Health & Wellness

Increasingly, metal is put into the human body, whether as screws to hold parts together or as implants, like knees or hips, to ease life. Increasingly, those implants are subject to a very bad health problem called a biofilm, which might require removal and replacement. However, a local company is now using University at Buffalo research to develop an alternative treatment to removal and replacement in the medical regulatory process.

Not so fast on legalizing pot. That is the message coming from New York State's school boards. The state School Boards Association wants more study on the issue.

A new case of Hepatitis A has been confirmed by the Erie County Health Department. The case is tied to a restaurant worker at Destiny's on Fillmore Avenue in Buffalo.

At a Laughter Yoga session at the Brighton Place Library in Tonawanda, a small group of 4 laughter yoga leaders, and a couple of participants all stand in a circle, gathered in the library’s community activity room. After introductions all the smiles quickly turn into giggles, and the awkwardness turns into openness.

The New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse is distributing more than $5.1 million to agencies throughout the state to expand or establish addiction recovery centers. Receiving some of that money is a Buffalo-based agency founded in memory of a young man who lost his struggle with addiction eight years ago.

Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers are using robot smoking machines from back in the day for a new use.

Erie County lawmakers are pushing legislation to raise the age for buying tobacco products and electronic cigarettes to 21.

Cancer researchers are looking into the insides of cancer patients and healthy people, checking out their intestinal bacteria. More and more research says there is good bacteria and bad bacteria and the bad bacteria is associated with cancer. The good bacteria is associated with good results from cancer treatment.

Sponsors of a measure to create a single payer health care system in New York offered a revised bill, but its future is uncertain. Governor Andrew Cuomo says the state might not be able to afford it.

Officials from Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center joined together at the latter campus Friday morning to announce a new collaboration which both sides say will make specialized services more accessible to patients in Niagara Falls and Niagara County. It's a region where, experts say, cancer rates have increased by 36 percent over the past four decades.

The Center for Disease Control reports individual cases of measles have been confirmed in ten states and that includes New York. Four cases were confirmed earlier this week in the Rochester area. WBFO's senior reporter Eileen Buckley spoke with the Erie County Health Commissioner about the importance of getting children vaccinated.  

State Senator Chris Jacobs, in collaboration with the University at Buffalo School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, will distribute thousands of bags specially designed to render unwanted drugs useless for purposes of safe, environmentally-friendly disposal.

The death of Larry Bierl, known as "Larry" from his life on the streets of Williamsville, has been widely discussed on social media. The cause of death was hypothermia, his body found in a bus stop shelter during the last week's extreme cold. WBFO's Morning Edition host Jay Moran spoke with Buffalo News reporter Samantha Christmann, who was following the discussion on Facebook, shares her personal family story. 
 

A landmark study at the University at Buffalo has found young people who have suffered a concussion can continue to exercise moderately as part of their recovery.

A new study led by UB faculty says surgery to remove the thymus gland in patients with myasthenia gravis (MG), a relatively rare autoimmune disease that impacts neuromuscular function, provides long-term health and financial benefits.

Today's Facebook Live conversation takes a deep look into the workings of Crisis Services, the 24-hour agency which handles more than 85,000 calls each year.

Many forms of cancer are caught only in their late stages, often leaving a doctor to tell that patient there probably is little hope. They remain hidden deep within the body.

That is what happened to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Her lung cancer was found when she was x-rayed for broken ribs.

British researchers are now testing use of a breathing mask that can potentially show cancer earlier.

Have you gone to the website of your local hospital this year? You will notice it now posts a list of their standard charges online.

It appears five area residents died over the weekend due to drug overdoses. While local officials are concerned about the development, they say the number of overdose deaths has dropped significantly since the height of the opioid crisis.