From Survival to Quality of Life:
PodcastDX
FROM SURVIVAL TO QUALITY OF LIFE: WHY OUTCOMES ARE BEING REDEFINED THE FUNDAMENTAL SHIFT IN MEDICINE For decades, medicine measured success through a singular lens: survival. Did the patient live? Did the procedure work? While these metrics remain important, healthcare is undergoing a profound transformation that redefines what "winning" actually means[1]. The new standard is no longer just extending life—it's enabling patients to live purposefully, functionally, and with dignity[2]. This shift reflects a critical insight: surviving is not the same as living well. WHY OUTCOMES ARE BEING...
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Ai in Medicine Tool Partner or Problem
PodcastDX
AI in medicine is best understood as a powerful tool and a conditional partner that can enhance care when tightly supervised by clinicians, but it becomes a problem when used as a replacement, deployed without oversight, or embedded in biased and opaque systems. Whether it functions more as a partner or a problem depends on how health systems design, regulate, and integrate it into real clinical workflows. Where AI Works Well Decision support and diagnosis: AI can read imaging, ECGs, and lab patterns with very high accuracy, helping detect cancers, heart...
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Medicine in Transition:
PodcastDX
Medicine has transitioned due to massive tech adoption (Electronic Health Records EHRs, Artificial Intelligence AI, Telehealth), shifting patient expectations (consumerism, convenience), the rise of value-based care, new treatments (precision medicine), and increased focus on population health and prevention, all while grappling with rising costs, data security, and persistent access/equity gaps, making healthcare more data-driven, personalized, and digitally integrated but also more complex and fragmented. We try to break it down to try and understand the changes and how they might...
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A Primer on Stem Cells
PodcastDX
This week we discuss stem cells. Having great therapeutic and biotechnological potential, stem cells are extending the frontier in medicine. Not only replace dysfunctional or damaged cells, the so-called regenerative medicine, stem cells may also offer us new perspectives regarding the nature of aging and cancer. This review will cover some basics of stem cells, their current development, and possible applications in medicine. Meanwhile, important remaining challenges of stem cell research are discussed as well. Stem cells are unique, unspecialized cells that can divide to create...
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Functional Fitness
PodcastDX
This week we will discuss the topic of "functional fitness" With the new year upon us many people want to add fitness or getting healthy as goals and we are here to help! Functional fitness is a simple, effective way to keep your body moving and reduce restlessness. It focuses on exercises that help you perform everyday activities more easily and safely—like getting up off the floor, carrying groceries, or reaching for items on a shelf. By training your muscles to work the way you actually use them in daily life, functional fitness reduces injury risk and improves overall quality of...
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Why New Year Resolutions Often Fail
PodcastDX
By the end of the first week of the new year, nearly 77% of New Year’s resolutions have already failed (Norcross, 1988). That’s discouraging—but it doesn’t mean you should stop trying. It means most of us are setting resolutions in ways that don’t work. You aren’t weak or lazy. More often, the problem is a misaligned system—one that relies too heavily on willpower and short-lived motivation. Motivation naturally fades over time, even when our intentions are good. Think about how often you enthusiastically agree to plans weeks in advance, only to feel tired or unmotivated when...
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The Lymphatic System
PodcastDX
The lymphatic system, or lymphoid system, is one of the components of the circulatory system, and it serves a critical role in both immune function and surplus extracellular fluid drainage. Components of the lymphatic system include lymph, lymphatic vessels and plexuses, lymph nodes, lymphatic cells, and a variety of lymphoid organs. The pattern and form of lymphatic channels are more variable and complex but generally parallel those of the peripheral vascular system. The lymphatic system partly functions to convey lymphatic fluid, or lymph, through a network of lymphatic channels,...
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Pancreatic Cancer
PodcastDX
This week we are talking about Pancreatic cancer. This is a type of cancer that begins as a growth of cells in the pancreas. The pancreas lies behind the lower part of the stomach. It makes enzymes that help digest food and hormones that help manage blood sugar. The most common type of pancreatic cancer is pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. This type begins in the cells that line the ducts that carry digestive enzymes out of the pancreas. Pancreatic cancer rarely is found at its early stages when the chance of curing it is greatest. This is because it often doesn't cause symptoms until...
