On this episode of Health Matters, Faith Salie talks with Dr. Benjamin Lebwohl, a gastroenterologist at NewYork-Presbyterian and Columbia. He’s also the Director of Clinical Research at Columbia’s Celiac Disease Center, and an expert on the connections between gastrointestinal health and the other systems in our body that rely on good digestion for their function. He describes how GI diseases like Celiac have implications for mental health, and what anyone can do to support their digestive health.

Dr. Melissa Frey, a gynecologic oncologist at NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine, has a genuine passion for the power of genetic testing because she knows that it can completely change the direction of her patient’s lives for the better. As a leader in the field, she helped launch a unique screening program with multi-disciplinary expertise and counseling, the Genetics and Personalized Cancer Prevention Center at Weill Cornell Medicine. The center not only helps patients gain access to genetic testing to assess their risk of cancers but it also uses cascade testing to contact their relatives and help them get genetic testing too. In doing so, the center is working to identify more people whose lives haven't yet been affected by cancer and help them take preventive action based on their risk. In many cases this can mean avoiding a life threatening illness. For more information visit nyp.org/AdvancesFor more information visit nyp.org/Advances

The field of lung transplantation is relatively new with widespread lung transplants beginning in the early 1980s. Throughout the last forty years, it is a field that has rapidly evolved with drastic changes in lung allocation, or deciding who will receive the next available lungs for transplantation. Dr. Selim Arcasoy has led the NewYork-Presbyterian and Columbia Lung Transplant Program through these changes since 2001. Thanks to his dedication to improving lung allocation and foundational research, the program has been a catalyst in changing how lung allocation works in New York and beyond. These policies, in conjunction with Dr. Arcasoy's talented team, clinical research and state of the art tools, have led to greater numbers of patients receiving life-saving transplants.For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

In 2012, Dr. Lisa Roth had just landed her dream job as a research scientist and attending physician at NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine. But her world came to a screeching halt when she discovered a swollen lymph node on her neck, and was soon diagnosed with the exact type of cancer that she had dedicated her career to studying and treating: Hodgkin’s lymphoma. After that experience, Dr. Roth was more determined than ever to uncover the biology of this notoriously difficult to study cancer. Dr. Roth, now Director of Pediatric Oncology and Associate Professor in the Departments of Pediatrics, Medicine and Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine, tells the story of how she and her team became the first researchers to sequence the entire Hodgkin’s lymphoma genome, opening doors for precision and preventative treatment options.For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Monitoring patients with aneurysmal rupture for delayed cerebral ischemia was historically a numbers game. It was difficult for doctors to predict outcomes in the weeks that followed their rupture, so at-risk patients could find themselves under observation in the ICU anywhere from 7 to 21 days. Dr. Soojin Park, Medical Director of Critical Care Data Science and AI at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia, knew there had to be a better way to monitor patients and predict outcomes. So, relying on her background in machine learning and leveraging vast amounts of data, Dr. Park developed the potentially game-changing Continuous Monitoring Tool for Delayed Cerebral Ischemia (or COSMIC) score. The score uses machine learning, and basic patient data that can be collected with equipment available at any hospital, to detect signals that more accurately assess risk, allowing doctors to treat each neurocritical patient with targeted care - ultimately improving outcomes and patient experience.

As methods for early cancer detection improve and the number of cancer survivors rises, the innovative field of cardio-oncology has emerged to ensure that patients with chemotherapy or cancer-related cardiac dysfunction can be safely, and swiftly, treated for their cancer. Dr. Stephanie Feldman, a clinical cardiologist with focus on cardio-oncology at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine, is one of a growing number of physicians advancing research and pushing care in this field forward with a multi-disciplinary, comprehensive approach to care. Dr. Feldman joins us to discuss the rare risks of immune checkpoint inhibitors, how genetic mutations could put patients at risk for arterial thromboembolism, and how the cardio-oncology field can optimize the course of cancer care for patients at risk for cardiovascular complications. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

