Health Science Radio (University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus)

This episode of CU Anschutz 360 focuses on a promising breakthrough therapy for patients with large B-cell lymphoma, an aggressive subtype of the disease. The clinical trial was led by Manali Kamdar, MD, clinical director of the lymphoma program in the Division of Hematology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. In the trial for relapsed patients or patients who didn’t respond to treatment initially, CAR T-cell therapy with lisocabtagene maraleucel showed significant improvement in keeping patients in remission when compared to the standard-of-care, which consisted of chemotherapy followed by stem cell transplantation. Thomas Flaig, MD, vice chancellor for research, co-hosts the discussion.

This episode of CU Anschutz 360 focuses on the mysterious and debilitating condition known as Down Syndrome Regression Disorder. DSRD is a severe neurological condition with symptoms such as loss of speech, inability to perform activities of daily life, hallucinations, delusions and insomnia. Scientists at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, including Joaquin Espinosa, PhD, executive director of the Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome, are teaming with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles researchers on the first-of-its-kind investigation into the causes and potential treatments for DSRD. Thomas Flaig, MD, vice chancellor for research, co-hosts the discussion.

This episode of CU Anschutz 360 focuses on the Center for Combat and Battlefield Research at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. Launched in January 2019, the COMBAT Center conducts research that impacts clinical patient care, battlefield casualty and trauma care, and critical, large-scale societal issues including mental health. Using multidisciplinary and collaborative teams, the center conducts clinically relevant, translational research to get newly discovered treatments and devices into the hands of first responders and clinicians. The COMBAT Center is directed by Dr. Vik Bebarta, a colonel in the US Air Force Reserve and a researcher on the forefront of the toughest clinical challenges for civilian and military care. Thomas Flaig, MD, vice chancellor for research, co-hosts the discussion.

In this episode of the CU Anschutz 360 podcast, Casey Greene, PhD, the founding chair of the Department of Biomedical Informatics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, offers insights into the rapid development of artificial intelligence and its implications for advancements in research and healthcare. He discusses ethical issues around AI, the rise of biobanks and personalized medicine, using technology to improve patient care, a general skepticism about the effectiveness of AI in medical care, and the peculiar, AI-related connection between chihuahuas and blueberry muffins. He also addresses the buzz around ChatGPT and large language models. Thomas Flaig, MD, CU Anschutz vice chancellor for research, co-hosts the discussion.

In this episode of the CU Anschutz 360 podcast, Terry Fry, MD, the inaugural executive director and Charles C. Gates Endowed Chair of the Gates Institute, explains how the institute is heading toward new frontiers of targeted cell and gene therapies for cancers and other rare diseases. Fry talks about the latest advances in chimeric antigen receptor (CAR T) cell therapies, which he helped pioneer at the National Institutes of Health. He talks about how the Gates Institute, which connects and centralizes campus resources into a seamless translational pathway, offers an incredible opportunity to help patients facing serious health issues. Thomas Flaig,  MD, CU Anschutz vice chancellor for research, co-hosts the discussion.

 This episode of CU Anschutz 360 focuses on the research into long COVID taking place at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. An important study involving CU Anschutz researchers ties into RECOVER, a national initiative seeking to uncover the long-term effects of COVID and develop treatments for long COVID patients. Kristine Erlandson, MD, an associate professor of medicine and infectious disease at the CU School of Medicine, shares insights into the study that developed a scoring system to help learn which adults, out of a cohort of nearly 10,000, may have long COVID. 

In this episode of CU Anschutz 360, Angelo D’Alessandro, PhD, shares his fascination with blood science and how it led him into biochemistry, molecular genetics and metabolomics. A steadfast collaborator, D’Alessandro explains why multidisciplinary research is so important to science, especially in the area of personalized medicine. 

In this episode of CU Anschutz 360, Daniel LaBarbera, PhD, director of the Center for Drug Discovery, talks about harnessing technology and innovation to speed the development of new therapies. He discusses robotic automation, quantum computing and building bridges over the ‘valley of death.’

This episode features a discussion about new and exciting neuroscience-based treatments that are aimed toward recovery from chronic pain. Our guest is Dr. Yoni Ashar, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, who shares the promising findings of a study that used pain reprocessing therapy, or PRT, for a sizeable group of chronic back pain sufferers. Dr. Ashar explains how PRT works and how it could offer a pathway to helping to relieve other common chronic pain, including migraine headaches.

