VOTE

I believe.

I believe that we each can make a difference. We make a difference when we open a door for someone, feed the hungry and house the homeless. We make a difference when we speak kindly to another human being. We make a difference when we share our perspective. And, we certainly make a difference when we vote for people and ideals in which we believe.

I also believe we can influence the course of our health. I believe that nutrition can enhance our immune system’s ability to fight disease, that medical research can translate new and important diagnosis and treatment, and that health education provides the tools to improve your health and the health of those you love.

On this day of our national election, I urge you to cast your vote for your country and for your family. Register for A Woman's Journey on November 17. Come, learn from Johns Hopkins physicians, and make a difference in your own life.

Believe.

Leslie

Hunker Down

Since the first threat of Hurricane Sandy, Baltimoreans and others on the east coast have been advised to prepare for the storm and “hunker down.” It is a funny sounding expression whose origin relates to women squatting in the fields to give birth.

We have come a long way, but now that the storm has passed and many are dealing with its aftermath, hunkering down is on my mind. As the 18th annual Johns Hopkins Medicine women’s health conference, A Woman’s Journey, is quickly approaching, the Woman’s Journey team and I are doing just that: hunkering down. We are preparing for the conference, registering all who call, fax and mail their registration; preparing handouts of presentations; and finalizing logistical details for the November 17, 2013 program at the Hilton Baltimore Hotel.

I have been working with Mollye Block, Harriet Legum and Chris White for many years. Each conference is characterized by new initiatives, medical advances and personal tales of adversity overcome as a result of attending the conference and speaking with Johns Hopkins physicians. This year I am particularly looking forward to our first presentation by the new Dean of the Medical Faculty and CEO of Johns Hopkins Medicine, Dr. Paul Rothman. In his session, aptly titled The Joint Chief, Dr. Rothman will describe the causes of arthritis and innovative therapies that may reduce the pain and prevent further disease.

I hope you will join us. There is so much to learn. So many insights to stay healthy. My advice is simple: hunker down and send your registration now. 410-955-8660; hopkinsmedicine.org/awomansjourney.

Leslie

Hail to Women

As the Olympic torch was lit in London, the Johns Hopkins annual women’s health program, A Woman’s Journey, launched its on line registration for the November 17 conference in Baltimore. To us, it seemed like a fitting tribute. After all, these 2012 Summer London Olympics are being dubbed the Olympics of women. At least for the United States, earlier this week women already had garnered 23 of the 34 gold medals.


So, journey to the city of Michael Phelps and other Olympiads. Join hundreds of women eager to improve our health and stay well. Attend A Woman's Journey and participate listen to Johns Hopkins physicians teach 32 seminars. More than half of our speakers are women who are experts in their field. Come learn about Turmeric, strategies to reduce your risk of cancer, heart disease, vaccines, and boosting your immune system. There are 32 topics that will help us improve our health, stay well and care for our families. You can view the entire program and seminars at: hopkinsmedicine.org/awomansjourney. We will be cheering you on.


Leslie

Life's Not-So-Little Lessons

It’s hard to believe, but another Woman’s Journey conference is behind us. On Saturday, just one week following the conference, I attended a baby naming where someone remarked they heard that this year’s program was the best. After 17 years, she asked, why was November’s Woman’s Journey so special?

Most women attend our annual Johns Hopkins women’s health conference to learn about medical advances and specific diseases. This year was no different. The two keynote speakers, however, touched the hearts of the thousand women who attended the conference. They are extraordinary story tellers with powerful messages.

Sorrel King retold the devastating loss of her 18 month old daughter as a result of a medical error at The Johns Hopkins Hospital more than 10 years ago. She shared her profound grief and courageous and compassionate decision to honor her daughter's memory and create the Josie King Foundation dedicated to patient safety. Mrs. King has shared her story with thousands of health professionals and has worked with Dr. Peter Pronovost, director of the Johns Hopkins Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality to reduce the U.S.’s reported 98,000 annual deaths caused by medical errors. Her story underscored the need to turn tragedy—from the loss of a child to just a bad day—into something positive that can help other human beings.

During Lunch with the Faculty, emergency medicine physician Dr. Christina Catlett told of her journey from a southern college sorority house to The Johns Hopkins Hospital Emergency Room. In this medical setting,she assembles a team of Hopkins health care providers to travel to areas, including Haiti,that have been destroyed by natural disasters. Dr. Catlett described the rampant destruction. Yet, following a subsequent professional meeting in Australia, she serendipitously found herself climbing a mountain(it was only 900 feet high). This exhilarating experience led her to acquire medical wilderness certification and pursue a new-found quest to reach summits across the globe. Her message was simple: find your passion and strive for balance within your life.

You might not be able to share the experience with other women, but I urge you to watch the conference website: hopkinsmedicine.org/awomansjourney for postings of video and audio excerpts from this November's extraordinary presentations. And, don’t miss next year’s speakers who undoubtedly will be just as inspirational as Sorrel King and Christina Catlett. Save the date now for next year’s conference: Saturday, November 17, 2012.

Leslie

Appetizers, Please

I must confess, personally I have one disappointment about the Johns Hopkins Medicine women’s health conference, A Woman’s Journey. As the conference organizer, I rarely attend a presentation. Yes, I help develop the topics and interface with many of the speakers, but it is rare that I have the opportunity to sit in a seminar and listen to Johns Hopkins faculty physicians as they share new advances in medicine.

So, you will understand why I was thrilled yesterday to review excerpts of four of the most popular sessions from our most recent conference in Baltimore. I watched the brief videos excerpted from presentations by Drs. Michael Gloth, Suzanne Jan de Beur, Linda Lee, and Gerard Mullen, each of whom spoke about diet, nutrition and /or exercise to promote wellness and healthy aging.

When you have five minutes, go to hopkinsmedicine.org/awomansjourney or You Tube and click on the videos. Surely you too will learn something and at the same time, get a great taste of A Woman’s Journey. Hopefully it will whet your appetite for this year’s conference on Saturday, November 12, 2011. I hope to pass you in the hall, or perhaps, even sit next to you in one of the sessions.

Leslie

La Dolce Vita

I have returned from a memorable family trip to Italy; something I have always wanted to do. Since arriving home,friends and colleagues have asked, “what was the best part of your vacation?” Unequivocally, I have answered,“being together as a family."

But, I have to admit, the sites were breathtaking. Each Italian city is so different. It didn't take long to find our pace, absorb the Italian culture and the gelato. We were fortunate to visit the proprietor of a vineyard and wonderful Tuscan inn, take a cooking class in magnificent Florence, ride Venice’s Grand Canal and explore ancient Rome. No matter where we travel, however, there always are reminders of reality facing us at home.

When we visited the Vatican, our guide pointed out a sculpture of Artemis. This Greek Goddess of fertility was the daughter of Zeus and Leto and the twin sister of Apollo. The sculpture is distinctive with more than a dozen breasts. I was familiar with the second century artwork because Artemis also is the name of the Johns Hopkins breast center's e-newsletter. But, seeing the sculpture in person, and in Italy, was a reminder that the world is small and that women everywhere face many of the same health issues.

As we returned home I reflected on the two cultures. Florentian gelato may be memorable, but we are fortunate to have a program like A Woman’s Journey to learn about diagnosing breast cancer and a myriad of other health issues confronting us. We may not serve gelato or ice cream at the conferences, but you will be treated to a healthy serving of new medical information.

Ciao,
Leslie

Life's Rewards

The most rewarding part of my job is engaging with people who make a difference in the health and well being of others. At Hopkins, most often it is the scientists, researchers and physicians whose discoveries alter the course of medicine. Sometimes, however, it also can be a lay person.

Yesterday, I had the privilege of speaking with Sorrel King, an author and mother, who has transformed a personal family tragedy into a campaign to change today's health care system. After living with what she describes as "searing pain" from the death of her youngest child, Sorrel began a foundation dedicated to improving patient safety domestically and globally. It has been a nine year crusade that has reaped real change and undoubtedly saved so many lives.

Fortunately for us, Sorrel King has accepted our invitation to be the plenary speaker at the November 12, 2011 annual Johns Hopkins women's health conference, A Woman's Journey. I hope you will visit the conference website to take advantage of the discounted early on-line conference registration. Register for A Woman's Journey and be inspired by Sorrel King. She will be joined by 32 Hopkins physicians who will present seminars on topics from What You Eat Can Save Your Life to Top 10 Tips to Prevent Cancer. It’s a day you won’t want to miss!

Shortly after Sorrel and I concluded our conversation that afternoon, I was off to the book store to purchase a copy of her book, Josie's Story. Whether you read the book or not, I hope you will take the day for yourself and come meet Sorrel in person.

Leslie

Change

I have been out of the office for more than one week and it always is hard to return. I am back in the office, however, at an exciting time. A Woman's Journey has begun registration for its annual Women's health conference that will be held on Saturday, November 12, 2011.

As co-chairs Mollye Block and Harriet Legum acknowledge a lot has changed since the three of us began the conference 17 years ago. Who could have imagined all the discoveries that may influence our daily lives: personalized cancer treatments, unique immune responses in women and the importance of vitamin D. These and other medical advances are changing our ability to influence our health as well as the way doctors diagnose and treat disease.

We need to harness this knowledge and personally make a difference for ourselves and our families. That's why I hope that you will take a day for yourself and join me at this year's conference. It is one day that could change the course of all others.

Leslie

Statistics Don't Lie

Last week I attended a professional briefing and was struck by a fact included in the speaker’s presentation. By 2013, cancer is expected to surpass heart disease as the leading cause of death in the United States. I don’t know why I was startled. The American Cancer Society reported 1.5 million new cases of cancer in the United States in 2010. Most weeks I hear about cancer affecting someone I know; just this month, several people have asked me about the pancreatic center at Johns Hopkins.

It’s no surprise then, that so many women responding to the recent Woman’s Journey survey of health interests identified Strategies to Prevent Cancer as their top choice. So, in response to the survey outcomes, the annual Johns Hopkins women’s health conference November 12, 2011 will include four sessions related to cancer:

• Advanced in Diagnosing Breast Cancer
• Ten Ways to Reduce Your Risk of Cancer
• What You Eat Can Save Your Life
• Changing the Outcomes for Pancreatic Cancer

Johns Hopkins faculty speakers also will focus on dozens of other topics, but from my perspective, I will be sure I learn about cancer prevention. For myself and my family I want to do everything possible to reduce the likelihood of having cancer as well as know about advances in diagnoses and treatments. Perhaps after hearing about the projected rate of cancer, you will too.

Be Well,
Leslie

Conflict Resolution

Many years ago I received brief training on conflict resolution. It was insightful and gave me skills I continue to use. It hasn't however, helped me resolve some important questions.

Consider the facts. This summer we read about cardiovascular risks from a diabetes drug now more tightly controlled in the United States. Another study questioned new risks associated with calcium supplement that many women use to increase bone density and ward off osteoporosis. Increasingly we read evidence that contradicts prior medical advice.

Sometimes it's hard to know how to stay healthy.

Fortunately, the annual Johns Hopkins Medicine women's health conference,A Woman's Journey, will address many of these and other significant health issues at the November 20 conference. Vitamin specialist Dr. Benjamin Caballero, cardiologist Dr. Wendy Post and endocrinologists Drs. Suzanne Jan de Beur and Deborah Sellmeyer will provide insights into vitamin supplements, cardiovascular, and bone mineral health.

I hope you will join us at this exceptional forum on women's health. It will be an extraordinary opportunity to resolve some conflict between health information. I know my friends and I will be looking for some answers.

Stay well,
Leslie

Vacation is More than a Memory

Recently I returned from vacation and as often is the case, I am reminded that the friends and family we visit are more essential than the Maine woods, hiking and blueberries.

No matter where we journey, people are talking about their health. Between blueberry and peach pies and lobster, we considered integrative approaches to medicine, nutrition, strategies to reduce disease and manage our health and other concerns. I even discovered white whole wheat flour in an organic grocery store. I learn alot from talking with other, reading and, of course, my Hopkins colleagues.

I am fortunate that many of my friends will attend this year's Johns Hopkins Medicine annual women's health conference, A Woman's Journey. I know that they will learn from the experts and continue to dialogue about the choices we all make.

I hope you will join them and register for the conference. It is the best way to understand how we can improve our lives and the lives of those we love.

Leslie

What’s In a Name?

Each year I assemble a small group of colleagues to study the schedule of seminars that have been confirmed for the Johns Hopkins Medicine annual women’s health conference, A Woman’s Journey. Our agenda is to craft titles for each lecture. These are critical subjects about improving your health and sometimes devastating diseases. Naming a seminar is serious business. Never the less, the meeting sometimes becomes raucous. It’s challenging. We need to be creative, yet maintain the integrity of the subject matter. The bottom line is to appeal to your curiosity and interests.

So, as you plan your fall, I hope you will check out hopkinsmedicine.org/awomansjourney. Read the titles of A Woman’s Journey’s 32 seminars that will be taught by Johns Hopkins physicians. Laugh at some of the titles; be motivated by others. But, when you finish reading the seminar names, be sure to go to our website, register for A Woman’s Journey, and learn what’s really in a name.
Leslie

A Suprising Legacy

I don’t mean to sound morbid, but last weekend we had a most extraordinary—and personal—experience.

After going through some old family papers, we learned where my husband’s grandparents had been buried so many years ago. So, last weekend, armed with genealogical information, a map, pruning shears and a few other sundry items, we traveled to several cemeteries in one of New York’s boroughs. It was not an ordinary outing. Some engravings of names and dates on tombstones were eroded by years and weather. Other grave markers had fallen over; some were overwrought with vines. But, in the course of a few hours, we located so many relatives dating back centuries. My husband learned about relatives, many of whom he never knew existed.

It was an inspiring trip and by the time returned home,I decided to assemble a “family tree.” The branches are so laden with names and dates, the draft paper now covers my dining room table. You can’t help but wonder who these people were, how they lived, and how they died. We each carry so many genes and traits from our family members, many of whom we didn’t even know. And then, I thought about a real gift I could pass on to my children.

I have prepared a medical family history. To the best of my knowledge I have detailed the diagnoses of my generation and my parents. Hopefully it will provide the detailed family records that physicians may someday request of my children. It's a unique legacy and one that I hope will keep them healthy.
Leslie

The Master of Our Fate

I suspect by now, you’ve assessed that I am an optimistic person. Long ago my Dad taught me that you can “get more from honey than vinegar” and I have remembered this lesson throughout my life. I also believe that by our choices and determination we shape our own lives.

Sometimes I am slow to catch a movie. And so not surprisingly with the excitement surrounding the World Cup Soccer tournament, I just saw Invictus, the story of the South African rugby team and President Nelson Mandela's vision for a united South Africa. The title, which is Latin for ‘unconquered’, I learned comes from the 1850 poem by Englishman William Ernest Healy (1849-1903). It concludes with the well known phrase: “I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.”

May we all heed the message and try to take control of our own lives to have a healthy year. I hope you also take the opportunity to watch the movie; it is quite compelling.

Leslie

Benefits of Another Day

Three years ago this week my college roommate passed away. She died of recurrent breast cancer after an 18-month struggle fraught with chemotherapy, radiation, clinical trails and finally palliative care. I find my self questioning if she had survived, would new treatments be available to sustain her life?

Through A Woman’s Journey I have learned about new drugs and experimental approaches to treatment. I don’t know if additional time would have reaped any benefit, but wish that others live long enough to benefit from new developments.

Fortunately for the rest of us, Lillie Shockney, survivor, administrative director of the Johns Hopkins Avon Breast Center and a national spokesperson will speak at A Woman’s Journey in Baltimore on November 20, 2010, in Palm Beach on January 20, 2011, and Naples on January 21. For those of us who have had an abnormal mammogram or felt a breast lump, Lillie will offer a road map telling women how to proceed when they fear a diagnosis of breast cancer.

You can bet that Lillie will be enlightening and somehow will find a way to interject humor into her otherwise serious remarks.

I hope you will be able to attend the conference (www.hopkinsmeidcine.org/awomansjourney) and hear this extraordinary speaker.

Leslie

The Up Side of Jello

At age 50 your life changes. It’s more than menopause. You suddenly begin to take some things more seriously. Certainly you start to pay more attention to your health.

Among the recommended screening tests, the American Cancer Society and doctors prescribe colonoscopies. No wonder. Colon cancer is among the most common types of cancer; but, when detected early, colon cancer has high cure rates. It’s on my mind since my colonoscopy is scheduled this week.

Many people ignore this diagnostic test. They are more concerned about the “prep” rather than the procedure itself. Don’t let this dissuade you. There’s nothing wrong with a little jello and some clear liquids for 24 hours. The prep may be inconvenient, but the outcome can be lifesaving.

Johns Hopkins has a long history of ground breaking discoveries targeting colon cancer. Kimmel Cancer Center researchers were the first to isolate a series of mistakes in human DNA, called genetic mutations, that lead to the development and progression of colon and rectum cancer. These findings have already been used to develop screening blood tests for people with a family history of certain types of hereditary colon and rectum cancers. Subsequent work has led to the development of stool tests for non-hereditary colon cancer. Hopkins scientists also were the first to decode the colon cancer genome. Several new anticancer agents are being studied for their ability to interfere with the genetic alterations and stop the initiation of cancer. As genetic causes continue to be uncovered, Hopkins researchers expect to improve broad-based screening tests to detect colon and rectum cancer in its earliest and most treatable stages. More information is available at http://www.hopkinskimmelcancercenter.org/index.cfm/cid/1258

So, my advice is simple. Schedule your colonoscopy and get some jello.

Leslie

Pain

Unfortunately my daughter recently had ankle surgery related to a fall down a circular staircase at school. The surgeon performed the ankle repair. The hospital provided detailed discharge instructions. Now as the mother, it is my responsibility to help my daughter recover in the aftermath of surgery. I can fluff the pillows, apply the ice packs, and fill the prescriptions. It’s managing her pain that leaves me uneasy.

Research shows that women suffer from pain conditions disproportionally compared to men. Johns Hopkins assistant professor of anesthesiology and critical care medicine and pain specialist Dr. Paul Christo tells me that women represent 72% of chronic pain sufferers. Migraine headaches and fibromyalgia are more common in women; women report more serious, more frequent, and longer lasting pain, and too many women are given antidepressants and tranquilizers when they report pain. Pain is often undertreated which results in needless suffering for millions of people.

Chronic pain affects a staggering 25% or more of the population and continues to cause distressing symptoms for many years. Very few patients with persistent pain have access to a pain specialist, and those who gain access report that treatments are underutilized and often fraught with barriers.

My daughter was fortunate. The pain was quickly controlled. For others, however, it’s good to know that there are pain specialists at Hopkins.

Leslie

Medical School Credentials

No, I didn’t go to medical school. I haven’t taken medical boards. Probably the last formal science courses I took were 9th biology and 10th grade chemistry. Graduate school focused on health care and research. Yet, because I manage the Johns Hopkins Medicine annual women’s health conference--A Woman's Journey--and am fortunate enough to interact with some of the world’s leading physicians, my family, friends and their friends call me for medical advice.

Weekly, I field telephone calls and emails: How should they treat a growing list of ailments? Which treatment option has better outcomes? Who is the best expert? How many international units of Vitamin D should they take? Should pathology reports be overread? or Does a patient need a second opinion? Many times I am able to confidently refer friends to the right specialist. Most times I remind them of the shortcomings of my “medical education.” And, always, I urge them to attend A Woman’s Journey so they can learn and personally question the real experts.

Before the conference in November, sign up for the Woman’s Journey monthly e-mail which contains reports of relevant medical advances from Hopkins. It’s a good way to learn about health care hopefully before we need it. Take it from me; this is good advice.

Leslie

Your Opinion Matters

This is the time of year I enjoy most. Not because of the snow, for sure. Rather I find it satisfying to identify the topics for the forthcoming A Woman's Journey and begin to interview faculty members about their specialties.

Each year women ask how we select the health topics offered at the Johns Hopkins Medicine women's health conference. The answer is simple. We survey women like you and ask you to identify the health issues that are of greatest concern to you. So I ask for your help.

If you haven't already, please go to the Woman's Journey website (www.hopkinsmedicine.org/awomansjourney) and take the brief survey. It takes just a few minutes to scan through the list of potential seminar topics and indicate those of interest to you. The results will guide our decisions as I outline the program for next winter.

Your opinion really does matter.

Thanks,
Leslie

Giving Thanks for Four Scores and Then Some

Thanksgiving always has been a favorite holiday and time of year for me. I relish working in the kitchen all day as my family gathers together. This year we also marked a particular milestone as my mother celebrated her 85th birthday.

My sisters and I prepared a family brunch to note the occasion. In preparation, I did some research about the major social, political and literary events that have taken place during her lifetime. Late one night I placed the information on customized place cards. So much has happened during my mother's life time. It is another reminder of the pleasure we can derive from staying healthy and active and living a long life.

Leslie