Category: Uncategorized

https://www.pcori.org/blog/partnering-help-people-obesity-better-understand-their-surgical-options

https://www.pcori.org/research-in-action/bone-marrow-transplants-more-just-survival

http://healthier.stanfordchildrens.org/en/time-year-get-protected-flu/

 

Published: November 2, 2015 on the Healthier, Happy Lives Blog, Stanford Children’s Health

http://healthier.stanfordchildrens.org/en/gift-meals-pediatric-advocacy-program-community-partnership-brightened-holiday-season/

Published: January 4, 2015 on the Healthier, Happy Lives Blog, Stanford Children’s Health

 

 

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=lucile%20packard%20children’s%20hospital%20stanford%20and%20pediatric%20advocacy%20program

 

VIDEO:  FOR A HEALTHY HEART, MARCH TO THE BEAT OF PREVENTION, EXPERTS SAY:

http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/combination-of-exercise-and-diet-keys-to-healthy-heart-experts-say/

 

VIDEO:  BRONZEVILLE RESIDENTS PROTEST CONSTRUCTION OF MARIANO’S

http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/bronzeville-residents-protest-construction-of-marianos/

Many Chicago kids lack adequate dental care:  http://medillreports.com/2014/10/02/many-chicago-kids-lack-adequate-dental-care/

NYPD and DuPage County naloxone programs saving lives. CPD adoption remains uncertain. http://medillreports.com/2014/12/11/nypd-and-dupage-county-naloxone-programs-saving-lives-cpd-adoption-remains-uncertain/

Welcome to the start of my portfolio!

Thank you for stopping by.  If you have any questions or further interest in my work, please email me at m.schenkman11@gmail.com.

Melissa

By Melissa Schenkman

Colon cancer is on the rise in U.S. young adults, ages 20-34, according to a recent study from University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. High fat diets are the suspected culprit, according to a researcher for the study.

Researchers predict that, based on the increases, the number of young adults being diagnosed with colorectal cancer will rise by another 40 percent from 2010 to 2020 and by another 50 percent between 2020 and 2030.

The study published in JAMA Surgery this month examined data from almost 400,000 patients in the National Cancer Institute’s database from 1975 until 2010. The database houses demographic and clinical information on cancer patients from multiple cancer registries.

While researchers found a steady decline in colorectal cancer cases in individuals over age 50, the number of patients ages 20-34 diagnosed with colorectal cancer shows the opposite trend. This age group showed a 2 percent increase in colorectal cancer each year from 1975 to 2010. And, the increased number of cases is seen in localized, regional and metastatic colorectal cancers.

The specific reasons behind increased colorectal cancer in this age group are unknown. But, one of the study’s authors, Dr. Christina Bailey, suspects that diet plays a large role.

“In the United States obesity is a significant problem among young and old people. Young people eat a Western Diet that is high in fat, low in fiber and does not have fruit. They also eat a lot of fast food that may contribute,” Bailey said.

A lack of physical activity, obesity, and a diet low in fiber have been previously linked to colon cancer. Other factors that Bailey thinks may play a role are unknown environmental factors and genes.

However, Bailey says this is not the whole story.

“All of these things contribute, but none explain 100 percent why we are seeing this increase,” Bailey said. “When you’re younger the last thing on your mind is colorectal cancer.”

She also noted that it is also not on the forefront of physicians’ minds either when it comes to this age group.

Dr. Al Benson, a medical oncologist at Northwestern University, said he has observed an increase in the number of younger patients with colorectal cancer in his clinical practice. He said the study raises questions about current screening recommendations.

The United States Preventive Services Task Force, a panel of experts, recommends colorectal cancer screening- fecal occult blood testing, sigmoidoscopy, or colonoscopy- starting at age 50. Physicians perform screening at an earlier age in patients who have genetic risk factors or a hereditary colorectal disease, such as Familial Adenomatous Polyposis.

Screenings enable physicians to find polyps, potentially cancerous lesions, early and that means giving patients a greater chance of being cured, Benson said. Younger patients who present with more advanced disease, have less of a chance to be cured.

“I would hope this information puts an emphasis on looking at younger people with cancer and to begin an in-depth exploration as to look at a very detailed family history, and take tumor samples to do tumor genetic analyses if possible to see any pattern that emerges,” Benson said.

Bailey points out that around five percent of colorectal cancers are hereditary, warranting earlier screening. The young adult population where colorectal cancer is increasing does not fall in the category recommended for screening.

Similar disease trends have been found in breast cancer research, where the number of cases of disease and particularly advanced disease at diagnosis is rising.  Bailey finds this interesting and says it shows the study’s findings on colorectal cancer in the young adult population is not isolated. Further this is why it is important to investigate why this is occurring, she said.

