Category Archives: Stem Cell Doctors


Iranian scientist claims to have invented drug for COVID-19 treatment – The Express Tribune

Masoud Soleimani says medicine can be used to treat coronavirus patients in three phases

Masoud Soleimani says medicine can be used to treat coronavirus patients in three phases. PHOTO: IRAN FRONT PAGE

As the novel coronavirus continues to wreak havoc across the world, an Iranian scientist has claimed that he has invented a drug using stem cells for COVID-19 treatment.

Masoud Soleimani, the Iranian stem cell scientist who has been recently released from the US prison, says many doctors had used his drug to treat coronavirus patients and found it effective against the highly contagious disease,Iran Front Page reported on Saturday.

He says the medicine can be used to treat coronavirus patients in three phases in a period of three to six days.

Russia claims it produces drug to treat COVID-19

The important point in the development of the coronavirus medicine is that clinical tests are still being conducted on it, and we hope we will achieve better results in the coming days, he told the Iranian publication.

Final and complementary research work is underway for final approval of the drug, the scientist added.

Iran is among the few countries most affected by the pandemic. On Friday, the health ministry reported a death toll of 2,378 and total confirmed infections at 32,332 in the country.

Earlier in the day, PresidentHassan Rouhani said the countrys health infrastructure is strong and ready to cope with a possible escalation in coronavirus cases.

This article originally appeared in Iran Front Page

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Iranian scientist claims to have invented drug for COVID-19 treatment - The Express Tribune

Indian doctors try to find out how they can build interferon through human cells to treat COVID-19 patients – Times Now

Indian doctors try to find out how they can build interferon through human cells to treat COVID-19 patients | Photo credits: Pixabay 

New Delhi: As researchers and doctors inch closer to finding specific cures, and vaccines for the novel coronavirus and the disease COVID-19 caused by it, the cases around the world are also on a rise. More than 700 positive cases were reported in India, on Friday morning. Indian doctors have revealed that they are trying to find out how they can build interferon through human cells to treat COVID-19 patients in the country.

According to a report by the ANI, Oncologist Vishal Rao, in a conversation with the news agency said that so far, what they have built through the Icrest Stem Cell Lab, along with NCG Cancer Centre, Bangalore is to look at immunological cells, which researchers have already been working on, to understand treatments for COVID-19.

He said that by studying immunological cells, they are trying to find out a way to build interferon through human cells. He further said that these human cells are formed when blood for regular check-ups is withdrawn, they get buffy coat which can be used to take out cells & form interferon, specifically, interferon gamas.

He further credited Dr Gururaj and Jyotsana, who he said were the key people behind the whole effort, who were able to show that these two chemicals, and other cytokines which are chemicals released by the cells, in a specific concoction could be potentially very useful in treating COVID-19.

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Indian doctors try to find out how they can build interferon through human cells to treat COVID-19 patients - Times Now

Explainer: what is cocooning and how can it be implemented? – Independent.ie

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar yesterday announced almost total lockdown for the country for the next two week period and said that those over 70 and those at high risk of catching the coronavirus should be cocooned until April 12.

ast night, the HSE released a document detailing exactly what this means and how to best implement it.

But what is cocooning?

According to the document, cocooning is a measure to protect those over 70 years or those extremely medically vulnerable by minimising interaction between them and others.

Those people should not leave their homes, and within their homes should minimise all non-essential contact with other members of their household.

This is in an effort to protect them from contracting COVID-19.

Who is extremely vulnerable to catching the virus?

According to the HSE, extremely vulnerable includes:

If you are over 70 years of age or have an underlying medical condition listed above, you are at very high risk of severe illness as a result of COVID-19, the document states.

You are strongly advised to stay at home at all times and avoid any face-to-face contact for a period of two weeks."

Visits should only continue from people who provide essential support, such as healthcare, personal support with daily needs or social care should continue. However, carers and care workers must stay away if they have any of the symptoms of COVID-19.

All people coming to your home should wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds on arrival to your house and often whilst they are there

An alternative list of people who can help you with your care if your main carer becomes unwell should be drawn up.

If you have someone else living with you, they are not required to adopt these protective cocooning measures for themselves. They should do what they can to support you in cocooning and they should follow guidance on physical distancing, reducing their contact outside the home.

They should wash their hands thoroughly and regularly, especially upon arrival home and observe good respiratory etiquette at all times

There are also face-to-face distancing measures that should be followed within the home for those who are being cocooned.

