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Imagine being diagnosed with bladder cancer as a young woman, and also being told that after surgery you might end up having to use an outside bag to collect urine. It would change your life and make some activities difficult. Doctors at Mayo Clinic strive to make this situation better for patients. They're constructing new bladders so people like the cancer survivor you're about to meet can live normal lives.
Resource: Bladder Cancer
Every year thousands of people undergo hip replacement surgery to get rid of pain caused by arthritis. The good news is that most hip replacement operations are successful, and people who have them are pain free. But sometimes, after years of wear, those replacement joints can loosen. New technology is making that happen much less often. But for people who do experience pain because of a worn out replacement, doctors at Mayo Clinic have ways to fix the problem.
Resource: Hip Replacement
Some people may laugh about it, but snoring is really not that funny. It can disrupt your sleep and that of your spouse. And if you have sleep apnea and you stop breathing during the night, you have an increased risk of cardiovascular problems such as high blood pressure or even heart attack. Doctors at Mayo Clinic are helping many patients with mild to moderate sleep apnea and people who simply snore get a good night's rest. That's thanks to a special dental device.
Resource: Snoring
Cancer of the esophagus is like many other types of cancer. It's often curable if caught early. Treatment for esophagus cancer, even in the early stage, has traditionally been surgery — removal of the entire esophagus. But now, doctors at Mayo Clinic are using minimally invasive endoscopies to treat early cancers. Patients have the procedure and go home the very same day.
Resource: Esophageal Cancer
Computers have made many aspects of life easier. You can find programs to help do you taxes, write a will, keep your finances organized, and even help you find the right color paint for your living room. Now there's an interactive program designed to provide your family personalized reminders and guidance from Mayo Clinic based on your medical information. Mayo Clinic has teamed up with Microsoft to give people the tools they need to take control of their health care.
25 billion dollars. That's how much money is spent every year in the U.S. on patients with heart failure. Much of that money is used on hospital visits. Clinicians and researchers at Mayo Clinic are hoping to change that. They're testing a new device that can monitor patients at home in hopes of keeping them healthier and out of the hospital longer.
Resource: Congestive Heart Failure
The symptoms came on fast. Within weeks the woman you're about to meet went from being completely healthy to lying in the intensive care unit, unable to move, struggling to breathe. A victim of Guillain-Barre syndrome. Listen to her story of sickness and triumph.
Resource: Guillain-Barre Syndrome
Many men diagnosed with prostate cancer win the battle and are cured. Unfortunately some do not. The little girl you're about to meet lost her dad to prostate cancer. And she turned an event that was extremely tragic into something hopeful. At age 10 she participates in triathlons to raise money for prostate cancer research.
Resource: Prostate Cancer
Every year about 250-thousand women in the United States are diagnosed with breast cancer. Most of these women were not known to be at high risk. That's why researchers at Mayo Clinic are looking for better ways to identify who's at increased risk in order to enhance early detection and, perhaps some day, help these women prevent the disease. They're finding clues in breast tissue.
Resource: Breast Cancer
This story is all too common on the soccer field and basketball court. A high school athlete jumps to get the ball, lands and blows out a knee. And most of that time those athletes are girls. Girls are four to six times more likely to suffer a certain kind of knee injury than boys. And that's why sports medicine specialists at Mayo Clinic developed a camp aimed at preventing knee injuries for young female athletes.
Resource: MayoClinic.com: ACL Injury Guide
Few words can capture the grief a family feels when they lose a child. The family you're about to meet said good-bye to two-year-old Makayla when she died from a rare genetic disorder. Many genetic disorders can be caught early if babies are screened for them soon after birth. But newborn screening did not include the disorder Makayla had. And while there's no known cure for that condition, her family is passionate about promoting newborn screening in hopes of saving lives.
Resource: Metabolic Disorders
In many high schools across the country there's a growing concern about kids dropping out of sports. Some say it's because pressure to win is just too much. Others say kids are simply burning out. A psychologist at Mayo Clinic has some tips on how to keep kids enjoying and thriving in sports.
