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In Successful Cancer Trial, Therapy “Dissolves” Stage IV Tumor in 3 Weeks

Melanoma-CT-Scan-NewEnglandJournalofMedicine

An experimental drug combination dissolved a cancerous tumor so fast, it caught researchers completely off-guard. The two-drug combo completely eliminated a woman’s melanoma — and left her completely cancer-free — in just three weeks.

Researchers were surprised at how well the drug combination worked, shrinking tumors at least 80% in more than half of the 142 patients in the trial. And the combination completely eradicated tumors in 22% of patients.

In the rapid recovery case, a 49-year-old woman was given the drugs to treat a large tumor on her chest. Doctors continued to monitor her after the treatment and she remains cancer-free. (The image on the left shows the cancer mass with an asterisk* and the photo on the right is magnified)

“I was astonished; I’d never seen anything like that,” Dr. Paul Chapman, head of the melanoma section at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York told Live Science. “She said the tumor had just kind of dissolved.”

Chapman was lead author of the research report published in the New England Journal of Medicine about the trial, part of research needed for the FDA to approve combined use of the drugs.

The woman, and others in the trial, were treated with a process called immunotherapy — using drugs to boost a person’s own immune system to fight cancer. It’s a relatively new approach to treating deadly melanoma.

The patients were given two FDA-approved melonoma drugs already being used to treat the cancer, but not used in combination before — ipilimumab (sold under the brand name Yervoy) and nivolumab (brand name Opdivo).

Ipilimumab allows the body to override part of the immune system, turning loose waves of immune cells to kill cancer cells. Nivolumab strengthens certain immune cells, called “T cells,” preventing them from dying and allowing them to continue attacking cancer longer.

Chapman says the tests confirm a suspicion doctors and researchers have had for a long time that the immune system can fight cancer. This research may open new doors in unleashing that potential.

Thousands of Volunteers Offer to Clean Up Baltimore After Riots

Baltimore Cleanup-Ric Lee-Facebook

Armed with brooms and trash bags, volunteers have marched into the streets of Baltimore, turning out in force to clean up “Charm City” after protests left shops damaged and debris in the streets. Nearly 3,000 people have signed up for impromptu events running through May 5.

“Let’s get together and help affected communities/businesses remove debris,” reads the description on the Baltimore clean-up effort Facebook page. “Bring heavy duty trash bags, gloves, brooms, dust pans, trash cans, containers, and anything else that would help.”

Local news reports show large groups of people, scattered around the city, already sweeping sidewalks and clearing streets.

The Facebook group has posted meeting locations and trash drop-off sites and has a spreadsheet of addresses that need to be cleaned up. It invites people to post links to groups heading up efforts and asks people to let them know of places in town that need volunteers.

Dozens of people have posted to the page offering to help — one man saying he’d bring his pickup truck within an hour, and offering to bring pizza, too.

Still other posts reflect Baltimoreans’ fierce prided in their city and loyalty to one another above all their differences.

“It’s a different Baltimore today, “ Ric Lee commented. He posted the photo above, showing his friends and himself joining the clean up. “We didn’t know each other. Now, we do.”

Baltimore-cleanup-rubble-Yosi Badie Facebook event
Photo by Yosi Badie, via Facebook event page

Work With Texas Immigrants Earns Her 2015 Teacher of the Year Honor

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Shana Peeples, who teaches advanced English at Amarillo’s Palo Duro High School, has done wonders for kids who might normally remain invisible, both inside and out of the classroom.

Viet Tran, 21, a former student now studying neurobiology on a scholarship to Harvard, who came to the U.S. in 1998, told the AP that he wouldn’t be where he is today without Peeples’ help. Peeples has a history of personally convincing immigrant families like Tran’s to allow their children to stay in school instead of forcing them to quit and work instead. She has also encouraged teens to pursue college education instead of settling for “dead-end jobs.”

Additionally, her experience growing up with an often dysfunctional family has also helped her connect with children who have come to Texas from war-torn countries like Somalia, Ethiopia and Iraq.

Peeples will spend the next year attending 150 events and speaking about how poverty affects education in America.

“A lot of Americans don’t understand how hard it is to try to learn when you’re hungry, or when you’re sick and can’t afford to go to the doctor, or when you have to move out of your home in the middle of the night because you can’t afford the rent,” she told the AP.

Shana Peeples said on CBS This Morning, the most exciting thing about being a teacher is that “you can help write the end of the story for every kid.”

(WATCH the video below from CBS or READ more from AP)

Chipotle Stopped Serving Genetically Altered Food

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On Monday, Chipotle Mexican Grill became the first major American restaurant chain to swear off the use of genetically engineered ingredients.

Steve Ells, founder and co-chief executive of Chipotle said, “Just because food is served fast doesn’t mean it has to be made with cheap raw ingredients, highly processed with preservatives and fillers and stabilizers and artificial colors and flavors.”

‘In 2013, Chipotle was the first restaurant chain to indicate which items contained genetically modified organisms,” according to the NY Times.

The Food and Drug Administration maintains that GMOs are safe. Most of the country’s corn and soybean crops are genetically modified to be able to resist plant diseases, says a CBS news report about Chipotle’s decision.

(READ the story from the New York Times)

Photo by dr. coop, CC

Boys II Men Singer Helps Man Who Works At US Capitol, Yet Sleeps On Streets

Nathan_Morris_BoysIIMen_Wikimedia-CC_LuisAvilesortiz

Known for his amazing vocals, Boys II Men member Nathan Morris is now lending his voice and celebrity to a great cause.

After hearing about Charles Gladden, a Washington, D.C. man who works in the Senate cafeteria, but has lived on the streets for eight years, he launched a crowd-funding initiative to help him out.

CNN reports that Gladden, who suffers from diabetes, has juggled two jobs, as a janitor and dishwasher, giving most of his $360 a week pay to his children and grandchildren.

Morris set an initial fundraising goal of $10,000, an amount that he’s promised to match with a donation from his Boys II Men House Foundation.

Since the campaign launched on Sunday, he’s already raised $21,000 from strangers who want to give Gladden a new life.

“Even if you are unable to donate anything, just take a minute to let this man’s story rest in your heart,” Nathan wrote on the Go Fund Me site.

(WATCH the video below or READ more at WGHP-TV 8) – Photo by Luis Avilesortiz, CC

Poodle Knows Who is Sickest In Nursing Home Where She Runs Free (WATCH)

 

The second Nala’s paws touch the floor, she’s off in search of those who need a visit.

The pup has free run of the Lyngblomsten care center in St. Paul, Minnesota, and makes her own schedule in terms of who she’ll see and when.

After a nursing home gave up the five-year-old poodle because she was “whiny,” Doug Dawson scooped her right up and brought her to Lyngblomstem. Here, she is literally considered to be a perfect little Angel, sent from above.

”I was like, where did this little bean come from? She’s here for a purpose,” Dawson, who dispenses medicine at the home, told KARE-TV. “She’ll pick out the person with Alzheimers. She has a way of picking the sick.”

If she needs to get to the second or third floor, someone will push the buttons for her, and off she goes, alone.

Nala may not be a trained therapy dog, but she knows when someone needs extra comfort.

24 hours before the video above was posted, she sought out and stayed with a woman who passed away later that day.

(WATCH the video above or READ the story at KARE-11NOTE* auto playing page so adjust your speakers)

 

Teen Walks Home Old Man With Groceries, Photo Goes Viral

youth carries groceries for elderly-FB-SamanthaBrady

His mother said he’d do the same thing even if no one were watching, but someone was –– and now the whole world is looking.

Last week, 18-year-old Christian Trouesdale left the Aldi food store where he worked so he could walk home an elderly man named Bob. Christian toted his groceries and held Bob’s hand, while Samantha-Jayne Brady snapped a photo.

Brady posted it on Facebook and wrote that while Bob wasn’t very agile or fast, Christian was patient and kind.

“It was a lovely thing to witness and they seemed to be having a good chit-chat along their way,” she said. “I desperately want this lad to get some kind of recognition from his workplace so if this gave you a little more faith in mankind.”

