cha, 6/7)
The Philadelphia Inquirer: Penn Study Investigates Why Late-Night Snacks May Pack On Pounds
Most of us have heard the advice not to eat right before bedtime, lest those late-night calories get stored as fat. But so far, this conventional wisdom has few long-term studies to back it up. New research from the University of Pennsylvania suggests that cutting off food early may indeed be good practice. Nine adults spent eight weeks eating a regular diet on an early schedule: three meals and two snacks between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. The participants then took a two-week break, followed by eight weeks on a later eating schedule: the same amount of food, consumed from noon until 11 p.m. (Avril, 6/7)
The Washington Post: They Look Like Prescription Drugs, But They’re Actually Deadly Poison, Georgia Authorities Say
The small yellow pills look like prescription drugs from a pharmacy, but Georgia authorities say they're anything but.In recent days, the drugs — which are purchased on the street — have led to dozens of overdoses and as many as four deaths in south and central Georgia, state health officials told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. As the number of overdoses increases, authorities say they're scrambling to keep pace. The state is already battling a growing opioid crisis, authorities say. On Wednesday, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation reported six additional overdose cases potentially related to the drug. (Holley, 6/7)
