Colonoscopy and Cancer Screening
PodcastDX
Early colorectal cancer usually causes no symptoms, which means the only way to catch it at a truly curable stage—or even prevent it altogether—is through regular screening, especially colonoscopy. During a colonoscopy, doctors can not only find cancers earlier, when treatment is more effective and survival rates are much higher, but also remove precancerous polyps on the spot, stopping many cancers before they ever form. National guidelines now recommend that average‑risk adults begin colorectal cancer screening at age 45 and continue at regular intervals, using...
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The Shift in Dementia Care from Control to Connection
PodcastDX
Today we’re continuing our Medicine in Transition theme with a topic that is deeply personal, professionally important, and long overdue. This episode is titled “The Shift of Dementia Care: From Control to Connection.” But we’re not doing this one alone. We’re joined by a special guest, Jennifer Stoner.Jennie is a retired professor from Aurora University in Aurora, Illinois, where she taught in recreation administration and therapeutic recreation, helping train future professionals to design meaningful, person‑centered programs for older adults and...
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Cancer Care in Transition
PodcastDX
In this week’s episode, “Cancer Care in Transition: Precision Medicine, Immunotherapy, and Patient Choice,” we look at how cancer treatment is changing at the exact moment when patients are trying to move from crisis mode into something like a new normal. Precision medicine now uses a person’s genes, tumor markers, and even lifestyle to match them with targeted drugs or immunotherapies instead of one‑size‑fits‑all chemo, while immuno‑oncology has created a growing group of survivors living with long‑term effects and unique follow‑up needs. At the same time, shared...
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The Dark Side of Patient Advocacy on Social Media
PodcastDX
The dark side of advocacy is that the same social media platforms that help health advocates reach millions can also expose them to relentless trolls, coordinated pile‑ons, and even threats to their safety and careers. Studies of physicians and public‑health advocates show that a large share—sometimes more than half—have been personally attacked online for speaking about vaccines, gun violence, or other health issues, facing abuse that targets not just their ideas but also their gender, race, disability, or identity. What starts as “just comments” can quickly escalate into doxxing,...
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Various Types of Dementia
PodcastDX
Various Types of Dementia This week on PodcastDX, we’re stepping into the complex world of dementia—not as a single diagnosis, but as a family of conditions that affect memory, thinking, behavior, and independence in different ways. We’ll introduce the most common types of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, frontotemporal dementia, and mixed dementia, where more than one process—often Alzheimer’s plus vascular changes—are happening in the brain at the same time. We’ll also touch on less common causes, such as dementia related to...
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Rethinking DX: A Digital DSM and the Roots of Mental Health
PodcastDX
“Rethinking DX: A Digital DSM” looks at how the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) quietly shapes almost every part of mental health care—from who gets a diagnosis and insurance coverage to how people understand their own symptoms and identities. In this conversation, Lita and Jean Marie unpack what the DSM actually is, why the current DSM‑5‑TR matters, and how a future, fully digital “DSM‑6” could function as a living document that updates more quickly, links to decision‑support tools, and better integrates real‑world data from electronic health...
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The Next Decade in Medicine
PodcastDX
Over the next decade, medicine won’t just add new gadgets—it will change what it feels like to be a patient. In this episode of PodcastDX, we explore how AI as a clinical co‑pilot, stem cells and regenerative medicine, genomics and precision care, wearables, and hospital‑at‑home models could reshape everyday care. We talk about the promise of earlier detection and more personalized treatment, the risks around bias, privacy, and hype, and why equity and shared decision‑making must stay at the center as technology races ahead. Most of all, we ask how patients and caregivers can be...
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Patients as Partners: Shared Decision Making in Medicine
PodcastDX
This week we are discussing the rise of a new type of health care where the patients play a vital role in their medical care. Patients as partners in care are at the heart of shared decision making (SDM), a model where clinicians and patients deliberately work together to choose tests and treatments that fit both best evidence and the patient’s values and life context. What shared decision making means SDM is a collaborative process in which clinicians contribute clinical expertise while patients contribute their goals, preferences, and lived experience. Core...
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End of Life in Transition: Earlier Palliative Care, Better Conversations
PodcastDX
At a time when modern medicine is allowing people to enjoy longer, fuller lives, mortality is not always a chief concern. But when a serious illness occurs, the topic becomes unavoidable. This became especially clear during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic when hospitals were overrun with patients, many with grim prognoses. “The pandemic gave all of us a sense that life can be short and there’s the very real possibility of dying,” says , director of the Palliative Care Program at Yale New Haven Hospital. “It opened the door for us to talk more about death and have a...