This episode features a discussion about the burnout crisis among physicians and other healthcare professionals. The Association of Medical Colleges estimates that the United States will face a shortage of between 38,000 and 124,000 physicians by 2034. Our guest is Dr. Lotte Dyrbye, senior associate dean of faculty and chief well-being officer at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and a national thought leader in physician burnout. Dr. Dyrbye explains the magnitude of the problem, identifies the predictors of burnout, and shares ideas on reducing the stressors facing healthcare professionals. 

This episode features a discussion about osteoarthritis, a painful degenerative disease that affects 32.5 million Americans. With no existing effective regenerative therapy, treatments are limited to anti-inflammatory injections and, ultimately, expensive joint replacement surgery. Our guest is Karin Payne, PhD, associate professor of orthopedics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. She talks about an ambitious project that received an award of up to $39 million from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) and its aim to end osteoarthritis. The Colorado-based multidisciplinary team is on the forefront of developing a minimally invasive therapy that regenerates cartilage and bone cells – essentially allowing a joint to heal itself.

 This episode features a discussion about a groundbreaking effort to restore vision in patients with age-related macular degeneration, or AMD. Our guest is Valeria Canto-Soler, associate professor of ophthalmology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Dr. Canto-Soler shares the dreams behind her research and why she chose the CU Anschutz Medical Campus to develop retinal transplants. Her team is working toward one of the most ambitious goals in its field – transplanting cells that can regenerate both pigmented and photoreceptor cells in the retina and restore vision for the blind. 

This episode of Health Science Radio features a discussion about the fast-growing field of neurotechnology and what it means for patients with paralysis or neurodegenerative brain diseases including Parkinson’s and epilepsy. Our guest is Cristin Welle, associate professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine with joint appointments in the Department of Neurosurgery and the Department of Physiology and Biophysics. Welle is a systems neurophysiologist with expertise in the interaction between medical devices and the nervous system. Her lab uses advanced techniques to explore why neurotechnology works, including looking at ways in which devices can change structural and functional plasticity in the nervous system. The goal of her team’s work is to translate scientific breakthroughs to the clinic and improve the lives of patients.  

This episode features a discussion about treating cancer through immunotherapy, including tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte, or TIL, therapy. Our guest is Eduardo Davila, professor in the Division of Medical Oncology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Davila’s team has devised a novel technique to enhance all forms of cellular immunology. The scientists rejuvenate T-cells and improve their durability as well as their ability to find and kill cancer cells. Davila’s team’s research offers more and better cancer treatment options, along with hope. 

In the wake of a loss, how do we reconcile the Five Stages of Grief with feelings that shift day to day? In this episode of Health Science Radio, licensed professional counselor and assistant professor of psychiatry Mandy Doria walks through some common misconceptions about grief, loss and healing. 

Content warning: death and dying. 

This episode features a discussion about autoimmune neurological diseases, 
including the rare stiff person syndrome (SPS) that affects Canadian 
superstar Céline Dion. Our guest is Amanda Piquet, MD, associate professor 
of neurology and director of the autoimmune neurology program at the 
University of Colorado School of Medicine. Piquet, whose team is conducting 
groundbreaking research on autoimmune neurologic disorders, has treated 
Dion’s SPS for over two years at UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital. 
Piquet calls the $2 million philanthropic investment her team received from 
the Céline Dion Foundation a turning point in the understanding of SPS and 
other autoimmune neurologic diseases.

On this episode, Fernando Holguin, MD, professor of medicine and 
pediatrics in the Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care Medicine 
at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, shares insights into the 
health risks posed by increasing levels of air pollution. Dr. Holguin talks 
about what happens when people are exposed to fine particulate matter, 
how socioeconomic disparities contribute to greater exposure to air 
pollution, coexisting conditions that put people at higher risk of being 
affected by air pollution, the relationship between the gut microbiome and 
lung health, and the ways climate change impacts cardiovascular and 
respiratory diseases.

On this episode of Health Science Radio, Daniel Goldberg, associate professor and director of education in the Center for Bioethics and Humanities,  breaks down the importance of history and its place in a modern health sciences curriculum by examining the practical uses of thinking like a historian to better serve patients, inform research and build stronger bonds with the communities future health science leaders will serve.