The social media universe went crazy for the photo. Fans sent messages of support and called for other youth to follow the good-neighbor example. The quarter-million Likes on her Facebook page also spurred Samantha to set up a non-profit elderly grocery service, something she’s always wanted to do.

Christian’s father, Darren, posted a follow-up photo on Facebook as well, and wrote that Christian has since called Bob to make sure he’s ok and to share the news about their viral photo.

“Bob was delighted with his new found fame at his old age. He was saying we should be proud to have a caring son like him. It really made our day and are proud to have him now as a friend,” he wrote.

On Sunday, Christian and his manager showed up at Brady’s home with flowers and wine, thanking her for her help in spreading the love.

Photos via Samantha-Jayne Brady’s FB Page

Vegas the Rescue Horse Gets Lucky in Love

 

Vegas is a lucky horse, but it wasn’t always that way.

After suffering abuse by her previous owner, she had a hard time learning to trust again. When the SPCA of Texas adopted her out to new mom Jordan Henderson, there was a lot of work to do.

Thanks to a ton of tender loving care, Vegas became a well-adjusted horse. She loved giving trail rides, eating Sonic tater tots, and her new boyfriend, Fuego.

“Vegas and Fuego had an instant connection as soon as we turned her out in the pasture with him,” Henderson said. “He is the dominant horse in the pasture, but never ran Vegas around like he does the others. “Vegas&Fuego_5

They even travel as a couple to get their hooves trimmed and balanced.

“They noticed the first time the farrier stopped by that Vegas became very anxious and talkative when left by herself. The day Vegas was introduced back into the pasture after a 2-and-a-half week period by herself, they were so happy to be reunited that they couldn’t even wait until I got the gate open to be nose-to-nose.”

To boot, Vegas never goes out trail riding without “whinnying something to Fuego,” with a glance back at her lover in the pasture.

Here’s hoping for eternal blue skies as they ride off into the sunset.

French Firm Announces Multiple Sclerosis Drug Breakthrough

brain scans CU Tufts

brain scans CU Tufts

A biotech company Friday announced phase III clinical trial results for a drug that was shown to decrease the progress of Multiple Sclerosis, and in some cases led to a “significant improvement” for sufferers.

“This is the first time that a drug has been able to decrease the rate of disease progression in addition to improving a significant proportion of patients with progressive MS,” said Frederic Sedel, CEO of MedDay Pharmaceuticals.

154 patients suffering from primary or secondary progressive Multiple Sclerosis participated in the randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

The study demonstrated evidence of the efficacy and safety of MD1003, a highly-concentrated pharmaceutical-grade biotin administered at a dose of 300 mg per day.

MD1003 was designed to address a major area of unmet medical need and was “well tolerated” by patients. The overall incidence of adverse events was similar across the two groups.

A neurology professor, Ayman Tourbah, principal investigator of the study, said, “We are encouraged by the outcomes of this pioneering and stringently designed MS-SPI trial. The fact that no patient in the placebo group met the primary endpoint indicates that the study bar was designed to be very high. The significant proportion of patients showing improvement at twelve months, coupled with the decrease in risk of disease progression demonstrated here, makes MD1003 a potentially important new therapy for patients and clinicians in the field of MS.”

Further analyses is planned, as well as MRI studies which might provide additional data about the mechanism of action. A second Phase III placebo-controlled trial is underway looking at the effect of MD1003 in MS patients with permanent visual loss. Results from that trial are expected later this year and MedDay is likely to file for licensing approval with the relevant drug agencies.

The data was presented for the first time on Friday at the American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting in Washington DC. The detailed data is expected to be published in a peer review journal.

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Stephen Hawking’s Perfect Answer About Teen Idol Leaving One Direction

Steven Hawking hologram-one-direction-EvaRinaldi

Who says physicists don’t have a sense of humor?

The brilliant Stephen Hawking told a laughing audience Saturday that he’s finally been asked a question about “something important”. Millions of heartbroken teen fans would agree.

While appearing in the form of a hologram streamed from Cambridge, England, Hawking, 73, was asked to reveal the cosmological effect of Zayn Malik leaving the best-selling boy band, One Direction. Without a beat, Hawking reminded the audience to pay close attention to theoretical physics. Dry those tears because Zayn may, in fact, still be a band member–in a parallel universe.

