A new University of Arizona Health Sciences study found women on hormone therapy were up to 58% less likely to develop neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease, and reduction of risk varied by type and route of hormone therapy and duration of use. The findings could lead to the development of a precision medicine approach to preventing neurodegenerative diseases.

Q&A with Candice Mason, a cancer researcher at the UArizona Cancer Center and skin cancer survivor. She started her own brand of apparel and accessories with UPF 50+ protection, the maximum sun protective rating for fabrics.

When it comes to post-menopausal hormone therapy, the type, route and duration all play a role in reducing the risk of neurodegenerative diseases.

Given the chronic and incurable nature of COPD and the limited impact of available therapies, it is understandable why the lure of a promising new treatment approach would be appealing to individuals living with COPD. Unfortunately, these factors also render patients with COPD vulnerable to exploitation by companies offering false hope for novel remedies, explained Marilyn K. Glassberg, MD, of the Division of Pulmonology, Critical Care, and Sleep at the College of Medicine – Phoenix, and colleagues, in a recent review in Chest.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought mRNA vaccines into the limelight. But the technology may also prove to be a powerful weapon against hard-to-treat cancers. A head and neck cancer patient who was treated in a personalized cancer vaccine clinical trial offered at the University of Arizona Cancer Center is featured.

With summer in full force, it’s more important than ever to wear sunscreen when outside. Arizonans are at a particular risk for sun-related skin damage, according to experts at the University of Arizona Cancer Center's Skin Cancer Institute.

The FDA approval of the monoclonal antibody aducanumab for Alzheimer's disease has elicited a decidedly mixed response from neurologists who treat dementia. “The FDA had to do a lot of analyses and make a very complicated judgement. I can't join the skeptics who say ‘just say no.’ There are a lot of unanswered questions. It is a tough call," said Pierre Tariot, MD, director of the Banner Alzheimer's Institute and a research professor at the College of Medicine – Phoenix.

As the more contagious Delta variant spreads rapidly, health experts are worried vaccines won't be as effective in preventing the spread of COVID-19. "It's quite reasonable, especially in indoor crowded spaces, even for vaccinated people to wear a mask because the risk of getting sick is higher now than it ever has been before for people who are fully vaccinated," said Shad Marvasti, MD, director of public health, prevention and health promotion at the College of Medicine – Phoenix.

There is widespread scientific consensus that fully vaccinated people have an excellent chance of being protected from severe illness or death from any coronavirus strain, including delta. Deepta Bhattacharya, PhD, an immunobiologist at the College of Medicine – Tucson, wrote in a tweet: “Please, no more cries of wolf on variants/vaccine efficacy. The vaccines still work fine in the real world."

A UArizona College of Medicine – Tucson study aims to reduce relapse rates of recently quit smokers by training them to help others quit smoking.