Steelers cook up a nice afternoon for breast cancer survivors at UPMC Magee in Oakland
Some people call football players warriors for what they endure on a field playing a brutal sport. “The real warriors are you,” said Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Stephon Tuitt via a video screen Tuesday to current and former patients of the Magee-Womens Breast Cancer Program of UPMC Hillman Cancer Center....
Medicare finalizing coverage policy for coronavirus vaccine
WASHINGTON — Medicare will cover the yet-to-be approved coronavirus vaccine free for older people under a policy change expected to be announced shortly, a senior Trump administration official said Tuesday. The coming announcement from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services aims to align the time-consuming process for securing Medicare...
Health panel proposes colon cancer tests start at 45, not 50Video
A panel of health experts wants U.S. adults to start getting colon cancer screenings at age 45, five years younger than it previously recommended. While overall, colon cancer rates have been declining, the draft guidelines issued Tuesday by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force reflect a growing concern about rising...
Pa. health secretary Levine says covid can be contained through masking and other efforts
The Pennsylvania Secretary of Health on Monday had a pointed response to a political declaration that “we’re not going to control the pandemic” as Pennsylvania and most other states see surges in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations. “Despite what has been reported in the last day or so, we can control...
Once a covid-19 vaccine is here, there will be a new challenge: convincing people it’s safe
There’s a good chance that a coronavirus vaccine could be available by late 2020 or early 2021. Developing an effective vaccine that fast would be a remarkable scientific achievement. It would also provide the first real hope of taming a new, deadly virus that has upended all aspects of American...
New tools are transforming breast cancer treatment in Pittsburgh
Lissa Yanak had been cancer-free for four years when doctors diagnosed her — again — with the same type of cancer. This time around, in early 2019, the triple negative breast cancer, spread to the lymph nodes above the collarbone. Yanak and her husband didn’t know what the future held,...
How a Kevin Bacon video (and other things) helped reporter survive breast cancer
I can’t really have breast cancer. That is the shock every woman goes through when hit with the diagnosis. Then comes the fear, the fight, the treatment, maybe more fear — all of which I knew about — but the post-cancer treatment, not so much. As a breast cancer survivor...
Some hospitals in crisis as U.S. nears high for covid-19 cases
BOISE, Idaho — The United States is approaching a record for the number of new daily coronavirus cases in the latest ominous sign about the disease’s grip on the nation, as states from Connecticut to the Rocky Mountain West reel under the surge. The impact is being felt in every...
U.S. suicide rate fell last year after decade of steady rise
The U.S. suicide rate fell slightly last year, the first annual decline in more than a decade, according to new government data. It’s a small decrease and the data is preliminary, but the decline is “really exciting,” said Dr. Christine Moutier, chief medical officer of the American Foundation for Suicide...
Forest Hills man claims Allegheny County denied him job over medical marijuana
A Forest Hills man claims in a lawsuit that he was rejected for a job as a corrections officer at the Allegheny County Jail because he is prescribed medical marijuana. Andrew Reed filed the complaint against the county under the Americans with Disabilities Act in federal court, alleging that the...
Future of Race for the Cure in question as Komen Foundation closes local chapters
The Susan G. Komen Foundation will close all of its local offices across the country by year’s end, leaving the future of Pittsburgh’s annual Race for the Cure up in the air, the nonprofit announced Tuesday. The foundation, which raises money for breast cancer research, screenings and treatment, plans to...
2nd medical marijuana dispensary opening in Monroeville
Pennsylvania’s latest medical marijuana dispensary will open Wednesday in Monroeville. The Rise Monroeville store will be the 98th dispensary in the state, the sixth in Allegheny County and the second in Monroeville. Tim Hawkins, Pennsylvania market president for Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries, which owns the Rise dispensaries, said demand for...
As virus flares globally, new strategies target hot spots
NEW YORK — After entire nations were shut down during the first surge of the coronavirus earlier this year, some countries and U.S. states are trying more targeted measures as cases rise again around the world, especially in Europe and the Americas. New York’s new round of virus shutdowns zeroes...
