Mayo Clinic in the News is a weekly highlights summary of major media coverage. If you would like to be added to the weekly distribution list, send a note to Emily Blahnik with this subject line: SUBSCRIBE to Mayo Clinic in the News.

Editor, Karl Oestreich;  Assistant Editor: Emily Blahnik

 

Washington Post
Letting a dog sleep on your bed does not actually ruin your sleep
by Linda Searing

People also spent less time awake after initially falling asleep if their dog was not on the bed. The dogs’ sleep efficiency was not affected by their location. “A dog’s presence in the bedroom may not be disruptive to human sleep, as was previously suspected,” the researchers, all affiliated with the Mayo Clinic, reported.

Reach: The Washington Post averages a daily circulation of 313,000. Its website has more than 43.9 million unique visitors each month.

Additional coverage: Science Alert, Los Alamos Daily Post

Previous coverage in September 22, 2017 Mayo Clinic in the News Weekly Highlights

Previous coverage in September 15, 2017 Mayo Clinic in the News Weekly Highlights

Context: Let sleeping dogs lie … in the bedroom. That’s according to a new Mayo Clinic study that’s sure to set many tails wagging. It’s no secret that Americans love their dogs. According to the American Veterinary Association, more than 40 million American households have dogs. Of these households, 63 percent consider their canine companions to be family. Still, many draw the line at having their furry family members sleep with them for fear of sacrificing sleep quality. “Most people assume having pets in the bedroom is a disruption,” says Lois Krahn, M.D., a sleep medicine specialist at the Center for Sleep Medicine on Mayo Clinic’s Arizona campus and an author of the study. “We found that many people actually find comfort and a sense of security from sleeping with their pets.” More information about the study can be found on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Contact:  Jim McVeigh

 

HealthDay
ERs Prescribing Opioids at Lower Doses, Shorter Durations
by Mary Elizabeth Dallas

The study, led by scientists at the Mayo Clinic, challenges views that emergency departments are the main source of prescriptions for the powerful painkillers whose use -- and misuse -- has soared in recent years. The research also suggests that patients who get an opioid prescription -- such as for oxycodone (OxyContin) -- during an ER visit are less likely to abuse the drugs over the long term. "There are a few things that many people assume about opioids, and one is that, in the emergency department, they give them out like candy," said the study's lead author, Molly Jeffery. She is scientific director of the Mayo Clinic division of emergency medicine research, in Rochester, Minn.

Reach: HealthDay distributes its health news to media outlets several times each day and also posts its news on its website, which receives nearly 398,000 unique visitors each month.

Additional coverage: HealthLeaders Media, Philly.com, Modern Healthcare, MPR, Scienmag, KTTC, Science Daily, Healio, Sioux City Journal, Arizona Daily Sun

Context: Opioid prescriptions from the emergency department (ED) are written for a shorter duration and smaller dose than those written elsewhere, shows new research led by Mayo Clinic. The study, published today in the Annals of Emergency Medicine, also demonstrates that patients who receive an opioid prescription in the ED are less likely to progress to long-term use. This challenges common perceptions about the ED as the main source of opioid prescriptions, researchers say. “There are a few things that many people assume about opioids, and one is that, in the ED, they give them out like candy,” says lead author Molly Jeffery, Ph.D., scientific director, Mayo Clinic Division of Emergency Medicine Research. “This idea didn't really fit with the clinical experience of the ED physicians at Mayo Clinic, but there wasn't much information out there to know what's going on nationally.” More information about the study can be found Mayo Clinic News Network.

Contact:  Adam Harringa

 

KARE 11
Mayo research could help maintain weight loss

A research breakthrough at the Mayo Clinic could help people keep weight off once they've lost it. And the discovery came unexpectedly. Dr. Stephen Brimijoin was working on the addictive nature of drugs when he says he stumbled on this weight loss idea. "I said, 'Woah, we must be manipulating some kind of stress-anxiety hormone,'" he said. Then, six months ago, he and his team injected one of two mice with an enzyme.

