Author: Michelle Korhonen
Left to right: Barbies in India; Maya softball players in Mexico; walking on a frozen fountain in the mountains of Pakistan, where efforts are underway to revive the ancient art of glacier mating. Anushree Bhatter for NPR, Bénédicte Desrus; Diaa Hadid/NPR hide caption toggle caption Anushree Bhatter for NPR, Bénédicte Desrus; Diaa Hadid/NPR Are you looking for a good read for the end of the year? We editors have a few recommendations. These were among our favorite stories of the year, even if they didn’t rack up mega page views. It’s always a little mysterious why a great story doesn’t…
The U.S. government can achieve great things quickly when it has to. In November 2020, the Food and Drug Administration granted emergency-use authorization to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for COVID-19. Seven days later, a competing vaccine from Moderna was approved. The rollout to the public began a few weeks later. The desperate search for a vaccine had been orchestrated by Operation Warp Speed, an initiative announced by the Trump administration that May. Developing, testing, manufacturing, and deploying a new vaccine typically takes a decade or more. OWS, which accomplished the feat in months, belongs in the pantheon of U.S. innovation triumphs,…
Gastric cancer, a chilling specter in the global health arena, casts a long shadow over millions of lives each year. Its tendrils reach far and wide, claiming over 7% of cancer-related deaths. Yet, within this vast landscape, a distinct subset emerges – Hereditary Diffuse Gastric Cancer (HDGC) – a foe as enigmatic as it is aggressive.Hereditary Diffuse Gastric Cancer (HDGC) is a rare but aggressive form of stomach cancer linked to genetic mutations. Unlike its more common counterparts, HDGC hums a different tune, orchestrated by the invisible hand of heredity. While only about 1-3% of gastric cancers have a hereditary…
The former Akorn pharmaceutical plant in Decatur, Ill., that made a wide range of generic drugs used in hospitals is being reopened under new ownership. Emilija Manevska/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Emilija Manevska/Getty Images The former Akorn pharmaceutical plant in Decatur, Ill., that made a wide range of generic drugs used in hospitals is being reopened under new ownership. Emilija Manevska/Getty Images Steven Coventry spent 20 years at the Akorn pharmaceutical factory in Decatur, Ill., and worked his way up to operations manager. The plant closed abruptly in February 2023, when the company shut down its four manufacturing facilities.…
A few weeks ago, I came across a GIF from the 1994 film The Lion King that made me weep. It shows the lion cub Simba moments after he discovers the lifeless body of his father, Mufasa; he nuzzles under Mufasa’s limp arm and then lies down beside him. I was immediately distraught at that scene, and my memories of the ones that follow: Simba pawing at his dead father’s face, Simba pleading with him to “get up.”That scene lives in my thoughts with a few similar ones: the baby elephant Dumbo cradled in his abused mom’s trunk as she’s…
High β-amyloid Linked to Alzheimer’s In Oldest Adults – For decades, Alzheimer’s disease has loomed like a shadow in the twilight of life, its presence often linked to the mere march of time. But a new study from the University of Pittsburgh flips the script, suggesting that age alone isn’t the master key unlocking dementia’s door. Instead, it’s the insidious accumulation of a sticky brain invader known as amyloid that truly determines who succumbs to its clutches.While older folks, especially those in their 80s and beyond, bear the brunt of Alzheimer’s-related dementias, the researchers discovered a more nuanced reality. Their…
Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider (right) interviews comedian Tig Notaro about drawing humor from her breast cancer diagnosis. Ungerleider is the founder of End Well, a nonprofit focused on shifting the American conversation around death. Their discussion took place in November at End Well’s 2023 conference held in Los Angeles. Britney Landreth for End Well hide caption toggle caption Britney Landreth for End Well Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider (right) interviews comedian Tig Notaro about drawing humor from her breast cancer diagnosis. Ungerleider is the founder of End Well, a nonprofit focused on shifting the American conversation around death. Their discussion took place in…
Want to stay current with Arthur’s writing? Sign up to get an email every time a new column comes out.Next to one’s birthday, the passing of the calendar year induces us to reflect on the march of time in our life. This is not a welcome subject for many—which is perhaps why a lot of people simply redefine old age virtually out of existence. When Americans were asked in 2009 what “being old” means, the most popular response was turning 85. Yet the average life span in the United States in 2022 was only 76. Apparently, then, the average American…
Terminally ill hospice resident Evelyn Breuning, 91, right, sits with music therapist Jen Dunlap in her bed in August 2009 in Lakewood, Colo. The nonprofit hospice, the second oldest in the United States, accepts the terminally ill regardless of their ability to pay, although most residents are covered by Medicare. John Moore/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption John Moore/Getty Images Terminally ill hospice resident Evelyn Breuning, 91, right, sits with music therapist Jen Dunlap in her bed in August 2009 in Lakewood, Colo. The nonprofit hospice, the second oldest in the United States, accepts the terminally ill regardless of their…
Evolution of Tuberculosis – Recent research suggests that tuberculosis infection in humans may have emerged much earlier than previously thought, potentially tens of thousands of years before the earliest known cases in the Middle East. This exciting discovery is the result of a collaboration between Hungarian researchers and an international team, published in a special issue of the journal Tuberculosis.Tuberculosis, often shortened to TB, is a serious infectious disease caused by bacteria called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It typically affects the lungs, but can also spread to other parts of the body like the brain, kidneys, and spine.It spreads through the air…