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Radiation therapists and physicians know that education can reduce anxiety before radiation treatment but lack a standardized tool. In an effort to solve this problem, a multidisciplinary team from Jefferson College of Health Professions and the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University conducted a pilot study to see if a virtual environment education program could reduce some of the anxiety their patients face. They published their results in the Journal of Radiation Oncology.

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More Americans than ever are turning to spiritual, meditative and religious retreats as a way to reset their daily life and enhance wellbeing. Now, researchers at The Marcus Institute of Integrative Health at Thomas Jefferson University show there are changes in the dopamine and serotonin systems in the brains of retreat participants. The team published their results in Religion, Brain & Behavior.

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Physician researchers at Thomas Jefferson University suspect that some cases of coronary artery spasm go unrecognized and are incorrectly treated with stents. The good news – there could be a simple fix to eliminate these unnecessary stenting procedures. The team published a case series in Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions.

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By pooling the data of several studies, Thomas Jefferson University researchers showed that a higher rate of IV fluids not only decreased C-section rates, but also shortened the overall length of labor by one hour, as well as shortened the pushing phase. The results were published online as an accepted article in Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica.

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Researchers at Thomas Jefferson University have shown that the composition of the mitochondrial calcium portal (the protein that regulates when and how much calcium enters) is different depending on the organ in the body, and this difference allows mitochondria to tune their energy output by decoding a pattern of amplitude and/or frequency of calcium oscillations inside a cell. The results, published March 7 in the journal Cell Reports, could shed light on our basic understanding of organ health and disease.

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. Jefferson researchers pieced together the three-dimensional atomic structure of a doughnut-shaped protein that acts like a door or ‘portal’ for the DNA to get in and out of the capsid, and have now discovered that this protein begins to transform its structure when it comes into contact with DNA.

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To understand how metformin changes the biology of cancer cells, researchers at the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University tested tumor cells before and after metformin treatment in non-diabetic cancer patients. The pilot clinical trial results were published today in The Laryngoscope.

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Researchers at Thomas Jefferson University’s Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center discovered a cell-surface receptor highly expressed by cancerous and brain cells that directly and tightly binds progranulin. Importantly, the researchers also showed that this binding activates a cellular program that makes cancer cells more aggressive.

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How does a cancer cell burn calories? New research from Thomas Jefferson University shows that breast cancer cells rely on a different process for turning fuel into energy than normal cells. The results were recently published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

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A new method to determine how effectively immune cells kill their targets could help personalize immune therapies.

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Steroids for women at risk of preterm birth improve lung development and reduces risk of severe respiratory distress in babies.

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Trained community partners ensure follow-through on vaccination against hepatitis B virus (HBV).

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A multi-disciplinary group of clinician researchers working in the medical intensive care units (MICU) at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital found no significant difference in mortality of patients on two separate units; one staffed by nurse practitioners, the other by resident physicians. Both groups of patients were under the care of an attending physician.

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Comprehensive occupational therapy care requires a family-centered approach including treatment for the person with dementia and education for the caregiver. Clinical assessments exist to evaluate the capabilities of a person with dementia, but until now, occupational therapists did not have a validated instrument to gain understanding of the caregiver’s perceptions of the person with dementia’s abilities. Occupational therapist researchers at the Jefferson College of Health Professions at Thomas Jefferson University developed a first-of-its-kind tool to close this gap and published their findings in OTJR: Occupation, Participation and Health.

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Researchers from Thomas Jefferson University analyzed data from thousands of transplants and developed a scoring system for donor kidneys that they hope might expand the pool of available organs in two ways. They published their findings in the Annals of Transplantation.

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Researchers examine the biggest challenges for African American women after receiving breast cancer treatment.

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Researchers at Thomas Jefferson University found similar rates of obesity and high blood pressure readings in student-athletes as would be expected in the general adolescent population, which may suggest that participation in athletics does not protect against these conditions. They published their findings in The Journal of Pediatrics.

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Tuning cold plasma can either promote or inhibit bone formation.

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A new tool helps remove the emotion around choosing the right approach for prostate cancer

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Using a new tool, researchers can study localized reactive oxygen species signals that control mitochondrial function in health and disease.