Reach: KARE 11 is the NBC affiliate in Minneapolis-St. Paul and reaches more than 600,000 people each week in its coverage area. Its website has more than 1.5 million unique visitors each month.

Additional coverage: South Florida Reporter

Context: Mayo Clinic scientists have shown that injections of a hunger hormone blocker in mice can halt the typical weight gain after dieting and help prevent rebound obesity in the long term. The research findings appear in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. “We think this approach – combined reduction of calories and hormone ─ may be a highly successful strategy for long-term weight control,” says W. Stephen Brimijoin, Ph.D., a Mayo Clinic molecular pharmacologist and senior author of the article. “Given the growing obesity crisis worldwide, we are working hard to validate our findings for medical intervention.” More information on the research can be found on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Contact: Bob Nellis

 

Post-Bulletin
You ask, and Alexa (with Mayo help) answers
by Anne Halliwell

Jay Maxwell activated the Mayo First Aid skill on his Echo Dot. "Alexa," he said. "Open Mayo First Aid." Maxwell, a senior director of health information in Mayo's Global Business Solutions department, listened to Amazon's voice service welcome him to the Mayo Clinic's new voice-activated app. "Tell me about sunburns," Maxwell said. Alexa's automated female voice read off a brief description of sunburn and how it develops. Then she asked whether the user would like to learn about treatment.

Reach: The Post-Bulletin has a daily readership of more than 32,000 people and more than 442,000 unique visitors to its website each month. The newspaper serves Rochester, Minn., and Southeast Minnesota.

Additional coverage: Version Weekly

Previous coverage in September 22, 2017 Mayo Clinic in the News Weekly Highlights

Context: Mayo Clinic has introduced a new skill for Amazon Alexa, giving a hands-free way to access first-aid information. A skill is a new capability a person can add to their Amazon Alexa-enabled devices which creates a more personalized user experience. “Mayo Clinic produces trusted, evidence-based health guidance to empower people to effectively manage their health,” says Sandhya Pruthi, M.D., general internal medicine physician and associate medical director, Mayo Clinic Global Business Solutions, which develops products and services which extend Mayo Clinic expertise through employer, payer, provider, consumer and partner channels. “This is the first health guidance skill Mayo Clinic has developed and launched for Amazon Alexa. Voice-enabled experience is a new and growing channel for reaching people and delivering information they are seeking, whether or not they have an existing relationship with Mayo Clinic. Creating this first-aid skill is another way Mayo Clinic can provide relevant information to consumers where and when it’s needed.” More information can be found on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Contact:  Joe O'Keefe

Wall Street Journal, What’s the Best Cure for Brain Freeze? by Heidi Mitchell — It starts with an innocent spoonful of ice cream—and ends with feeling like an ice pick is stabbing the brain. Though quick to arrive and quick to flee, the so-called ice cream headache can be a painful side effect of an otherwise joyful indulgence. One expert, Amaal Starling, assistant professor of Neurology at Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz., explains its causes and cures such as drinking with a small straw.

NPR, Searching For A Fairer Way To Distribute Donor Livers by Rob Stein — "In some areas of the country, patients have to wait a lot longer than in other areas," says Julie Heimbach, a transplant surgeon at the Mayo Clinic. "They have to get much sicker before they can access a liver transplant, depending on where they live." Heimbach chairs a committee for the United Network for Organ Sharing, the nation's organ transplant network, which has proposed a new system for distributing livers. "We're just trying to make it just a little bit more equal so that there's not such a disparity depending on where you live," Heimbach says.

STAT, Zapping the brain for stroke rehab: Pivotal clinical trial begins by Sharon Begley — Despite being forced by Hurricane Irma to close its outpatient facilities for several days, the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., is expected to forge ahead this month with a pivotal clinical trial testing whether an electrical implant can rewire the brains of stroke patients so they can use their arms and hands again...“In stroke care, there just aren’t a lot of alternatives for patients” who lose full use of their hands, said Dr. Benjamin Brown of Mayo, who is overseeing the clinical trial there. “That’s why we’re pretty excited about this.”

