Andrew Schorr

Imagine the isolation that comes with a chronic autoimmune disease that appears on the skin and affects appearance. Psoriasis, which speeds up the growth cycle of skin cells, can result in raised ...

If the first-day response is an indication, thousands of lives may be saved by social media. On May 1, 2012, Facebook announced a new feature making it easy to register as an organ donor, ...

The headline in The New York Times recently screamed what we had feared -- and worse. Not only is obesity among children leading to what was once only known as “adult onset” diabetes, but the kids ...

Sandy Smoljan, a healthy woman of 55, made an unusual sacrifice to save the life of her brother-in-law Al. A few months ago she volunteered to let doctors transplant 65 percent of her liver ...

Breast cancer has gone from a taboo topic to one that’s discussed everywhere women go. That includes mixed advice about screening and the good news that earlier detection has helped reduce ...

You’ve probably heard the term “the gift of life” tied to organ donation -- typically something you think about when you are renewing your driver’s license. There is a tremendous shortage of ...

Ruth Ashton has a lot to live for. She works at the graduate school at Loyola University in Chicago and is a 46-year-old mother of two with two grandchildren and a third on the way. Ruth loves ...

The latest estimates say almost 26 million Americans have diabetes. Many are middle aged or older. And, unfortunately some are children and teenagers with either Type II diabetes, often sparked by ...

As we get older our joints can get stiff and cause pain. Cartilage breaks down and some of us will need joints like hips and knees replaced. The surgery can get us moving again and feeling good. ...

Odds are, you are younger than me and you probably don’t have the same family history. But even so, you do need to have colon and rectal cancer on your radar. There are more than 143,000 new ...

It will be weeks before we learn more details about what may have led to the death of singer Whitney Houston. But it seems there were some prescription medications close at hand and another drug ...

Kristine Hillyer, 53, of Orting, Wash., felt like a prisoner in her own body. She was out of breath just walking from one room to another in her house. A former dock worker on weekdays and jet ...

Usually when a baby in the United States is being born everything goes well, although anyone who has been through it knows it’s a significant medical event and can be “exciting” in the last few ...

When all the dust settles, you may have a 10-year-old boy from McDonough, Georgia to thank for getting you relief for a chronic digestive problem. The boy is Ricky Springer and he has had ...

Three-year-old Rosie continues to astound her mother, Nicole Pallone of Starwood, British Columbia, Canada. Rosie was born with a rare metabolic condition called phenylketonuria or PKU, where her ...

In May, 2011, Rose Egge, a community news reporter in Seattle who was 25 at the time, went to the doctor. She’d been having back pain for months and it wasn’t getting better. She was finding ...

Nicotine is one of the most addictive substances and millions of people are hooked. Many of them don’t want to be. They understand smoking is not good for your health and every puff brings you ...

I’ve just returned from an extended family trip throughout Spain. It was terrific, from Barcelona to Seville. On any trip, I’m sure you are like me, and “people watch.” On this trip one thing ...

Jill Heydenburg of Chicago, at 43, was used to being an active woman. She ate nutritious foods, exercised and usually felt great. But then fatigue set in. She'd go to work and go home and go to ...

Are you someone who feels down as fall turns to winter and when it can be dark and gloomy til after breakfast and then again before dinner? You are not alone. Millions of Americans -- and ...

Here in the United States we are in a high speed world. And when it comes to health problems we want a solution fast. Part of that is making sure we get the BEST solution that’s available ...

You’ve got a headache. Should you go to your family doctor, your gynecologist, a neurologist, or a brain surgeon? And, depending upon which office you head to, will your insurance cover it? Then, ...

As patients, more and more of us have much to be thankful for. In the most pronounced cases, we are actually living with a formerly terminal illness. Medical progress has made a difference for us ...

One day in April, 1996 a doctor, out of the blue, told me I had leukemia. "What happens now and how does it affect my future?" I thought, which most people who are diagnosed would ask. While ...

Your mother probably told you to sit up straight. Your gym teacher reminded you about keeping your shoulders back. Your dance teacher spoke about walking tall. But some kids can’t. They have a ...

I have never been a smoker. But people who have smoked tell me that quitting is one of the most difficult things they’ve ever done. Tobacco is just so addictive. Barack Obama knows too. Our ...

Being more powerful patients as we navigate increasingly complex health care systems is a priority for many of us. We want to be in control and want the tips that help us to be at our fingertips. ...

Ok, you have a job, you are busy with friends and family, and you may have kids. You are tired -- a lot. Could be not enough sleep, could be you are low on iron, OR it could be a hormone ...

A new national report is out and the use of antidepressant medications -- including those prescribed for anxiety -- is up 400 percent by Americans over the last 20 years. And 11 percent of ...

Where do you go for reliable, useful information about breast cancer now that we are in the age of hundreds of thousands of websites, Facebook pages and “tweets” on the subject? I am delighted ...

There are pink ribbons everywhere this month for breast cancer awareness. It’s politically correct for corporations to get behind this to be good corporate citizens and also to improve their ...

Lung cancer kills more women than any other cancer so you know not to smoke or to quit, if you do smoke. For colon cancer, screening -- usually beginning at age 50 -- can make a huge difference. ...

There is no shortage of celebrities who are captured naked or nearly naked by paparazzi who leverage photos for national exposure. My getting "naked" has inadvertently led to national ...

No doubt you’ve heard Seth Rogen and Joseph Gordon-Levitt teamed up to bring you a “bromance” of a movie called “50/50.” Levitt plays a Seattle public radio producer whose back pain turns out to ...

You are no doubt familiar with many consumer products used by millions. Most people buy the top selling detergent or shampoo or toothpaste. Some women buy the same outfit. And, unless you go to ...

At 33, Kim Allison was on top of the world. She had a college degree from Princeton and advanced medical degrees. She had a loving husband, and two small children, one only seven months old and ...

I heard an unforgettable singer recently as she gave hope to 600 cancer survivors at a banquet in Houston. I just had to share the inspiring story of this young woman with you because she’s sure ...

No one wants to talk about it. But it can get so bad you are afraid to go out of the house. And if you do, you need to chart where the bathrooms are along your route. And you may, even as a ...

Your mother has do’s and don’ts for you, your girlfriends do too. Maybe even your grandmother chimes in. What should you eat? Should you take vitamins? Can you still run or work out hard? What ...

There you are -- early in the morning, before the kids go to school, or your partner wakes up, or before you have to dress for work. You are running. Maybe it’s in the park, in your neighborhood, ...

At age 30, Karissa Barber Ma was on top of the world. She had fallen in love and celebrated it with a big wedding. She and her husband had so much to look forward to. But then, suddenly, their ...

It’s back-to-school time and, if you have children like I do, you need to form a relationship with the school nurse. It’s the same for elementary school or even college and the school levels in ...

You may or not be a football fan so you may not be aware that the new 10-year contract between the National Football League players and team owners had a lot to do with safety for the players and ...

When you develop cancer, which is made up of groups of defective cells that your own body manufactured, your immune system has let you down. The way it is supposed to work is like one of those bug ...

Since you are, no doubt, a health conscious visitor to EmpowHER, you just might be someone who has a television on while you exercise at home or at the gym. For me, I watch cable TV news during ...