The celebrated English scientist, whose story of being struck with Lou Gehrig’s disease at age of 21 was immortalized in an Oscar nominated film, The Theory of Everything, was speaking to a group at the Sydney Opera House in Australia.

Zayn Malik left the superstar pop band last month after five years saying, “I’d like to apologize to the fans if I’ve let anyone down, but . . . I want to be a normal 22-year-old who is able to relax and have some private time out of the spotlight.”

(READ more via Reuters)

Photo Credit: (for Zayn Malik) Eva Rinaldi, CC

Chinese Student Carries His Disabled Friend To Class For Three Years

chinese student carries friend WEIBO

This young man literally has his best friend’s back.

For the past three years, Xie Xu, 18, has carried his best friend Zhang Chi, 19, to school every single morning and throughout the day as they travel to classes together. Zhang has muscular dystrophy, a disorder that weakens the muscles over time.

Xie, who is 5’7, has offered his back to Zhang nearly a dozen times daily throughout the school year. The task is entirely a volunteer job, like bringing him all of his meals. But Xie loves it. The partnership extended into their schoolwork, as both of these young men are the top students in their class.

“The story of the two students is so inspiring and touching. They aren’t family, but [Xie] has been doing this for three years. He’s the most beautiful student,” said Guo Chunxi, the vice headmaster of Daxu High School told local media. “He also exerts positive influence on other students, who readily help Zhang. With their assistance, Zhang has never missed out on one single class.”

(READ more, w/ photos, at the Daily Mail)

Photo Credit: Tencent news / Weibo

Man Builds Tiny House for Homeless Woman Sleeping in the Dirt (WATCH)

smokie-elvis-hug-tiny-house-LA-homeless-submitted

A 60-year-old homeless woman named Smokie has been sleeping outside in the dirt a few doors down from a man named Elvis Summers.

Most mornings, she stops by Elvis’s Los Angeles apartment and asks if he has any recyclables for her. Through these conversation, they struck up a friendship.

One morning, Elvis saw a news article about a man in Oakland who has been making tiny houses out of discarded material. He was inspired to put off paying a few bills so he could buy the lumber and hardware to make Smokie a brand new shelter. It took him five days to build, and now, for the first time in ten years, Smokie has a place to hang the sign, ‘Home Sweet Home.’Ewan-Drum-Superhero-to-homeless-SuperEwanInc-750px

Boy Superhero in a Cape Helps Detroit’s Homeless

“I had nowhere to really build it, so I just built it in the street outside of my apartment,” he told Good News Network. “The local LAPD cops have been super cool, and have told me they support it–as long as we move it to a different spot every 72 hours.”

He made this nifty time-lapse video showing how he did it. The materials, including two locks on the front door and sturdy wheels for moving it around, cost him about $500.

 

“I’ve met so many homeless people, good people,” Elvis said in an email. “Since I built Smokie’s, I’ve had several people ask me to make them a tiny home and it’s turned into much more than just the one house I wanted to build.”

Although he runs an online retail store that sells EDM apparel, he decided to launch an ambitious project to fund more shelters. He plans to get lighter and cheaper materials—without sacrificing the strength of the house—for the next round. Rick Sassen, branch manager at supply company Allied Building kindly donated the roof shingles and cedar siding for Smokie’s house, final items Elvis couldn’t afford on his own. Sassen has promised to work out a deal on future building materials for the same cause.

Teen Builds Excellent Tiny House, Donates to Homeless

Thus, the spikey-haired do-gooder has launched “Mythpla” (My Tiny House Project LA) with a crowdfunding campaign for those who want to help, on GoFundMe.

“I’d like to offer purpose to these people in need and hire them to build the houses with me. I’ve even set an appointment with LA’s Mayor Eric Garcetti to try and get his help,” said Elvis. “The city owns or controls many otzyvycasino properties which are just sitting collecting dust and could be used, even temporarily, to help save lives.”

Because Summers qualifies for a free phone through the free phone program, he’s given his device to Smokie and helps her keep it charged. She has been using it to contact her family.

