For Lance Cpl. Benjamin Shaw, enlisting in the military was almost inevitable. Dedication to serving the country ran in his family.

Something else was also a significant part of his family history: autoimmune disorders. More specifically, rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis, a disease that affects the central nervous system. Also, his wife has autoimmune hepatitis. Seeing the effects of these disorders firsthand is what prompted Lance Cpl. Shaw to also seek training in science, hoping to someday utilize his passion for helping others through research.

A developing issue within the health care realm is understanding what it means to be transgender inclusive. UK HealthCare’s Transform Health Clinic is hosting an event to discuss what it means to be transgender inclusive with health care providers and members of the Lexington community. The dialogue at the Sound Off workshop will specifically address mental health and substance use treatment for transgender people.

The University of Kentucky College of Law will host a panel comprising experienced professionals including prosecutors, advocates, social workers, trauma therapists, journalists and psychologists to discuss the themes and events covered in “Unbelievable,” a Netflix series about sexual assault. The discussion will take place noon Monday, Nov. 11, in the G. Chad Perry III Grand Courtroom located inside the College of Law and is free and open to the public.

Ask 13-year-old Jeremiah Zurowski how he’s feeling and his one-word reply speaks volumes.

“Happy.”

And he is happy. He talks excitedly about his favorite movies and playing with his brothers. He’s generous with smiles, high-fives and hugs. His heart is big and warm, but until recently, his heart wasn’t healthy.

The leading cause of cancer death in both men and women the United States is lung cancer. Unfortunately, Kentucky is home the highest incidence and death rate from lung cancer in the country. The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 4,900 Kentuckians will be diagnosed with a lung and bronchus cancer in 2019, with more than 3,200 succumbing to the disease.

The 2019 MediStar Awards honored University of Kentucky College of Medicine Dean Robert S. DiPaola, MD, and Jamie L. Studts, Ph.D., professor in the UK College of Medicine Department of Behavioral Science. Since 2007, IGE Media, publisher of Medical News, has recognized excellence in the business of healthcare at the exclusive MediStar Awards, which honors healthcare professionals for their achievements in advocacy, innovation, education, leadership and aging care.

Picking up a thick set of battle ropes, Lindi Campbell crouches down and knocks out smooth sets of traditional alternating waves, slams and in-and-out waves, pausing only for a moment between sets to shake out the tension in her shoulders. It’s an exercise that would leave most people breathless, but Campbell is barely breaking a sweat.

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine is proud to share that two of our faculty members, Lindsay Ragsdale, MD, and Jessica McFarlin, MD, have been named Emerging Leaders in Hospice and Palliative Medicine by the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM). Dr. Ragsdale and Dr. McFarlin were among 40 health care professionals selected out of more than 120 nominations for the honor, which recognizes career accomplishments, involvement with the AAHPM, student and resident mentoring, and charitable work. Dr.

Dr. Marian Swope has done it all:  University of Kentucky College of Medicine graduate, professor and a pioneering physician. She was recently recognized at the College’s first Faculty of Color Network (FCN) Gala held on Oct. 18.

Cancer-control researchers at the University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center and  The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) aim to increase colorectal cancer screening and follow-up care among underserved individuals in Appalachia through a $5.7 million grant from the National Cancer Institute.

Congratulations to a College of Medicine alumna and student who were recently honored during the 2019 Lyman T. Johnson Awards Banquet.  

Ima Ebong, MD, '11, assistant professor of neurology and clinical neurophysiology, was honored with the Lyman T. Johnson Torch of Excellence Award. The award is presented annually to an African-American alum whose faith, hard work and determination has positively affected the lives of people on the UK campus, the city, state or nation.  

The University of Kentucky Sanders-Brown Center on Aging will hold the 9th Annual Markesbery Symposium on Aging and Dementia on Wednesday, Nov. 6.  The scientific session opens with check-in and registration at 8:15 am in Karpf Auditorium, Pavilion A, UK Chandler Hospital 1000 S. Limestone. Speaker presentations begin at 9:30 a.m. and end at noon.

Judged poster session and boxed lunch will be held from 12:15 – 2:30 p.m. in the atrium of the Biomedical/Biological Sciences Research Building (BBSRB) 741 S. Limestone.

The University of Kentucky College of Medicine hosted its first annual Faculty of Color Network gala on Friday, Oct. 18. The gala, themed Undeniable, Uncompromising, Unstoppable: Celebrating Diversity in Medicine and the Community, was held at The Campbell House in Lexington, Ky. 

This Saturday student researchers in the Markey Cancer Center’s Appalachian Career Training in Oncology (ACTION) program will be recognized on Kroger field. The ACTION program reveals how the University of Kentucky, as a research-intensive university, can help students see what’s possible in their own careers and inspire them to impact their communities.

Becky Parsley fights forest fires. In the almost 10 years since she began full time work as a firefighter with the U.S. Forest Service, she's been on the fire lines in 11 states, including her beloved Kentucky where she was born. She's wielded chainsaws and performed aerial ignition operations – starting controlled fires from helicopters to thin out forests at high risk of wildfires. But the scariest time in her life had nothing to do with fires. Becky and her husband were ready to welcome their first child.

For two years, University of Kentucky researcher April Young and her team have been onsite in Eastern Kentucky working with community members to assess and gather information on substance use in rural communities for a project known as Kentucky Communities and Researchers Engaging to Halt the Opioid Epidemic, or CARE2HOPE.

University of Kentucky radiology resident Dr. Leanna Lin likes to use her strength for good causes.

This Saturday, Lin has organized an event called Deadlifts Against Domestic Violence, a powerlifting-style deadlift competition hosted by The Moco Gym in Mount Sterling, Ky. All the money received with sales and registration fees will benefit GreenHouse17, an advocacy agency committed to ending intimate partner abuse in families and the community.

Flanked by national leaders in the fight to reduce deaths from opioid use – including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex M. Azar – the University of Kentucky Monday officially launched the HEALing (Helping End Addiction Long-term) Communities Study – Kentucky.

The University of Kentucky Sanders-Brown Center on Aging has received a five-year, $2.8 million grant to underwrite preclinical efficacy studies of a potential new treatment for dementia. 

The drug candidate, called MW150, targets dysregulated brain inflammation driven by a stress-activated protein called p38aMAPK. The research is novel in that it is exploring efficacy in treating more than one form of dementia at the same time. 

Alzheimer's disease wreaks emotional havoc on patients, who are robbed of their memories, their dignity, and their lives. It’s financially devastating as well: care for Alzheimer's patients is predicted to top $1 trillion by the time children born today are having children of their own.