A New 911, This One For Mental Health, 988 Debuts

A man in white lab coat and tie.


With a new infusion of federal money, The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is getting an upgrade with its own short number, 988.  That will reduce interventions by armed law enforcement and reliance on emergency rooms, and ultimately help keep more people alive.  There are growing concerns that the hotline, which is already badly overloaded, will not be able to keep up with demand.  Hopefully, the government cash infusion will be able to address this with more staffing.

 

Millions Of Cancer Cases Prevented As Treatments Evolve

A close up of some blue and yellow cells


A study which was published Wednesday (a companion to the American Cancer Society’s 2022 Annual Report)) said that although cancer diagnoses and treatment were adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, 3.5 million cancer deaths were prevented in recent decades as treatments evolved.  The authors of the paper which was published in the journal “CA : A Cancer Journal for Clinicians†said rising rates of breast and advanced staged prostate cancer, both of which can be detected early, are concerning.  However, there has been significant progress made in other types of cancer.  Over the past two years, there were more than 15 new drugs approved for lung cancer, for example.  And pills blocking certain genes that cause cancer cells to grow, as well as immunotherapies that help a patient’s own immune system respond to cancer are leading to better outcomes.

Monterey, CA Tips For Warding Off Alzheimer’s Disease

A purple background with the alzheimer 's association logo.


Regular readers of my blog know that both my father and my grandfather had Alzheimer’s disease when they passed away.  It’s a terrible disease for which there is no cure.  However, there are ways that you can try and keep the disease at bay including:

  1. Protect your heart – Four major risk factors directly relate to heart health: high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes and smoking.  Work towards keeping blood pressure and cholesterol low by eating a healthy diet.
  2. Exercise – According to Dr. Richard Isaacson, this can be the brain’s first defense against amyloid plaque. Try and get at least thirty minutes of exercise per day.
  3. Stay Socially and mentally active – Getting together with family and friends can be difficult during the COVID pandemic, but getting social stimulation is important, even if you have to do it over a zoom call.
  4. Avoid head injury – This is easier said than done, but studies have found that even mild head trauma can result in dementia. Wear a seatbelt, play sports safely and treat any head injury immediately.
  5. Treat depression, hearing loss, and substance abuse – Excessive alcohol consumption, hearing loss and depression all increase the risk for dementia.

Source: American Brain Foundation and Brain Life, the Academy of Neurology’s patient and caregiver magazine and website.

 

If you or a family member are struggling with Alzheimer’s disease or some other type of dementia, go talk to the good folks at the Alzheimer’s Association’s Monterey Chapter in Ryan Ranch.  They also have a 24-hour hotline you can call at 1800-272-3900.

Start Up Cleerly Aims To Shake Up Heart Disease Treatment In The U.S. : By Derek Baine

A stethoscope and heart on the table.


650K Americans will die from heart disease this year, and more than half of them—roughly 490K—won’t have seen it coming.  That’s because about 60% of people who have a heart attack have no prior symptoms.  Dr. James Min, a cardiologist, is hoping to change these statistics at his start-up Cleerly, which will use machine learning to help doctors personalize heart disease treatment plans before patients end up in the ER.  He calls his company’s approach â€precision prevention.â€Â  Dr Min says that the market opportunity is massive, with more than 100 million Americans at risk of having a heart attack.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/katiejennings/2021/06/21/this-ai-startup-raised-43-million-to-save-lives-and-money-by-treating-heart-disease-earlier/?cdlcid=607e1442fe2c195e916f3bb4&utm_campaign=dailydozen&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&sh=2f1977e859bd