What exactly does face-to-face distancing mean?

What should you do if you are being cocooned but the other people in your house are not?

What about visitors?

Regular visitors should be contacted and informed that you are cocooning and that they should not visit. Essential visitors only are allowed, those who help with washing, dressing, or feeding.

For informal carers, only essential care should be provided.

This advice also applies to those over 70 years of age or extremely medically vulnerable persons living in long-term care facilities. Care providers should carefully discuss advice with families, carers and specialist doctors.

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Explainer: what is cocooning and how can it be implemented? - Independent.ie

More Than A Survivor: Stories of Warriors – Curetoday.com

Of late I have heard from many of my patients about the inadequacy and almost condescending nature of the term cancer survivor. While the National Comprehensive Cancer Network defines a cancer survivor as any individual diagnosed with cancer from the point of diagnosis through the balance of his/her life, the laymans term of survival carries connotations that are not accurate to those fighting cancer. To survive literally means to exist after a traumatic or life-threatening event. When someone survives a trauma, something is done to this person and they are still alive. The event is assumed to be over. Passivity is implied.

There is nothing passive about the struggle with cancer. Nor is the fight ever completely over. Fighting cancer is, in no uncertain terms, a war. Cancer and its subsequent treatments attack the body, psyche and spirit. As a nurse on the front lines I am in awe of the grit, determination, resiliency, creativity, endurance and sheer will I have seen my patients enact amid this conflict.

Miss A (a patient I have met who will remain anonymous) is a patient with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Her treatment has caused a baseline of persistent nausea and altered her sense of taste to the point that food is no longer appetizing. Furthermore, Miss A is constantly fatigued. Miss A, however, forces herself to drink an Ensure with each meal to maintain adequate protein intake as her body repairs after each cycle of chemotherapy. She also forces herself to take daily walks to stimulate energy and prevent muscle wasting. These are conscious acts of willpower. This is not passive. The fight is not over.

Miss B has been battling colon cancer with liver metastases for three years. After disease progression, while on her third-line treatment, Miss B took two weeks off treatments and doctor appointments to perform a one-woman show she had been working on for four years. The main premise of this inspiring production was about a woman regaining her life again after years of domesticity nearly broke her spirit. This act of creativity helped Miss A, and others, recall the joys of life and the reason to continue fighting. This is not passive. The fight is not over.

Miss C had Hodgkins Lymphoma. After years of failed chemotherapy related to toxicity and a subsequent Stem Cell Transplant, Miss C is now cancer free. The years of harsh treatment, however, have left Miss C with chronic pain, peripheral and motor neuropathy, leading to frequent falls and difficulty with fine motor skills. Miss C now works with physical therapists daily to maintain her ability to walk and to relearn how to manipulate objects that she cannot always feel. Furthermore, each routine PET scan leads to paralyzing fear, anxiety and other PTSD-like symptoms. Learning to live with chronic conditions and the stigma of mental health issues are acts of resiliency and determination. This is not passive. And although the cancer may be gone, the fight is not over.

It is understandable that people would want a term to describe their plight with cancer, but care must be taken in the naming of things. Names are potent. Names carry meaning even when not intended. And while anyone unlucky enough to be diagnosed with cancer may look to the term cancer survivor as something to strive for, it is far from adequate to describe what this person goes through. Miss A, Miss B and Miss C are far more than simply survivors. We do not call soldiers returning from, or currently fighting, a war survivor. We call them warriors. Therefore, I propose changing the term cancer survivor to cancer warrior.

Finally, it seems more than unfair for those who lost the battle to cancer to then also lose the term they fought so hard to obtain. Miss D had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. She went through a stem cell transplant and was in remission for six months before relapsing. Even as her body wasted to a wisp of the young woman she was, she continued to come to the outpatient clinic for salvage chemotherapy and blood transfusions with an upbeat and hopeful spirit. And while Miss D succumbed to Leukemia, her struggle was anything but passive. Her fight may be over, and she is no longer considered a survivor, but she will always be a warrior.

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More Than A Survivor: Stories of Warriors - Curetoday.com

Lost Smell and Taste Hint COVID-19 Can Target the Nervous System – The Scientist

Nearly two weeks ago, Alessandro Laurenzi, a biologist working as a consultant in Bologna, Italy, was mowing the grass in his garden when a friend stopped him and said the mower reeked of fuel. I couldnt smell anything at all, he tells The Scientist. That was in the morning. A few hours later, he went to have lunch and realized he couldnt smell the food he was about to eat and when he took a bite, he couldnt taste it either. Within a few days, he developed symptoms of COVID-19 and called his doctor to ask if he could get tested. Because his symptoms were mild, Laurenzi says, his doctor said no.