Resource: Psychiatry and Psychology in Minnesota
The U.S. economy is largely based on science and engineering industries. But some experts say many schools don't have the tools to produce the quality scientists our economy needs. A doctor at Mayo Clinic is trying to change that. He's bringing teachers and students into his lab so they can work together to develop new curriculum. And this new line of study is all based on a tiny creature called the zebra fish.
In 2008, six student athletes died on the field because of the heat. Four were in high school and two were in college. Mayo Clinic sports medicine specialists say, while death from heat is rare, getting sick from it isn't. Here are some tips on how to keep your young athletes safe when the mercury rises.
Resource: Sports Medicine
What is creativity? Certainly, a painter is creative in how she perceives a scene or emotion and puts it on canvas. But just because you can't paint like Van Gogh, play the cello like Yo Yo Ma, or write a story like Hemmingway doesn't mean you're not creative. A doctor at Mayo Clinic is looking into creativity and what he found may surprise you.
Resource: Neurology in Arizona
Memory loss, personality changes, a shrinking ability to do daily tasks. It's not easy to watch a loved one suffer from dementia. It's also not easy at times for doctors to know exactly what kind of dementia a person may have. That's because there's not been a test that can differentiate between, say, Alzheimer's disease and Lewy Body Dementia. Now, researchers at Mayo Clinic have developed a way to look at the living brain and more accurately tell what type of dementia a person has. And this may help get patients on the right treatment.
Resource: Frontotemporal Dementia
Over the last decade, medicine has seen great advances in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Many people with the disease are living longer and many are cured. That's thanks to cancer research and people who are willing to make sacrifices. Sacrifices such as donating bone marrow.
Resource: Bone Marrow Transplant
Marathons, 10-K's, bike rides and telethons. Events to raise money for diseases like cancer seem to happen all the time. Many of these fund raisers really do make a difference in the race to find a cure. More on how one marathon is raising money to help researchers learn about cancer genes so they can work towards developing better treatments.
Resource: Breast Cancer
Hypothermia can be deadly. Getting too cold from being in icy water or frigid temperatures can cause your body temperature to drop dangerously low. But now, doctors at Mayo Clinic are using hypothermia to help save the lives of stroke patients.
Resource: Stroke
Imagine being afraid to pick up your child because any pressure on her skin could cause blisters and pain. That's a reality for the little girl you're about to meet. She has a genetic condition called epidermolytic hyperkeratosis. Her skin looks scaly and tough, but it is so sensitive even clothing hurts.
Resource: Dermatitis
Stomach pain, nausea, heartburn, trouble swallowing : Common symptoms that prompt many people to head to the doctor's office. But it's not always easy for doctors to find out what's causing them. That's especially true if the culprit is a certain type of food allergy which can contribute to particular medical conditions. There just hasn't been a reliable and accurate way to test them until now.
Resource: Allergic Diseases in Minnesota
It happens in approximately one out of every 6-thousand operations. A surgical team unintentionally leaves something such as a sponge inside of a patient. Doctors at Mayo Clinic want to make sure that doesn't happen. They're using grocery store bar code technology to account for all sponges, in hopes of reducing errors in the operating room.
Resource: Colon and Rectal Surgery in Minnesota
Brain aneurysms can be very deadly. The ballooning vessel can rupture, leaking blood into your brain. If that happens there's a 60% chance you won't make it. Doctors agree that it's vitally important to fix aneurysms at risk of bleeding. Let's go to Mayo Clinic to learn about a new technique for repairing aneurysms. It's less invasive than traditional surgery and some patients can go home the same day.
Resource: Cerebral Aneurysm
Suffering patients know the importance of human touch. The power of personal contact to the sick or post-surgical patient can be profound. Whether it's a massage or knitting a shawl, health care volunteers like the ones you're about to meet know there is healing in caring hands.