New York Times, Yes, Aaron Hernandez Suffered Brain Injury. But That May Not Explain His Violence. by Benedict Carey — Those who acted out earliest in the progression of their disease had so-called frontotemporal degeneration — that is, damage concentrated in the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. This is where C.T.E. shows up, too. In frontotemporal degeneration, “a purported association has been made with criminal behavior,” said Kevin Bieniek, a research fellow in the Dickson Neuropathology Lab at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Jacksonville, Fla. “Different disease, but some clinical and pathological parallels to C.T.E.”

NBC Sports, Ex-NFL player Mike Harris living with congenital brain condition by Charean Williams — Ex-NFL offensive lineman Mike Harris will file retirement papers next month, resigned to the fact that a congenital brain condition prematurely ended his career. Following an organized team activity with the Vikings in 2016, Harris felt like he was “having a stroke.” Tests at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester diagnosed a brain arteriovenous malformation, a tangle of abnormal blood vessels connecting arteries and veins in the brain… Harris, who soon will undergo a procedure at the Mayo Clinic, is expected to live a normal life with only a 5 percent chance of a recurrence of AVM. Additional coverage: Daily Norsman, Pioneer Press

Nature, Three ways to make proton therapy affordable by Thomas R. Bortfeld & Jay S. Loeffler — As costs fall, the charges for proton therapy should be lowered to the level of sophisticated X-ray therapy within the next five to ten years. Insurance companies should move to the 'reference pricing' model, which establishes a common level of payment for different therapies that have similar anticipated outcomes10. This will help to build the evidence for the benefit of proton therapy (or lack of it) in new clinical applications. The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, has already entered into such arrangements with insurers. Collaborations between hospitals and health-care funders on a broader scale are needed.

Prevention, ​6 Things A Fecal Test Can Tell You About Your Health by Emily Shiffer — A few symptoms that could prompt a fecal matter test: blood in your stool, diarrhea, chronic fatigue, or unexplained weight loss. "The best place to start is with your primary care doctor, who will determine which type of stool test to be ordered," says Sahil Khanna, MBBS, gastroenterologist at the Mayo Clinic…If you struggle with bad abdominal pain, cramping, chronic fatigue, and rectal bleeding, you may have inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). IBD includes Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. (Know these 5 signs of Crohn's disease.) Stool tests will be done for these to look for signs of inflammation, says Khanna, specifically the presence of calprotectin and lactoferrin, proteins in the stool that signal inflammation.

The Atlantic, Why People Faint at the Theater by Christine Ro — Reflex faints are activated by the nervous system, which slows down the heart rate and/or lowers the blood pressure in response to strain, leading to reduced blood flow to the brain. Triggers for this can be surprisingly benign. For some people, laughing, coughing, swallowing, urinating, or blowing a trumpet can lead to syncope. Win-Kuang Shen, a Mayo Clinic cardiologist and coauthor of the recently published clinical guidelines for assessing and treating syncope, explained that the nervous system doesn’t distinguish between physical and emotional distress; they’re both stress inputs, leading to the same response.

HuffPost, New Hope for Ovarian Cancer — A decade ago, women diagnosed with ovarian cancer had few options for treatment. Surgery, chemotherapy and radiation were standard practice. Those therapies are still in use today, but, thanks to research and new technologies, ovarian cancer patients have additional, and sometimes more effective, options for treatment. Dr. Andrea Wahner Hendrickson, a Mayo Clinic researcher and oncologist, says “in the past 10 to 20 years, or when I finished my fellowship, there really hadn’t been much change for the treatment of ovarian cancer. It was surgery and chemotherapy, and the chemotherapy was the same agents that we were using five to 10 years ago. But, in the past five years, we have made significant improvements, and it’s really exciting.”

Romper, Can You Get Pregnant If You Have Pelvic Inflammatory Disease? Experts Weigh In by Kelly Mullen-McWiliams — Symptoms of PID include lower abdominal pain, heavy vaginal discharge or bleeding between periods, painful intercourse, difficulty peeing, and fever, reported Mayo Clinic. Because symptoms range from mild to severe, it's possible for the condition to go unnoticed, and that's where trouble starts.

