On with Kara Swisher Inside the Wellness Boom: Separating Scams From Science
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Apr 13, 2026 
Katie Couric, veteran TV journalist and cancer screening advocate, Amy Larocca, wellness-industry reporter and author, and Dr. Jeffrey Swisher, San Francisco anesthesiology chair, dive into health misinformation, celebrity-fueled junk science, menopause marketing, luxury longevity trends, and why anti-aging hype keeps beating boring basics. They also explore AI imaging, GLP-1s, mRNA cancer vaccines, and digital twins.
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Katie Couric Turned Grief Into Cancer Advocacy
- Katie Couric turned personal loss into public health advocacy after Jay Monahan died of stage 4 colon cancer at 42 and her sister Emily died of pancreatic cancer.
- She used her Today Show platform to push colorectal screening, cancer research, and later co-founded Stand Up To Cancer.
Why Health Misinformation Became So Potent
- Health misinformation thrives because expertise lost status just as social media gave every opinion equal reach.
- Katie Couric says people want shortcuts and identity-affirming beliefs, while Jeffrey Swisher calls COVID the first pandemic lived through with social media.
Wellness Filled The Void Left By Real Doctors
- Distrust also comes from healthcare becoming a branded luxury experience instead of a relationship with a clinician.
- Amy LaRocca says beauty, spa, and medicine blurred together, while many patients lost access to a trusted GP and turned to influencers instead.
