Reducing risk of suicide in cancer patients

… suicide also is higher among cancer patients: twice that of the general population. That higher rate is troubling for health professionals. In an effort to intervene earlier, researchers are developing a list of risk factors for depression among …

Pitt researchers uncover genetic marker that may predict drug response in many cancer types

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine have uncovered a novel genetic mechanism of thyroid cancer, as well as a marker that may predict response to a particular class of drugs, not just in patients with thyroid cancer, but in those with many other types of cancer as well. The new findings were published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences .

Some Pittsburgh schools closed for the day over water issue

Insufficient chlorine in Pittsburgh’s public water supply led to the closure Wednesday of nearly two dozen grade schools and a boil-water advisory in neighborhoods that include the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University. The Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority said the advisory applied to 100,000 customers in the city of more than 305,000 residents, but officials also stressed that the advisory was only a precautionary measure and no public health problems were reported.

Doc Talk: Dr. John P. Girod

… payment, enter a vacation stop, report a missed delivery, or submit a complaint. In February, the focus is on heart health. It’s the month that the American Heart Association puts the spotlight on raising awareness for cardiovascular disease. We …

People on the Move: 1/9/2017

Burns White LLC hired Nicholas D. Cooper , energy group – focuses his practice on due diligence review, title curative measures, certified title opinions, and landowner disputes and other land-related litigation; Jessica M. Jurasko , health care and long-term care – focuses her practice in the areas of medical malpractice, health care, employment and general liability litigation; Tara Param , health care and long-term care – defends nursing homes, hospitals, physicians and other health care providers in medical malpractice and nursing home litigation; and Bridget L. Smith , medicare compliance – concentrates her practice in Medicare compliance issues that arise in workers’ compensation and general liability settlements.

A Closer Look at the Eye

Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center have developed a new imaging technique that could revolutionize how eye health and disease are assessed. The group is first to be able to make out individual cells at the back of the eye that are implicated in vision loss in diseases like glaucoma.

How many social media accounts do YOU have? Those with more than…

How many social media accounts do YOU have? Those with more than seven are three times more likely to suffer from depression, researchers warn The number of social media accounts you have can reveal a lot about your mental health, a new study has found. Young adults who use seven to 11 different platforms are more than three times more likely to report depressive symptoms – compared to those who use zero to two, according to Pittsburgh researchers The number of social media accounts you have can reveal a lot about your mental health, says researchers.

Use of multiple social media platforms linked to depression, anxiety

Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Research on Media, Technology and Health have found that excessive social media use often correlates with an increased risk of depression or anxiety. In a survey of nearly 1,800 adults between the ages of 19 and 32, researchers found that participants who used between seven and 11 social media platforms had substantially higher odds of having increased levels of both depression and anxiety symptoms compared to those that used anywhere from zero to two social media platforms.

AMP publishes joint guidelines for interpretation, reporting of sequence variants in cancer

The Association for Molecular Pathology , the premier global, non-profit molecular diagnostics professional society, today published guideline recommendations for both clinical laboratory professionals and oncologists that assess the status of next-generation sequencing -based cancer tests and establish standardized classification, annotation, interpretation, and reporting conventions for somatic sequence variants. The new guideline was developed by a Working Group comprised of representatives from major professional associations whose members provide professional testing and treatment services to cancer patients.