Romper, What Is Oppositional Defiant Disorder? Experts Explain A Difficult Diagnosis by Kelly Mullen-McWilliams — Likely you've read articles on the internet or in magazines about ODD. But what is oppositional defiant disorder? For a very few, it's a troubling pattern of rageful, defiant behavior that requires treatment, according to Mayo Clinic. For the vast majority, though, defiance and anger are a normal part of growing up.

SELF, The Death of a 12-Year-Old Boy From Sepsis Is a Tragic Reminder to Always Clean Your Cuts by Korin Miller — A family in New York is hoping to raise awareness of sepsis after the death of their 12-year-old son. Rory Staunton was in middle school gym class when he dove for a ball and fell, cutting his arm in the process, his family tells SELF. He ended up developing the life-threatening complication after his cut became infected…Sepsis is a complication stemming from an infection, and it occurs when chemicals released into the bloodstream to fight infection trigger damaging inflammation throughout the body, the Mayo Clinic explains.

SELF, What Is Sepsis, Actually? by Korin Miller —…The first stage is simply called “sepsis” and in order to be diagnosed with it, people must have two or more of the following symptoms, plus an infection, per the Mayo Clinic: a body temperature above 101 degrees or below 96.8 degrees, a heart rate higher than 90 beats a minute, and a respiratory rate higher than 20 breaths a minute. If someone has one of the following symptoms, they’ll be upgraded to what’s known as “severe sepsis,” the Mayo Clinic says: significantly decreased urine output, an abrupt change in mental status, decrease in platelet count, difficulty breathing, abnormal heart pumping function, or abdominal pain. These suggest that an organ may be failing, the organization says.

HealthDay, Survey: 9 of 10 Americans Take Cancer Prevention Steps by Robert Preidt — About 95 percent of Americans take some action to prevent cancer, according to a new survey. Three-quarters of respondents said they don't smoke; 74 percent limit their alcohol consumption; 72 percent stick to a healthy diet; and 90 percent are aware of their family's cancer history, the survey found. Women are far more likely than men to take all three preventive steps and more -- discussing risk and prevention with their health care provider, getting the recommended amount of sleep, and undergoing recommended cancer screenings. The fourth edition of the Mayo Clinic National Health Checkup also reported that 62 percent said they or a loved one had been diagnosed with cancer. Sixty-one percent are concerned that they will develop cancer during their lifetime.

HealthDay, Blacks, Elderly Missing From U.S. Cancer Clinical Trials by Dennis Thompson — Four out of five participants in cancer clinical trials are white, a discrepancy that calls into question whether other races and ethnicities are receiving good cancer treatment, researchers say. Women and the elderly also are underrepresented in clinical trials, according to the new findings. Prior studies have shown that the effectiveness of cancer treatment can vary based on a person's race, gender and age, said lead researcher Dr. Narjust Duma. Despite this, clinical trials have failed to successfully recruit a diverse patient population upon whom to test new drugs and therapies, said Duma, a hematology/oncology fellow at the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minn. "All the data we're using to guide cancer treatment is for one type of patient," she said. Additional coverage: UPI.com, Bloomington Pantagraph, Daily Mail

Science Codex, Mayo study shows drug slows stomach emptying, may individualize obesity treatment — Liraglutide injection, a prescription medication used to treat type-2 diabetes and obesity is associated with marked slowing of stomach emptying and is an effective weight loss therapy. These are the findings of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study by Mayo Clinic researchers published today in The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology.  "Our paper shows that Liraglutide, administered for three months at the approved dose of three milligrams per day was associated with an average weight loss of 12 lbs. compared to an average 6.6 lbs.-weight loss for patients receiving a placebo," says senior author Michael Camilleri, M.D., a gastroenterologist at Mayo Clinic. Importantly, Dr. Camilleri says the drug was added to standardized diet and behavioral health support which was also provided to the placebo-treated group. Additional coverage: Healio

Hospitals & Health Networks, Burnout Among Hospitalists by Lola Butcher — Working as a hospitalist for many years, Daniel L. Roberts, M.D., has heard it both ways: Some say hospitalists are more prone to burnout than other physicians. Others say hospitalists are more protected from burnout than their colleagues in other specialties. Roberts, an internist who practices at Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, dug through survey data to find out which theory was correct. Initially, his comparison of burnout rates among hospitalists with those of general internists who practice in outpatient settings did not reveal a major difference: More than 52 percent of hospitalists and nearly 55 percent of outpatient internists are affected by burnout, according to the 2014 Journal of Hospital Medicine study.

