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MENSTRUATION
Building a Menstruation Organ ‘Chip’ to Tackle Heavy Bleeding
What: Harvard’s Wyss Institute is developing the first human model of heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB), using organ-on-a-chip technology. Their aim is to cut down the average five years women wait for proper care. HMB affects one in three women, is more common than asthma or diabetes, and costs the U.S. economy an estimated $94 billion a year. The chip model aims to uncover causes like genetics, low oxygen, and inflammation to speed up treatment development and close long-standing gaps in women’s health research.
Key Line: “…mice don’t menstruate. Instead, they have what’s called an estrous cycle, in which the endometrium — the lining of the uterus — is reabsorbed into the body. This biological difference creates a real challenge for medical research. Mice are widely used in preclinical studies because their biology closely mirrors that of humans in important ways. But when it comes to studying the human menstrual cycle, including disorders like heavy menstrual bleeding, the standard animal models fall short…”
My Take: The Wyss Institute has been building “organs on a chip” since 2010, essentially creating tiny channels in silicone “chips” that can mimic what’s happening in the body better than a petri dish that has nothing moving through it. But there’s still a long way to go to discovery.
Source: Harvard Gazette
PREGNANCY + POSTPARTUM
C-section late in labor linked to higher risk of poor scar healing, future pregnancy issues
What: An observational study scanned 93 women after C-section births and found that those operated on late in labor—when the cervix was nearly or fully open—were about eight times more likely to have scars near or within the cervix. These low scars healed less well and could lead to greater risk of early birth or other complications in later pregnancies. Researchers say understanding scar location can guide better surgical and follow-up care for people planning future pregnancies.
Key Line: “We knew that having a Caesarean birth can damage the cervix. Our study is the first to look at where that damage in the womb is depending on how advanced the labour is when the operation takes place. Our findings have significant implications for women who have a Caesarean late in their labour and want to have more children. This is particularly relevant given the huge increase in the number of women who are having Caesarean births over the last decade.”
My Take: A lot of C-section studies focus on how to avoid them entirely, while a lot fewer consider at how to improve the surgical process itself. (Compare that to the advances in heart surgery.)
Source: University College London
ABORTION ACCESS
Abortion at Home Up to 12 weeks Found Safe and Effective
What: A five-year observational study from the Scottish NHS found early medical abortion at home between 10 and 12 weeks of pregnancy was as safe and effective as hospital care. Of 485 patients in that window, 97% completed their abortions successfully, with a few minor complications and slightly more follow-up calls from those treated at home. Researchers say these data support extending legal home-use limits to 12 weeks across the UK, matching World Health Organization guidance.
Key Line: “These findings are akin to those reported in studies of [early medical abortion] below 10 weeks’ gestation in both home and hospital settings. This demonstrates that [early medical abortion] at home between gestations of 10 and 12 weeks is highly effective and safe.”
My Take: Every study counts when it comes to the FDA’s upcoming “safety” review of the abortion pill, currently based on a white paper from a religious organization filled with lots of messy data.
Source: BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health
ONCOLOGY
Mastectomy Tied to Poorer Body Image, Sexual Health, and Emotional Outcomes
What: A systematic review found that women who have mastectomies for stages 1–3 breast cancer often face worse emotional, physical, and sexual health outcomes than those who keep breast tissue through procedures like lumpectomy. Researchers looked at 20 studies that met their criteria, and 15 showed worse psychosocial results for mastectomy patients. They also point out that there’s no standard way to measure or prepare patients for these effects, and call for a validated screening tool before surgery.
Key Line: “As surgeons, we often focus on the medical side of care. There is no universal or standardized approach to counseling women on the full range of physical and emotional outcomes after mastectomy.”
My Take: As someone who cared for a loved one through this procedure, I was absolutely shocked at how little there was on mental and physical recovery. I thought there would be books filled with thoughtful, funny, heartbreaking-but-helpful essays from women who had done it before. I found nothing, not even on proper drain maintenance without torturing the person you are caring for. (Hopefully that’s changed in the past 5+ years. If not — let’s do it together.)
Source: American College of Surgeons
U.S. Women Losing Access to Lower-Cost Breast Cancer Therapy
What: Surgeons say many U.S. women are being denied intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT), a single-dose breast cancer treatment done during surgery that costs less and spares patients weeks of exhausting radiation. They blame revenue models that incentivize more radiation treatments, not less: “Radiation oncologists who perform IORT receive about $525 per treatment, Medicare estimates from 2022 show, far less than the $1,300 they receive performing whole breast radiation with five sessions and the $1,730 generated by 15 sessions.”
Key Line: “Dr. Alice Police, a breast surgeon who has set up three IORT programs in U.S. hospitals, says she believes ASTRO’s position on the innovative treatment reflects the view among many radiation oncologists that IORT is a disruptive technology whose lower costs and high levels of patient satisfaction threaten their revenues. ‘Radiation oncologists are very powerful — they make so much money for the hospitals,’ Police said. ‘Even though the [IORT] data is awesome and the benefit to the patient is just enormous, they call it experimental.’
My Take: I don’t have a better solution, but with health care it’s almost always safe to adhere to the famous line from All the President’s Men: follow the money.
Source: NBC News via Yahoo
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