Resource: Massage Therapy
Breast cancer does not discriminate. Any woman of any race can get it. But what many might not know is that minorities such as African Americans, Latinos and Asians tend to develop breast cancer earlier and often have more aggressive tumors than white women. And too often minorities aren't diagnosed until after the disease has spread. More on breast cancer and minorities from Mayo Clinic.
Resource: Breast Cancer
This is a story about beating the odds. The woman you're about to meet was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and told she had months to live. But before she had major surgery and chemotherapy to try to keep the devastating disease at bay, she got a second opinion. A new diagnosis with the promise of life.
Resource: Autoimmune Pancreatitis
A living nightmare. That's how the woman you're about to meet describes her experience with a rare disease called myasthenia gravis. The condition caused her to become so weak she couldn't walk, talk or swallow. After seeing several doctors, she ended up at Mayo Clinic where medication and a minimally invasive approach to surgery helped her regain her strength and her life.
Resource: Myasthenia Gravis
Most men know that when they head to the doctor's office for a check-up, they'll be screened for prostate cancer. The tests are routine. But the man you're about to meet also has routine breast exams. Why? Because he is a breast cancer survivor.
Resource: Breast Cancer
The statistics are alarming. Two-thirds of the adults in the U.S. are overweight and one-half of that group is considered obese. Every year those numbers get bigger. But it's not just adults who are tipping the scales, kids are gaining weight, too. One-third of all school-age children are overweight and when bad habits start early, they're hard to break. A nursing group from Mayo Clinic wants to change that. They're working with public schools, nursing students and parents to help kids get and stay healthier.
Resource: MayoClinic.com: Childhood Obesity
Research shows that screening for colorectal cancer saves lives. That's because screening can catch cancer early, while it's still curable. But let's face it, having a colonoscopy to look for cancer or precancerous polyps is not fun. Doctors at Mayo Clinic have studied and improved upon a non-invasive screening test that requires no preparation or procedure. The test detects cancer or precancerous polyps by measuring DNA in your stool.
Resource: Colon Cancer
Lower back pain is very common. If you lift, bend or twist wrong, you can pull a muscle, pinch a nerve or even cause a herniated disc. Many times those injuries will get better on their own. Sometimes you need surgery. Here's a story about a woman with debilitating back pain who ran the Boston marathon soon after surgery to repair a bulging disc.
Resource: Neurosurgery
Running a marathon can be a grueling effort, even for well-trained athletes. Runners can suffer electrolyte imbalances and even kidney problems. An important factor in all this is hydration. But how much and what should runners drink? Those are questions doctors at Mayo Clinic want to answer. They're studying the effects running has on the human body in hopes of being able to tell runners and other endurance athletes how best to prepare for an event.
Resource: Hyponatremia
Epilepsy is a disease that can control your life. For example, the man you're about to meet had to give up his driver's license, his job and much of his social life because of uncontrolled seizures. But a new device being researched at Mayo Clinic is giving him hope. It's like a pacemaker for your brain that may stop seizures before they happen.
Resource: Epilepsy
If you step on the scale and the numbers show you're at a normal weight, there's a one in four chance you're actually obese. It's called normal weight obesity. You might look slim, but you could have a high percentage of body fat compared to lean muscle and bone. This puts you at risk of heart disease, diabetes and other conditions. More from Mayo Clinic.
Resource: Cardiovascular Diseases
Bringing a new baby home from the hospital is supposed to be a time of wonder and joy. But the couple you're about to meet had a very different experience. Their baby girl was born with a severe congenital heart defect that required immediate surgery. Only after life-saving surgery at Mayo Clinic could this young family bring their child home.
Resource: Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome
Cigarettes are highly addicting. But why is it that some people who try cigarettes can put them down and never get addicted while others get hooked right away? The answer lies in how your brain responds to nicotine.
Resource: Stop Smoking Services
Glaucoma is an eye disease that slowly robs people of their vision, often without them even knowing it. It is one of the leading causes of blindness in the United States. Treatment to stop the progression of glaucoma includes drops for mild cases or surgery when the disease is more advanced. But now doctors at Mayo Clinic are using another, less-invasive procedure to stop glaucoma and save vision.