“Our hope is that the study will help spearhead an increase in awareness not only for patients, but for physicians. The hope is for physicians to use this as a way to identify patients who would benefit from earlier colonoscopy,” Bailey said.

By Melissa Schenkman

ComEd is in the midst of major grid innovations and conservation efforts in the face of climate change, said ComEd CEO Anne Pramaggiore, said on a panel addressing Climate Risk Management and Energy Infrastructure Innovation.

The panel focused on challenges in the water and power utility businesses as well as solutions. Conservation efforts include smart meters that allow customers to monitor their home electricity use directly and energy efficient light bulbs.

Pramaggiore and fellow utility experts addressed the changes in store for the U.S. water and power infrastructure in the face of climate change, providing a glimpse of the future at The Resilient Futures Summit in Evanston, sponsored by the Institute for Sustainability and Energy at Northwestern.

In 2012, ComEd began its commitment to a five-year plan encompassing programs to “refurbish” and significantly improve the grid to reduce energy waste and the risk of power outages.  The plan is part of the Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act that allows for a $2.6 billion investment over 10 years, in improving the state’s electric grid. ComEd is working on upgrading its physical grid, power outage prevention and social networks that give people on-going access to information about their power usage.

Improvements to the physical grid include replacing more than 4,700 miles of cable with storm hardening, super reinforced cable that is insulated, moving more above ground cable underground, rerouting customers across 2,600 miles of distribution that is isolated so that these customers can regain power faster when outages do occur and more superconducting high capacity cable.

“We are very cognizant of volatility in weather,” Pramaggiore said.

Storm resistant, super reinforced cable and the movement of more cable underground will combat the effects of winter ice and summer thunderstorms, both which cause trees to fall on power lines. As for superconducting power lines, these technological wonders also protect power interruption in the face of extreme weather events or even a terrorist strike. If one lead on a cable is damaged, the other leads can be employed to prevent power interruption, she said.

ComEd is promoting energy saving opportunities at the community level with the use of LED light bulbs for streetlights, decreasing energy costs by 75 percent. These lights would function on a wireless mesh network, which would allow ComEd to dim and brighten streetlights remotely.

Smart meters are offered to allow ComEd customers to check their usage at home and allow ComEd to monitor customer’s systems remotely. The remote monitoring has avoided 5,000 customer interruptions.

“Smart technology has decreased storm outages by 10 percent. It improves material conduction of the system,” Pramaggiore said.

ComEd is working to build a social network where customers can download usage data without printing it on paper.

As Leal puts it, the trend in the utility business is “letting people know what is behind the curtains.” Given the modifications to the system that are needed in order to adapt to climate change, utilities need to increase the profits they make from their customers in order to have the finances to refurbish the systems.

There are multiple paths to producing technological advanced, energy efficient systems that are robust enough to hold up to the extreme weather predicted to continue with climate change.

“We are very focused in on an interdisciplinary skill set. We are trying to bring in younger people and create areas within the company that do experimentation,” Pramaggiore said. “We are seeking people with innovation.”

Water Utilities Expert and former General Manager of San Francisco’s Public Utility Commission, Susan Leal, pointed out that people often talk about our carbon footprint, but not about our water footprint.

Leal said that in the United States a person utilizes 1800 gallons of water per day and that food preparation utilizes a great portion. In fact, she cited a statistic regarding the amount of water used to prepare an 8-ounce hamburger not even including the bun to be 654 gallons of water.

“We don’t take into account how much water is in the food we eat,” Leal said. And as our water supply becomes limited, she questions, “How can we feed 9.5 billion people by 2050?”

One of the solutions, according to Leal is producing technology to make water use more efficient in farming and educate farmers about this technology.

Bruce Stephenson, of the Utilities practice at Bain & Company, says that environmental concerns, consumer interest in renewables such as rooftop solar panels, and environmental policy are all driving changes in another vital resource, the electricity grid.

“It is a fascinating and changing time for the grid,” Stephenson said.

Changes to the grid will be seen in its distribution system, as consumers demand more control and convenience in energy delivery. Consumers in higher economic brackets are showing a trend towards generating their own energy with the desire for rooftop solar and rechargeable cars. This tends to be on the wealthier end of the spectrum, as self-generation is expensive.

Such self-generation of energy will cause a cost shift, Stephenson said. But, consumer demands and environmental challenges call for greater flexibility in energy generation, he said.

In the end, changing the grid to meet these demands and challenges will result in cleaner energy, a resilient grid and greater consumer control.