New drug delays progression of glioma, a deadly brain cancer
Key takeawaysA targeted therapy drug called vorasidenib had positive results in delaying progression of a specific form glioma, a slow-growing but deadly brain cancer.In a study of 331 people with the disease, the drug was effective in lengthening the period of time before the patients ’ cancer worsened, and with no observed adverse effects.New treatment approaches for glioma are needed because current treatments, including chemotherapy and radiation, can cause neurological deficits.In an international study co-led by UCLA, scientists have shown that a new targeted therapy drug can extend the amount of time people with a...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - June 4, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Couples ’ social networks took long-lasting hit during COVID
Key takeaways:A UCLA study shows that a the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, social interactions, both virtual and in person, declined significantly for married couples.The decline was found to be greater and more long-lasting for Black and Latino couples and lower-income couples than for white couples and wealthier couples.The researchers suggest exploring new ways of protecting public health during crises that also help more vulnerable populations sustain meaningful relationships.Following the lockdowns and restrictions on public gatherings in the early days of COVID-19, the social networks of white, Black and Latino cou...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - June 1, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Elderly patients see no difference in health outcomes when treated by M.D.s or osteopaths
New UCLA-led research suggests that patient mortality rates, likelihood of readmission, length of stay and cost of care were virtually identical for elderly hospitalized patients who were treated by physicians with doctor of medicine degrees versus those who were treated by physicians with doctor of osteopathic medicine degrees.While both traditional, or allopathic, medical schools and osteopathic medical schools provide the same rigorous health education, osteopathic training adds a more holistic, hands-on component involving manipulation of the musculoskeletal system — for instance, the use of stretching and massage ...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - June 1, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Class of COVID: Leah Likin dives deep into pandemic anxieties with her honors project
With the COVID-19 national public health emergency officially coming to an end just two weeks ago, members of UCLA ’s class of 2023 will be the first to graduate having spent most, if not all, of their academic years living through a pandemic — and all the uncertainties, anxieties, and physical and mental health challenges that has entailed. Among those graduates will be fourth-year psychology major Leah Likin, who has mined these experiences for her highly original and deeply personal honors capstone project, which has won a Dean ’s Prize for Excellence in Research and Creativity as part of UCLA’s current 10th an...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 26, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Q & A: Hal Hershfield on finding harmony with your future self
The seeds of Hal Hershfield ’s new book were planted during the financial crisis that gripped the nation in 2008. Watching the Great Recession unfold, he began to wonder why it was so easy for people to take risks that they really shouldn’t.Hershfield, a professor of marketing and behavioral decision making at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, decided to investigate the retirement crisis — a “slow-moving catastrophe,” he calls it — in which people are living longer and saving less, leaving them without resources for retirement.Hershfield, who earned his doctorate in psychology from Stanford University, ap...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 25, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
A metabolic process in cancer cells could unlock a possible treatment for glioblastoma
Key takeawaysGlioblastomas are lethal brain tumors with few treatment options and a poor prognosis for most patients.A UCLA-led team identified a genetic alteration that occurs in 60% of people who are diagnosed with glioblastoma; that mutation disrupts the cancer cells ’ metabolism.The discovery suggests that one possible approach to treat glioblastoma would be a therapy that targets the metabolic process in patients who have that genetic alteration.A study led by researchers at theUCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has found that targeting a metabolic process in people with a specific genetic mutation could help ...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 25, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
UCLA study highlights need to focus on individuals, versus populations, in genomic medicine
One way scientists can estimate a person’s risk for a wide range of diseases is a measure called a polygenic score. The score is based on the variants in that person’s genes and how closely those variants are associated with the risk for disease among large groups of people who have similar genetic traits.The measure holds promise not only for identifying risk for disease but also for guiding personalized treatments. Buta new UCLA study, published in the journal Nature, found that polygenic scores fail to account for the wide range of genetic diversity across all ancestries.“Polygenic scores can estimate the l...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 19, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
UCLA ’s Fielding School to offer master’s of data science in health degree
