Protect your holidays from viruses

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12.20.22

Protect your holidays from viruses
Warning signs someone is at risk of suicide
Only 14% of diagnosed cancers in the US are detected by screening
One family's harrowing story of a near-fatal misdiagnosis

Protect your holidays from viruses

The triple threat of flu, RSV and Covid-19 will be with us throughout the holiday season. Flu activity remains high, despite signs its slowing in some parts of the country. RSV has peaked, but hospitalizations are still far higher than normal. And Covid-19 is trending up across the country.

So what can families do to protect their holiday gatherings and keep viruses at bay?

Decide which events or gatherings take the highest priority, and make sure you're being extra careful in the days before. Focus on handwashing and wearing masks if you enter crowded indoor spaces. There's still time to get a flu shot or an updated Covid-19 booster, even if it can't provide the highest level of protection possible ahead of a family gathering.

Make a plan, too, about how you can quarantine or travel safely if a member of your family becomes ill, especially if you're away from home.

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Warning signs someone is at risk of suicide

Stephen "tWitch" Boss rose to fame as a dancer and actor and then as the DJ and co-executive producer for "The Ellen DeGeneres Show." He died by suicide last week at the age of 40. His death stirred shock and grief among fans used to seeing Boss' expressions of joy.

Suicide is a leading cause of death among children and adults, and it can be difficult to spot risk factors. There may be no warning signs.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration says it may be helpful to be aware of certain risk factors, such as hopelessness, extreme mood swings, obsessions with death, severe physical illness, a family or personal history of suicide or suicide attempts, or exposure to a suicide.

If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or mental illness, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, or visit the Lifeline website to be connected with a trained counselor.

Only 14% of diagnosed cancers in the US are detected by screening

A small proportion – 14.1% – of all diagnosed cancers in the United States are detected by screening with a recommended screening test, according to a new report.

The remaining diagnosed cancers tend to be found when someone has symptoms or seeks imaging or medical care for other reasons, suggests the report, posted online by researchers at the nonprofit research organization NORC at the University of Chicago.

"I was shocked that only 14% of cancers were detected by screening. I think, for many people, we talk so much about cancer screening that we imagine that that's how all cancers are diagnosed," said Caroline Pearson, an author of the report and senior vice president at the organization. Yet "the vast majority of cancer types don't have screening tests available."

Just four types of cancer – breast, cervical, colorectal and lung – have screening tests recommended for use by the US Preventive Services Task Force.

One family's harrowing story of a near-fatal misdiagnosis

My colleague and friend Jake Tapper and his family recently went through a horrible ordeal after their now-15-year-old daughter, Alice Tapper, was misdiagnosed. After she entered the hospital with stomach pains, doctors believed it was symptoms of gastroenteritis instead of tracking the symptoms as early signs of appendicitis. What followed was a harrowing ordeal for the Tappers. They shared their story with me as a cautionary tale of how one of the most common pediatric procedures can go so wrong.

What's striking is that Alice's story is just one of a thousand like it a year. According to a study by Dr. Prashant Mahajan of the University of Michigan, nearly 5% of appendicitis cases are missed in the first 24 hours a patient walks into the emergency room, oftentimes because, as with Alice, the symptoms can be general and not specific. In situations like this, parents can often be the best people for doctors to rely on to understand how their child's symptoms are presenting because they know what their children are like day to day.

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Chasing Life

You may have seen recent reports suggesting more vaccinated than unvaccinated people are dying from Covid-19. It's confusing, and it could leave you wondering whether Covid vaccines and boosters are still effective and necessary.

The short answer is yes – but understanding why requires peering through some statistical illusions.

For example, there is an important difference when looking at the vaccinated versus unvaccinated populations in the United States: The vaccinated population skews older and has more health conditions. These same groups that are much more likely to have worse outcomes from Covid-19. More than 90% of US Covid deaths through mid-November were in those 65 or older.

"So those things lead to a higher risk of death and also a higher probability of being vaccinated," said Jeffrey Morris, a professor and the director of the Division of Biostatistics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. "That's the key: If the vaccine uptake of those high-risk groups is high enough, then we can have a majority of the hospitalized or fatal cases be higher in the vaccinated population."

I know we're all tired of hearing that we need to roll up our sleeves and get yet another booster.

But disease modeling released by the Commonwealth Fund and Yale School of Public Health found Covid vaccines prevented an estimated 3.2 million deaths and 18.5 million hospitalizations from their introduction in December 2020 to November 30, 2022.

And real-world data published last week by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that the updated vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna provide important protection against urgent care visits and hospitalization, especially for people at higher risk of severe illness.

Coming off the second anniversary of the first Covid-19 vaccines being administered, these shots are still a reason to celebrate.

In our last episode of this season, we examine a trait known as synesthesia – in which the senses intertwine, like seeing colors when you hear music or tasting flavor when you feel texture – with neurologist and author Dr. Richard Cytowic and musical artist Christen Lien.