Resource: Ophthalmology
Researchers at Mayo Clinic are exploring an association between the spread of breast cancer and asthma. They published a study suggesting that a woman with breast cancer, as well as asthma, may be at increased risk of that cancer spreading to her lungs.
Resource: Breast Clinic
You've heard the advice many times, "eat right and exercise to improve your health." The fact is, that advice is true. You really can make a difference. Doctors at Mayo Clinic designed the heart health and performance program to help people assess their health and learn ways to make it better.
Resource: Mayo Clinic Cardiovascular Health Clinic
Watching a TV show in high definition is a different experience than watching it in standard def. The images are sharper and clearer. Now, doctors at Mayo Clinic are using high def CT scanners to see inside the body. The technology allows them to see more detail, but perhaps more important, it also allows them to reduce the amount of radiation patients are exposed to during scans.
Resource: Radiology in Arizona
It's that time of year again, when people who made weight loss New Year's Resolutions fall off the wagon. If fact, if you're still on track, you're doing very well because many people lose momentum by mid-January. Is it possible to make resolutions that last a life-time? We have some tips from experts at Mayo Clinic that may help you on your weight loss journey.
Resource: Weight Management
Crohn's Disease is a chronic, inflammatory condition of the intestinal tract that can cause diarrhea, stomach pain, joint pain and fatigue. Many people with Crohn's are women of childbearing age. It used to be that these women were warned that pregnancy could make the disease much worse, and some avoided having children. But now, newer medications mean that many women with Crohn's don't need to fear pregnancy for themselves or for their babies.
Resource: Crohn's Disease
Janis Ollson thought she had it all. She was young, in a great marriage with baby number two on the way. Then she got the bad news. A rare cancer had formed in her pelvis. Getting rid of the cancer would mean not only removing part of her pelvis, but also part of her spine and her entire left leg. For treatment, Janis went to Mayo Clinic where doctors performed a first-ever reconstructive operation in hopes that she would walk again.
Resource: Orthopedic Surgery
Colon cancer is a deadly disease that, thanks to screening tools, can be prevented and cured if caught early. One of the current ways to look for cancer or pre-cancerous polyps is with colonoscopy. That's the test during which doctors use a scope to spot and remove polyps which they send to a lab for diagnosis. But now, a new technology allows doctors to determine if you have pre-cancerous polyps without having to remove them first. Doctors at Mayo Clinic say it could save many people from having unnecessary biopsies.
Resource: Colon Cancer
For more than 4-thousand years, the Chinese have used acupuncture to treat many ailments. Pain, stress, depression even addiction. Today, many doctors continue that practice because, for many people, it works. Let's go to Mayo Clinic where a neurosurgeon is using acupuncture to help people who suffer from nausea and vomiting after many types of operations.
Resource: Complementary and Integrative Medicine
It's not something many people like to talk about, but urinary incontinence is a big issue. Up to 30% of all women suffer from it, and those who do know how embarrassing having an accident can be. Medications may work for some women, but for those who don't find relief with meds, there is another option. An implant that acts like a pacemaker for your bladder. More from Mayo Clinic.
Resource: Urinary Incontinence
Benign prostate hyperplasia, or BPH, is a common condition that men develop as they age. The main symptom is the need to make frequent trips to the bathroom. In extreme cases, complications such as painful bladder stones can develop. Traditional treatment for these cases meant a big incision and several days in the hospital. But now doctors are using minimally invasive robots to perform this operation. Let's go to Mayo Clinic to find out what the technology means for patients.
Resource: Robotic Assisted Surgery
The first few months after a new baby comes home is a time of joy and wonder, but it can also be exhausting. That's why the woman you're about to meet didn't think twice about being tired and sometimes short winded. What she didn't know was that her heart was growing weak because of a rare condition that can happen after delivery. Suddenly, she collapsed. She needed to get to a major medical center fast, because her local hospital was not equipped to help her. An air ambulance from Mayo Clinic was her only chance at staying alive.
Resource: Emergency Transportation
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