Video: East Bay Mom Advocates for Early Detection, Treatment
East Bay resident Ronellyn Junius knew something wasn't quite right --she felt a pain in her left beast. So she made an appointment to see her doctor who recommended she get a mammogram at the Carol Ann Read Breast Health Center. Her subsequent breast cancer diagnosis...
Breastfeeding During Breast Cancer: What You Need to Know
At age 36, Lindsay Himmetoglu was 8 months pregnant and breastfeeding her young son, Lev when she assumed pain in her breast was just a plugged duct. “It’s probably my body ramping up for the new baby,” she told herself. The lump unfortunately turned out to be...
What to Know about Dense Breasts
By Nicole Young and Monique Binkley Smith, Vitals contributors Nearly half of women over 40 have dense breast tissue, a condition the FDA requires all healthcare organizations to report to patients if it is indicated on a mammogram. But many women may not understand...
Editor’s Picks
Medical Assistant Performs in the Clutch, Advances to Help More Patients
By Debbie Ritenour, Vitals contributor Kelly Hamamoto joined Palo Alto Medical Foundation’s Los Altos Center as a medical assistant in August 2019 to gain the patient care experience she needed to apply to physician assistant programs. When COVID hit a few months...
Full Circle: Breast Cancer Researcher, Survivor Expresses Gratitude
Shanaz Dairkee, Ph.D., a senior scientist at Sutter’s California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC) Research Institute in San Francisco has studied breast cancer and its optimal treatments since 1984. This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Vitals checked in with Dr....
Breaking the Silence: Improving Access to Mental Health Services
PHOTO CAPTION: Theresa Rizzo, Psy. D. and Axis’s Administrative Director of Integrated Behavioral Health, sits down with a patient to discuss mental health awareness. By Jerome Hubbard, Lisa Hom and Jennifer Modenessi, Vitals contributors Mental health awareness...
Sutter Health Launches Addiction Medicine Fellowship in Santa Rosa
SANTA ROSA, Calif. (Oct. 15, 2024) – The Sutter Santa Rosa Family Medicine Residency Program, part of Sutter Health, has launched a new Addiction Medicine Fellowship to improve high-quality, de-stigmatized care for people with substance use disorders (SUDs). In...
Dive Deeper
Check it Out: Shoppers Enhance Breast Cancer Services
By Kathy Engle, Vitals contributor Have you ever wondered how a donation at a grocery store check-out counter can make a difference in someone’s life? Each year, the Safeway Foundation hosts its Cancer Research and Treatment campaign to support breast cancer...
Ray Dolby Brain Health Center Prepares for the Future
Sutter's Ray Dolby Brain Health Center has expanded to a second location at CPMC’s Davies Campus, increasing its capacity to provide cutting-edge treatments for Alzheimer's and other memory disorders, with plans to move to the Mission Bernal Care Complex in 2028....
Sutter Researchers Help Nab $67M NIH Grant for Study on Aging
Sutter Health Researchers Help Secure Nearly $70 Million NIH Grant to Advance Landmark Study on Healthy Aging SAN FRANCISCO – Sutter Health announced today researchers at its Sequoia Center for the Science of Aging will receive $21 million from a $67.7 million...
Luck, Timing and a GREAT Program
By Kathy Engle, Vitals contributor Marina Montes had not considered genetic testing until she received an email from Sutter Health describing a free program in Santa Rosa—the Genetic Risk Evaluation and Testing (GREAT) program. Started in 2022, the complementary...
Closer Look
Future Physicians Ready to Change Medicine
How To Do a Skin Safety Self-Check
Bay Area Kids Explore Careers in Healthcare
Swimmer Makes Splash After Amputation
Putting Your Health First Never Stops
Stay well with screenings and preventative care. Find a doctor.