Fierce Healthcare, Leaders at Partners HealthCare, Mayo Clinic join AMA’s mHealth collaboration by Evan Sweeney — Digital health leaders at Partners HealthCare and the Mayo Clinic are among the four new members adding their expertise to Xcertia, the American Medical Association’s recently launched collaboration to improve mobile health apps. Steve Ommen, M.D., associate dean and medical director of connected care at Mayo Clinic and Joseph Kvedar, M.D., vice president of connected care at PartnersHealthcare, were appointed to Xcertia’s board of directors, AMA announced on Wednesday. Additional coverage: Becker’s Hospital Review

Addiction Now, Mayo Clinic revamps guidelines after opioid overprescribing is revealed by Dave Lambert — The Mayo Clinic, a non-profit medical practice and research chain, recently carried out a study into the prescribing practices of its own sites across the U.S., in a move to tackle the ever-worsening opioid crisis and protect patients. Researchers discovered that 4 of 5 opioid prescriptions handed out after surgeries would have exceeded new guidelines which are set to come into force. Senior author of the research Elizabeth Habermann, Ph.D., scientific director of surgical outcomes research at the Mayo Clinic, believes it’s vital to self-analyze to make sure their facilities are not contributing to the current crisis.

Medscape, Novel Protein Signals Rapid Hippocampal Atrophy in AD by Fran Lowry — "This is the first time in the history of Alzheimer's that a protein has been shown to correlate with shrinkage of this part of the brain, so TDP-43 could be a target, something we could direct medication towards, perhaps," lead author, Keith Josephs, MD, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, told Medscape Medical News. "It is quite possible that this could be one of the treatments for Alzheimer's in the future."

Medscape, Treatment That's Easy to Swallow in HPV+ Throat Cancer by Nick Mulcahy — Daniel Ma, MD, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, treats a lot of relatively young patients with human papillomavirus (HPV)-related oropharyngeal cancers who are cured by various standard combinations of surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy and then have "another 30 to 40 years of life ahead of them." But that life expectancy can be marred by the "potentially life-altering side effects" of standard treatment, including dry mouth, loss of taste, and, in about one half of patients, difficulty swallowing, he said. These patients inspired the genesis of Dr Ma's phase 2 study of an "aggressive dose de-escalation" of adjuvant radiation in this setting, he said. Additional coverage: MedPage Today

HealthLeaders Media, Higher Cancer Costs Linked to Pre-existing Psychiatric Diagnoses by Alexandra Wilson Pecci — Cancer patients with pre-existing psychiatric diagnoses had 208% higher follow-up ED costs than patients without them, according to a new study from Mayo Clinic…Mental and behavioral health conditions are often associated with chronic conditions, from cardiovascular disease, to diabetes, to arthritis, and healthcare providers are increasingly including mental health care with their routine medical care. "Psychiatric health is an essential component of comprehensive cancer care,” the study's lead author Mark Waddle, M.D., a radiation oncologist at Mayo Clinic's Florida campus, said in a statement. "However, little has been done to quantify the impact of pre-existing psychiatric conditions on the cost of cancer care."

Healio, HRS updates guidelines for lead management in implantable devices — “What’s important about this document compared to the prior document in 2009 is that this document takes a step back and looked at lead management as a whole, of which lead extraction is one portion,” Fred M. Kusumoto, MD, FHRS, FACC, director of heart rhythm services at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida and professor at Mayo Clinic School of Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota, told Cardiology Today. “The new recommendations are those that deal with lead management and also the diagnosis of or the management of patients with suspected lead infections.”