As the amount of health-related electronic data has exploded in recent years, the need for people with the skills to analyze and utilize this information in the service of public health has become crucial. To help meet that demand, theUCLA Fielding School of Public Health will offer a new master of data science in health degree program beginning this fall.The program, designed for both working professionals seeking to thrive in this data-rich environment and recent college graduates hoping to enter the burgeoning field, will be housed in the school ’s department of biostatistics and will provide instruction in a wide ran...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 17, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
When stem cells can ’t roll on a bumpy road, muscles break down
Key takeawaysStem cells travel along a collagen network to reach damaged muscle tissue and heal it.In Duchenne muscular dystrophy, stiff, scarred collagen prevents stem cells from reaching their target.A protein called sarcospan lessens this scarring and allows stem cells to do their job more successfully, pointing toward potential new treatments for the disorder.Muscles that ache after a hard workout usually don ’t hurt for long, thanks to stem cells that rush to the injured site along “collagen highways” within the muscle and repair the damaged tissue. But if the cells can’t reach their destinat...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 12, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Is it too late to change your mind? Study reveals ‘developmental window’ for thinking styles
Key takeawaysResearchers studied the way different generations in Romania determined the truth of information following the country ’s transition from authoritarianism to democracy.Those who were born and raised after the transition were more likely than older cohorts to compare and evaluate different perspectives before deciding who is right.The factors associated with the youngestgeneration ’s style of thinking were greater exposure to formal education and social mediaa.While people change and learn throughout life, experts recognize that certain formative periods, known as developmental windows, are c...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 11, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Oprah Winfrey, U.S. surgeon general headline WOW mental health summit at UCLA
Loneliness has reached epidemic levels in the United States, with as much as half the population feeling socially disconnected at any given time. The U.S. surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, issued an advisory (PDF) on May 2 about loneliness and “the healing effects of social connection and community.”Depression and suicide are also on the rise.“Mental health is the defining public health crisis of our time,” Murthy said during an onstage conversation with Oprah Winfrey on May 4 at UCLA’s Royce Hall.The two discussed loneliness, mental health and what makes life meaningful during WOW 2023, UCLA Health ’s ann...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 5, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Long in the tooth: UCLA –Japan dentistry exchange program marks three decades
For 30 years, students and faculty from theUCLA School of Dentistry have made regular journeys across the Pacific to Meikai University, just outside Tokyo, and Asahi University, about 75 miles northeast of Kyoto, to share and absorb the latest in dental techniques and technology — and get a taste of the local culture — with their Japanese counterparts.The unique exchange program, which also brings members of both Japanese universities to the Westwood campus each year, had its genesis in a moment of tragedy — and of healing. On April 29, 1992, Henry Takei, a professor of periodontics and UCLA, and Susumu Miyata, chair...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 3, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
$9.5 million in state grants to fund wide-ranging research on cannabis
UCLA researchers have received six grants totaling $9.5 million from the California Department of Cannabis Control. The two-year awards will support research on a broad range of topics, from the potency and effects of cannabis products to the financial health of California ’s cannabis market.The faculty members who received the grants represent the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, UCLA College, UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and UCLA Anderson School of Management, and all are members of the UCLA Center for Cannabis and Cannabinoids.The UCLA grants represent nearly half of the $20 million that the canna...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - May 2, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
Unsafe firearm storage is common among veterans with suicidal ideation, study finds
Unsafe firearm storage is common among California veterans with a history of suicidal ideation, according toa study published today by theUCLA Center for Health Policy Research.Using data from the center ’s 2021 California Health Interview Survey, the study’s authors found that 18.4% of veterans who lived in a home with firearms and had ever thought of suicide had at least one firearm currently stored loaded and unlocked. Overall, 36.0% of veterans who had firearms in their home had at least one of them stored unlocked.Among veterans who lived in a home with a firearm, 18.0% said they had needed professional help for...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - April 26, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
UCLA Depression Research Registry, already 20,000 people strong, aims to enroll more Angelenos
Key takeawaysMore than 20,000 people have enrolled in the UCLA Depression Research Registry, which improves and streamlines longstanding obstacles to recruiting participants for medical research.UCLA now aims to expand the registry to enroll participants from throughout Los Angeles.The registry helps researchers reach equity, diversity and inclusion goals.Recruiting participants for health care studies is typically time-consuming and expensive, and the process often yields minimal returns. Researchers have to cast a wide net for people who meet specific criteria but also are representative of the larger population. Then, t...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - April 25, 2023 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
