Health Newsfeed – Johns Hopkins Medicine Podcasts

Early in life antibiotic use may disrupt the microbiome in children and lead to long term health consequences, and this is one of medicine’s blind spots. That’s according to Johns Hopkins surgeon and public health researcher Marty Makary, in his … Could early life antibiotic use be associated with chronic disease? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Blind Spots is the name of a new book by Marty Makary, a surgeon at Johns Hopkins and public health researcher, illustrating how medicine sometimes gets it wrong and then seems unable to reverse the tide of established treatments and … Where are the blind spots in medicine? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Burgeoning research demonstrates that smartphone use in schools is detrimental to individual students and corrosive for the learning environment. Marty Makary, a surgeon at Johns Hopkins and public health researcher, says attempts to simply limit their use are not enough. … Does the argument that limiting smartphone use works hold water? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Should we allow a technology that’s at best disruptive and at worst addictive into our schools? No, states Marty Makary, a Johns Hopkins surgeon and public health researcher, citing smartphones as a scourge that has no place in educational facilities, … Some schools have already banned smartphones in students’ interest, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Smartphones are ubiquitous, with over half of US children owning one by the time they are 11 years of age. Much research is emerging demonstrating just how harmful this can be, especially when phones remain in the hands of kids … Should smartphones even be allowed in schools? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

An engineered type of T cell known as a CAR-T can be very beneficial for people with some types of cancer, yet a major cause of death among those who receive them is infection, a recent study finds. Kimmel Cancer … CAR-T therapy for cancer is associated with risk for infectious disease death, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Skin cancers run the gamut from relatively benign basal cell carcinoma to invasive melanoma. In between are squamous cell carcinomas, which are increasing in frequency and likely result in death more often than melanomas do, a new paper asserts, calling … Squamous cell skin cancer needs more rigorous study, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Many women who had both breasts removed when cancer was found in one really didn’t experience any benefit from doing so, with similar rates of recurrence and death to women who chose more conservative treatment, a recent study finds. Johns … Who should have both breasts removed when cancer is found in one? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Three groups of women, all with breast cancer in one breast, participated in a recent study looking at whether removing both breasts when cancer is found in one, so-called prophylactic bilateral mastectomy, was effective in reducing a woman’s risk. Kimmel … What does a study on removing both breasts when cancer is found in one tell us? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Bilateral mastectomy as a means of preventing cancer in the other breast when it is found in one breast may not be of benefit when it comes to reccurence or survival, a new study shows. William Nelson, director of the … Does removing both breasts when cancer is found in one help? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Individualized cancer vaccines based on the specific set of mutations someone has are now in clinical trials, with William Nelson, director of the Kimmel Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, predicting they will soon be commonplace. Yet because a cancer changes … How often might an individualized vaccine need to be developed to treat cancer? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

If you have the misfortune to develop cancer, chances are good you may have a vaccine developed just for you to treat it, if further research bears out results of a recent study looking at such a vaccine to treat … Individualized cancer vaccines are on the horizon, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

A type of cancer treatment known as an immune checkpoint inhibitor may be stymied by the type of bacteria someone has in their intestine, a new study shows. Kimmel Cancer Center director William Nelson at Johns Hopkins explains. Nelson: The … How might gut bacteria impact cancer treatment? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Certain types of chemotherapy are associated with development of a condition called peripheral neuropathy, which at its most mild may cause tingling in hands or feet, or at worst causes pain and difficulty walking. Now a new study looks at … Should exercise be prescribed for some people having chemotherapy? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Tingling and the feeling of pins and needles, especially in hands and feet, may occur with use of some types of chemotherapy. Known in medical parlance as peripheral neuropathy, a recent study finds that exercise is able to reduce the … Can exercise help avoid a common side effect of some types of chemotherapy? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Tracey reports Depression and social media use are linked, a recent study by Johns Hopkins child and adolescent psychiatrist Carol Vidal found. This adds to burgeoning research finding dangers of addictive social media use, and may result in formal classification … It’s just becoming clear that social media can be addictive and harmful, Elizabeth Read More »

Rewards that activate pleasure centers in our brains are baked into social media platforms, and that can be a recipe for addiction. That’s according to Carol Vidal, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at Johns Hopkins and author of a recent … What can help break social media addiction? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Social media platforms should carry a warning label about dangers posed to young people by using them, US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy says. Johns Hopkins psychiatrist Carol Vidal, who has just published a study linking social media and depression, says … How might regulations be changed to avoid social media dangers? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy recently warned that social media platforms should carry a warning label that they may harm the health of teenagers, a posture supported by research by child and adolescent psychiatrist Carol Vidal at Johns Hopkins. Vidal … Caveat emptor regarding social media use, Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »

Social media has significant potential to create harm and should be regulated as such. That’s according to Carol Vidal, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at Johns Hopkins and one author of a recent study looking at the relationship between social … Does social media need to be regulated just like the tobacco industry? Elizabeth Tracey reports Read More »