Mayo Clinic Health Matters

Skin cancer — the abnormal growth of skin cells — most often develops on skin exposed to the sun, but it also can occur on areas of skin not ordinarily exposed to sunlight. Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the U.S."And the incidence of skin cancer is rising," says Dr. Dawn Davis, a Mayo Clinic dermatologist.The three major types of skin cancer are basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma. Early detection of skin cancer gives you the best chance for successful skin cancer treatment.While it is common to have freckles and moles develop over time, it is important to know your skin and recognize when changes occur."It's important to know what skin lesions you have," explains Dr. Davis. "Know what they look like, so that if they change, you can come to the dermatologist or health care provider for evaluation."Melanoma is the most serious and deadly form of skin cancer. Dr. Davis says the "melanoma alphabet" can help with early detection: Asymmetry Look for moles with irregular shape. Border Look for moles with irregular, notched or scalloped borders. Changes in color Look for growths with different or uneven colors. Diameter Look for new growth of more than one-quarter of an inch in diameter. Evolving Look for changes over time. On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Davis discusses skin cancer detection and treatment. Dr. Davis also recommends steps to take to protect your skin including avoiding ultraviolet rays, and wearing sunscreen and protective clothing. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

For heart surgery patients, a cardiac reoperation or reintervention is sometimes needed. A reoperation is a second or subsequent surgery needed due to complications that develop over time.People who require a second or even third heart surgery often fall in to three groups:  Patients with aortic dissections For patients with aortic dissections, emergency lifesaving surgery is performed initially. Then additional surgeries are often needed to repair the aorta. Patients who receive tissue valves Tissue valves typically last a decade before a reoperation is needed to replace the deteriorated valve. Adults with congenital heart disease Patients with congenital heart disease often have surgery as a newborn or infant. As they grow and age, additional operations may be necessary. Cardiac reoperations are even more complex than first surgeries, due to scar tissue and other underlying conditions that develop. It is important to have a surgeon with a highly advanced set of surgical skills and techniques. Mayo Clinic surgeons perform more than 300 cardiac reoperations each year.On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Alberto Pochettino, a Mayo Clinic cardiovascular surgeon, discusses cardiac reoperations and reinterventions. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Thanks to significant advances in techniques and devices, minimally invasive procedures can be used to treat some congenital heart disease defects. Innovative procedures using catheters through blood vessels in the legs or neck allow interventional cardiologists to repair heart defects without surgically opening a child's chest. Specialists at Mayo Clinic's Center for Congenital Heart Disease use catheter-based procedures to treat some heart valve replacements and many other conditions, including tetralogy of Fallot, patent ductus arteriosus, patent foramen ovales, and atrial septal defects. On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Jason H. Anderson, a Mayo Clinic pediatric interventional cardiologist, joins Ask the Mayo Mom host Dr. Angela Mattke to discuss innovative procedures to treat congenital heart defects. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

As the U.S. moves beyond the omicron surge of the COVID-19 pandemic, key indicators are dropping."Both the acute indicators — number of cases — and the lagging indicators — hospitalizations and then deaths — are all dropping slowly, but they're surely dropping," says Dr. Gregory Poland, head of Mayo Clinic's Vaccine Research Group. Experts warn that caution is still needed to protect yourself in certain situations, including masking in crowded indoor settings and making sure you are up to date with your COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters.While the latest surge wanes, COVID-19 research continues. On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Poland discusses the latest COVID-19 news, including a new study on the long-term effects of COVID-19 on the heart and why Pfizer is delaying the request for emergency use authorization of its COVID-19 vaccine for children under 5. Research disclosures for Dr. Gregory Poland. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Thanks to research and treatment advances over the past few decades, most children diagnosed with cancer now live on to pursue full adult lives. To ensure that those children will one day have the option to become parents, families must consider the risk of infertility when deciding about cancer treatment.Researchers and health care providers have made progress in minimizing the side effects of cancer treatment without reducing its effectiveness, allowing many cancer survivors to have children after spontaneous recovery of fertility. However, some cancers require rigorous treatment that almost always leads to permanent infertility. But there is hope for those families through fertility preservation.Mayo Clinic's Fertility Preservation Program offers several options for fertility preservation, depending on the child's age, stage of puberty, diagnosis and proposed treatment plan. Both ovarian and testicular tissue cryopreservation is possible."We hope the pediatric Fertility Preservation Program brings a lot of optimism for the future for these children," says Dr. Asma Chattha, chair of Pediatric Gynecology at Mayo Clinic. "They're obviously fighting an uphill battle. It's a very difficult time in their lives. But barring none, I've always found the conversation surrounding fertility preservation to be a source of hope for families." In recognition of International Childhood Cancer Day on Tuesday, Feb. 15, Dr. Chattha joins the Mayo Clinic Q&A Podcast to discuss what patients and their families should consider when making decisions related to fertility preservation, and the steps involved in the process. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

