School of Medicine

Disadvantaged and minority populations are more likely to be diagnosed with and die from cancer than other groups in the United States. A five-year, $8.6 million grant to Washington University will explore how improved information and referral systems can help eliminate these disparities.

Drugs widely used to treat type 2 diabetes may be more likely to keep working if they are used in moderation, researchers at the School of Medicine have found in a study using an animal model. The drugs, sulfonylureas, help type 2 diabetics make more insulin, improving control of blood sugar levels. But in most patients the effects of sulfonylureas are lost after several years of use, causing insulin secretion to shut down.

Video capture by James Collins*C. elegans* roundwormMany animals live longer when raised on low calorie diets. But now researchers at the School of Medicine have shown that they can extend the life spans of roundworms even when the worms are well fed — it just takes a chemical that blocks their sense of smell.

Clubfoot, one of the most common birth defects, has long been thought to have a genetic component. Now, researchers at the School of Medicine report they have found the first gene linked to clubfoot in humans. Their research will be published in the Nov. 7 issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics.

Fall is here — time for picking apples, carving pumpkins and getting a flu shot. The School of Medicine again will offer free flu shots to its faculty, staff and students at various locations this fall. “Flu shots are for the benefit of employees and their families, and in a health-care setting, it’s particularly important […]

Tampered treats is not what parents should worry about on Halloween, says a professor of pediatrics at Washington University in St. Louis. The combination of cars, kids and darkness presents the biggest danger of Halloween, says Bo Kennedy, M.D., who works in the emergency department at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. And that combination could be even more dangerous this year with Halloween falling on a Friday night. At this time of year it gets darker earlier, and on Halloween, excited, costumed children can be difficult to see, especially when excited adults and teenagers are off to their own Friday evening celebrations. Kennedy offers tips on keeping kids safe while trick-or-treating.

Working as part of a multi-institutional collaboration, scientists at the School of Medicine have assembled the most complete catalog to date of the genetic changes underlying the most common form of lung cancer. The research, published Oct. 23 in Nature, helps lay the foundation for more personalized diagnosis and treatment of a disease that is the leading cause of U.S. cancer deaths.

Photo by Robert BostonThe first of its kind in the St. Louis area, the SPOT is a one-stop, drop-in center for youth that will provide HIV and STD services at no cost.

Courtesy PhotoSchool of Medicine surgeons are removing patients’ gallbladders using a single small incision in the belly button that leaves only a tiny scar.

The School of Medicine again will offer free flu shots to faculty, staff and students at various locations this fall.