Reaching out

Photo by Robert BostonA free medical screening at the Tower Village Apartments was the first in a series of community-outreach events planned by medical school physicians.

New genetics division seeks to transform pediatric patient care

Photo by Robert BostonJonathan D. Gitlin will serve as director of the new Division of Genetics and Genomic Medicine in the Department of Pediatrics.It incorporates a model of individualized medical care in which physicians look to a patients’ genetic makeup to determine the best treatment. More medical news

Nanoparticles offer new hope for detection and treatment

Magnified nanoparticlesSpecially designed nanoparticles can reveal tiny cancerous tumors that are invisible to ordinary means of detection, according to a study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Researchers demonstrated that very small human melanoma tumors growing in mice — indiscernible from the surrounding tissue by direct MRI scan — could be “lit up” and easily located. Because the nanoparticles can be engineered to carry a variety of substances, they also may be able to deliver cancer-fighting drugs to malignant tumors.
View More Stories