MedCity News, Former IBM Watson Health employee on AI: The truth needs to come out by Arundhati Parmar — Not everyone has experienced the same disillusionment when it comes to IBM’s artificial intelligence capabilities. While acknowledging that the road ahead is long and that AI is a toddler with lots to learn, Mayo Clinic’s CIO has publicly spoken about how the clinical trial matching capabilities of IBM Watson Health is an extremely useful tool. “Watson understands the inclusion/exclusion criteria. It has read all of ClinicalTrials.Gov,” said Cris Ross, at the HIMSS conference earlier this year. “It has read all of our clinical trials. It has read all of the world’s literature on oncology and then applies it against a subset of patients records to provide recommendations.”

Lymphoma News Today, NCI Renews $12.4 Million Grant to University of Iowa, Mayo Clinic for Lymphoma Research by Carolina Henriques — The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has renewed a $12.4 million grant to support the Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) for lymphoma, a joint research initiative by the University of Iowa’s Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Mayo Clinic. The University of Iowa and Mayo Clinic lymphoma SPORE focuses on developing new approaches to prevent, detect, and treat lymphoma. First funded in 2002, SPORE received three successive grants from the NCI, making it the nation’s longest-standing lymphoma research program.

Star Tribune, Five incredibly important work skills money can't buy you — Being positive: If you are not always as positive as you think you should be, there are ways to turn that frown upside down. The Mayo Clinic listed habits that can help build this key skill, including the following: Check yourself for negativity often; Be open to humor; Live a healthy lifestyle; Keep the company of positive people; Practice positive self-talk.

Twin Cities Business, Experimental Mayo Clinic MS Antibody Gets Patent Nod by Don Jacobson — The Mayo Clinic and corporate partner Acorda Therapeutics Inc., which has been working on a novel drug targeting an underlying cause of multiple sclerosis, was granted patent protection on their antibody known as rHIgM22, four years after the start of early-stage clinical trials. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued the patent to Mayo and New York-based Acorda (Nasdaq: ACOR) on September 5, listing among its inventors renowned Mayo multiple sclerosis researcher Dr. Moses Rodriguez.

KAAL, 'Miracle on the Hudson' Co-Pilot Visits Rochester — It's been over 8 years, but many people still remember what has now been dubbed, "The Miracle on the Hudson", in New York City. Captain Chelsey Sullenberger, one of the men responsible for performing that miracle had a copilot that sometimes goes unnoticed. Friday, First Officer Jeff Skiles talked to Mayo Clinic employees about his experience on Jan.15, 2009, when he and Sully made an emergency landing in the Hudson River, saving all 155 people on board. "I am probably very very cautious compared to most pilots, but that’s actually good because caution is something that keeps you safe.” said Skiles. Additional coverage: KIMT, KTTC

KAAL, Huge Grant Funds Pediatric Cancer Research at Mayo Clinic Children's Center — A grant awarded to Mayo Clinic's Children's Research Center is giving kids a fighting chance against cancer. Hyundai Hope on Wheels presented Mayo Clinic with a $250,00o grant on Tuesday to fund pediatric cancer research.  Local children battling cancer also had to chance to place their handprints on a white Hyundai.

KIMT, Woman 'saved my life that day' thanks to performing Heimlich Maneuver at work by DeeDee Stiepan — Among the many lives that have been saved at Mayo Clinic is Amber Swaagman. But it wasn't by a doctor in an operating room, it was a co-worker in a break room. Amber and her friend/colleague, Kaylianna Ott, work as Lab Techs in Mayo's Hilton Building. The two met in a break room on the fifth floor to eat lunch, like they often do, but on this day their lunch break took a terrifying turn. "We were just talking, catching up on what happened the night before in our lives [when] she stopped talking in the middle of a sentence," Ott explains. "I was like, 'Amber are you okay?' Because her eyes got kind of wide."

