Health Sciences In The Media

While Arizona's coronavirus situation may be improving, some public health officials fear people may lose sight of what has worked to get us here. Dr. Farshad Fani Marvasti, director of Public Health, Prevention and Health Promotion at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix, is interviewed.

As the University of Arizona prepares for the start of classes on Monday, a number of measures have been implemented to help mitigate the risk for COVID-19. As of Wednesday afternoon, there were nine confirmed cases of COVID-19 among the 4,274 nasal-swab antigen tests administered since last Friday to students who are planning to live on campus. A negative test is required to move into the dorms. With those initial results, Dr. Richard Carmona, the UA’s reentry task force leader and distinguished professor of public health, said the campus may be in a better position than other universities that have reopened but had to shut down campuses due to virus outbreaks.

Dr. Victoria Maizes, executive director of the University of Arizona Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine, provides tips and advice on what we can do to make ourselves feel happier.

COVID 19 data compiled by the Arizona Department of Health Services is facing a new challenge over whether it truly reflects the percentage of positive tests. Percent positive is a key metric that’s now guiding decisions to reopen schools and businesses. The number for Arizona varies depending where you go to get the information. Dr. Joe Gerald, associate professor from the University of Arizona Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, who tracks the spread of COVID-19 in Arizona, discusses the methodology behind the numbers.

Maricopa County's mask mandate, implemented as Arizona’s COVID-19 cases spiked in June, remains in place as the health crisis improves. Dr. Shad Marvasti, director of public health at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix, said as Arizona’s novel coronavirus cases have decreased, the number of ICU beds in use has gone down.

The University of Arizona Cancer Center received a $3 million grant to continue working with Indigenous communities to remove barriers around screenings for colorectal cancer, the second-most diagnosed cancer and the third-most common cause of cancer-related deaths in the U.S.

According to one of the new studies, which has yet to be peer-reviewed and was posted on MedRxiv over the weekend, researchers at the University of Arizona conclude that "immunity is durable for at least several months after SARS-CoV-2 infection." Deepta Bhattacharya, associate professor of immunobiology at the College of Medicine – Tucson said that he and his colleagues came to their conclusion after they measured antibodies and examined how long they were being produced in COVID-19 patients.

Dr. Onyemaechi Okolo recently illustrated how bias can play out in a short “one-woman show,” which she performed for a virtual audience tuning into ASCO Voices, the storytelling educational session at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting. Okolo has a dual fellowship in hematology-oncology – where she is chief fellow at the University of Arizona College of Medicine - Tucson.

Dr. Daniel Derksen, director of the University of Arizona Center for Rural Health, is interviewed about the health disparities experienced by people living in rural areas.

Disease-fighting antibodies, as well as immune cells called B cells and T cells that are capable of recognizing the virus, appear to persist months after infections have resolved – an encouraging echo of the body's enduring response to other viruses. “Things are really working as they're supposed to,” said Deepta Bhattacharya, an immunologist at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson.