The Pituitary World News Podcast

S9:E7 Brain fog and pituitary clinical cases

Continuing our recent coverage of brain fog, Dr. Blevins and I discussed a few examples from his clinical practice and personal experiences with the condition. We also cover a fascinating case from his clinic about a patient with an empty sella incidental finding and residual disease. We covered a lot of ground and interesting subjects in this session you don't want to miss, including how medicine and medical care have changed, the need for more pituitary centers of excellence, and how working on Pituitary World News has affected how we look at things. Please join us!

S9E6: Two Cushing cases and a forward look

With today's podcasts from this week's live-talk show, Dr. Blevins recaps our content dedicated to Global Cushing's month with a talk about two fascinating recent Cushing cases from his practice. He also touches on some very interesting caveats about thyroid hormone replacement. Then, after a surprise musical interlude (you'll have to listen to find out), we discuss the current social media challenges and look at what's coming to Pituitary World News. Don't miss the discussion, and don't forget to subscribe here so you can receive notifications whenever we publish a new article or a podcast. 

S9E5: Adrenal Cushing’s: a conversation

Listen to this fascinating discussion of adrenal Cushing's or hypercortisolism as Dr. Lewis Blevins walks us through the disease's characteristics, biochemistry, and treatment options. In the talk, he focuses on different conditions, including adrenal adenomas, adrenal cancer, adrenal hyperplasia, and other related diseases like Carney Complex and McCune-Albright syndrome. Dr. Blevins also focuses on other situations where unrelated reasons lead to discovering adrenal adenomas or mild adrenal hyperplasia, resulting in pathological cortisol secretion. Finally, he closes the discussion with two recent cases from his practice that illustrate the issues related to these conditions.

S9E4: Insights on medicine and mental health: a perspective

Today's program focuses on interactions between the medical and psychological worlds. Join Dr. Blevins and me as we welcome PWN contributor, marriage and family therapist, and author Linda Rio for a fascinating discussion on how pituitary disease, or any chronic disease, manifests itself mentally and emotionally. Listen as we muse on how emotional health and psychological distress can affect people's daily lives and how they deal with their disorders. Our talk covers other interesting issues, including how the medical and psychological world intersect, doctor-patient interactions and expectations, the influence of social media, and dr. Google, and the sorry state of some people's interactions and behaviors.

 

S9E3: A story about a nurse with acromegaly

Meet Laura Cheng. Laura is a nurse. She has acromegaly. She works as a clinical nurse and is currently enrolled in the endocrine certificate program and pursuing a Master's Degree in nursing at Duke University. Laura's connection to this disease gives her a unique perspective and will provide an invaluable resource to her patients. We caught up with Laura a few weeks ago. This is her story.

S9E2: Dr. Sylvia Asa discusses her groundbreaking work in endocrine pathology

This week's Live-talk offers critical knowledge that people affected with pituitary and endocrine diseases need to know to ensure they receive proper treatment. Dr. Sylvia Asa, a pioneer in endocrine and pituitary tumor pathology, talks with Dr. Lewis Blevins about her work in the field and the reclassification of pituitary adenomas to Pituitary Neuroendocrine Tumors, or PitNets, which she recently led. This is crucial knowledge you don't want to miss! And please stay tuned for a downloadable document with the essential questions to ask about the pathology of your tumor to ensure your physician has the pertinent information for your treatment.

S9E1: Insurance challenges, clinical cases and much more

In our first live-talk session of 2023, we focus on critical topics, including insurance delay trends affecting pituitary medical practices, interesting clinical cases we can learn from, where telemedicine is going after the Covid era, and more commentary from the subjects we covered in our recent "briefing and insights" article.  Please stay tuned for an announcement on the next live-talk discussion subject, and join us live to call in and participate.

S8E30: Access to medications: challenges and opportunities

 Pituitary World News has undertaken an initiative to understand and share the complicated issues related to medication access so patients can join us in advocating for a better system. In that tangle, we find insurance companies, orphan drug manufacturers, specialty pharmacies, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), prescribers, and others that add to the costs and complicate access. The issues get even murkier when considering patients on Medicare and Medicaid, their pricing models, and copay requirements. We are committed to understanding the issues from all angles, how they affect pituitary patients' care, and the advocacy effort needed to make it better, lower out-of-pocket costs, and, more significantly, simplify access. Additionally, we aim to understand how prescription drug regulations affect patients and physicians. This is the first in a series of podcasts and articles on the subject.

S8E29: New drugs and therapies in the pipeline for acromegaly and Cushing’s

Today we present an excellent discussion with Dr. Alan Krasner, Chief Medical Officer for Crinetics Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Krasner speaks to PWN about two very important drugs currently under development. Learn about what is coming, the timelines, potential new therapies, and approaches in acromegaly, Cushing's, and hyperinsulinism. These are exciting times in the field with a forward-thinking, creative group of scientists applying their knowledge and experience in pituitary and neuroendocrine science to develop new approaches and solutions for patients. This is a discussion you don't want to miss! Click on this link to learn more about Crinetics' clinical studies and how to participate.  

S8E28: Adenomas and Pituitary Neuroendocrine Tumors

The ongoing debates and nomenclature change and reclassification are apparently over, and adenomas and now referred to as Pit-Net's (pituitary neuroendocrine tumors).  Is this good, bad, or indifferent?  These are complicated matters, so to shed some more light on the subject, we've invited some experts to discuss them.   In today's live talk, I'm joined by co-host and PWN cofounder Dr. Lewis Blevins; as you all know, Dr. Blevins is the Medical Director of the California Center for Pituitary disorders at UCSF. Also with us is Dr. Manish Aghi.  Dr. Aghi is a frequent contributor to PWN and an attending Neurosurgeon California Center for Pituitary Disorders. Professor of Neurological Surgery and Principal Investigator, UCSF Brain Tumor Research Center’’  We are also delighted to welcome Dr. Arie Perry. Dr. Perry is the director of neuropathology at UCSF; he specializes in diagnosing benign and cancerous nervous system tumors, including those of the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. He is also a specialist in classifying the molecular genetics of tumors, which can be used to help determine the best treatment.  To learn more, this PWN article provides additional background and reading on the subject.