KTTC, Transform Conference seeks to change health experiences — The goal of the conference is to think about how to change the experience of health for people. Participants focus not so much on things like health insurance and administrative aspects, but more about the human experience of becoming healthy and enjoying health.  "For example, a mother with diabetes might not think about health as being perfect numbers for blood sugar and blood pressure, but really thinks about health as being able to be that perfect mother if you will, being able to take care of children, meet the needs of the family and if she works, being able to do a good job at work as well," said Dr. Douglas Wood, Director of Mayo Clinic's Center for Innovation. Additional coverage: KAAL

KTAR Phoenix, John McCain reflects on brain cancer diagnosis on ’60 Minutes’ — McCain said he was driving up to Sedona after a routine check-up at the Mayo Clinic near Phoenix. Doctors called him and told him to come back, saying a blood clot that had formed above his left eye was serious enough to require immediate action. Later, after McCain pressed doctors for answers, he was told of the cancer diagnosis. “The prognosis is very, very serious,” McCain said. “Some say 3 percent, some say 14 percent. It’s a very poor prognosis. So, I just said, ‘I understand, now we’re going to do what we can, get the best doctors we can find, and do the best we can. Additional coverage: TIME, CBS News, Daily Mail

Alzforum, Bloodborne Tau: Foggy Window into the Brain for TBI, Dementia — In this month’s JAMA Neurology, two papers examine whether tau circulating in plasma could offer a blood-based biomarker for brain disorders. One, by Kevin Wang, University of Florida, Gainesville, and others, measures total and phosphorylated tau and their ratio to try to detect cases of acute or chronic traumatic brain injury (TBI). It found tau to be up in all forms of TBI, with p-tau better separating patients from controls, and mild from severe cases. The other, led by Jeffrey Dage, Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, and Michelle Mielke, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, examines whether plasma total tau predicts progression to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or dementia, or risk for cognitive decline in aging. Those researchers find but a tenuous relationship between plasma tau and cognitive decline.

Mankato Free Press, Camp Oz gives children support during grieving process by Brian Arola — Losing a loved one isn’t easy at any age, let alone for a child. Outlets for expressing their grief aren’t always easy to find in everyday life, but Camp Oz at Lake Washington's Camp Patterson offers them a place to do so among others going through the same processes. “This is really an opportunity for them to connect with other kids and really realize they’re not alone,” said Jeanne Petroske-Atkinson, outpatient hospice bereavement coordinator at Mayo Clinic Health System. The camp, offered by the health system’s hospice program, starts once again Oct. 7, although open spots should be reserved by the registration deadline Wednesday.

Mankato Free Press, Vaccines recommended ahead of unpredictable flu season by Brian Arola — Jessica Sheehy, physician’s assistant for infectious diseases at Mayo Clinic Health System in Mankato, said patients may think an early vaccination won’t cover them for the whole flu season, but she’s still been telling them it’s not too early to get their shots. “Especially in the high-risk groups, it’s going to give you more benefits, so the very young, the very elderly and pregnant patients,” she said.

KEYC Mankato, Not Too Soon To Get A Flu Shot by Allison Gens — Even though there's still a few days left of summer, it might not be too soon to start thinking about one upcoming season: flu season. Flu season typically takes place December through March, but cases can begin popping up as early as late fall. Jessica Sheehy, physician assistant and infectious disease specialist at Mayo Clinic Health System, said that now is not too early to get a flu shot. "The vaccine actually takes about two weeks to take effect into your system," Sheehy said. "So, if you got vaccinated now, you'd start to be protected in the first part of October."

Fairmont Sentinel, Mayo offering wellness trophy — If you’re one of those people who shies away from wellness programs because you don’t want to count calories or dedicate time to a fitness center, Mayo Clinic Health System is offering a month-long program in October to help get area residents moving toward a healthier lifestyle. More than 10 teams from area businesses already have signed up squads of four to six members to participate, but there is room for more. “There are some organizations that have their own wellness programs, but this has the opportunity to be much more broad and include anybody and everybody,” said Dr. Marie Morris, medical director at Mayo in Fairmont.

Barron News-Shield, Practice now perfect for 2003 Barron graduate; Star athlete always wanted to be a doctor by Bob Zientara — Barron native, Joshua Balts, M.D. was a star athlete in high school, played football for the Badgers, and has now returned to his roots to become the first, full-time orthopedic surgeon at Mayo Clinic Health System - Northland in Barron.

Green Valley News, Mayo Clinic Minute: Symptoms, solutions for carpal tunnel syndrome — Carpal tunnel syndrome is a condition that creates numbness and tingling in your palm from the thumb to ring fingers. It occurs when a nerve on the palm side of the hand is compressed or irritated in some way. Often, a combination of risk factors contributes to the development of the condition, which tends to create initial symptoms at night. Several treatment options are available to relieve tingling and numbness, and restore wrist and hand function.

WAVY Radio, Concussion Safety — Angie Oldenberg, N.P, Neurology, and David Webster, L.A.T., join Sportstalk 105.1 WAYY Morning Locker Room host John Murphy for a conversation about concussion safety.

FOX 32 Michigan, Healthy Living: Take On Cancer With Math by Courtney Hunter — Cancer fighting teams may soon include an oncologist, a surgeon and a mathematician. Tumor growth isn’t as random as once thought. In Healthy Living, see how the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix has opened a research lab where the goal is to use math to find the best treatment for brain cancer tumors. The Mayo research team is currently running a study to validate predictive models of tumor spread. They hope to be in clinical trials using the math model to direct surgery within the year.

Sacramento Bee, There’s a ‘catastrophic sleep-loss epidemic,’ and it’s cutting lives short, expert says by Jared Gilmour — Yawning may be a symptom of a host of problems more severe than a bad night’s sleep. That’s because losing shut-eye doesn’t just make it hard to get through the day without a nap — it can also heighten the risk of heart attacks, strokes, cancer and dementia, potentially shortening our lives, according to a top sleep expert…Sleep is essential for good health, and to promote optimal health for children, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine has released new sleep guidelines. Mayo Clinic experts support the recommendations, because inadequate sleep is associated with health risks.

Green Valley News, Mayo Clinic Minute: Best shoes for healthy feet — Wearing a pair of ill-fitting shoes can make walking across the room uncomfortable. Mayo Clinic orthopedic surgeon Dr. Glenn Shi says shoes that are too tight, too small or don't give enough support can cause pain and other issues. He has advice on how to choose proper foot wear to keep your feet healthy.

The Daily Iowan, Iowa and Mayo Clinic receive $12.4 million grant renewal for lymphoma research by Jordan Prochnow — The University of Iowa Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center and Mayo Clinic’s Specialized Program Of Research Excellence (SPORE) focused on lymphoma research has received a $12.4 million grant renewal from the National Cancer Institute. This is the fourth time the Iowa-Mayo lymphoma SPORE has received a renewal since its initial funding in 2002, and longest-running lymphoma SPORE in the nation. “The SPORE is an example and highlight of the effective teamwork that makes Holden a special place,” Dr. Gail Bishop, Associate Director of Basic Research, said. “People appreciate each other as individuals and it exemplifies the good teamwork we have here.”

The Daily, But first, coffee: The two cents on coffee’s effect on health and wealth by Hannah Pickering — The popularity of coffee as a normalized stimulant has prompted research and discussion on the healthiness of coffee. In the past decade, studies have been sending mixed messages on whether or not drinking coffee as a stimulant supports one’s general health and wellness. In an article for the Mayo Clinic, Donald Hensrud, M.D., acknowledged that the argument for coffee’s negative health effects comes from the fact that heavy coffee drinkers tend to have other high-risk behaviors like smoking or physical inactivity. “Although coffee may have fewer risks compared with benefits, keep in mind that other beverages, such as milk and some fruit juices, contain nutrients that coffee doesn’t,” Hensrud said in his article.

Kokomo Perspective, Mayo Clinic: #AsktheMayoMom about Fetal Surgery and Birth Defects — Dr. Angela Mattke and Dr. Rodrigo Ruano discuss maternal fetal medicine surgery during an #AsktheMayoMom Facebook Live session.

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