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Is Mental Health Care Changing Fast Enough
PodcastDX
This week we discuss the current status of Mental Health Care. Mental health care is changing, but most experts argue it is not changing fast enough relative to the need, especially on access, equity, and workforce. Where change is too slow Unmet need is huge. In the U.S., millions with a diagnosable condition still receive no treatment each year; a recent national report notes that many adults with mental illness remain uninsured or unable to access care. Global workforce shortages. Nearly 50% of the world’s population lives in countries with fewer...
info_outlineThis week we will discuss another respiratory virus that has been really hitting hard here in the United States this season.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a contagious virus that is usually mild, but can severely affect the lungs and respiratory airways in older adults
While you may not have heard of it yet, RSV is not a new virus and may be more of a health concern than you think—even if you're healthy. And if you're aged 60 or older, you can get RSV.
But don’t worry, by coming here you’ve taken a savvy first step toward learning about RSV so you can be informed. Let’s dive in.
What are the symptoms of RSV?
Symptoms of RSV can range from mild to severe and can last up to 2 weeks. RSV can cause severe symptoms in older adults.
RSV symptoms may include:
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Fever
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Cough
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Sore Throat
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Runny Nose
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Congestion
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Headache
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Tiredness
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that adults at highest risk for severe RSV infection include older adults, especially those 65 years of age and older, adults with chronic heart or lung disease, and adults with weakened immune systems.
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How does RSV spread?
Similar to some other respiratory infections, a cough or sneeze can easily spread RSV. And while you're typically contagious for 3-8 days, some people, especially those with weakened immune systems, can be contagious for as long as 4 weeks—even after they stop showing symptoms.
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There’s a trio of viruses spreading in the U.S. — COVID-19, the flu and RSV — and some in the medical world are calling it a “tripledemic.”
Public health officials have seen “elevated” levels of all three viruses circulating in the U.S. If you’re feeling sick, it can be tough to differentiate among COVID-19, the flu and RSV because they share similar symptoms and can also look like the common cold.
When it comes to COVID-19, the CDC reports cases and deaths have risen in the past few weeks, as of Dec. 16. Meanwhile, Walenksy said at the briefing that flu and RSV cases are higher than what’s been historically typical this season.
It’s possible that you might be sick with one of the viruses. But keep in mind that from late August through March, it’s also a prime time to get a cold
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Am I sick with COVID, RSV, the flu or simply a cold?
Before getting into symptoms, one characteristic COVID-19, the flu and RSV shares is that they’re respiratory infections affecting the airways, lungs, sinuses and throat. The cold is similar in that it is an upper respiratory infection affecting the nose and throat.
COVID-19 and the flu have quite a few overlapping symptoms, according to the CDC, including:
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Fever
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Cough
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Trouble breathing
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Feeling tired
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Sore throat
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Headache
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Vomiting
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Runny or a stuffy nose
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Diarrhea is listed as a flu and COVID-19 symptom by the CDC. However, while anyone with COVID-19 can experience diarrhea, it is more likely that children with the flu will experience the symptom, according to the agency.
The CDC notes that COVID-19 symptoms may take longer to show up after an initial infection compared with the flu.
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Overall, the flu is the most likely to result in muscle aches and a fever compared to COVID-19, a cold and RSV, according to NYU Langone Health.
In the U.S., the flu and RSV is hitting children hard and overwhelming hospitals, NPR reports.
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RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, can affect anyone with “cold-like” symptoms and has the potential to be most severe for babies and older adults, according to the CDC.
The most common symptoms of RSV and a cold
Similarly to COVID-19 and the flu, RSV symptoms, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, include:
• Fever
• Cough
• Trouble breathing, including wheezing and shortness of breath
• Feeling tired
• Stuffy nose
Other symptoms include sneezing, flaring nostrils, lack of appetite, and “head bobbing or chest caving in between and under ribs with each breath,” the American Academy of Pediatrics reports.
The common cold also shares overlapping symptoms of COVID-19, the flu and RSV, according to Mayo Clinic.
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Some include:
• Low-grade fever
• Cough
• Runny or stuffy nose
• Congestion
Meanwhile, sneezing, body aches and a mild headache are also cold symptoms. Getting evaluated for COVID-19 or the flu
With COVID-19 and the flu, the CDC reports that “you cannot tell the difference between” the pair based on symptoms.
Luckily, there is a test that can detect whether you have COVID-19, the flu and even RSV that you can get through a health care provider.
If all three are ruled out, there’s potential that you could have a cold.
Generally, good habits to prevent yourself from getting sick include washing hands, avoiding touching your face, avoiding close physical contact, staying home and cleaning surfaces
(CREDITS: https://bit.ly/3jIWxbG)
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