Maryland starts selling medical marijuana
Maryland began the sale of medical marijuana to residents in pain in late November, ending years of delays by embarking on a program that features some of the most liberal policies in the nation on who can qualify for the prescribed cannabis. Dozens of people stood outside a licensed dispensary, Potomac Holistics in Rockville, where owners began making sales soon after receiving their... READ MORE
A new twist on DNA
It’s one of the first lessons in high school biology: All life is made up of four DNA building blocks known by the letters A, T, C and G. Paired together, they form DNA’s ladder-like rungs. Now there’s a new rung on that ladder. Scientists are expanding the genetic code of life, using man-made DNA to create a semi-synthetic strain of bacteria. And new research shows those... READ MORE
New test profiles patients’ cancer genes
U.S. regulators have approved a first-of-a-kind test that looks for mutations in hundreds of cancer genes at once, giving a more complete picture of what’s driving a patient’s tumor and aiding efforts to match treatments to those flaws. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Foundation Medicine’s test for patients with advanced or widely spread cancers, and the Centers for... READ MORE
Mini-organs can help find best treatments
Els van der Heijden, who has cystic fibrosis, was finding it ever harder to breathe as her lungs filled with thick, sticky mucus. Despite taking more than a dozen pills and inhalers a day, the 53-year-old had to stop working and scale back doing the thing she loved best, horseback riding. Doctors saw no sense in trying an expensive new drug because it hasn’t been proven to work in... READ MORE
Massive study seeks 1 million volunteers
In a quest to end cookie-cutter healthcare, U.S. researchers are getting ready to recruit more than 1 million people for an unprecedented study to learn how our genes, environments and lifestyles interact — and to finally customize ways to prevent and treat disease. Why does one sibling get sick but not another? Why does a drug cure one patient but only cause nasty side effects in the... READ MORE
Foster parents give and find love
The nationwide heroin epidemic has not left Baltimore unscathed. Drug-addicted parents who can no longer care for their children have led to an increasing number of kids who need a secure, stable and loving home environment — a home provided by foster moms like Janis Oglesby. Oglesby, who lives in Baltimore County and is “past 65,” has been a treatment foster care parent with the... READ MORE
NIH offers tool to locate alcoholism help
The phone calls come — from fellow scientists and desperate strangers — with a single question for the alcohol chief at the National Institutes of Health: Where can my loved one find good care to get sober? The government recently released a novel online tool to help — the Alcohol Treatment Navigator — which provides access to directories of alcohol treatment providers and a list ... READ MORE
Couriers transport gift of life
The snowflakes fell fast and furious, blanketing roads, shuttering runways and canceling Jim Frison’s flight. But what might be merely an inconvenience for some was a matter of life and death in this case. Frison was gripping a bright blue cooler containing recently donated bone marrow on its way to a cancer patient, and it was Frison’s job to get it there. With just 48 hours to... READ MORE
Fainting is frightening but seldom serious
One minute you’re feeling a bit woozy; the next thing you know, you’re flat on your back wondering what happened.No matter what you call it — swooning, passing out or fainting — the experience is surprisingly common. About a third of people say they’ve fainted at least once.Although often harmless, fainting can cause injuries, and sometimes signals a problem... READ MORE
Probe helps surgeons get all the cancer
Patients emerging from cancer surgery want to know, “Did you get it all?” Now scientists are developing a pen-like probe to help surgeons better tell when it’s safe to stop cutting or if stray tumor cells still lurk.The device is highly experimental, but laboratory tests show it uses molecular fingerprints to distinguish between cancerous cells and healthy ones far faster... READ MORE