Laurenzi had heard anecdotally that many COVID-19 patients in Italy suffered from a loss of smell, so he started reading all the scientific papers he could find to see if his anosmia and ageusia would ever abate. One of the papers, a review published March 13, mentioned that SARS-CoV-2, like other coronaviruses such as SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, could target the central nervous system, possibly infecting neurons in the nasal passage and disrupting the senses of smell and taste.

Some of the purely respiratory symptoms that you might attribute to the disease, the inability to get air into the lungs, might actually be defects in respiration controlled by the nervous system.

Matthew Anderson, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Reading this, Laurenzi immediately reached out to the corresponding author, Abdul Mannan Baig, a researcher at Aga Khan University in Pakistan, and asked if his symptoms were reversible. The evidence, Mannan told Laurenzi and reiterated to The Scientist, indicates they will abate, possibly because the loss of sense is caused by inflammation in the area as the body fights the virus, so those symptoms could disappear in seven to 14 days. Lets hope so, Laurenzi tells The Scientist.

Documenting such peculiar symptoms is important, Mannan tells The Scientist, because the loss of smell and taste could be an early warning sign of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Based on the literature, British ear, nose, and throat doctors have now called for adults who lost those senses to quarantine themselves in an attempt to tamp down the spread of the disease, The New York Times reports. The symptoms, Mannan adds, also suggest that the virus has the ability to invade the central nervous system, which could cause neurological damage and possibly play a role in patients dying from COVID-19.

This is something to keep a careful eye on, says Matthew Anderson, a neuropathologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. Theres been some intriguing observations in previous studies on viruses, including coronaviruses, to show that they have the capacity to enter the nervous system. Its important that this be considered for SARS-CoV-2 and for people to do the experiments, including autopsies, to look for signs of this damage.

Because COVID-19 has symptoms similar to the flu, much of the attention could get diverted towards the pulmonary aspect of SARS-CoV-2, while neural involvement may remain covert, Mannan says. When a patient begins to exhibit severe neurological symptoms, such as a loss of involuntary breathing, it may be too late to prevent fatalities.

In a review article first published February 27, Yan-Chao Li of Jilin University in China and colleagues argue that if SARS-CoV-2 infects nerve cells, particularly neurons in the medulla oblongata, which is part of the brain stem that serves as the control center for the heart and the lungs, the damage could contribute to acute respiratory failure of patients with COVID-19.

The epidemiological evidence supports the hypothesis that neurons in the medulla can become infected with SARS-CoV-2 and contribute to a patients breathing problems and potential death. Li and colleagues explain that the time it takes for COVID-19 to progress from first symptoms to difficulty breathing is typically five days; patients are then admitted to the hospital roughly two days later, and a day after that put into intensive care. The latency period is enough for the virus to enter and destroy the medullary neurons, they write.

SARS-CoV-2 enters human cells using a receptor called ACE2. Researchers have reported that ACE2 regulates cardiovascular function, and according to a search of protein databases, many human cell types express ACE2, including lung, heart, kidney, intestine, and brain tissue, Mannan says. There are also multiple ways that the virus could invade the central nervous system, he explains. It might circulate through the blood and then attack ACE2 receptors in the endothelia that lines blood capillaries in the brain, breaching the blood-brain barrier and invading neurons through that route. A breached blood-brain barrier could also cause brain swelling, compressing the brain stem and affecting respiration, Mannan says. The cells innervating the lungs could also become infected, making involuntary respiration more difficult.

Evidence from experiments in mice also suggest that the virus might target the nervous system through the olfactory bulb. In a 2008 study, immunologist Stanley Perlman of the University of Iowa and colleagues showed that SARS-CoVthe virus that caused the SARS outbreak that killed more than 770 people in 2003entered the brains of transgenic mice expressing human ACE2 through neurons in the nose. The virus then rapidly spread to connecting nerve cells. The extensive nerve damage was the major cause of death, the team reported, even though low levels of the virus were detected in the animals lungs.

Although this has not been demonstrated, SARS-CoV-2 could potentially enter the nervous system through the olfactory bulb, as SARS-CoV does in mice.