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Diabetes Type 1 & 2
PodcastDX
This week we discuss diabetes mellitus, a group of diseases that affect how the body uses blood sugar (glucose). Glucose is an important source of energy for the cells that make up the muscles and tissues. It's also the brain's main source of fuel. The main cause of diabetes varies by type. But no matter what type of diabetes you have, it can lead to excess sugar in the blood. Too much sugar in the blood can lead to serious health problems. Chronic diabetes conditions include type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Potentially reversible diabetes conditions include prediabetes and gestational...
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Mast Cell Activation Syndrome MCAS
PodcastDX
Mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) is when you have unexplained episodes of severe symptoms like swelling, diarrhea, vomiting, flushing and itching. Unlike that happen with a specific exposure, MCAS episodes happen without a clear trigger. In some cases, mast cell activation can cause , a severe allergic condition that can be life-threatening. It can cause you to have trouble breathing and drop your to dangerously low levels. Call 911 (or your local emergency service number) or go to the nearest emergency room if you’re experiencing severe anaphylaxis. are a type of immune cell...
info_outlineThis week we will discuss the annual medical checkup or annual physical exam. We will not have a guest on this episode but hope you will learn just as much from the discussion based on the research we have done for this episode.
Annual Physical Exam: The Basics
The physical exam is an essential part of any doctor's visit. Surprisingly, though, there are no absolutes in a routine physical. A good doctor may be thorough or brief, but they will spend time listening to your concerns and providing counseling for your particular complaints and risk factors.
Annual exams usually check your:
History. This is your chance to mention any complaints or concerns about your health. Your doctor will also likely quiz you about lifestyle behaviors like smoking, excessive alcohol use, sexual health, diet, and exercise. The doctor will also check on your vaccination status and update your personal and family medical history.
Vital Signs. These are some vital signs checked by your doctor:
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Blood pressure: Less than 120 over less than 80 is a normal blood pressure. Doctors define high blood pressure (hypertension) as 130 over 80 or higher.
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Heart rate: Values between 60 and 100 are considered normal. Many healthy people have heart rates slower than 60, however.
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Respiration rate: From 12 to 16 breaths per minute is normal for a healthy adult. Breathing more than 20 times per minute can suggest heart or lung problems.
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Temperature: 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit is the average, but healthy people can have resting temperatures slightly higher or lower.
General Appearance. Your doctor gathers a large amount of information about you and your health just by watching and talking to you. How is your memory and mental quickness? Does your skin appear healthy? Can you easily stand and walk?
Heart Exam. Listening to your heart with a stethoscope, a doctor might detect an irregular heartbeat, a heart murmur, or other clues to heart disease.
Lung Exam. Using a stethoscope, a doctor listens for crackles, wheezes, or decreased breath sounds. These and other sounds are clues to the presence of heart or lung disease.
Head and Neck Exam. Opening up and saying "ah" shows off your throat and tonsils. The quality of your teeth and gums also provides information about your overall health. Ears, nose, sinuses, eyes, lymph nodes, thyroid, and carotid arteries may also be examined.
Abdominal Exam. Your doctor can use a range of examination techniques including tapping your abdomen to detect liver size and presence of abdominal fluid, listening for bowel sounds with a stethoscope, and palpating for tenderness.
Neurological Exam. Nerves, muscle strength, reflexes, balance, and mental state may be assessed.
Dermatological Exam. Skin and nail findings could indicate a dermatological problem or disease somewhere else in the body.
Extremities Exam. Your doctor will look for physical and sensory changes. Pulses can be checked in your arms and legs. Examining joints can assess for abnormalities.
Male Physical Exam
An annual physical exam for men might also include:
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Testicular exam: A doctor can check each testicle for lumps, tenderness, or changes in size. Most men with testicular cancer notice a growth before seeing a doctor.
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Hernia exam: The famous "turn your head and cough" checks for a weakness in the abdominal wall between the intestines and scrotum.
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Penis exam: A doctor might notice evidence of sexually transmitted infections such as warts or ulcers on the penis.
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Prostate exam: Inserting a finger in the rectum lets a doctor feel the prostate for its size and any suspicious areas.
Female Physical Exam
A woman's annual exam might include:
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Breast exam. Feeling for abnormal lumps may detect breast cancer or benign breast conditions. The doctor will also check the lymph nodes in the underarm area and look for visual abnormalities of the breasts and nipples.
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Pelvic exam: The pelvic exam allows examination of the vulva, vagina, cervix, uterus and ovaries. Routine checks for sexually transmitted infections are often done. A Pap test and HPV test can screen for cervical cancer and help assess risk.