Entries for June 2009

Yesterday, actress Sarah Jessica Parker and actor Matthew Broderick welcomed their new twin daughters, born via a surrogate. Those of us who follow celebrity news are wondering: Are they the biological parents, or did they use donors for the eggs and sperm? (Alas, we may never know.) But 40-something women like Parker, who's 44, often need to turn to egg donors to have a baby because their own eggs have aged beyond the point of viability.

If that's you, a new website called Donor Network Alliance launched this week to pair couples with potential egg donors. Similar to a multiple listing for real estate agencies, the site includes listings from 20 different egg donor agencies. Prospective parents enter their search preferences—hair color, eye color, education level, race, nationality, religion, location—and out pops a list of potential donors, with their profile photos and a way to contact the agency representing them. "We have about 1,000 donors on our site now and plan to download 2,000 more over the next few weeks," says Robin von Halle, cofounder of the site.

Every health journalist who's been on the beat for a few years has reported on studies that appear to contradict each other. Vitamins, the cure for — no, cause of — cancer! Well two new studies about the risks of being overweight are sure to leave women scratching their heads. In one, obese women who had bariatric weight-loss surgery were found to have reduced cancer risks compared to obese women who didn't have the surgery. (Men, for some reason, didn't get the same benefit from the surgery.) In the other study, researchers found that those who were moderately overweight lived longer than normal weight individuals.

Just how much do our doctors really know when it comes to advising us about body weight? I'm beginning to realize that they may not know as much as they think. Certainly, there's no question that being 75 or 100 pounds overweight—aka obese—puts a strain on your heart, drastically increases your chances of developing diabetes, and probably moderately increases your cancer risks.

My gynecologist's office never calls to tell me my annual Pap smear is fine. And I've been guessing the strep test my 9-year-old son had 10 days ago was normal, since my pediatrician didn't contact me. But I'm mistaken in my assumptions and shouldn't rest easy. That's according to a new study published in yesterday's Archives of Internal Medicine , which finds that 7 percent of abnormal results aren't reported to patients. "You can't assume that no news is good news," stresses study author Lawrence Casalino, an associate professor of public health at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City.

Last February, I wrote that Planned Parenthood clinics had seen a 10 percent uptick in business because of women losing their health insurance and that women are swarming to these clinics for cut-rate contraception, Pap smears, and breast exams. Today, Planned Parenthood introduced an ad campaign, airing on cable news networks in the nation's capital, stating that every year the group provides 1 million cervical cancer screenings and 850,000 breast exams and also supplies immunizations, as well as contraception. "Ninety percent of what Planned Parenthood does is provide preventive and primary care to keep women healthy," the voice-over states.

The other 10 percent—abortions—goes unmentioned. I ask Cecile Richards, the organization's president, to explain why. She says the ad is aimed at policy folks involved in healthcare reform, those old guys in Congress (my words, not hers) who think the clinics only provide abortions. "Polls show that women generally know that Planned Parenthood provides STD testing and cancer screenings, but a lot of folks in Washington don't. We're trying to fill in information that they don't have."

Today the Food and Drug Administration announced that we should no longer use a popular over-the-counter cold remedy—Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Gel and Nasal Swabs—because it could cause a long-lasting or permanent loss in our sense of smell, a condition called anosmia. The FDA says it has received more than 130 reports from Zicam users who said their ability to smell became impaired—in some cases, after using the product only once. It goes without saying that we need our noses to, say, smell smoke when there's a fire, milk when it's rancid, and significantly enhance the taste of our food.

Zicam's website is still up and running, with no mention, as yet, of the warning letter that its manufacturer, Matrixx Initiatives, received from the FDA. The agency told the company to stop marketing Zicam unless it applies for a formal drug approval. Matrixx Initiatives responded to my inquiry with an E-mailed statement, which reads, in part:

I ventured out to a Dupont Circle bar last Saturday night to see how the other half lives. Those young, single, city-dwelling folks who don't have three kids, a carpool, or daily forays to the supermarket. I couldn't believe the amount of texting and E-mailing going on after midnight. Who are these people contacting? I thought. And why aren't they hanging out with them instead of the friends they came with? As Jerry Seinfeld might say, "What's the deal with all the texting?"