On this episode, two leading women’s health researchers provide a wide-ranging discussion on menopause – from basic science concepts and historical perspectives to hormone therapies and other clinical implications. Our guests are Nanette Santoro, MD, professor and E. Stewart Taylor Chair in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine (SOM), and Joshua Johnson, PhD, associate professor in the SOM’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. 

Influenza season is ramping up, SARS-CoV-2 and respiratory syncytial virus 
(RSV) continue to evolve, and the bird flu outbreak is gaining steam in the 
United States. Against this ever-changing landscape of infectious disease, 
this episode centers on viruses and vaccines. Our guest is Jenna Guthmiller, 
PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Immunology and 
Microbiology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Guthmiller 
discusses the H5N1 outbreak, evolving viruses, the history of pandemics 
and the potential for a universal vaccine.

The fact that men and women are not the same is no longer completely 
overlooked in the medical world. Diseases, such as heart attacks, can 
present differently. Yet, an absence of research that includes women prior 
to the early 1990s has left studies into women’s health largely in “catch-up” 
mode. Our guest is Judy Regensteiner, PhD, director and co-founder of the 
Ludeman Family Center for Women’s Health Research at the University of 
Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. The center has become a national 
leader in conducting research across the span of women’s lives, especially 
in the areas of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and mental health.

How the human body reacts to the transition to deep-space travel – and 
then adapts, or doesn’t, to lengthy periods in a microgravity environment – 
remains a largely understudied area. Our guest, Prem Subramanian, MD, 
PhD, chief of neuro-ophthalmology at the University of Colorado School of 
Medicine, talks about how space travel, including long-duration spaceflight, 
affects the eyes and how advancements in neuro-ophthalmology are helping 
astronauts. He also discusses treatments for thyroid eye disease and 
strabismus and shares research that seeks to understand eye issues in 
patients who’ve suffered from multiple traumatic brain injuries.

 With mounting evidence about the dangers of alcohol to our health, just what is the impact of alcohol on cancer risk? On cardiovascular risk? On overall mortality? Those questions are answered on this episode of Health Science Radio, which features two University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus professors discussing the latest studies on alcohol and health. The two doctors also talk about the changing patterns of alcohol consumption, current definitions of what constitutes a drink, their own internal conversations about alcohol and the need for more research. 

 Colorectal cancer has been upending the lives of younger people at disturbing rates in recent years, becoming the second most common type of cancer in people under age 50 in the U.S. today. By 2030, deaths are expected to double, and the disease is predicted to jump to the leading cause of cancer death in 20- to 49-year-olds. On this episode, we talk about epidemiological factors behind the rise in cases, the age groups affected, symptoms people should be paying attention to, preventative screening options, and where the research is going to try to reverse this alarming trend. Our guest is Swati Patel, MD, associate professor of medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and director of the Gastrointestinal Cancer Risk and Prevention Center. 

As a teenager, Joshua Gowin, PhD, remembers sitting through DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) classes and watching those frying pan-focused public service announcements: “This is your brain on drugs.” Gowin, assistant professor of radiology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, is the lead author on a recent study published in JAMA Network Open that explored the effects of both recent and lifetime cannabis use on brain function during cognitive tasks, including working memory. The study is the largest of its kind, examining the effects of cannabis use on over 1,000 young adults aged 22 to 36 using brain imaging technology. What were the study’s findings and where is Gowin’s research headed next? Listen to this episode of Health Science Radio to find out.

Fueled by emotion-driven and easily shared social media, the current waves of online misinformation casting doubt on science have grown in size, frequency and intensity. This episode of Health Science Radio features two guests from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus who are passionate about preventing and reversing the trend: Aimee Bernard, PhD, associate professor of immunology and microbiology, and Laura Scherer, PhD, associate professor of medicine in the cardiology division. Both Bernard and Scherer are faculty members at the CU School of Medicine. They discuss sources of misinformation, how it is disseminated, the challenges of social influencers and predatory journals, as well as nuanced strategies all science communicators can consider to help rebuild trust in science.

Studies referenced in this episode: 

Authenticity in science communication:

https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0226711

Reducing conspiracy beliefs with AI:

https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.adq1814

Accuracy nudge intervention:

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0956797620939054

Who is susceptible to health misinformation:

https://wp.demetra.rs/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/hea-hea0000978.pdf

Preprint reporting on a test of different misinformation interventions with 30,000+ people: