Healthcare Solutions
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Liver transplant program celebrates 25 years of care
Twenty-five years ago, Julie Damon’s family was preparing to say their goodbyes. Comatose and on life support at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) with liver failure, the options for the 45-year-old wife and mother of two were slipping away. Read MoreFeb 18, 2016
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Study leads to new heart transplant decision support tool
Because donor organs are scarce, understanding the mortality risk associated with heart transplantation is an important consideration when evaluating patients for transplant. Read MoreFeb 18, 2016
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VU Inside: Dr. William Fissell’s Artificial Kidney
Vanderbilt University Medical Center nephrologist and Associate Professor of Medicine Dr. William Fissell IV is making major progress on a first-of-its kind device to free kidney patients from dialysis. He is building an artificial implantable kidney with microchip filters and living kidney cells that will be powered by a patient’s own heart. Read MoreFeb 12, 2016
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Cardiologist Hood keeps patients’ best interests at heart
When Rob Hood, M.D., began practicing cardiology 30 years ago he could not have imagined that fitness would one day be measured on a device worn around his wrist. Read MoreFeb 11, 2016
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Transplant Center initiative seeks to boost cancer education
Lindsay Ramsey Smith, MSN, R.N., a quality consultant for the Vanderbilt Transplant Center (VTC), recently uncovered some interesting data that sparked a center-wide improvement project. Read MoreFeb 11, 2016
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Slight chemical change may improve TB treatments: study
One small chemical change to an existing antibacterial drug results in a compound that is more effective against its target enzyme in tuberculosis, Vanderbilt researchers have discovered. Read MoreFeb 11, 2016
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Study identifies potential colon cancer biomarker
A protein that suppresses a key cancer pathway in the colon may be a potential biomarker for colitis-associated tumors, researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center reported last month in the journal Gut. Read MoreFeb 11, 2016
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Prostate cancer survivors’ risk of heart disease studied
The 3 million prostate cancer survivors in the United States are likely to die from something other than cancer, thanks to early detection, effective treatment and the disease’s slow progression. Read MoreFeb 4, 2016
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VICC joins other major cancer centers in HPV vaccine campaign
In response to low national vaccination rates for the human papillomavirus (HPV), Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) has joined 68 of the nation’s other NCI-designated cancer centers in recommending increased HPV vaccination for the prevention of cancer. Read MoreFeb 4, 2016
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Grant spurs research into trauma-induced vision loss
Tonia Rex, Ph.D., and colleagues at the Vanderbilt Eye Institute are working to uncover how best to treat ocular trauma, the fourth leading cause of blindness worldwide. Read MoreFeb 4, 2016
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Findings offer new insight on how cell division proteins work
A family of proteins with critical roles in cell division, synaptic transmission and cell migration don’t all function the way scientists thought they did, according to two new studies led by Vanderbilt researchers. Read MoreJan 28, 2016
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Cochlear implant’s success is music to patient’s ears
Sidney Kleinman is living proof that you’re never too old to have your hearing restored. Read MoreJan 28, 2016
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Autism study links sensory difficulties, serotonin system
Vanderbilt researchers have established a link between the neurotransmitter serotonin and certain behaviors of some children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a link that may lead to new treatments for ASD. Read MoreJan 28, 2016
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Using MRI to assess myelin health
Vanderbilt investigators report an improved model for estimating brain health, using MRI. Read MoreJan 25, 2016
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Faulty building blocks in DNA
An enzyme that builds DNA is able to insert the wrong building blocks, which could generate mutations. Read MoreJan 22, 2016
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Antibodies may be ‘silver bullet’ for Ebola viruses
There may be a “silver bullet” for Ebola, a family of hemorrhagic viruses, one of which has killed more than 11,000 people in West Africa in the past two years. Read MoreJan 21, 2016
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New targets for diabetic retinopathy
Certain protein factors have been identified as attractive targets for treating diabetic retinopathy, a major cause of blindness in adults. Read MoreJan 21, 2016
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Study shows brain function differs in obese children
The brains of children who are obese function differently from those of children of healthy weight, and exhibit an “imbalance” between food-seeking and food-avoiding behaviors, researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have found. Read MoreJan 21, 2016
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Lovly lands cancer research grant from V Foundation
Christine Lovly, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of Medicine and Cancer Biology, has been awarded a V Scholar Grant from the V Foundation for Cancer Research. Read MoreJan 21, 2016
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VU investigators use magnetism to help isolate malaria biomarker
Vanderbilt investigators have developed a way to detect malaria that is faster and more sensitive than current clinical methods — a development that has the potential to make malaria detection significantly less expensive and more stable. Read MoreJan 21, 2016