The University of Kansas Health System is treating a total of 49 COVID patients today, down from 58 yesterday. Other significant numbers:
- 24 with the active virus today, 30 yesterday
- 6 in ICU, 7 yesterday
- 3 on ventilators, 4 yesterday
- 28 hospitalized but out of acute infection phase, 19 yesterday
Key points from today’s guests:
Ross Wilkinson, prostate cancer patient
- Had to travel to California almost 20 years ago for proton therapy treatment
- Experienced no symptoms from the disease
- Proton therapy treatment was easy with no side effects
- He’s been cancer-free since then
Warren Haynes, prostate cancer patient
- Currently undergoing proton therapy treatment at KU Cancer Center which began offering the treatment earlier this year
- Grateful he could do the 25-day treatment close to home rather than having to travel a great distance
- Primary care doctor originally suggested watching and waiting after his PSA test for prostate cancer showed an elevated level
- Believes if he had been sent to a urologist sooner, his disease might have been caught earlier
- Urges all patients to be self-advocates for their own healthcare
Dr. Steve Stites, Chief Medical Officer, The University of Kansas Health System, prostate cancer patient
- Was on active surveillance program for prostate cancer because of family history of the disease. Has received diagnosis but will continue active surveillance.
- So far has not needed any treatment
- Believes there is a certain amount of healthcare disparity for minority patients, and doctors must take every patient seriously, no matter their background
- Thinks it’s an “optimistic view” that the World Health Organization said the end of the pandemic is officially in sight.
Doctor Xinglei Shen, radiation oncologist, The University of Kansas Health System
- Proton therapy is no longer considered experimental. It’s a well-established FDA-approved therapy for prostate cancer.
- It offers a significant benefit over other treatments for prostate cancer because of the way protons work
- Second opinions are welcomed and even encouraged for KU Cancer Center patients
- It’s uncommon but still possible for the cancer to return after proton therapy
- Side effects from the treatment are minimal, if any
Dr. Dana Hawkinson, medical director of Infection Prevention and Control, The University of Kansas Health System
- COVID hospitalizations are down across the country, but seem to be higher at the health system
- No new variant on the horizon
- Bivalent boosters are now being distributed at the health system and other facilities around the Metro
- Boosters for those five and older expected in the next few months
- With prevention, vaccination and new treatments, the effect of COVID on our daily lives will become less and less
Friday, September 15 at 8:00 a.m. is the next Morning Medical Update. A person needing a kidney transplant waits, on average, three to five years. But living donation could shorten that delay. Hollywood actor and Kansas City native Erron Jay is one man who understands the power of living donation. He’ll be with us live in the studio to talk about how he found his new kidney, and we’ll show you what you need to know if you want to share your spare.
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