With perspectives spanning hepatobiliary, gynecologic, and cardiac surgeries, NewYork-Presbyterian’s Dr. Jason Hawksworth (Columbia), Dr. Tamatha Fenster (Weill Cornell Medicine), and Dr. Arnar Geirsson (Columbia) describe how they each came to incorporate robotics into their practices. One of the biggest takeaways: robotic surgeries allow for more accuracy in minimally-invasive approaches; so patients experience shorter hospital stays and quicker recoveries, even after major procedures. But there are some limitations to robotic surgeries that the doctors are still navigating. Dr. Fenster discusses how there are haptics limitations in robotic surgery. As a result, she shares more about her innovative smartHER 3D MRI program that is addressing this issue and details how her and her team are developing a way of holographically projecting 3D MRIs over patients to help guide surgeons while they operate. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Dr. Christian and Dr. Van de Velde’s backgrounds are a complementary combination. At their clinic, they see, diagnose, and determine treatment for their patients together. Dr. Christian takes on minimally invasive procedures, utilizing arthroscopy to address extra bone growth that can limit range of motion and can lead to labral tears. Dr. Van de Velde specializes in a more invasive type of surgery: periacetabular Ganz osteotomy. In complex cases, the two surgeons combine for a full-day surgery, where they each use their specialized surgical approach. Through their unique collaboration, the duo is able to provide optimal treatment for their patients, and help to preserve their hip function for as long as possible. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Dr. Mario Gaudino is a cardiac surgeon at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine and the Director of the Joint Clinical Trials Office at Weill Cornell Medicine. There he oversees ongoing improvement and enhancements to existing clinical infrastructure and is currently leading research on the effects of coronary artery bypass surgery on women and people of color. His work not only focuses on groups that have been historically underrepresented in research, it also takes a patient centric approach to outcomes focusing on how a patient feels in addition to clinical metrics. His research contributions have  potential to change how doctors approach treating huge swaths of their patient population and how they analyze that data. 

It has been widely reported over the past ten to fifteen years that maternal mortality and morbidity in the US is on the rise. Dr. Dena Goffman has made it her personal goal to improve those numbers across the entire NewYork-Presbyterian health system. But how can one begin to tackle such a large and challenging issue? Dr. Goffman focuses on systematic shifts. She worked to set obstetrics goals across the entire hospital system, created new guidelines and utilized simulations to train and improve the skills of healthcare workers to be prepared for any situation. And she wasn’t afraid to use every tool in her toolbox, even new ones like an ingenious anti-hemorrhage device that she helped gain FDA approval. In this episode, Dr. Goffman shares what real systemic change for maternal fetal care looks like and how she is hoping these standards can help reverse the trends in maternal mortality across the country.

As a doctor trained in both minimally invasive and open approach surgery, Dr. Chan is very familiar with comprehensive spinal care. But there are aspects of minimally invasive surgery that, when possible, position it as preferable for postoperative recovery, namely when it comes to pain. Open surgeries can have patients taking opioids for weeks or even months after their procedure. With minimally invasive spinal surgery, patients may only need opioid pain management for two days postoperatively–or none at all. Motivated by postoperative quality of life, Dr. Chan has fine-tuned several innovative surgical approaches, proving that a surgeon doesn’t necessarily have to perform large muscle dissections in order to correct spinal deformities like scoliosis. His techniques provide surgical opportunities for patients who otherwise would not be spinal surgery candidates due to age or illness. In this episode, Dr. Chan details how he customizes care for his various patients depending on their needs, and shares his hopes for the future of spinal surgery. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

For any patient diagnosed with depression for the first time, the recommended course of treatment is the same: a medication like a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), an evidence based psychotherapy, or both. But there is a large group of people for whom these treatments simply won't work. That’s where Dr. Conor Liston and his team focus. His work mapping the brain is helping doctors better understand where depression is impacting certain brain structures and what that means for the symptoms patients present. Dr. Liston’s work is focused on identifying how these symptoms impact patients' brains and using those findings to identify the best treatment approach. It also may eventually help detect the likelihood of depression in patients before they exhibit any symptoms. 

Dr. Christopher Petit is the co-director of the Children's Heart Center at NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital and division chief of pediatric cardiology at Columbia University, and… a stubborn optimist. That optimism has made all the difference in his years of treating a rare heart disease in newborns: Pulmonary Vein Stenosis (PVS). Dr. Petit’s determination to better understand and treat PVS has led him and his team to make important breakthroughs in the field, including the use of sirolimus– an immune-targeted medication usually used for cancer treatments– as a systemic oral therapy to treat PVS, as well as the development of a hybrid surgical method for treating patients with severe disease, performed in collaboration with Dr. Emile Bacha. The results: drastically improved survival rates for his patients.

Listen in as science journalist Catherine Price speaks with physicians from Columbia & Weill Cornell Medicine who are pushing the leading edge of clinical research to find solutions for every medical challenge. Whether using robotics to advance minimally invasive surgeries, or finding effective treatments for previously terminal pediatric diseases, these physicians fearlessly take on some of the most complex challenges in medicine today. This spirit of collaboration and innovation is the hallmark of NewYork-Presbyterian and what makes the institution a top health care provider in the country. 

Heart failure impacts more than 8 million people in the United States today, but with the right treatments, the course of the disease can be corrected. Dr. Nir Uriel is determined to do just that. He’s spent his career pushing forward advancements to better diagnose and treat advanced heart failure patients. These advancements include a new, magnetic levitated pump that can improve the outcomes of patients denied transplantation due to their age or severity of disease, as well as breakthrough testing that analyzes cell-free DNA to detect transplant rejection, changing the course of immunosuppressive therapy. Dr. Uriel is also pioneering the use of technology to remotely monitor heart failure patients, and diagnose heart failure before symptoms even occur. In this episode, Dr. Uriel details his multifaceted methods to treating heart failure, the value of a team approach, and the importance of empathetic, patient-centered care.

After establishing that neurological gene therapy can help address brain cells damaged by Parkinson’s, Dr. Michael Kaplitt and his team have set their sights on a new mission: preventative intervention. For patients with an inherited form of Parkinson’s caused by a GBA gene mutation, Dr. Kaplitt and his colleagues are working to deliver genes that can stop the degeneration of damaged braincells, as well as initiating the use of focused ultrasound to treat essential tremors. In this episode, Dr. Kaplitt details the mechanisms of his work and the advancements he’s working on today.

In the United States today, there are over 110,000 people waiting for an organ transplant. And, Dr. Sandip Kapur says, 92% of those patients are waiting for a kidney. In this episode, Dr. Kapur describes the simple philosophy that led him to build Weill Cornell Medicine into one of the top kidney transplantation centers in the nation: offer the maximum amount of opportunities to transplantation that could exist. That means working with multidisciplinary teams to innovate every step of the kidney transplantation process– from making donor surgeries minimally invasive, to matching donors and recipients in new ways through the National Kidney Registry, and even pioneering research into immunotherapy, to improve success rates and patients’ quality of life post-surgery.For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Whether a patient will ultimately recover from an unconscious state after brain injury isn’t easy to predict– yet. But Dr. Jan Claassen is working to change that. He describes the staggering revelations of his study on Cognitive Motor Dissociation, and how his team used a combination of widely available diagnostic tools and open source machine learning algorithms, to detect signs of consciousness in seemingly unconscious patients. Dr. Claassen also discusses his ongoing RECONFIG study, in which he hopes to refine tools that could predict the likelihood of recovery in patients following brain injury. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Inspired by her beloved aunt, Dr. Onyinye Balogun began her medical career with a mission in mind: to mitigate the suffering that people with cancer experience over the course of their life-saving treatments. Her approach has been multi-faceted and systematic. After being awarded New York Genome Center’s Polyethnic-1000 grant, Dr Balogun has led the investigation into potential genomic mutations that could be contributing to the disproportionate rates of uterine cancer diagnoses in Black women. Meanwhile, Dr. Balogun is also partnering with her former patient to update the outmoded and painful brachytherapy devices used in cervical cancer treatments.  For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

When her own experience with a complicated pregnancy reignited an interest in medicine and science, Dr. Lauren Osborne left her career in publishing to pursue medical school. Now a reproductive psychiatrist, Dr. Osborne leads the way in researching the connection between immune system dysregulation, stress reactivity, and the role of allopregnanolone in mood and anxiety disorders, particularly in pregnant and postpartum women. In this episode, she discusses how her expansive research is getting us one step closer to decoding perinatal mood disorders, and she calls for increased training in reproductive psychiatry to help OBGYNs better treat their patients. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Clinical psychologists Dr. Anne Marie Albano and Dr. Shannon Bennett are no strangers to the trials of social anxiety, both citing formative experiences in their youth that have shaped their careers. With decades of combined experience in the field, the two have contributed to the gold standard for treatment of anxious youth using cognitive behavioral therapies. Dr. Albano and Dr. Bennett share details on the proven effectiveness of treating parents alongside children, as well as incorporating immersive group therapy. They discuss how well-meaning but overprotective parenting can create further avoidant tendencies in children and young adults, and they explore the neuroscience that confirms how adolescent treatment for anxiety differs from that of young children or adults. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Dr. Pierre Elias sits down with Catherine Price to talk about how utilizing technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning can help diagnose patients even before symptoms develop, and support doctors by freeing them up to focus on providing personalized care to their patients. They discuss navigating bias in both artificial intelligence and clinical care, and how new technology will improve the future of medicine. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Dr. Chris Ahmad knows firsthand how devastating an untimely injury can be for a young athlete. In this episode, Dr. Ahmad discusses how his own college soccer injury led him to fall in love with orthopedics. He tells the history of the infamous baseball injury that resulted in the invention of Tommy John surgery, and shares how he learned to perform the corrective procedure from the man who designed it. Dr. Ahmad chronicles his endeavors to innovate orthopedic surgery and get athletes back onto the field stronger – both physically and mentally.For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Dr. Roger Härtl is no stranger to forging new ground in neurosurgery. In this episode, Dr. Härtl  and Host Catherine Price discuss how far navigation technology has come over the past 20 years and look ahead to how implementing augmented reality can make surgery even more precise for surgeons and less invasive for patients. Dr. Härtl also shares the impact of his work teaching and training neurosurgeons in Tanzania and discusses where he hopes technology will take the field of neurosurgery next. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Dr. Wendy Chung's childhood fascination with puzzles and mysteries gives her an edge when it comes to solving the mysteries of genetic diseases. In conversation with Host Catherine Price, Dr. Chung outlines her innovative work with The Human Genome project, her role in identifying the genes that cause spinal muscular atrophy and the collaborative efforts that went into developing life-sustaining treatments. Dr. Chung also discusses the GUARDIAN Program – which uses the newborn heel prick test to screen for a wide variety of genetic diseases, thereby providing equitable access to diagnosis and life-saving care to all infants. The views shared on this podcast solely reflect the expertise and experience of our guests. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Host Catherine Price and Dr. Emile Bacha, Chief of the Division of Cardiac, Thoracic, and Vascular Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia discuss the history of heart surgery, ventricular assist devices, and a new frontier in cardiac surgery: The Total Artificial Heart. Dr Bacha tells the groundbreaking story of successfully fitting a pediatric patient with a Total Artificial Heart. He explains the nuances of the procedure, and how a backpack-powered heart gave his pediatric patient another chance. The views shared on this podcast solely reflect the expertise and experience of our guests. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances

Join science journalist Catherine Price as she sits down with top physicians from NewYork-Presbyterian hospital to discuss advances in their latest research, pioneering new treatments, and compassionate patient practice. From the most complex cases in pediatric surgery, to the way AI will improve disease detection and diagnostics – the work of these physicians is united by a collective mission to transform what it means to deliver patient-centered care. This is a show for healthcare professionals looking for the inside story – and real human details – behind some of medicine’s greatest leaps forward. For more information visit nyp.org/Advances