“Now if I could just get her to stop using the radio on the phone so much, it wouldn’t always be dead and need charging so often,” he said laughing.

tiny house elvis submitted-homesweethomeMULTIPLY the Good! Share below…

This is What a Tiger Growl Sounds Like From Tiny Newborn Triplets (WATCH)

tiger-cub-triplet-ColumbusZooTyoutube

Three male Amur tiger cubs were born at the Columbus Zoo on April 21, weighing just 2.5 lbs. each.

The cubs are being hand reared after the female failed to show maternal care and nurse them. But the cubs are “thriving” in the Animal Health Center’s incubator.

“We are always cautiously optimistic about the survival of fragile newborns,” said President and CEO Tom Stalf. “But the cubs seem to be thriving under the 24-hour care provided by our animal specialists and veterinarians.”

These are the first cubs for ten-year-old female, Irisa, although the Zoo team and the Tiger Species Survival Plan had hoped for years she would reproduce and pass on her valuable genes. This is the third litter sired by eleven-year-old, Foli, since 2012.

With the addition of the three cubs there are currently 10 Amur tigers at the Columbus Zoo including four cubs born in 2013 and their mother, Mara.

Amur tigers, also historically referred to as Siberian tigers, are critically endangered, with fewer than 400 individuals believed to exist in the forests of the Russian Far East.

Currently there are fewer than 150 Amur tigers in 50 certified zoos in North America. These tigers are considered pedigreed since they have a known ancestry and breeding recommendations to maintain genetic diversity are managed by a studbook.

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Pharrell and Stars Donate $500K In College Scholarships to Low-Income Students of Color

Anthony Anderson-UNCF-Night of Stars video

The motto of the United Negro College Fund is: “A mind is a terrible thing to waste, but a wonderful thing to invest in.”

Top celebrities in the entertainment industry got together and did just that, donated more than $500,000 for college scholarships at the 36th annual UNCF An Evening of Stars, which airs Sunday night on BET Networks.

Usher, Toni Braxton, Pharrell Williams and Kevin Hart, were among those donating, along with companies like McDonald’s, Wells Fargo, Buick and Disney.

“We’re here to help alleviate the burden off their shoulders,” Anthony Anderson told the AP. “Students won’t have to worry about their next meal, or pay for next semester or housing. The only thing they have to do is open a book and study.”

(WATCH a promo or READ it from AP)

Don't miss Anthony Anderson return for the 3rd year as host of the 36th annual " UNCF An Evening of Stars," airing Sunday, April 26 at 10p/9c on BET! Check out this clip:

Posted by UNCF on Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Rescued Young Kangaroo is Convinced He’s a Dog, Loves Life on the Farm

kangaroo-with-dogs-on-farm-Familyphoto-FelicityStewart

A Western Australia farming family rescued a baby kangaroo whose mother was killed in a car accident. Since then, the young joey, named Dusty, is finding life on the farm very much to his liking.

“He lives on the back patio,” Ashley Stewart told ABC Rural. “We’ve actually had to go and buy a third dog bed for him to sleep in because he used to pinch one of the beds from the dogs.”

From the instant Mr. Steward brought home the orphan two years ago, the family’s golden retriever and border collie have loved “their kangaroo”.Polish cat comforts cat-Imgur

Black Cat Becomes A Nurse, Tending to Every Wounded Animal

 

He thinks the retriever is his mum. He’s always grooming her and waiting for her to return from the fields near Esperance.

Dusty has seen wild kangaroos on the property but shows no interest. He’s too busy living the good life, with 3-4 meals a day, believing he is a dog.

(LISTEN an interview or READ the story from ABC News) – Family Photo by Felicity Stewart

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7-Year-old Makes Viral Video to Aid Buddy Who Lost Toys in a Fire

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This pair of 7-year-olds, Kollin Cox and Ryan Branson, are best friends. When one of them lost everything in a fire, the other one asked his mother to help him make a video and post it on Facebook.

Since then, the St. Louis television stations have run news stories about the friendship that helped raise $11,000 to replace toys, beds and clothes for the young boy and his mother Sonya, proving that the destructive blaze was no match for this pair of elementary school BFFs.