Death of the animal likely results from dysfunction and/or death of infected neurons, especially those located in cardiorespiratory centers in the medulla, the team wrote. A study with the MERS virus in mice expressing ACE2 showed a similar result, Perlman tells The Scientist. The brain certainly can be readily infected in mice, he notes. Whether this occurs in humans to any great extent is really unknown, but not very likely at this point, given how much larger rodents olfactory bulbs are relative to the overall size of their brains compared with humans and the paucity of evidence in humans.

Still, he says, the fact that COVID-19 patients have lost their sense of smell or taste is interesting because, if the virus infects the nose, it would use the exact same neurons as in the mouse studies to enter the brain. If taking this path, SARS-CoV-2 could work its way up to the olfactory mucosa, which consists of epithelium cells, blood vessels, and the axons from olfactory neurons. This area is connected to the olfactory bulb, via small, sieve-like, tiny openings called the cribriform plate that is located at the base of the frontal lobes of the brain, Mannan explains. Because the brains frontal lobes are close to the olfactory bulb where neurons may be infected, the tissue deeper in the brain could be endangered too.

Infection of the brainstem could cause changes that would affect involuntary respiration, which suggests some of the purely respiratory symptoms that you might attribute to the disease, the inability to get air into the lungs, might actually be defects in respiration controlled by the nervous system, Anderson says.

Mannan emphasizes that the neurological data on SARS-CoV-2, though preliminary, could be important for doctors deciding how to treat patients. Asking about neurological symptomsloss of taste or smell, twitching, seizurescould factor into who might go into acute respiratory failure, or at least who might suffer from it soonest, and allow for more efficient triaging of patients, with a close eye kept on those with neurological symptoms. It is important to screen the patients for neurological signs early and late in the course of COVID-19, he says, as this could be life-saving in our fight against COVID-19 pandemic.

Anderson and Perlman add that postmortem examinations of the brains of patients who died from COVID-19 are essential to understanding the role nerve damage might play in the progression of the disease. Few, if any, autopsies of these patients are being done because of fear of contracting the disease, and if the autopsies are being done, its not likely that examiners are looking at the brain, only the lungs. Theyre just not thinking that the brain could be the site of the problem, Anderson says, and so thats the really important aspect of these reviews, getting that idea out there.

Ashley Yeager is an associate editor atThe Scientist. Email her atayeager@the-scientist.com. Follow her on Twitter@AshleyJYeager.

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Lost Smell and Taste Hint COVID-19 Can Target the Nervous System - The Scientist

While we were stockpiling, here’s what astronauts were up to in space last week – CNN

While many of us are practicing social distancing, working from home or living in quarantine-like and isolated situations, life goes on as normal for the space station-dwelling astronauts.

They're aware of the pandemic and have been sharing their support for people across the globe through their Twitter accounts. NASA astronaut Jessica Meir shared her perspective: "From up here, it is easy to see that we are truly all in this together. #EarthStrong."

But the astronauts aren't just floating around and taking cool pictures of Earth. Each week, hundreds of science experiments are in progress on the station. In addition to working on these experiments, the astronauts study themselves to better understand the human body in space.

Here's a look at the cool science they've been doing 254 miles from Earth.

Space pants

Living in space is an adjustment for the human body as it adapts to the lack of gravity.

Over the years, astronauts have noticed changes in their vision as a response to the headward fluid shift they experience. This also increases pressure in the head.

Last week, NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Andrew Morgan, as well as Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka, tested out the Russian Chibis hardware, also known as the Russian Space Agency's Lower Body Negative Pressure experiment.

It's basically a pair of pants housed in the Russian Orbital Segment of the space station.

The rubber pants use suction to draw fluids back down towards the legs and feet, just like we experience walking on Earth.

Researchers hope that hardware to reverse the fluid shift astronauts experience in space could also help with their vision changes.

While Morgan was wearing the Chibis pants, Meir used a tonometer to measure his eye pressure, with doctors on Earth watching in real time. Morgan's head and chest were also scanned to monitor blood flow.

The astronauts also tested their hearing as part of the European Space Agency's Acoustic Diagnostics experiment to monitor if the astronauts' hearing changes in response to noise and lack of gravity on the station.

Heart, muscle and bone

Multiple experiments are currently occurring on the station that could not only benefit the health of astronauts, but human life on Earth as well.

These cells could treat astronauts who experience heart abnormalities and be used to treat people and children with cardiac diseases and disorders on Earth. The cells can also be used to investigate the development of new pharmaceuticals.

One experiment, called Engineered Heart Tissues, allows the astronauts to watch heart cell muscle contractions in real time.

Meir and Morgan have been taking care of the heart cells, watching how they react to the lack of gravity. When the heart cells return to Earth, the results of the space experiment will be compared with a similar control experiment on Earth.

The astronauts have also been studying bone samples to understand and develop bone treatments for astronauts who suffer bone loss in space, as well as people diagnosed with osteoporosis on Earth. The goal is to determine new treatments for both.

Mice are also sharing space on the station with the astronauts in a mouse habitat so they can study how the mice and their gene expression reacts to zero gravity.

Understanding how their gene expression is altered can help NASA better prepare for long-term human spaceflight. The study also serves a secondary purpose of allowing them to determine countermeasures for muscle atrophy, which can occur in space or for patients on bed rest.

It's all in your gut

Astronauts don't get much of a chance to vary their diets in space. That means they could also be missing out on vital nutrients and other added benefits of the fresh food we consume on Earth.

The Japanese space agency's Probiotics investigation is studying how good gut bacteria could improve the human microbiome on long-term missions.

Meanwhile, the astronauts are also participating in an experiment called Food Acceptability, looking at the "menu fatigue" that happens when they eat based on limited options over months on the station. This usually causes them to lose weight by the time they return to Earth.

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While we were stockpiling, here's what astronauts were up to in space last week - CNN

While we were stockpiling, here’s what astronauts were up to in space last week – KTVZ

For astronauts living on the International Space Station, their life is a type of quarantine. They cant go outside unless its on a planned spacewalk in very specific gear and they remain in the same confined space for six months or longer.

While many of us are practicing social distancing, working from home or living in quarantine-like and isolated situations, life goes on as normal for the space station-dwelling astronauts.

Theyre aware of the pandemic and have been sharing their support for people across the globe through their Twitter accounts. NASA astronaut Jessica Meir shared her perspective: From up here, it is easy to see that we are truly all in this together. #EarthStrong.

But the astronauts arent just floating around and taking cool pictures of Earth. Each week, hundreds of science experiments are in progress on the station. In addition to working on these experiments, the astronauts study themselves to better understand the human body in space.

Heres a look at the cool science theyve been doing 254 miles from Earth.

Living in space is an adjustment for the human body as it adapts to the lack of gravity.

Over the years, astronauts have noticed changes in their vision as a response to the headward fluid shift they experience. This also increases pressure in the head.

Last week, NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Andrew Morgan, as well as Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka, tested out the Russian Chibis hardware, also known as the Russian Space Agencys Lower Body Negative Pressure experiment.

Its basically a pair of pants housed in the Russian Orbital Segment of the space station.

The rubber pants use suction to draw fluids back down towards the legs and feet, just like we experience walking on Earth.

Researchers hope that hardware to reverse the fluid shift astronauts experience in space could also help with their vision changes.

While Morgan was wearing the Chibis pants, Meir used a tonometer to measure his eye pressure, with doctors on Earth watching in real time. Morgans head and chest were also scanned to monitor blood flow.

The astronauts also tested their hearing as part of the European Space Agencys Acoustic Diagnostics experiment to monitor if the astronauts hearing changes in response to noise and lack of gravity on the station.

Multiple experiments are currently occurring on the station that could not only benefit the health of astronauts, but human life on Earth as well.

Two different experiments are focused on growing healthy heart cells from stem cells to see if they grow easier and quicker in the absence of gravity.

These cells could treat astronauts who experience heart abnormalities and be used to treat people and children with cardiac diseases and disorders on Earth. The cells can also be used to investigate the development of new pharmaceuticals.

One experiment, called Engineered Heart Tissues, allows the astronauts to watch heart cell muscle contractions in real time.

Meir and Morgan have been taking care of the heart cells, watching how they react to the lack of gravity. When the heart cells return to Earth, the results of the space experiment will be compared with a similar control experiment on Earth.

The astronauts have also been studying bone samples to understand and develop bone treatments for astronauts who suffer bone loss in space, as well as people diagnosed with osteoporosis on Earth. The goal is to determine new treatments for both.

Mice are also sharing space on the station with the astronauts in a mouse habitat so they can study how the mice and their gene expression reacts to zero gravity.

Understanding how their gene expression is altered can help NASA better prepare for long-term human spaceflight. The study also serves a secondary purpose of allowing them to determine countermeasures for muscle atrophy, which can occur in space or for patients on bed rest.

Astronauts dont get much of a chance to vary their diets in space. That means they could also be missing out on vital nutrients and other added benefits of the fresh food we consume on Earth.

The Japanese space agencys Probiotics investigation is studying how good gut bacteria could improve the human microbiome on long-term missions.

Meanwhile, the astronauts are also participating in an experiment called Food Acceptability, looking at the menu fatigue that happens when they eat based on limited options over months on the station. This usually causes them to lose weight by the time they return to Earth.

Fortunately, the astronauts are also actively growing lettuce in space and so far, its proven safe to eat. The ability to grow fresh produce in space could be a game changer for astronauts on long missions going forward.

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While we were stockpiling, here's what astronauts were up to in space last week - KTVZ

Michael Schumacher health: Neurosurgeon contradicted Jean Todt statements that F1 legend is ‘still fighting,’ says Schumi is different now -…

Michael Schumacher has been out in the car racing world since he sustained a grave injury to the head in 2013. Nearly a year after he announced his official retirement from the F1 league, he was badly hurt while skiing with his family in the Alps.

Keeping it a secret

The racing champ almost lost his life in the accident but he was revived after doctors put him in a coma that lasted for months. It is not clear how long it was before he returned to consciousness because, at that time, his family already decided to keep his health condition and recovery progress a secret.

There was a total media blackout where journalists could not even gather information about Michael Schumachers condition and his family managed to keep it this way up to now. It has been over seven years since the accident and yet, only those who are close to Shumi and his family know how he is today.

Who shares info with the public?

Despite the strict secrecy, there are few details that still able to make its way to the papers and online publications. The info provided came from some of Schumachers friends or colleagues and sometimes from medical professionals who treated him once.

Through them, it was leaked that Michael Schumacher still seeks treatment from hospitals as his family tries everything to make him healthy again. Recently, it was reported that he was brought to a hospital in Paris for a stem cell procedure, one of the newest treatments available today and a doctor who did the procedure on him reportedly confirmed it.

Moreover, the racing champ continues with his road to recovery, the selected people who are allowed to see him include his former manager at Ferrari, Jean Todt. Last year, this friend revealed to the public that Michael Schumacher is still fighting.

Michael is in the best hands and is well looked after in his house, Express quoted Todt as saying. He does not give up and continues to fight and his family is fighting just as much.

The publication also mentioned another one of his friends, F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone, also said something optimistic with regards to Schumis health. He said that he is looking forward to the day when Michael himself will be the one to answer all of the peoples questions on his health condition.

Michaels true health condition

But then, one doctor seemed to have dismissed Michael Schumachers friends claims that he will be back after full recovery one day and come back normal. According to The Independent, a neurosurgeon shared what is really going on and it is far from what was claimed.

Nicola Acciari, a leading surgeon in Bologna, seems to allege that the truth is - Michael Schumacher is a different person now who is far from everyone remembers him to be. He said that since Schumi suffered from a serious head injury and has been on treatment for more than six years now, he is likely to have been altered at this point.

We must imagine a person very different from the one we remember on the track, with a very altered and deteriorated organic, muscular and skeletal structure, he told Contro Copertina via The Independent. All as a result of the brain trauma he suffered.

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Michael Schumacher health: Neurosurgeon contradicted Jean Todt statements that F1 legend is 'still fighting,' says Schumi is different now -...

COVID-19 forcing Wisconsin’s incarceration system to adapt – Wisconsin Examiner

The Badger State is notorious for its high incarceration rate. So the well-being of Wisconsins incarcerated population remains one of the biggest looming challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. News of the infection of a Department of Corrections (DOC) employee at the Waupun Correctional Institution further raise the stakes.

On March 21, Evers ordered a halt of all prison admissions in the state. A spokeswoman described the development as, part of our efforts to stop the spread of the virus and help keep staff and the people in the states care safe.

The order does not end the problem the pandemic poses within the incarcerated population, however, and some sheriffs objected that they had not been consulted on the plan, which could cause a backlog in county jails.