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Women who exercise during pregnancy are more likely to deliver vaginally than those who do not, and show no greater risk of preterm birth.

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Researchers discover a new way to keep the heart pumping, which could lead to new drugs for heart disease.

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Up to 30 percent of people who receive organ transplants will develop diabetes, but researchers are unsure why. A new study in kidney transplant recipients suggests that patients with more inflammation prior to surgery are more likely to develop diabetes than those with less overall inflammation, and that a patient’s fat stores also play a role.

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A natural molecule shows benefit in a preliminary clinical trial for Parkinson’s Disease

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New research shows that overeating reduces levels of a hormone that signals the feeling of fullness in the brain, potentially promoting more eating.

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A panel of microRNAs from blood samples may predict patients at high risk of developing a common liver cancer from hepatitis B virus infection.

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According to research published today in PLOS ONE, treating high-risk hospitalized patients for sleep apnea may decrease the frequency of emergency rescues from hospital personnel, known as rapid response events.

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New research shows that more migraines could be safely treated with drugs that are known to constrict blood vessels.

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Statins and aspirin together are needed to keep lifesaving bypass grafts open, but Jefferson researchers found patients are not taking these medications long-term.

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New study shows that clinical symptoms are only rarely validated by the gold-standard reflux test

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Blocking one molecular pathway could make pancreatic cancer susceptible to formerly ineffective therapies

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Increasing the total dose of radiation to patients with non-metastatic prostate cancer does not improve their long-term outcomes, according to a new study.

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The study suggests that C-section rates could be reduced by over 50 percent by increasing the time allowed in the final phase of labor before a C-section is initiated. Jefferson researchers say labor guidelines that date to the 1800s need to be updated.

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Scientists believe that “conserved” genes — those found in life forms that range from bacteria to plants, insects and humans — perform vital biological functions across species. And limited research on one of those genes, Nitrilase 1 (Nit1), suggested it acts to inhibit cancer development.

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Malfunctioning mitochondria — the power plants in cells — are behind the damage caused by strokes, heart attacks, and neurodegenerative diseases, but little has been known about how to stop these reactors from melting down, destroying cells and tissue.

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Older patients, minorities, and male patients are more likely to develop substernal thyroid goiters that are difficult to remove surgically, putting them at risk for treatment complications and death, say researchers in the January 6 online in the American Journal of Surgery.

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Radiotherapy effectively damages brain tumors but the cancer cells can repair themselves in order to live on. Now, researchers at Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center have tested a strategy that combines radiotherapy with a drug that shuts down the ability of tumor to mend themselves.

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While two advanced radiosurgery approaches — Gamma Knife and RapidArc® — offer different strengths, they are equally effective at eradicating cancer in the brain, say researchers at Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center.

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Surgical methods used in a common form of abortion or to clear the womb after a spontaneous miscarriage appears to significantly increase the risk of a later preterm birth, say researchers at Thomas Jefferson University who analyzed 36 studies that enrolled more than 1 million women.

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Jefferson researchers have shown that early diagnosis and treatment of sleep apnea is associated with reduced six-month readmissions for patients hospitalized with heart failure.

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Researchers at Thomas Jefferson University have found the method they developed to image the prostate appears to be much better at detecting prostate cancer than any other test — radiographical, biopsy or blood — in use today.

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Thomas Jefferson University scientists say the culprit is excess calories, but risk can be reversed through lifestyle modification or, potentially, use of an approved drug.

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An individualized, multi-disciplinary approach is essential, as what works for one person may not work for another.

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A new study in mice has shown that cancers with KRAS-related gene mutations might benefit from a triple therapy with two experimental drugs plus radiation therapy.

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Researchers at Thomas Jefferson University have discovered why conventional efforts to block a tiny strand of ribonucleic acid, called microRNA, in triple negative breast cancer cells failed.

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Researchers help the brain make GM1 ganglioside, a protective substance that is diminished in the brains of Parkinson's patients

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Jefferson announces the opening of an ALS Clinic and affiliation with The ALS Association Greater Philadelphia Chapter beginning January 8th, 2016.

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Renowned medical oncologist and President of the National Medical Association, Edith Mitchell is named one of the most influential African Americans in the country by EBONY Magazine