By Katie Cobian
In 2009, I was one of twelve participants in the San Diego Oncofertility Saturday Academy. Entering the program as a rising high school sophomore, I had no idea what to expect from the program; in fact, I barely knew…
Some women get tattoos for beauty, self-expression, or cultural events. Whatever your reason, know the facts before and after you get a tattoo.
Types of Tattoos
Permanent Tattoo: A needle inserts colored ink into your skin. Permanent tattoos last a lifetime.
Permanent Make-Up: A…
The lack of females in basic research was highlighted by the Atlantic today. Melina R. Kibbe, MD and Teresa K Woodruff, PhD, two of the co-authors of a study published in Surgery this month, reported that 22% of the publications…
The Women’s Health Research Institute at Northwestern University applauds the recent release of a new Action Plan developed the Food in Drug Administration in response to a Congressional directive to look closer at the inclusion and analysis of demographic subgroups including…
Last night I watched American Ninja Warrior because Internet sensation Kacy Catanzaro, a 5 ft, 100 lb athlete, was the only women competing in the American Ninja Warrior Finals. Despite 2 years of training, she simply could not complete the “jumping…
The 2014 Oncofertility Consortium Conference is less than a month away! We’re excited to introduce Dr. Daniel Green from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. His talk “Fertility and Pregnancy Outcome After Childhood Cancer” will be the culmination to our exciting morning…
Melina Kibbe, MD reported in a new study that surgical researchers rarely use female animals or cells in the published studies—despite a huge body of evidence showing that sex differences can play a critical role in medical research. “Women make up…
Dr. Monique Hinchcliff is the Associate Clinical Director and the Director of Translational Research for the Northwestern Scleroderma Program. Her research interests include the use of high-throughput, unbiased, approaches to define clinically relevant molecular subsets of systemic sclerosis/scleroderma. Since 2008, she…
Today’s speaker bio is Kyle Orwig, PhD, from the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Orwig will be giving a talk at the conference entitled: Stem Cell Therapies for Male Infertility.
Dr. Orwig joined the faculty of the University of Pittsburgh in 2003 and…
Reasons to try the Mediterranean Diet:
Includes most food groups including fats, carbs, etc.
Can swap out bad fats for healthy ones (e.g., olive oil instead of butter, fish/poultry instead of red meat)
Lots of fresh veggies
Includes bread
Wide range of ethnic foods to keep…
Medicaid patients in Illinois (our home state!) could gain increased access to contraception under policy changes proposed August 18 by the Department of Healthcare and Family Services, according to the Chicago Tribune. Health care providers would receive more money for providing…
It’s been over a year since the controversial Texas law (House Bill 2) leading to abortion clinic restrictions passed, and the repercussions are starting to be felt throughout the state. The law, which was passed on July 18, 2013, created several…
In anticipation of the Oncofertility Consortium Conference on September 22-23, we will be showcasing our conference speakers in an upcoming series of blogs. Each year the OC conference features the leading national and international experts in the field of fertility preservation.…
Podiatrists call stiletto’s “shoe-icide”. They can lead to sprained ankles, a permanent “pump bump” on the heel, deformity, chronic pain and even hairline fractures. Certain ballet flats can also cause serious problems. To learn more about the potential health problems and…
Musculoskeletal health is one of the areas of medicine in which differences between males and females are most striking. Although males have a higher incidence of traumatic injuries, females are disproportionately disabled by musculoskeletal conditions such as adolescent spinal deformities, ACL…
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), more commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that affects the function of nerves and muscles in the body–and it has been getting a lot of attention lately. ALS is the “progressive degeneration…
Office workers with more light exposure at the office had longer sleep duration, better sleep quality, more physical activity and better quality of life compared to office workers with less light exposure in the workplace, reports a new study from Northwestern…
The Fertility Preservation Society of India, a global partner of the Oncofertility Consortium, is excited to host their inaugural conference: “Fertility Preservation- Current Concepts” on September 6-7, 2014 in New Delhi, India. The conference is endorsed by the International Society of…
Cyberbullying happens when one uses online communication to harrass, post disparaging remarks, or threaten someone via the Internet or by texting. Because it reaches an unlimited audience (unlike face-to-face bullying) its consequences can be extreme. Cyberbullying is particularly rampant among adolescents—95%…
More and more women (and men) are seeking treatments to fill out those crow’s feet, frown lines and wrinkles as well as puffing up lips. In response to the growing demand, more options are now available and people are reporting satisfactory…
An estimated 3 million people in the United States have celiac disease. In people with celiac disease, foods that contain gluten trigger production of antibodies that attack and damage the lining of the small intestine. Such damage limits the ability of…
The 8th annual Oncofertility Consortium Conference is just over a month away! This conference attracts more than 150 researchers, clinicians, advocates, and trainees from around the globe who are dedicated to ensuring reproductive health for cancer survivors whose disease or treatment…
Losing weight has been linked to numerous health benefits, but new research now shows another, added bonus: weight loss may also help to reduce the number of hot flashes in menopausal women.
A study recently published online in the journal of The…
National Physicians Cooperative member Leslie Appiah, MD, was featured in this month’s issue of MD Update. Dr. Appiah is an active member of the NPC and is also the Director of Oncofertility at the University of Kentucky, which she recently established…
On March 25, the Supreme Court heard arguments regarding challenges to the contraception mandate of the Affordable Care Act, with a decision expected to come down in late June. Here’s a rundown of the main aspects of this important case:
What is…
By: Christie Hunter
It is becoming a concern in many sectors that the population is aging as the baby boomers are one of the largest segments of the population. One of the parts of this is looking at cognitive ability and mental health…
By: Christie Hunter
Recent shootings and homicides on college campuses have been dramatically represented by the media as a sign of failure to treat students. When such a tragedy occurs, it is common to see mental health issues on the forefront. However,…
By: Christie Hunter
The study of the stigma of mental illness has been in the literature for decades. There remain various different theories regarding how this type of stigma affects individuals and numerous approaches for decreasing it. These theories and approaches have changed…
A recent feature in Cure magazine discusses adoption as another option for cancer survivors who want to build a family. Each patient is unique. The impact of a given treatment on fertility can vary and so can the time available before…
Dr. Woodruff’s article “Reproductive endocrinology: fertility in female survivors of childhood cancer” was recently listed as one of the top 20 articles in the field of reproduction and endocrinology since 2013. This article was listed at the 8th most influential in…
On July 12, Janet Woodcock, MD, Director, Center for Drug Evaluation & Research at the FDA appeared before the Subcommittee on Health of the Congressional Energy and Commerce Committee. Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (pictured) questioned the Director about the inclusion of equal…
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the final version of its National Public Health Action Plan for the Detection, Prevention and Management of Infertility. The National Action Plan developed over the course of seven years and began with an…
Women may soon bid farewell to birth control pills and welcome a new type of contraception in the form of microchip implants. An MIT startup backed by the Bill Gates Foundation plans to start pre-clinical testing for the birth control chip…
Most people know that human clinical trials are critical to prove safety and efficacy in new medications. This is also true for medical devices yet a recent study indicated that only 14% of device studies included sex as a key outcome…
Women who had their last child at age 33 years or older were more likely to reach extremes of longevity, according to an analysis published online June 23 in Menopause.
Women who had their last child when they were aged 33 to…
The heart is more forgiving than you may think — especially to adults who try to take charge of their health, a new Northwestern Medicine® study has found.
When adults in their 30s and 40s decide to drop unhealthy habits that are…
Yesterday, in a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that “requiring family-owned corporations to pay for insurance coverage for contraception under the Affordable Care Act violated a federal law protecting religious freedom.” Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. conceded that the government…
The use of certain acne products containing the active ingredients benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid can cause rare but serious and potentially life-threatening allergic reactions or severe irritation according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The acne products the FDA…
Disturbing reports about mismanagement at the Veteran’s Affairs (VA) medical centers had led to Congressional action. One of our Leadership Council members at the Women’s Health Research Institute, Melina R. Kibbe, MD, a vascular surgeon at the Feinberg School of Medicine…
Research presented at the European Congress of Rheumatology indicated that “women have different predisposing risk factors for gout than do men, who more often fit the stereotypical profile of patients with gout who consume foods that increase the risk of the…
Gonadotoxic therapies, such as chemotherapy, used to treat breast cancer can have harmful effects on fertility- they destroy ovarian follicles, or women’s reserve of ova, resulting in amenorrhea and/or early menopause. Additionally, many endocrine therapies used to treat breast cancer have…
Delinquency in youth predicts a significantly higher rate of violent death in adulthood — especially from firearms — and females are among the most vulnerable, reports a new Northwestern Medicine® study.
Delinquent females died violently at nearly five times the rate of…
Bone health in women has raised a lot of concern and generated many recommendations. Current guidelines from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends that women ages 65 and older be screened routinely for osteoporosis. To reduce bone loss and…
A variety of patient education materials have been created for providers to use in the oncofertility care setting- materials that describe fertility preservation options in easy-to-understand language and have been designed in multiple platforms ranging from informational fact sheets to internet…
As the state with the highest rates of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) in the U.S., Alaska is introducing a new campaign aimed at preventing pregnant women from drinking, the Anchorage Daily News reported. Starting in December, pregnancy tests will be placed…
Need to stay up to date on the latest clinical guidelines, recommendations, and opinions? Our Oncofertility Decision Tool Web Portal has an entire section devoted to bringing you ALL of the clinical guidelines affecting fertility preservation and oncology care. We designed…
Women’s Health Research Institute Director, Dr. Teresa Woodruff was featured in a recent Chicago Sun-Times piece. Discussing everything from her research, her advocacy efforts, and even her hobbies, Dr. Woodruff breaks down the importance of sex-based research. From basic science to…
Researchers have found that hormone replacement therapy in young women with primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) led to increases in their bone mineral density, restoring levels to normal.
The findings provide important treatment information for women with POI and their physicians. Researchers at…
In an article featuring Dr. Melina Kibbe, Dr. Teresa Woodruff and Dr. Amy Paller, among others, Sandra Guy gives voice to the gender equity movement in medicine. The article, featured in the Fall 2013 edition of Society for Women Engineers, detailed…
Yesterday we announced our NEW Oncofertility Decision Tool Web Portal. This online portal serves as a one-stop-shop for health care providers in need of tools to facilitate fertility preservation conversations with their patients whose disease, or its treatment, threatens fertility. In…
The Oncofertility Consortium has created a Decision Tool Web Portal for health care providers who care for patients diagnosed with malignant and non-malignant conditions which may impair fertility (or treatment may impair fertility).
Decision Tools are designed to enable oncofertility stakeholders to take action.…
The FDA and the EPA are revising their joint fish consumption Advice and Questions & Answers to encourage pregnant women, those who may become pregnant, breastfeeding mothers, and young children to eat more fish and to eat a variety of fish from…
Dr. Teresa Woodruff and Dr. Melina Kibbe of the Women’s Health Research Institute’s Leadership Council were featured recently on WTTW Chicago Tonight. They discussed their activism for the inclusion of males and females in pre-clinical research studies. The recent shift by…
Despite the fact that fertilization requires mutual, active participation by both eggs and sperm, gender roles are often projected onto reproductive biology, leading to the portrayal of eggs as passive and sperm as active. For example, the opening credits in the…
The Up in Smoke: All You Need to Know about Cigarettes info graphic inspired today’s post.
We have all known about the harms of smoking on one’s health for quite some time, but the reality is, approximately 23 million women in the…
In case you missed Dr. Woodruff’s interview last week on Chicago Tonight, you can watch it here: Ending the Gender Bias in Research.
Thank you to Drs. Woodruff and Kibbe on their tireless work to promote the inclusion of females in all…
Dr. Teresa Woodruff, Director of the Oncofertility Consortium and Northwestern’s Women’s Health Research Institute will be featured on Chicago Tonight on WTTW, Channel 11, tonight at 7pm CST. Dr. Woodruff, along with Dr. Melina Kibbe from Northwestern Medicine, were driving forces…
Why should drugs be tested in both males and females? Because physiological differences between males and females affect drug activity. Factors like body weight, GI motility, intestinal enzyme activity, and kidney clearance rate affect how drugs move through the body and…
Heart disease risk increases with age for everyone, but symptoms of heart disease can be more evident particularly after menopause. Researchers for the first time have linked symptoms of heart failure to menopause, according to a new study from the Karolinska…
The 60 Minutes segment “Sex Matters: Drugs Can Affect Sexes Differently” is set to re-air this Sunday at 6:00pm central time. The Women’s Health Research Institute and it Leadership Council members worked with CBS on this show. The recent strides by…