A. A Vaccine For An
Early Form of Breast Cancer
Narrator: This is Science Today. A vaccine
that targets a protein common in an early form of
breast cancer may prove to be an effective way to
control the disease. Oncologist John Park of the
University of California, San Francisco, says the
protein is called HER2/neu, which in high levels,
instigates an invasive cancer process.
Park: It's an unfortunate molecular event
because it's associated so closely with the cancer,
but it does provide an opportunity for us to turn
the tables against the cancer itself by making the
body mount a better immune response against that
protein and against the cells that have it.
Narrator: The vaccine would stimulate the
body to fight off high levels of this protein, which
is commonly found in an early form of breast cancer
called ductal carcinoma in situ, or DCIS.
Park: We want to target DCIS because vaccines
are more likely to work when patients are pretty
healthy and so their immune systems are already
basically fully functioning. Current methods to
deal with it are basically the same as we use for
the full invasive cancers and for many women, that's
really not a great option.
Narrator: For Science Today, I'm Larissa
Branin.
B. The Misconceptions About Vision
Correction
Narrator: This is Science Today. People
considering new vision correction treatments should
be very clear about the outcome of such procedures.
Ophthalmologist Doug Holsclaw of the University
of California, San Francisco says there's too much
misinformation about the new laser treatments.
Holsclaw: Part of the hype is everyone envisions
this as something almost Star Wars-like. Like, you
lay down underneath the laser and you sit up two
minutes later and your vision is perfect, but you
can't promise any individual person that their vision
will be perfect after having this done.
Narrator: While the procedure has had phenomenal
results with distance vision, Holsclaw says people
should hang on to their glasses.
Holsclaw: Some of the real fine visually
demanding things like maybe driving long distances
at night, you may need to still wear a little, tiny
bit of correction and if that sounds like a good
thing to people than I think it's a reasonable thing
to go forward, but if someone's saying that the
only way that they're going to be happy after having
this done is if you can guarantee that they won't
have to wear glasses afterwards - no one can do
that.
Narrator: For Science Today, I'm Larissa
Branin.
C. The Facts About Angina
Narrator: This is Science Today. Angina
is a term used by doctors to describe pain or discomfort
that results from the heart not getting enough oxygen.
Dr. Tony Chou, a cardiologist at the University
of California, San Francisco says different people
have different symptoms.
Chou: Some people it's shoulder pain or
arm pain, it might radiate. Some people it's neck
pain, so it's really different for every patient.
The heart has a different set of nerve endings and
so depending on how you're wired, you might feel
something totally unpain-like but that's what we
call angina. And most of the time, patients who
have angina, they're familiar with what their angina
is.
Narrator: While many of the treatments,
such as angioplasty or nitro glycerin patches work
for patients, Chou says many just get used to their
symptoms.
Chou: As a cardiologist, I tell them that
that's not a good response to your disease. You
want to be able to do what you are fully capable
of doing and not have angina hold you back.
Narrator: For Science Today, I'm Larissa
Branin.
D. Non-Toxic LEDs of the Future
Narrator: This is Science Today. You may
have noticed most indicator lights on computers,
stereos and other electronic equipment are either
red, green, amber and sometimes even blue. But chemist
Michael Sailor of the University of California,
San Diego says companies are striving to get a white
light-emitting diode, or LED.
Sailor: It's very cool. They don't give
off a lot of light, a lot of heat. They are very
efficient. And so what they would like to do is
take a little LED that's giving off this blue light
and make the LED white.
Narrator: Conventional phosphors are toxic.
So, Sailor and his colleagues have come up with
a class of non-toxic chemicals called photoluminescent
silicates, which actually look like sand and give
off white light.
Sailor: Most people figured, well, you have
to use these really exotic, either expensive or
toxic heavy metal ions inside phosphors to get them
to emit light. And so here's a material now that
has the composition of sea sand. And it's very efficient.
It can bring blue light into visible, actually better
than a lot of the other materials out there.
Narrator: For Science Today, I'm Larissa
Branin.
E. Becoming A Partner In Your
Health Care
Narrator: This is Science Today. It's important
for patients take part in managing their own health
care. Pat Sparacino, a clinical nurse specialist
at the University of California, San Francisco says
a recent study found patients with congestive heart
failure do better after taking some initiative.
Sparacino: I think it's important that a
patient ask his or his physician about what symptoms
they should be specifically looking for, when they
ask about their diet, not just to accept a recommendation
of oh, watch the salt, but ask for specific guidelines,
to ask for resources.
Narrator: The federal Agency for Health
Care Policy and Research has developed prevention
and disease management guidelines for both the heart
patients and their care givers.
Sparacino: The attempt is one of pulling
away from the traditional, more paternalistic way
of delivering health care of we as health care providers
know what's best for you the patient and we will
select what it is we think you need to know.
Narrator: For Science Today, I'm Larissa
Branin.