I ask Kathleen Bogle, assistant professor of sociology and criminal justice at La Salle University in Philadelphia, to satisfy my curiosity. "Texting is the new smoking; there's no question about it," she says. "In a bar setting where people used to have a cigarette when they weren't engaged at the moment, they now pull out a cellphone and tap away."

Elizabeth Edwards, wife of former Sen. John Edwards, opens up in her new book, Resilience, about her struggles with breast cancer and the importance of family.

Elizabeth Edwards, wife of former Sen. John Edwards, has had more than her share of struggles in the glare of the public spotlight. She was diagnosed with breast cancer a day after her husband lost his 2004 election for vice president. Last year, after learning that her cancer had metastasized to her bones, she helped him launch an unsuccessful bid for the presidency and then had to deal with having his extramarital affair and alleged out-of-wedlock child splashed across the tabloids. This is on top of grieving the loss of her teenage son in a car accident in 1996. Now, Edwards has decided to talk about her experiences, from 1990 to today, in a new book, Resilience. I wanted to know what motivated her to spend the precious time she has left holed up in a room by herself, writing her heart out.

Here are edited excerpts of what Edwards had to say (listen to the audio podcast).

Why did you write this book?
I've faced a lot of adversity, and people sometimes think I'm so courageous for dealing with all of this. While I don't think I was born with any special abilities or courage, I do think I've learned from my experiences. I wanted to write about how to get through each struggle, to get it down on paper.

I wish I could say that the next time something hits me it won't bother me at all because I've built up all of this experience. But each blow is separate and isn't any easier to take. I do, though, think I've become better at moving through the process of grieving. The first thing that I do before facing tomorrow is to look back at yesterdays: at my life before my son Wade died; before I was diagnosed with cancer; before my marriage problems. I really think about what my life was like during those times, which might seem counterproductive. But now I realize that, if done properly, this looking back can help you get through the shock period that knocks you off your feet. It allows you to grieve for how much you've lost and acknowledge how much that meant to you.

Breast cancer patients have it tough. Besides contending with the disease and its often harrowing treatments, they're also told to avoid certain medications—like hormone therapy for menopausal symptoms—because it could raise their likelihood of having a recurrence. In fact, many breast cancer patients are prescribed antidepressants to combat the hot flashes and mood swings of menopause. Or they're taking the drugs to cope with chronic depression. Unfortunately, these very same mood-lifters also appear to negate the effects of tamoxifen, a lifesaving breast cancer therapy given to women who have tumors that respond to estrogen.

Research presented Sunday at the American Society of Clinical Oncology finds that breast cancer patients taking antidepressants along with tamoxifen were more than twice as likely to have their tumors return after two years, compared with those who were taking tamoxifen alone. The Food and Drug Administration is poised to add a warning to tamoxifen's label alerting doctors to the drug's interaction with antidepressants, according to the Wall Street Journal.

News that abortion provider George Tiller was gunned down yesterday in his church should make every woman sit up and take notice. Despite having a president and Congress who favor abortion rights and a new Supreme Court nominee who presumably does as well, the safety and support of healthcare practitioners who provide them are obviously critical if women are going to have access. Certainly, Tiller was a controversial figure, as he performed abortions late into pregnancy—one of only three doctors in the country to do so. His killing was denounced by leaders from all political stripes, from President Obama to the president of Operation Rescue, an antiabortion group that has long had a Tiller Watch on its website. No one advocates murder.

While killings are rare—this is the first in a decade—abortion providers are frequently harassed and live in fear for their lives. I previously interviewed Warren Hern, who runs an abortion clinic in Boulder, Colo., and told me that the job "causes social and professional isolation and ruins your life." Like Tiller, Hern is willing to perform late-term abortions when fetuses have severe medical problems. And, like Tiller, he was put on an antiabortion hit list back in the early 1990s and targeted for assassination. He still receives regular death threats, and his Boulder clinic has been shot at by a sniper.