Health Sciences In The Media

David Harris, professor of immunobiology and executive director of the UArizona Biorepository in the College of Medicine – Tucson, believes that stem cell clinics marketing unproven treatments could hurt researchers who are doing things the correct way. "If it appears that medical professionals are doing this just to make money, it will spur a lot of distrust, not only in the doctors, but also in in this field," said Harris.

New data presented at the annual SLEEP meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies suggests that individuals who used or abused opioids were significantly more likely to receive sedating medications than those who did not use opioids. “At least 9% of the individuals using an opioid had also used a sedating medication despite the increased risk for overdose death with combined use," said Andrew S. Tubbs, an MD/PhD student at the College of Medicine – Tucson.

Briana Choi, a PhD student at the College of Pharmacy, discusses the cost evaluation of osimertinib use as an adjunctive maintenance therapy in surgically resected EGFR-positive non-small cell lung cancer. The findings were presented at the virtual 2021 ASCO Annual Meeting.

Dr. John Galgiani, a professor of medicine in infectious diseases at the College of Medicine – Tucson and director of the Valley Fever Center for Excellence, says this year Valley Fever is heading for the highest case count in the last ten years.

In an article for ABC News, Dr. Onyema Okolo, an oncologist and hematologist from the University of Arizona Cancer Center, discusses how and why the Covid-19 vaccines are working against variants. Dr. Okolo is a contributor to the ABC News Medical Unit.

David Harris, professor of immunobiology and executive director of the UArizona Biorepository in the College of Medicine –Tucson, said there is some encouraging data to support the ability of mesenchymal stem cells to treat various conditions such as an open wound. Harris also said there's no conclusive scientific proof yet that they work and that studies are still ongoing.

Some doctors and researchers say there's not enough evidence from clinical trials that a new Alzheimer's drug is effective. Roberta Brinton, PhD, Director of the Center for Innovation in Brain Science, hopes the benefits outweigh the harm. "There are many roads to Alzheimer's, there are many on-ramps to Alzheimer's but there aren't any off-ramps yet. I think it's a game starter and it's very exciting the FDA was flexible in their approval process," Brinton said.

If someone has already become infected and then recovered from COVID, do they still need to receive a vaccine? “From a population perspective, we can’t reassure individuals what their current antibody status is, even if they had an infection—and because of the variants," said Pima County Health Director Dr. Theresa Cullen, a clinical associate professor in the College of Medicine – Tucson.

A Republic investigation found that stem cells have been marketed as a treatment for conditions that have no good existing treatments, like arthritis, Alzheimer' or even autism. "There is little or sometimes no scientific evidence to support such treatments' effectiveness. I think there is hope. Unfortunately, there's more hype at this point," said Dr. Kent Kwoh, director of the UArizona Arthritis Center and a professor at the College of Medicine – Tucson.

Saskia Popescu, an infectious disease epidemiologist and adjunct professor at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, said she wants people to get vaccinated and enjoy more flexibility. But she also doesn’t want Americans to forget — especially as they’re considering traveling outside the country — that they’re in a position that much of the world envies. “Be cognizant that other places are struggling,” Popescu said.