(WATCH the video below from Nightly News or READ the story from KTVI-TV) – Photo via GoFundMe page

SHARE the story with links below… Story tip from carilyn

Ex-NASA Engineer to Plant One Billion Trees a Year Using Drones

drone-for-planting-trees-BioCarbon Engineering
A start-up plans to help solve the world’s climate problems by using drones to plant forests of seedlings.

“We are going to counter industrial scale deforestation using industrial scale reforestation,” says Lauren Fletcher, the founder of BioCarbon Engineering.

The environmental engineer who worked 20 years with NASA wants to use drone technology to plant up to one billion trees a year, without having to plant each one by hand.

Drones will fly two or three meters above the ground and fire out pods containing pre-germinated seeds that are covered in a nutritious hydrogel.Kathy Beitz esight glasses sees newborn baby-850px

Donated Eyewear Allows Blind Mother to See Her Newborn Baby (WATCH)

 

The company’s CEO, who might be called ‘Johnny Apple Drone’, thinks it should be possible to plant up to 36,000 trees a day, and at around 15% of the cost of traditional methods. And they aren’t just looking to create plantations of trees, but full ecosystems.

“Together with tree seeds, we hope to seed in other species including micro-organisms and fungi to improve the soil quality and ensure long-term sustainability of our efforts.”

(WATCH the video below or READ more from the Independent)

How 550 Volunteers Transformed a Filthy, Waste-filled Train Station in India

Mumbai-train-station-clean-up-youtube

Gaurang Damani was so tired of the dirt and stench in a Mumbai train station that he regularly wrote letters to the Central Railway to complain. Finally, the company offered the option to Damani and his non-profit organization to adopt the station and clean it up themselves.

The NGO, Karmayogi Pratisthan, gathered nearby residents and volunteers from colleges, elementary schools, garden and sport clubs to transform King’s Circle station. Beginning in late December, the beautification took 4 months.

Now, the walls of the station have been brightly painted with social messages and inspiring murals, countless bags of trash rotting on the premises were replaced with trash bins, walkways and floors were scrubbed, and even flowers and trees were planted.Dashrath Manjhi-mountain-man-youtube

The Man Who Single-handedly Carved A Road Through a Mountain

 

Women and students who loathed getting on and off at the station now can use it comfortably. New street lamps now make it safer at night and the foul smell has gone away. Sweepers take turns regularly maintaining the appearance and new signage encourages cleanliness.

“The decrease in littering and spitting means that I have made a difference,” Damani told Mid-Day news. “I have invested my own money and there is also money coming through donations. The fact that my NGO has adopted the station (means) people are helping to keep the station clean as well as to beautify it.”

(WATCH the video from Damani below or READ the story from Mid-Day.com)

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Nurse Squeals With Surprise to Find Her Paralyzed Patient Walks (WATCH)

nurse-squeals-when girl walks-YouTube

After eleven days of being inexplicably paralyzed from the waist down, a sudden recovery brought Bailey Murrill back on her feet again. The video below shows Bailey surprising her favorite nurse with the miracle.

Bailey rolls down the hallway in a wheelchair toward the nurse, pretending still to be immobile. The nurse reaches out for a hug when all of a sudden, Bailey stands up to meet her embrace.

“Yes!” screams the nurse. “Thank you Lord, yes!”

And Bailey’s mother recorded the whole thing for us to see…

Story submitted by Debbie Westbeld

NYC’s Korean Dry Cleaners Donate 2000 Unclaimed Items to Homeless

Korean_Dry_Cleaners_donate clothes

A lot of fancy threads get left behind at the dry cleaners, but they were put to good use this week, after a group of Korean-American dry cleaners donated 2,000 pieces of unclaimed clothing to New York City’s most needy.

NYC-korean-drycleaners-association-donate80 boxes of coats, suits, shirts and pants were collected by the Korean Dry Cleaners Association of New York. They spent six months gathering the items from launderers across the city as part of their “Clothes of Love” program.

It has become an annual tradition for the group, which has, over the past 30 years, donate tens of thousands of clothing items to homeless shelters across the city through New York’s Department of Homeless Services.