According to a DOC weekly population inventory, there are 23,167 incarcerated adults in Wisconsin and 136 in youth custody. Pile staff numbers on top of that, and youre looking at a large potentially high-transmission environment for the virus that causes COVID-19. March 18, an email was sent out to DOC and Waupun correctional staff regarding a staff member who tested positive. Our priority is the safety of everyone and we will continue to be proactive in our efforts as we deal with this ongoing issue, wrote Waupun warden Brian Foster. As always, be vigilant in your duties, be safe in all that you do, take care of yourselves and those around you.

The DOC says its been implementing measures over the last several weeks to minimize the risk to people housed within facilities. As a result of these actions, we feel equipped to deal with this situation, DOC spokeswoman Anna Neal tells Wisconsin Examiner. Each division maintains detailed pandemic plans that outline protocols and isolation procedures on what to do if someone was infected. Upon confirmation of a positive case, all potentially exposed staff were notified, and all adults in custody that were directly exposed were quarantined. Due to privacy concerns, details about the staff member and his or her work site remain confidential.

According to the Department of Health Services (DHS) the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state stands at 381.

Several criminal justice reform groups are pushing to elevate the voices of incarcerated residents. Among them is the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Wisconsin, which held a virtual town hall on the evening of March 19.

Despite social isolation being a key to mitigating the virus spread, its a strategy Dr. Monica Vasudev, points out is not possible for incarcerated people. We know that close contact increases the risk of catching the virus, Vasudev says. Older inmates are at risk.

Vasudev outlines a complicated medical landscape for incarcerated Wisconsinites, who have trouble obtaining medications and are sometimes not diagnosed with an underlying health condition upon entering the correctional system.

Even soap is a limited resource for incarcerated people. Vasudev urges that Wisconsins incarcerated population be given easier access to soap, adequate sinks to wash, and proper instruction about how to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Protocols for newly arrived inmates may also have to shift across facilities under the DOCs oversight. If people are newly incarcerated, maybe they need to be quarantined for 14 days because we have whats now known as community spread, says Vasudev. People who work in the jails, they also need to be told to stay home if they have a cold.

The criminal legal system makes it essentially impossible to do the things that doctors say you need to do to keep yourself and your loved ones safe from COVID-19, says Dylan Hayre, Justice Division Campaign Strategist with the ACLU. It makes social distancing impossible. It makes hygiene inaccessible. It makes medical care wholly inadequate or also inaccessible. It just creates barriers and impediments all along the way for people who are trying to get help in the midst of this pandemic.

Much like paid sick leave and healthcare access, the pandemic is laying bare the inequities of the incarceration system. Cases of medical shortfalls and malpractice can be found within jails and prisons nationwide, including Wisconsin. One of the most striking incidents occurred in 2016, when 38-year-old Terrill Thomas was deprived of water for a week in jail and died. Three Milwaukee jail staffers were convicted of felony charges in connection with the death, and Thomas family was awarded a $6.7 million settlement. Thomas case is just one of numerous deaths that have occurred in the Milwaukee County jail since 2000.

I should note that these barriers arent new now that we have COVID-19, says Hayre. These are the barriers that have existed within the criminal legal system for centuries. Theyre just now being re-evaluated under the crisis in a way that they havent been before.

Moving forward, the ACLU is pushing several demands to help ensure the safety of incarcerated people. These include a moratorium on arrests for low-level offenses to help stem the tide of new people into the system. Prosecutors need to stop low-level charges, says Hayre, they need to dismiss as many charges as possible, they need to get people out if they are being brought in under arrest.

Like the rest of society, Wisconsins correctional institutions may need to change very rapidly. For example, while the average person may be buyingor stockpilinghand sanitizer, incarcerated people arent allowed sanitizers, which contain alcohol. Incarcerated residents also pay for soap, which they can only afford if they have someone putting money on their account, or if they work a low-wage, prison-provided job for pennies on the dollar, as Hayre puts it. It can take up to a weeks worth of incarcerated labor to pay for one bar of soap. Those are just a few of the problems incarcerated Wisconsinites are facing as the pandemic now creeps within their walls.

Emilio de Torre, community engagement director with Wisconsins ACLU, encourages organizers, activists, and concerned residents to contact their local sheriffs and district attorneys about this issue. Things like recommending that police issue tickets for low-level offenses rather than conduct arrests, reduce bail, eliminate overcrowding, and provide access to supplies for incarcerated people can all help.

Nothing is going to resonate more with your local sheriffs, or your police chiefs, or your DAs than you calling them, than you emailing them and reaching out directly, says de Torre. ACLU is also distributing a petition to urge Gov. Tony Evers to eliminate the practice of crimeless revocation, which is the number-one driver to our prison system, says de Torre, referring to those who will be re-incarcerated for breaking a rule of supervision rather than committing a new crime.

In Milwaukee County, many of the people who break these rules may find themselves within the notoriously overcrowded Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility (MSDF). Molly Collins, advocacy director with the ACLU of Wisconsin notes that in MSDF, there are three people in a cell. And theres no space there. Those are conditions where if this virus gets in those folks are going to be harmed.

In a press briefing on the pandemic on March 20, Evers said the DOC has implemented significant changes, to its operations across all institutions. Evers emphasized the priority of making sure the people that were responsible for are safe and secure and continuing to receive services.

At Waupun, the governor said contact tracing is being done to quarantine any possible exposures. Though Evers is confident in the operations of the DOC to deal with the virus, he admitted, obviously this is very stressful for the Department of Corrections, the people that work there, and the people that we are responsible for.

Chris Ott, executive director of Wisconsins ACLU tells Wisconsin Examiner, We believe that the administration is taking the grave risk that COVID-19 poses to incarcerated individuals seriously and is actively looking into how to stem the outbreak.

The ACLU of Wisconsin released a letter to Gov. Evers and corrections officials in his administration calling on the governor to grant commutations to anyone identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as particularly vulnerable and whose sentence would end within the next two years.

There are a lot of priorities right now, says Collins, but the most vulnerable in society, she adds are the ones that we need to be thinking about.

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COVID-19 forcing Wisconsin's incarceration system to adapt - Wisconsin Examiner

Canton woman, man have stories to tell about cancer survivors – Wicked Local Canton

Everyone has a story of why they want to participate in the Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk presented by Hyundai. Here are the stories of two Canton residents.

She's doubly grateful

Shannon Whalen, of Canton, knows the importance of getting good medical treatment.

As a child of two cancer survivors who both received treatment at Dana-Farber, this was the best way I could give back, stated Whalen, who will participate in the walk in honor of her parents.

Whalens father was diagnosed with leukemia when she was a newborn. He underwent a stem cell transplant and chemotherapy as she grew into a child.

After years of tough times, hospitalizations, doctors appointments, hair loss, and no appetite, he has been in remission for 15 years thanks to the amazing doctors and oncologists at Dana-Farber, Whalen wrote.

But while the family thought they were finally in the clear, her mother was diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer almost 10 years later.

"Finding comfort in the outstanding care my dad received at Dana-Farber, we took her to the exact same place without a doubt that it would be the best decision, Whalen wrote. "My parents, myself, and our family are extremely lucky to have had access to the worlds best cancer center in our backyard. This accessibility allows me to say that they are both survivors and that we can continue to live our lives as a whole, happy family.

"...I have friends, family, and coworkers whose connections to cancer are devastating, which is why I have become so adamant about walking and fundraising for the Jimmy Fund Walk. I want to not only express my gratitude for their state-of-the-art care, but to help contribute to funding that will hopefully one day find a cure so that more people have the privilege to say they are a relative or friend of a survivor.

Whalen is a part of Team Tara which hopes to raise $100,000 this year. Over the years, the team has surpassed the $1 million mark.

Full effort for a quarter-century

Jim Maltz, of Canton, has been walking in the Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk for 25 years. He first started to walk because he wanted to help Dana-Farber.

Maltz y walks for team Marching For Michael. He became involved with this team by serendipity. He ended up meeting Michaels father at the gym. Michaels father noticed that Maltz was wearing his Jimmy Fund Walk shirt and they began to talk. Maltz learned that Michael was treated at the Jimmy Fund from age six to nine. Maltz joined their team and was able to watch Michael grow and heal. Michael is now a freshman in college.

He is now taller than me, Maltz wrote. He towers over me.

His favorite part about the walk is at the finish line where he sees everyone hugging and being happy.

Knowing that all of the money raised goes directly to research is big for me, Maltz wrote. Its a good cause."

The Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk raises the most money of any single day walk in the country.

The walk, scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 4, has raised more than $145 million in its more than 30-year history. Every dollar raised helps patients at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

To register, support a walker or volunteer, visit http://www.JimmyFundWalk.org or call 866-531-9255. Registrants can enter the promo code NEWS for $5 off the registration fee. Walkers can walk any of the four distance options.

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Canton woman, man have stories to tell about cancer survivors - Wicked Local Canton