Do you have unused or expired medications? Dispose of them safely on Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the UTMB Specialty Care Center at Victory Lakes, 2240 Gulf Freeway South in League City.
This is part of a national initiative by the Drug Enforcement Administration, which has collected more than 1.5 million pounds, or 774 tons, of medication for safe disposal. The UTMB site is ranked among the top collection sites in the greater Houston and Bay area, having collected almost 1,800 pounds of medications during four drug take-back events.
Science Academy
The UTMB Office of Educational Outreach/Science Education is offering the Saturday Biomedical Science Academy to Galveston students in grades four to six. The program offers hands-on activities designed to develop awareness for the “world of science” and show how creative, fun and applicable science can be.
The program is open to all students, including those who are home-schooled and those who attend private schools.
The free program funded by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, will be from 9 a.m. to noon on Oct. 20, Nov. 3 and Nov. 17. The application deadline is Monday. To apply, go to www.utmb.edu/oeo and click on “Student Programs.” For more information, contact Alicia C. Simmons at acsimmon(at)utmb.edu or 409-772-9119.
Breast Cancer awareness
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, with a number of events including the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure on Oct. 6. UTMB was awarded $450,000 from the Komen Houston Foundation for the current year — the largest award of all 22 Houston/Galveston area grantees.
Since 2005, the Komen Houston Foundation has provided more than $3.7 million to UTMB to support breast cancer screening, diagnostics and treatment for low-income, uninsured women in Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty and Montgomery Counties.
For information and to join the UTMB team, contact Amineh Baradar at ambarada@utmb.edu or 409-772-0504, or Barbara Petit at bhpetit@utmb.edu or 409-772-1285. For more on this event and the month’s other activities, visit www.utmbhealth.com.
Weight Loss Seminar
The UTMB Health Center for Obesity and Metabolic Surgery will present a free seminar on weight loss options, including medical and surgical treatments at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Victory Lakes Specialty Care Center, 2240 Gulf Freeway South, League City. For more information or to register, call 832-505-1500.
Breast Cancer survivors sought for focus group
Women 55 to 79 who are breast cancer survivors are needed for a focus group seeking their opinions on exercise and video games. Researchers are interested in learning survivors’ opinions on using video games for exercise, as well as some specific games. You don’t have to be currently using video games for exercise to be in the study.
For information about the research, requirements and eligibility, contact Elizabeth Lyons in the Institute for Translational Sciences at 409-772-1917.
Osler Club
Dr. Maurice Willis, associate professor of internal medicine-hematology/oncology, spoke on “The role of ethnic origin in the prognosis and treatment of patients in 2012” for the UTMB Osler Club.
Visiting campus
• “Acute and chronic deficits in spinal cord injury” was presented by Raymond J. Grill, assistant professor of integrative biology and pharmacology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.
• “Viral dynamics at the initiation of infection” was presented by Ian J. Molineux, professor of molecular genetics and microbiology at the University of Texas in Austin.