Medical Journal June 2025 Digital Edition
June 20, 20251 min
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Texas Certificate of Public Advantage (“COPA”) guidance, and its potential impact on healthcare accessibility
June 20, 202511 min
BY Kianna L. Sitarski, Esq. and Michael R. Alexander, Esq., Brown & Fortunato, P.C. The healthcare industry is indisputably rife with economic, administrative, and regulatory hurdles that often have the unintended consequence of limiting healthcare access to patients, especially those in rural communities. Effective September 1, 2019, in recognition of one regulatory hurdle faced by hospitals, namely federal and state antitrust laws, Texas lawmakers passed House Bill (H.B. 3301) implementing a limited grant of...
How alcohol hurts our health
June 20, 20258 min
BY Samuel Mathis MD, MBA, UTMB Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a statement that there is no safe amount of alcohol that does not affect our health. This is a shift from prior recommendations that found some potential cardiac benefit from moderate intake of certain alcohol-containing beverages. With this new guidance, it is more important than ever that we engage with our patients about alcohol use and the potential harm. For those...
In a unique session, THA survives and thrives
June 20, 20257 min
BY John Hawkins There’s never been a legislative session quite like this one. Granted, in saying that, I’m only speaking for my time at the Texas Hospital Association, which now covers 21 years and 11 regular sessions of the Texas Legislature. But I can tell you that never, during any of those past sessions, did we have the usual 140-day firehose coming from the state Capitol accompanied by another, equally important blast of...
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center announced that Jeffrey E. Lee, M.D., an internationally regarded leader in the field of oncology, has been appointed chief medical executive (CME). Prior to his appointment, Lee served as CME ad interim, demonstrating strength as a leader committed to advancing the institution’s efforts in research, patient care, prevention and education. Assuming the role of CME is the culmination of Lee’s 34-year tenure at the institution, where he has...
UTMB President Dr. Jochen Reiser honored with prestigious Marilyn G. Farquhar Lifetime Research Achievement award
June 20, 20253 min
Dr. Jochen Reiser, president of the University of Texas Medical Branch and CEO of the UTMB Health System, has been awarded the Marilyn G. Farquhar Lifetime Research Achievement Award at the 15th International Podocyte Conference, held June 10 to 13, 2025, in Hamburg, Germany. Presented by the International Society of Glomerular Disease during the International Podocyte Conference, the Farquhar Award honors individuals whose research has been foundational to understanding glomerular biology or the pathobiology of glomerular disease. Named for a...
Two MD Anderson researchers elected AAAS Fellows
June 20, 20256 min
In recognition of their significant achievements to advance cancer care and research, Lauren Byers, M.D., and Paul Scheet, Ph.D., from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). This distinction stands as one of the highest accolades within the scientific research community. AAAS’s tradition of recognizing leading scientists, who are elected by their peers, dates back to 1874. This class of 471 fellows includes scientists, engineers and innovators...
‘A blessing in disguise’: Nurse credits new robotic technology and rapid care with catching lung cancer early
June 20, 20256 min
When longtime nurse Riki Granger went in for an abdominal CT scan, she never imagined the results would reveal something life-changing – a small lesion on her lungs. “It was a blessing in disguise,” Granger said. “A miracle.” Within days, she was connected to Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital’s lung nodule program medical director Dr. Priya Oolut. Oolut recommended a biopsy using the hospital’s brand-new robotic bronchoscopy system, the first of its kind in Fort...
University of Texas Medical Branch cancer researchers granted nearly $5M
June 20, 20256 min
Researchers at The University of Texas Medical Branch have been awarded a total of nearly $5 million in grants from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas to forward their work. In all, CPRIT approved 61 grants totaling more than $93 million. The UTMB grantees are: Abbey Berenson, $2,499,990: Expanding Opportunities for HPV Vaccination in Medically Underserved Areas of East Texas William Russell, $1,999,492: A Targeted Proteomics and Metabolomics Mass Spectrometry Core Facility at...
Pre-surgical combination therapy shows promising results for NSCLC
June 20, 20252 min
Chemotherapy and immunotherapy combined with surgery is the standard treatment for patients with early-stage resectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but many still experience disease recurrence. In the Phase II NeoCOAST-2 trial led by Tina Cascone, M.D., Ph.D., researchers enrolled patients with untreated, resectable stage IIA-IIIB NSCLC and examined the efficacy and safety of pre-surgical chemotherapy plus durvalumab immunotherapy in combination with novel monoclonal antibodies oleclumab or monalizumab or with the antibody-drug conjugate datopotamab deruxtecan (Dato-DXd). Of participants who received oleclumab, 15 of 74...