February is American Heart Month, which makes it the perfect time to reduce your risk for heart disease, heart attacks and stroke. American Heart Month has been around for decades. President Lyndon B. Johnson was the first American president to recognize the event when he issued Proclamation 3566 on December 30, 1963. The first American Heart Month...

Traditional mammograms are less effective at detecting breast cancer among women with dense breast tissue, so many women request additional screening after a negative mammogram. Results from a new study suggest that abbreviated breast MRI (AB-MRI) may be a valuable tool for detecting cancer in these women. Researchers recruited 195 women into the s...

The good news is that lung cancer rates are dropping. The bad news is that lung cancer is still the leading cause of cancer deaths. Screenings can help doctors detect signs of lung cancer early, while the disease is most responsive to treatment. Lung cancer is an uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in one or both cells. As areas of abnormal cells...

Radiologists help doctors diagnose illnesses and evaluate the severity of injuries for millions of patients each year. Results of a new study from Brigham and Women's Hospital suggest that radiologists could also help clinicians identify cases of domestic violence. To do so, though, the radiologists must be aware of the subtle patterns that can sig...

Mental health issues, such as dementia and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), can significantly decrease the quality of life in the patients who suffer them. In many cases, the signs and symptoms of these mental health issues are quite similar; this can lead to incomplete or even inaccurate diagnoses. There is an association between dementia an...

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and if you've been putting off having a mammogram performed, now is a great time to get it done. The American Cancer Society says women should begin having annual mammograms every year beginning at age 45, or earlier for women who have increased risks for breast cancer or who wish to have them performed bet...

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an annual event that increases awareness of the disease and promotes the early detection of breast cancer through mammography. National Breast Cancer Awareness Month began in 1985 when the American Academy of Family Physicians, AstraZeneca Healthcare Foundation and several other sponsors collaborat...

(This is part 2 of a 2-part series on sports-related concussion injuries) A concussion is an injury to the brain that occurs when the brain "bounces" off the skull. While your skull and a thin protective layer of cushioning fluid provide some degree of protection against minor bumps, they can't protect against a forceful collision with a hard surfa...