Authored by: Ryan Nisay Art by: Mia Hsu Artificial Intelligence (AI) is already being hailed as humanity's next greatest technological leap, but behind its promise lies a growing public health crisis. In less than a decade, what began as an abstract concept confined to research laboratories has essentially embedded itself in every sphere of human activity. However, the massive computational power fueling AI systems demands staggering amounts of electricity, most of which stil

Authored by: Suri Wang Art by: Claire Ma The genetic code acts as the instruction manual for every living organism, determining traits such as eye color, skin tone, and sex. Over the past 50 years, scientists or researchers discovered a way to manipulate the code: genetic engineering, the deliberate alteration of DNA. In 2013, scientists approved CRISPR-Cas9, a precise gene-editing tool that modifies DNA at targeted sites. While genetic editing offers advances in treating neu

Authored by: Skye Romo Art by: Vanessa Chen Hsieh In early 2024, the Alabama Supreme Court declared that frozen embryos are legally children, a ruling that caused several fertility clinics to halt in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedures almost overnight (NPR, 2024). Appointments were canceled, doctors feared lawsuits or even criminal charges, and national headlines erupted. While the legal debate over when life begins has captured the public's attention, a quieter scientific

Authored by: Sicheng Chen Art by: Vanessa Chen Hsieh Although the COVID-19 pandemic has subsided, many people still have lingering questions about the mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines: How do they confer immunity? Where do they go once inside our bodies?  While the first question has been widely discussed, the second is often overlooked. For many, it remains unclear how the mRNA is packaged and delivered—a process that lies at the heart of how these vaccines work. Understanding t

Authored by: Shree Manivel Art by: Priscilla Liu In emergency departments nationwide, artificial intelligence (AI) is quietly reshaping patient care. The emergency department (ED) is a uniquely high-pressure environment where clinicians must decide, often within minutes, who is seen first. AI-based triage systems are emerging as tools to assist in those decisions. These systems can analyze vital signs, laboratory results, and electrocardiograms (ECGs) to identify patients who

Authored by: Samuel Notch Art by: Stefanie Chen For newborns, an extra few weeks in the womb can mean the difference between a healthy start in the world and months of intensive care. Each year, thousands of babies begin their lives in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) due to complications resulting from gestational nutrition and metabolism issues, many of which are preventable conditions. Advances in genetic testing and nutrigenomics offer exciting potential to anticipate

Authored by: Noah Scheidt Art by: Aleena Naeem Mental healthcare in rural America remains one of the nation’s most pressing and overlooked crises. For decades, shortages of providers, long distances to clinics, and persistent stigma have left countless patients without the help they need. The COVID-19 pandemic not only accelerated the adoption of telehealth, but also drastically increased rates of mental health issues such as depression. These circumstances provided both the

Authored by: Mia Hsu Art by: Aleena Naeem Concierge medicine, or retainer medicine, is a growing healthcare practice model that emphasizes improved physician access, enhanced customer service, and continuity of quality, personalized care [1]. The majority of concierge physicians are general internists [2]. To access concierge services, patients pay an annual retainer fee typically ranging from $1500-1700 [3]. The fee may increase with patient age. Additionally, while it is no

Authored by: Leslie Liu Art by: Julia Chen For many women, the arrival of a period is met with dread. It can feel like a gruesome and painful reminder of what our bodies do each month to signal that there is no baby on the way. What we discard as waste is often viewed with disgust, something to hide or endure quietly. Yet this very blood, long stigmatized and misunderstood, carries a powerful secret that has the potential to transform modern medicine: the ability to regrow sk

Authored by: Kenneth Li Art by: Laura Lee Artificial intelligence (AI) has rapidly developed in the past decade causing discussions on investment and implementation to dominate many professional fields, especially healthcare. The international AI healthcare market was projected to grow swiftly at a 47.6% compound annual growth rate from 11.2 billion USD in 2023 to 427.5 billion USD in 2032, with investment being spearheaded by leaders including Google, IBM, Johnson and Johnso

Authored by: Katie Greening Art by: Kain Wang While it may be impossible to create something from absolutely nothing, new advancements in medicine bring us very close. Regenerative medicine, which is the study of repairing and replacing damaged cells in the body, is a rapidly developing field. Through stem cell therapy, gene editing, and tissue engineering, conditions once thought incurable are now becoming less of lifelong barriers, and more like challenges medicine can over

Authored by: Kanae Funabiki Art by: Caitlin Sweeney “Would you rather have Alzheimer’s or skin cancer?” This sounds like an impossible theoretical question, like choosing between the ability to fly or to turn invisible. In reality, you don’t get a choice, and you probably wouldn’t want one either. But what if I told you that Alzheimer’s and cancer are both influenced and shaped by the exact same gene? Meet the gene Apolipoprotein E (ApoE), a lipoprotein responsible for regula

Authored by: Jixuan (Jason) Zhang Art by: Amy Em In the battle against cancer, every advantage matters. Timing is particularly critical, as treatment is more robust and survivability drastically improved when the disease is detected in its earliest stages. Cancer screening is therefore one of the most formidable defenses available. In fact, a study found that between 1975 and 2020, an estimated 4.75 million deaths due to breast, cervical, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancer

Authored by: Emma Robinson Art by: Kain Wang Almost everyone can look back on their childhood with a fond memory of eating a giant red sucker or snacking on some bright orange cheetos. However, the growing concern around the quality of the food we eat has led many people to take a harsh look at commonly consumed processed foods. While some aim to cut out preservatives and artificial sugars, one of the most widespread areas of food anxiety is surrounding artificial dyes.  Natu

Authored by: Derek Yang Art by: Kain Wang Improving mental and physical health is one of society’s top priorities, but achieving that is easier said than done. Experts are addressing this challenge by utilizing the concept of neuroaesthetics. Neuroaesthetics is the study of how the aesthetic features of the environment and its surrounding objects influence the brain, emotions, and overall well-being [1]. In simple terms, it examines how beauty through mediums like art, music,

Authored by: Daniel Nugent Art by: Caitlin Sweeney As technology rapidly advances, scientists are now, more than ever, seeking novel mechanisms for saving lives before the danger is apparent. Oncology in particular is a field with endless potential for early detection and prevention. Currently, a novel method of technology is being developed to potentially alert people to a cancer diagnosis before they experience any symptoms. This method is called flow cytometry, and further

Authored by: Armaan Vaswani Art by: Ava Shi Diabetic Retinopathy (DR), a complication of diabetes that poorly affects the light sensitive retina in the back of the eye, is one of the leading causes of vision loss worldwide [1]. Genetic eye diseases, which are genetically heterogeneous, affect 1 in 1,000 people [2]. The rapid progression and technical factors of both conditions once led researchers to believe they were incurable.  While inherited eye disorders and DR were both

Authored by: Lauren Wilkes Art by: Eileen Cho As AI becomes further integrated into our society and, more specifically, into the healthcare industry, the question of how favorably AI will ultimately impact the medical field is imminent. When it comes to genome sequencing in the genetics and biomedical research fields, the latest AI software, AlphaGenome, shows extreme promise. AlphaGenome is the newest DNA sequence AI model that provides advanced functional predictions of gen

Authored by: Lauren Wilkes Art by: Mia Hsu So much of the discussion for how we approach curing genetic diseases centers around how we...

Authored by: Sophia Trapani Art by: Tiffany Lu Marcella Townsend's ears rang as she looked around her mother’s destroyed kitchen, pain...