More than two full years of living in the COVID-19 pandemic has taken its toll on children and their families. During the most recent omicron surge, pediatric infection rates were particularly concerning for pediatricians across the country. Parents of children younger than 5 years of age are feeling especially concerned, as vaccines have not yet been approved in this age group. But that may change soon, as Pfizer has recently submitted a request to the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use authorization of its COVID-19 vaccine for kids 6 months to 5 years old.Beyond the direct effects of COVID-19 infections on children are the psychosocial and mental health effects of the pandemic. Isolation and socioeconomic stressors on families affect children, too."One in 6 children has sought mental health services in the past two years," says is Dr. James Gaensbauer, a pediatric infectious diseases physician at Mayo Clinic Children’s Center. "The American Academy of Pediatrics has declared a mental health emergency during this pandemic."Dr. Gaensbauer points out it is important for parents to keep an open dialogue and be empathetic with kids about their fears and anxieties. Resources are available to help families, including the Mayo Clinic Family Stress Resource Center. On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Gaensbauer joins Ask the Mayo Mom host Dr. Angela Mattke to discuss how children and their families have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.  Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Each February, Black History Month is celebrated to recognize the important role Black people have played in U.S. history. "Black history is American history, and everyone should celebrate our history 365 days a year," explains Dr. Folakemi Odedina, a Mayo Clinic prostate cancer scientist and global health equity researcher.This year's theme for Black History Month is "Black Health and Wellness." This theme acknowledges the legacy of Black scholars and medical practitioners. "It is really about time that we focus on Black health and wellness because our community is disproportionately experiencing health disparities," says Dr. Odedina. "We have to recognize that there are multiple dimensions of wellness."According to Dr. Odedina, dimensions of health and wellness include physical, mental, emotional, intellectual, spiritual and environmental, and social health. On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Odedina discusses the factors responsible for health disparities in the Black community and shares how her work supports health and wellness for Black people. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Integrative medicine uses an approach to health care that includes practices not traditionally part of conventional medicine, such as herbs, acupuncture, massage, yoga and meditation. Integrative oncology incorporates these therapies into conventional cancer care.Integrative oncology helps people with cancer feel better by reducing the fatigue, nausea, pain and anxiety and other symptoms that come with cancer and cancer treatment."Integrative oncology is a practice where we are using lifestyle medicine," explains Dr. Stacy D'Andre, a Mayo Clinic medical and integrative oncologist. "We combine all of these modalities to help our cancer patients, not only with the quality of life, but also to hopefully improve outcomes as well."Focus on diet, exercise and sleep are important parts of integrative medicine, and can help patients during each stage of their journey. This includes managing symptoms and treatment side effects. "The great thing about this type of practice is that it really empowers the patient, and patients become very active in their care," says Dr. D'Andre. "And because they're the ones doing the work — they're working on their die and they're doing the exercise — we're just guiding them. These are things that they can do and they can control to improve their health and outcomes."On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. D'Andre explains how integrative oncology helps people with cancer and discusses integrative medicine research underway at Mayo Clinic. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

A congenital heart defect means that a child was born with a problem in the structure of his or her heart.Some congenital heart defects in children are simple and don't need treatment. Others are more complex and may require several surgeries performed over a period of several years.Improvements in imaging, monitoring and surgical techniques have improved outcomes for pediatric heart surgery patients. A prenatal diagnosis is scary for parents, but support and care from the cardiology team continue through the child's life and on into adulthood. And support from others, including patient organizations, also helps."It can feel like you're alone, especially if the diagnosis is new," says Dr. Elizabeth Stephens, a pediatric cardiovascular surgeon at Mayo Clinic. "It can feel very daunting. But there are many families out there who are not just dealing with congenital heart disease, they're thriving with it. These kids are incredibly resilient."On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Stephens joins Ask the Mayo Mom host Dr. Angela Mattke for a discussion on congenital heart defects and new treatment options. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The number of new COVID-19 cases in the U.S. is dropping as the omicron wave wanes in many places, but some parts of the country lag behind."As a nation, it looks like we've kind of gotten to the peak and are now starting on the decline, but it's very uneven," explains Dr. Gregory Poland, head of Mayo Clinic's Vaccine Research Group. "That's what's happening in the big Northeast cities, and maybe in L.A., for example. But if you look at the rest of the nation, it's not clear that they have peaked yet."And on the heels of the latest surge, a new omicron subvariant — BA.2 — is emerging. Early indications are that the new subvariant may be more transmissible, but it does not appear to cause more severe disease than the original omicron strain.Mayo experts, including Dr. Poland, continue to urge COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters as the best defense against the latest variants. "By getting two doses of vaccine and a booster, or a dose of Johnson & Johnson and a booster, you move yourself into a category of maximal protection such that if you have a normal immune system, you are probably going to have trivial or even asymptomatic disease if you get infected with COVID-19," explains Dr. Poland. On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Poland discusses the latest information on COVID-19 and answers listener questions.Research disclosures for Dr. Gregory Poland. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy