“Our concept of metastasis has changed over the years,” wrote Drs. Norbert Herzog and David Niesel in their Medical Discovery News column. “Not long ago, doctors and scientists thought metastasis was a natural stage of the cancer that happened as tumors grew. Treatment relied on removing the primary tumor by surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy.”

“As adults, if we allow ourselves, we might also wish to recapture such light joy to balance the heaviness of our daily stress and gloomy news reports,” wrote Dr. Victor S. Sierpina. Meditate this weekend by blowing bubbles.

As we age, we could benefit from adding more protein in our diet. It's also one of the slowest macronutrients to digest, a 2008 study by the University of Texas Medical Branch explains, which means as well as helping to improve your metabolism, you'll also stay fuller for longer and gradually learn how to eat less.

In 5- to 11-year-olds, the booster more than doubles the antibody levels found after the second dose. Additionally, boosting has been shown in other age groups to further improve the antibodies so that they better bind the virus and provide more protection against variants. Drs. Megan Berman and Richard Rupp discuss this in the latest Vaccine Smarts column.

Dr. Victor S. Sierpina sees patients who are using this centuries-old remedy for a broad variety of conditions, despite Texas’ prohibition against its use. “Like our endogenous endorphin system of opiate receptors, the endocannabinoid system is a network throughout our body in multiple organs and cells, which accounts for why cannabinoids impact so many conditions from pain, mood, insomnia, cancer, nausea, appetite and others.,” he writes. “Endocannabinoid deficiency is being considered as the cause for a range of poorly characterized and challenging diseases such depression, migraine, ADHD and irritable bowel syndrome.”

“Mental health problems have nothing to do with being lazy or weak,” writes Dr. Sally Robinson in her column. “Many people need help to get better. Treatment varies depending on the individual and could include medication, therapy or both. Studies show that people do get better and many recover completely.”

Two and a half years and billions of estimated infections into this pandemic, SARS-CoV-2’s visit has clearly turned into a permanent stay. Experts knew from early on that, for almost everyone, infection with this coronavirus would be inevitable. You’re not just likely to get the coronavirus. You’re likely to get it again and again and again. “Will reinfection be really bad, or not a big deal? I think you could fall down on either side,” said Vineet Menachery, a coronavirologist at the University of Texas Medical Branch. “There’s still a lot of gray.”

Dr. Neil K. Mehta of The University of Texas Medical Branch is a guest editor of “Why Does Health in the U.S. Continue to Lag Behind,” a special supplemental issue of The Journals of Gerontology, Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences. “There’s no simple answer,” Mehta said. “The issue touches on the many complicated factors with a focus on social and behavioral factors. The U.S. has lagged behind for some time, but over the last decade it’s gotten a lot worse. Even though the U.S. has fared poorly compared to other countries, we are falling even further behind.” Medical Xpress, News Medical and other websites also posted the release of the supplemental issue.

The care closet houses clothing and hygiene essentials, such as toothpaste, donated by medical branch employees. The items are available to patients and their friends and family members at the hospital who might not be able to afford them. “If they don’t have transportation or want to leave their loved one’s bedside, all of those items are here in the care closet to provide to them,” medical branch social worker and patient resource specialist Savannah Parks said. “They can just focus on their loved ones and not have to stress or go without taking care of themselves.” I45now also reported on the opening.

Efforts to decrease hospital readmissions may have been misguided because the United States already does better than other high-income nations in this area, according to researchers including Dr. Peter Cram of the University of Texas Medical Branch. The highest risk of death within one year of hospitalization was seen in the United States for the most serious type of heart attack, despite high scores in the use of effective interventions encouraged by evidence-based guidelines, such as revascularization. The United States also leads in low hospital readmission rates for patients treated for heart attacks.