

This Medical Life
Auscast Network
Welcome to the This Medical Life podcast. Our mission is to share stories about the triumphs and tragedies of diseases and illnesses from ancient times up until what we know today. It is about those scientific and medical minds who came before us and how, every single day, we stand on the shoulders of giants. This is a podcast about the stories of medicine.
Hosted by Dr. Travis Brown and Steve Davis, our target audience is General Practitioners, medical students, and other health professionals. We hope to educate, inspire and celebrate those who choose to care for others in their profession. From experience, we know that our audience extends beyond these fields and would like to welcome anyone to listen. The stories of those who came before us are nothing short of remarkable and we hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
Production by Tim Whiffen
Design by Tom Buzz
Hosted by Dr. Travis Brown and Steve Davis, our target audience is General Practitioners, medical students, and other health professionals. We hope to educate, inspire and celebrate those who choose to care for others in their profession. From experience, we know that our audience extends beyond these fields and would like to welcome anyone to listen. The stories of those who came before us are nothing short of remarkable and we hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
Production by Tim Whiffen
Design by Tom Buzz
Episodes
Mentioned books

Apr 7, 2021 • 37min
Ep 34 Hodgkin Lymphoma Pathology | Almost Lardaceous Disease
** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** Hodgkin Lymphoma, formerly known as Hodgkin disease, is a cancer of the lymph node(s). First described by Thomas Hodgkin (1832) where he wrote a paper titled ‘On Some Morbid Appearances of the Absorbent (now Lymphatic) Glands and Spleen’. However, the significance of this did not become apparent until decades later. Hodgkin Lymphoma is the most common malignancy of adolescents and young adults. This used to be a fatal disease but because of meticulous studies, research, modern medicine and advances in treatment, the prognosis is excellent. Our interview is with Dr Bradley Webster, Histopathologist specialising in Uropathology and Lymphoid Pathology and this section of the podcast is eligible for 1 RACGP CPD point – self reporting.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 29, 2021 • 38min
Ep 33 Genetics Pathology | Fragile X: The Fra(X)-men
** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** Fragile X is the most common form of inherited intellectually disability. It is a sex-linked chromosomal disorder that affects boys much more commonly than girls. However, it took some ingenious foresight combined with advancing genetic techniques in the 1970s and 1980s to isolate the exact cause of this condition. This is a challenging diagnosis for General Practitioners, Specialists, Patients and their families. A multi-disciplinary approach is essential and, as Professor Graeme Suthers always says ‘listen to your patients and don’t be afraid to seek advice’. This podcast is eligible for 1 RACGP CPD point – self reporting. GUEST HOST & INTERVIEW Professor Graeme SuthersBSc (Med), MBBS, PhD, FRACP, FRCPA, GAICD Prof Suthers is Sonic Healthcare' Director of Genetics. He is one of Australia’s most respected experts in the field of genetics, and is nationally and internationally recognised for his expertise in genetic disorders, testing and clinical service provision.clinpath.com.au/about-us/clinpath-leadership/our-pathologists/professor-graeme-suthers/ This Pathological Life is produced by Clinpath Pathology in South Australia.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 20, 2021 • 34min
Ep 32 The Social Media Literati
** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** Information in the past (ergo knowledge) was restricted to the few. However, the social media landscape provides individuals with their personal megaphone to the world. As most are aware, there are numerous benefits this provides, such as engaging directly with an audience. However, these benefits have to be balanced with a price, namely personal data and professional boundaries. Traditionally, Medical Practitioners, Doctors, and Specialists have approached social media cautiously. We discuss the pros and cons of medical practitioners accessing/using social media with Lee Aase, Director, Mayo Clinic Social Media Network and Mayo Clinic’s Social & Digital Innovation team. For Lee, he has been working in the social medial field for over twenty years from politics to medical institutions. We discuss what information is being collected, how that can be used, and the best way Doctors can use social media. GUEST INTERVIEW Lee Aase Director, Mayo Clinic Social Media Network Aase.lee@mayo.edu | @LeeAase Lee Aase is director of the Mayo Clinic Social Media Network, which provides training resources, educational and networking events and a collaboration platform for health care professionals who want to safely and effectively apply social and digital strategies to fight disease, promote health and improve health care. Lee also leads Mayo Clinic’s Social & Digital Innovation team, which manages Mayo Clinic’s presence on general purpose social networks like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter as well as its owned blog and community platform. Key sites include Mayo Clinic Connect, an online patient community, Mayo Clinic News Network, and Sharing Mayo Clinic, a patient stories blog. Prior to joining Mayo Clinic in 2000, Lee spent more than a decade in political and government communications at the local, state and federal level. He was elected to Mayo Clinic’s Voting Staff in 2016. In 2018 he received VitalSmarts certification as a trainer in the Getting Things Done (GTD) methodology for stress-free productivity.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 14, 2021 • 34min
Ep 31 Allergies and Pathology Part Two | Anaphylaxis and Fighting Food
** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** In 1901, an experiment when horribly wrong when Doctors attempted to induce tolerance in to a group of dogs by repeated injections of poison. The results were reproducible. Furthermore, the substance did not even need to be poisonous. In 1902, the reaction was called Anaphylaxis. In the 1920s, a spate of Scientists and Doctors self-experimentation led to a range of discoveries about food allergies and reactions. Injecting skin, injecting nasal turbinates, and injection volunteers (including children) helped us to understand the different types of reactions the gastrointestinal tract can have to different foods allergens. Join us as we discuss Part Two to our Allergies Podcast with Dr Daman Langguth and learn our current understanding of Anaphylaxis and food allergies. This podcast is eligible for 1 RACGP CPD point – self reporting.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mar 3, 2021 • 33min
Ep 30 Allergies and Pathology Part One | Friendly Fire
** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** Our immune system provides the means for us to live in a world full of pathogens. However, sometimes it gets it wrong and we can find ourselves debilitated because of our own immune system. Allergies and hypersensitivies fall into this category, with symptoms ranging from the mildly irritating, to the life-threatening anaphylaxis. Our knowledge of these ailments come from a variety of observational and experimental studies. In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, they did not understand the immune system nor allergies. Terms used to describe these diseases (that we know today as allergies) were Summer colds, Summer flu, Hay-asthma, and Hay-fever. The causes were unknown, the treatment ranged from experimental to dangerous and the Scientists often used themselves as the study subjects/volunteers. However, it took some clever minds and quite a bit of courage (not to mention a lot of dogs and other experimental animals) to gather the understanding of these conditions that we have today. Our special guest is Dr Daman Langguth Head of Immunology Department Sullivan Nicolaides Pathology (SNP), Chair of SNP Partners, Member of Executive Advisory Committee, Chair of the Data Request Committee. Daman has particular expertise in the investigation of auto-immune disease, allergy, and immune deficiency and has special interests in idiopathic inflammatory myositis, vasculitis, IgG4-related systemic disease and e-Health. SNP’s Immunology Department is the largest laboratory of its kind in Australia.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Feb 19, 2021 • 39min
Ep 29 CST Cervical Screening | A smear in time (saves lives)
Published: Feb 19, 2021 2:30 PM ** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** In 1952, George Papanicolaou with the National Cancer Institute embarked on the first ever cervical screening trial. The results were remarkable and the first demonstration of the power of screening an asymptomatic population. However, the path to this point took decades of perseverance and self-belief. This feat changed the course of medicine and can be attributed to two people: George and Mary Papanicolaou. Cervical screening is one of the most effective screening programs ever initiated. Combined with the recent advancements of HPV molecular testing and the HPV vaccine, Cervical cancer is now relatively uncommon and has an excellent prognosis. SPECIAL GUEST Dr Cos FuscoDoctor of Health Science, Master of Medical Science (Pathology)Fellow of the International Academy of CytologyCT(ASC) Australian Society of Cytology Currently Supervising Cytologist Clinpath Pathology Additionally, Dr Fusco is a current committee member of the RCPAQAP Cytopathology advisory committee 2019-2023 and Scientific coordinator (SA) for The IMPACT National HPV study. He started his cytology training in 1986 at the then Gribbles Pathology. He worked in Cytology and Histology at Gribbles, IMVS, Clinpath and Adelaide Pathology Partners. In 2006, Dr Fusco started the Cytology laboratory at Adelaide Pathology Partners at the invitation of Dr Fergus Whitehead, and continued with this role post merger with Clinpath Pathology. His Doctoral Thesis was based on HPV HR DNA testing, HPV vaccination and molecular biomarkers and the potential impacts, on the Australian cervical screening program. Cervical cancer and HPV related cancers are an interest and a focus for research. He has a strong interest and involvement in Endobronchial Ultrasound FNA (EBUS FNA) collection for lung cancer staging and diagnosis. Contents Andromachi Papanikolaou - WikipediaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Feb 15, 2021 • 43min
Ep 28 Data MyHealthRecord | Data Deep Dive
** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** Health records are arguably the single most important and personal collection of data anyone can have. With records containing doctor visits, consultation notes, pathology results, radiology reports, medications, allergies, etc., it is hard to overstate its significance. In fact, these records can save lives. The Australian Government has implemented an opt-out arrangement for MyHealthRecord and as such, there has been a rise in the number of records available. However, this venture has not been without its stumbles, detractors, and challenges. We discuss medical records with Dr Chris Moy, who has been a national leader in developing and promoting My Health Record, the electronic ‘filing system’ of Australians’ individual health histories. GUEST INTERVIEW AMA(SA) President Dr Chris MoyMBBS, FRACGP, FAMA sa.ama.com.au/council digitalhealth.gov.au/dr-chris-moy See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Feb 2, 2021 • 56min
Ep 27 Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 | Covidity 2021
** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** COVID-19: Testing the strength of nations As the pandemic continues to rage, we take a snapshot in time about our current understanding from an epidemiological, pathological, microbiological and immunological viewpoint of COVID-19. This pandemic has tested the Governments, Politicians and the Public Health of nations; some have responded valiantly; others have been found lacking. The deviation from our regular style podcast is because we are living the COVID story. Our special guest is Dr Daman Langguth Head of Immunology Department Sullivan Nicolaides Pathology (SNP), Chair of SNP Partners, Member of Executive Advisory Committee, Chair of the Data Request Committee. Daman has particular expertise in the investigation of auto-immune disease, allergy, and immune deficiency and has special interests in idiopathic inflammatory myositis, vasculitis, IgG4-related systemic disease and e-Health. SNP’s Immunology Department is the largest laboratory of its kind in Australia. Known for pushing the boundaries and pioneering new technologies it is acknowledged as the most advanced flow cytometry lab in diagnostic practice. With Australia's most diverse range of autoantibody assays, the lab is also at the forefront of autoantibody testing. In a partnership with a UQ engineering research team it is breaking new ground in digital pathology and image analysis. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jan 25, 2021 • 57min
Ep 26 Indigenous Health | A Tale of Two Worlds
** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** Caitlan Davis starts Episode 26 with, "In the spirit of reconciliation Clinpath Pathology acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today. Today's episode of This Pathological Life, looks at Indigenous Health and its intersection with Pathology, along with health issues and challenges among Australia's first European settlers. But first... First Australians meet the First Fleet The American revolution forced the British to investigate alternate destinations for penal colonies. The answer came from a Botanist who travelled with Captain James Cook in 1770 to a land they called New South Wales. With the decision made, this ‘new’ land would be forever changed. The First Fleet took a year to prepare and eight months to voyage to New South Wales and suffered from a variety of ailments (which we examine) on the way. What we now call Australia, is a hard, dry unexpected land, which proved difficult for Europeans to manage and adjust. Yet Indigenous/Aboriginals survived and thrived in this land. This episode explores Aboriginal medical knowledge with Dan Tyson, Chief Executive Officer at Desert Knowledge Australia from the year 1788, when the land was quite diverse in geographical areas and Aboriginal people were quite diverse in their technologies to survive. We ponder the recurring question of how when bush medicine and food is still used in many places today, why the health of the Australian Indigenous Communities remains so poor. This is the tale of two worlds. GUEST INTERVIEWDan Tyson, CEO Desert Knowledge Australia Twitter: @dka_connect LinkedIn Dan: linkedin.com/in/dan-tyson-8215636/ LinkedIn DKA: linkedin.com/company/dkaconnect/ Dan is currently member of the AMSANT Research Committee and a member of the Central Region Executive of the Chamber of Commerce however, and has also been a director of the Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance of the NT (AMSANT), and previously director and vice-chair of Katherine Regional Aboriginal Health and Related Services. He co-founded the Aboriginal Business Industry Chamber of South Australia (ABICSA) and the Mental Health Coalition of SA. Dan holds a PhD in the field of medical anthropology and has worked extensively in the mainstream and Indigenous health sectors. OTHER VOICES Doris Pilkington, author, Follow The Rabbit Proof Fence Joylene Koolmatrie, Aboriginal Healer and Psychologist Kenneth Branagh, Rabbit Proof Fence Rev John Brown, co-chair, National Sorry Day Committee Sir Ronald Wilson, co-author, Bringing Them Home ReportSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dec 23, 2020 • 30min
Ep 25 The 12 Pathology Podcasts of Christmas
** Thanks for downloading this episode. If you'd like to stay in touch with our continuing story, Season 2 continues at This Medical Life, in which Dr Travis Brown continues his exploration of diseases and our approaches to treatment from history to the modern day. Have a look in your podcast app now for This Medical Life, and hit subscribe so you never miss an episode ** From our first Episode #1 "What is Pathology?", we have enjoyed the journey we have travelled and feedback to date is encouraging. In these (pandemic) times, remaining connected is as important as ongoing education and from here at Clinpath Pathology, providing this channel has been as good for us, as it has been for our listeners. In this episode #25 we reflect over 12 different pathology (pathological) podcasts and what each of these 12 has given us - whether this be an eye opening story, an honoured guest, a realisation of the 'Dunning–Kruger effect', a stumbling over big words, big personalities and big guests, or the unravelling of tales behind the useful things discovered through science that end up being not so good for humans. Steve reflects, "A spoonful of podcast helps the medicine go down." There have been many where the pathologist's lens to a topic really shines, such as alcohol (a good one to listen to before the Christmas period). We hope everyone has a safe Christmas and look forward to Season #2 SPECIAL GUESTProducer Charlie-Helen RobinsonSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.