Millions more virus rapid tests but are results reported?
WASHINGTON — After struggling to ramp up coronavirus testing, the U.S. can now screen several million people daily, thanks to a growing supply of rapid tests. But the boom comes with a new challenge: keeping track of the results. All U.S. testing sites are legally required to report their results,...
WHO: Study finds 4 drugs have little to no effect on covid
GENEVA — The U.N. health agency says the world’s largest randomized trial of covid-19 treatments found “conclusive evidence” that remdesivir, a drug used to treat U.S. President Donald Trump when he fell ill, has little or no effect on severe cases. The World Health Organization announced Friday the long-awaited results...
U.S. testing 3 drugs to tamp down coronavirus
WASHINGTON — U.S. government officials are launching a new study testing three drugs to tamp down an overactive response by the immune system that can cause severe illness or death in people with covid-19. The U.S. National Institutes of Health says the study will enroll 2,100 hospitalized adults with moderate...
Widespread recalls affect popular diabetes medication Metformin
A common diabetes medication is in the midst of widespread national recalls after researchers found a contaminant that could potentially cause cancer, but local experts say there are plenty of alternative options available for those who take the drug. Metformin is used to control blood sugar levels in patients with...
Brett Keisel’s ‘Shear Da Beard’ event memorialized with a mural
Ten years. $1 million raised. Former Steelers defensive end Brett Keisel is no longer growing hair on his face for the annual “Shear Da Beard” charity event. But the fan favorite will be remembered for all the times he allowed his teammates and other celebrities to be his barber. A...
Possible safety issue spurs pause of Eli Lilly’s covid-19 antibody study
Independent monitors have paused enrollment in a study testing the covid-19 antiviral drug remdesivir plus an experimental antibody therapy being developed by Eli Lilly that’s similar to a treatment President Trump recently received. Lilly confirmed Tuesday that the study had been paused “out of an abundance of caution” and said...
Pa. health officials ask residents to cooperate with contact tracers
Pennsylvania health officials on Tuesday asked residents to cooperate in contact tracing efforts, as the state experiences a rise in covid-19 infections. In a news release, the Department of Health encouraged residents to download the Covid Alert PA mobile app and participate in case investigations. “As Pennsylvania experiences increases in...
2nd covid-19 vaccine trial paused over unexplained illness
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. — A late-stage study of Johnson & Johnson’s covid-19 vaccine candidate has been paused while the company investigates whether a study participant’s “unexplained illness” is related to the shot. The company said in a statement Monday evening that illnesses, accidents and other so-called adverse events “are an...
U.N. warns against pursuing herd immunity to stop coronavirusVideo
LONDON — The head of the World Health Organization warned against the idea that herd immunity might be a realistic strategy to stop the pandemic, dismissing such proposals as “simply unethical.” At a media briefing on Monday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said health officials typically aim to achieve herd...
UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital’s clinic specializes in patients with disabilitiesVideo
Joycelyn Banks gets off the lift of the accessible van. She maneuvers her way into the hospital lobby, onto an elevator and gets off at her floor. Banks enters the doctor’s office, where she’s greeted by registered nurse Jennifer Stephens. The two enter the patient room. Banks gets onto an...
‘Miracle baby’: Greensburg boy receives heart transplantVideo
For years, Gene Salvio had two suitcases sitting in his Greensburg home — one filled with summer clothes, the other with winter clothes — in case he got the call that his now 11-year-old son, Nico, would need to go to UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh for a heart transplant....
Keep trick-or-treaters safe with simple safety precautionsVideo
In a normal year, parents’ biggest worry about Halloween might be how to keep the kiddos from gorging on too much candy. This year, they have to decide whether to let them trick-or-treat at all. Some municipalities are making that decision for parents by canceling annual designated trick-or-treat times. Citing...
