2 Docs Talk: The podcast about healthcare, the science of medicine and everything in between.

After a few of our previous episodes we got some great questions from a few of our listeners. In this brief update, we answer questions about our episodes on medical marijuana, breast cancer screening and concussions.

These days you can buy e-Books for your e-Reader and participate in e-Commerce. You can send your friends Evites, e-file your taxes, and meet the love of your life on eHarmony.

So it’s really no surpise that e-Cigarettes have become as popular as they are. Hats off to whoever named them, since they are actually physical items that you can hold in your hands, unlike most e-products.

The question, of course, is if there are any health advantages to e-Cigarettes. Do they really help you stop smoking?

And, do they create their own set of health problems?

That’s what we’re talking about this week.

Resources:

E-Cigs and Poison Control

Southern California Children’s Health Study

USPSTF on Smoking Cessation

Aphthous Ulcers and Nicotine

Be sure and subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t already. And you know we’d appreciate it so much if you would tell your friends about 2 Docs Talk!

Listen on iTunes

Listen on Stitcher

Now Available on Google Play Music!

A lot has changed over the past 50 years. We've gone from a society that used baby oil and reflective tanning mats in the 70s to one that will spend $50 and up on a rashguard with UV protection. These changes were prompted by the growing number of melanoma diagnoses.

In this episode, 2 Docs Talk about what melanoma is and how it's demographics have shifted over time. We also take a look at prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of melanoma.

For so long, colorectal cancer screening beginning at age 50 has been gospel in preventative medicine. But recently, trends in the incidence of colorectal cancer suggest we may be doing to much screening in the wrong people, and not enough screening in the right people. This means missed diagnoses and unnecessary interventions. But recent research offers an alternative that we hope will target screening for the right people, while the rest of us get to avoid the "scope."

Does this approach provide what we need to keep the most people the healthiest for the longest time? Resources: USPSTF recommendations for colorectal cancer screening (note -a new draft update is in progress now, so these could potentially change in the near future). BMJ recommendations on colorectal cancer screening

QCancer risk calculator for 15 year risk of colorectal cancer

The normally staid world of hypertension was a bit controversial in 2017, so this week 2 Docs Talk about the recent recommendations — and their accompanying controversies — for treating high blood pressure.

Resources:

Systolic Hypertension in the Elderly (SHEP) Study

Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) blood pressure trial.

Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT)

JNC 8 blood pressure treatment guidelines