Ed Rabinowitz

A pediatrician in Flint, MI faced a torrent of criticism and official denials when she discovered her patients were being poisoned by dangerously high levels of lead in their water. Here's the inside story of how she fought back.

Physicians spend their lives helping others, but many spend their holidays finding new ways to give back, from dressing up as Santa Claus to raising awareness about cancer through music.

Oprah Winfrey. Bill Cosby. Muhammad Ali. Sidney Poitier. Alvin Crawford, MD. If that last name seems out of place with the others, guess again.

Alessio Fasano, MD, came to the US from Italy looking to expand his horizons beyond celiac disease. Instead, he became a leader in the treatment, research, and education of celiac disease and other gluten-related disorders.

When these physicians attend sporting events, then watch the game in a different way than the average fan.

Although they came from different backgrounds, these physicians all took their medical degree to the US Armed Forces to care for soldiers and serve their country.

Through work in Tanzania, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Grenada and at home in the United States, these physicians spend their free time bringing care to those who need it and raising awareness where there is none.

When disease hit close to home, these clinicians tackled the problem head on.

When Suzanne Lindley was 31 years of age, she received a diagnosis of stage IV colon cancer and was informed that she had 6 months to live. Chemotherapy, both the oncologist and surgeon told her, had severe side effects that were not worth the likely benefit. They suggested Lindley go home and put her personal affairs in order. That was 10 years ago.

Executives at Radient Pharmaceuticals Corporation may one day look back on 2009 as the year when the coming-out party for the two-decades-old firm located in Tustin, California, began.

If there is such a thing as a business trifecta, Seattle Genetics is nearly there. The Washington state biotechnology company is focused on the development and commercialization of monoclonal antibody–based therapies for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune disease. And with a potent pipeline of potential products and numerous technology and marketing collaborations in place, the opportunities for growth are in the air.

When it comes to negotiating fees with insurance providers, practices and physicians have more leverage than they realize. The problem, says John Schmitt, a managed care expert with EthosPartners Healthcare Management Group, is that practices often don�t even try.

In early February, Clarient Inc announced the commercial launch of its Insight Dx Pulmotype test that helps pathologists classify specific types of lung cancer so physicians can prescribe the most effective therapies.

The John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey has been a leader in the diagnosis, treatment, management, and prevention of cancer for more than 30 years.

The John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey has been a leader in the diagnosis, treatment, management, and prevention of cancer for more than 30 years.

One of the largest and most costly problems facing the healthcare industry is that patients don't consistently take the medicine they've been prescribed. More accurately, between one-third and one-half of patients in the US do not take their medications as instructed, according to an August 2009 report released by the New England Healthcare Institute (http://bit.ly/xlZaW).

The steady growth of hospital medicine has led to a push for specified certification in this field. But who should provide that certification, and is the move in this direction good or bad for hospitalists and hospital medicine?

Does the immune system hold clues to the spontaneous regression of some cancerous tumors?