Media Coverage
The work done by Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine faculty members (and even some students) is regularly highlighted in newspapers, online media outlets and more. Below you’ll find links to articles and videos of Feinberg in the news.
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TODAY
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Untreated UTIs can be deadly. Menopausal women have a higher risk
Many people in menopause notice that they experience more urinary tract infections (UTI) than they did in their younger years. For some, if they’re left untreated, they may end up in the hospital facing more serious conditions, such as sepsis and delirium. “When we look at recurrent urinary tract infections in a post-menopause population, it is devastating,” Lauren Streicher, MD, a clinical professor at Northwestern University shared. “It’s one of the easiest, solvable conditions out there, and yet, not only do woman not know they’re associated with menopause, but neither do their doctors. These women keep getting unnecessary and often the wrong antibiotics. They get unnecessary procedures,” she explains. “They’re miserable, and they get in trouble where they end up with sepsis and people die — and I’m not overstating this.”
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NBC News
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As the number of vaccines for pregnant women rises, so does vaccine hesitancy
As the winter respiratory illness season fast approaches, this is the first year that four vaccines are being recommended during pregnancy. Yet, there are already signs that fewer pregnant women are getting vaccinated – putting themselves and their newborns at increased risk of severe illness or death. “There are a lot of myths out there, what I would call blatant disinformation that is intended to be more politically charged, not based in science,” said Melissa Simon, an OB-GYN at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago. During pregnancy, the belly enlarges, pushing up against the diaphragm, decreasing lung capacity. That makes pregnant women — especially those late in their pregnancies — more vulnerable to breathing difficulties, Simon said. “When an infection like RSV or Covid or influenza gets into that lung space, it’s even harder for people who are pregnant to breathe,” she said. Pregnant women are one of the most at-risk groups for flu complications. Covid can also be harmful during pregnancy, and can increase the risk of preterm births and other complications.
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CBS News
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“It feels hopeful”: Family of toddler with ultra-rare disease sees signs treatment may work
A three-year-old has a rare neurological disease called Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood or AHC which can cause seizures and paralysis that threaten to kill him or damage his brain at any moment. Scientists at the Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine are producing ASOs candidates, microscopic synthetic strands of DNA and/or RNA that bind to the genetic mutation that is producing the protein causing Henry’s disease. Right now, there are four leading ASO candidates that researchers say are destroying some of the mutant gene in Henry’s cells. “An ASO can be used to selectively target that messenger RNA for destruction so that the mutant protein is never made or is at least made in less abundance,” said lead researcher Al George, Jr., MD, professor of pharmacology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, “We have some that are promising. I would say they’re not quite where I would like to see them.” The boy’s family is going full steam ahead with a fundraising campaign to raise the remaining more than $1.5 million needed to continue the research.
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ABC 7 Chicago
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Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, experts say
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women and the second leading cause of death in Illinois. October marks Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Jonathan Strauss, MD, associate professor of radiation oncology and medical education at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, shared tips about breast cancer screening and early detection. Strauss said the survival rate of an individual heavily depends on the stage of the cancer, which is where screening comes in. Strauss said eating healthy and exercising are very important factors in preventing cardiovascular diseases and cancers. It is important for individuals to visit their doctor regularly in order to detect any abnormalities that can lead to any cancers or diseases. “Every woman should start getting screened for breast cancer as early as the age of 40, if not earlier based on other risk factors,” Strauss said. Strauss said self-awareness is important, and women should stay alert of any abnormal changes in their bodies. “Treatments for breast cancer are improving, and I encourage people to get their annual mammograms,” Strauss said. “We have a chance of eliminating these cancers when we find them through screenings,” Strauss said.
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WTTW
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Latest COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout Off to Slower Start Than Last Fall, Chicago Health Department Reports
The rate of Chicagoans getting the latest COVID-19 vaccine has been slower than for the bivalent booster released last fall, according to a Thursday news release from the Chicago Department of Public Health. Jeffrey Linder, MD, MPH, chief of general internal medicine at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, said that availability of the vaccine so far could be part of the reason for the slow vaccine rollout. COVID-19 might also not be at the top of many people’s minds compared to how it was at different points earlier in the pandemic, Linder said. “I think it’s a perception that we’re kind of done with the pandemic,” Linder said. “We’re still seeing people get sick with COVID, not as sick as before, and immunity does seem to wane over time.” “Like most things in medicine, we’re playing the odds and trying to reduce people’s chances of contracting the disease and, in particular, contracting severe disease,” Linder said. “The COVID shot will do that for you.”
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Yahoo! News
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Women are turning to cannabis to manage menopause symptoms. Does it help?
Menopause is having a moment. The buzziest trend in menopausal wellness is weed. But in recent years, researchers have homed in on the endocannabinoid system, a complex network of transmitters that regulate hormones, such as estrogen. Cannabinoids found in the cannabis plant mimic certain endocannabinoids inside your body. “So theoretically, since THC might mimic anandamide (the temperature-regulating endocannabinoid), it should help with hot flashes,” Lauren Streicher, MD, clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and the author of Hot Flash Hell: A Gynecologist’s Guide to Turning Down the Heat, explained. “Does it actually help hot flashes? We don’t know. That’s the research we need.”
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ABC News
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Climate change raises concerns for future of marathons and runner safety: Analysis
As extreme weather conditions escalate across the world, marathons and long-distance races are succumbing to cancellations due to extreme heat and severe flooding, an occurrence that may intensify in the coming years. According to a study published in Nature Scientific Reports, there is a potential 27% decline in the number of viable cities worldwide to host the Olympic marathon by the late twenty-first century due to climate change and the expected summer weather in their regions. Air pollution can lead to nasal congestion, nose inflammation, and irritation in the windpipe, says Ravi Kalhan, MD, Deputy Division Chief of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Northwestern University. People may have difficulty breathing, Kalhan says, and the inflammation caused in the body by air pollution could increase the risk of clots. People exercising breathe in more potentially dangerous air. Kalhan says “when you exercise [and engage in] high-level training, you breathe in more air and breathe in deeper. The total amount of exposure to the smoke along the surface area of the lung is thought to be higher, resulting in a higher burden of exposure.”
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New York Times
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Younger Women Are Getting Lung Cancer at Higher Rates Than Men
Over the last several decades, the rates of new cases of lung cancer have fallen in the United States. There were roughly 65 new cases of lung cancer for every 100,000 people in 1992. By 2019, that number had dropped to about 42. But for all that progress, a disparity is emerging: Women between the ages of 35 and 54 are being diagnosed with lung cancer at higher rates than men in the same age group, according to a report published Thursday by researchers at the American Cancer Society. The disparity is small – one or two more cases among every 100,000 women in that age range than among men – but it is significant enough that researchers want to know more. But about 15 to 20 percent of lung cancer cases in women are among those who have never smoked, he said. It’s tricky to tease out why these women develop the disease. They may be exposed to secondhand smoke. Or women might metabolize carcinogens differently from the way men do, said Jyoti Patel, MD, medical director of thoracic oncology at the Lurie Cancer Center at Northwestern Medicine and professor of hematology and oncology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
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WGN
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What you need to know about pneumonia
Olympic gold medalist Mary Lou Retton is in the intensive care unit battling a rare form of pneumonia. Pneumonia can vary in terms of its severity and there’s lots of different things that can cause pneumonia. “Viruses can cause pneumonia, bacteria can cause pneumonia, and so it can be very dependent on what’s causing the pneumonia, and just how sick you’re actually getting. Pneumonia is still one of the leading causes of death worldwide, and that has been increased with the COVID pandemic because COVID often can cause or increase someone’s susceptibility to pneumonia” said Catherine Myers, MD, assistant professor of pulmonary and critical care. About 20% of people that are hospitalized will end up in the ICU. Vaccines should be prioritized because the risks of the vaccines are much lower than the side effects. Symptoms to watch for include increasing shortness of breath and fevers; if you’re feeling particularly tired, a cold that’s continuing to get worse. any signs of confusion. The earlier you seek out medical care, often times, the better.
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The Washington Post
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Why some people don’t feel the buzz of caffeine
It turns out, the coffee experience is not the same for everyone. How we respond to coffee, whether we like the taste and even how it influences our risk for heart attack or hypertension are all largely determined by our genes. And it’s one gene in particular – CYP1A2 – that appears to strongly influence our body’s sensitivity to caffeine. CYP1A2, the gene, controls an enzyme, also called, CYP1A2, that is responsible for breaking down caffeine and clearing it from the body. What variant of this you have can change how quickly you metabolize caffeine. “If you have genetic variants that allow you to metabolize caffeine more quickly, you’re more likely to consume more caffeine and possibly just tolerate a higher level,” says Marilyn Cornelis, PhD, an associate professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Genetics can also influence preference for coffee. In a 2021 study, she found that individuals with genetic variants associated with high caffeine sensitivity were less likely to enjoy the bitter taste of dark coffee.
