Here are five of the many physicians on the cutting edge of gastroenterology: If you would like to nominate a physician, please email pnewitt@beckershealthcare.com. Jordan Axelrad, MD. NYU Langone (New York City) Gastroenterologist Dr. Axelrad is a clinical researcher who explores the intersections of IBD with gut microbiome health, mucosal immunology, infections and cancer risk. He recently earned the 2024 Sherman Emergencing Leader Prize for his work, according to the release.Dr. Axelrod was also recently appointed as a co-director for the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center at NYU Langone. Steven Brant, MD. Rutgers University (New Brunswick, N.J.) Dr. Brant, a leader…
Author: Abhay Panchal
Private equity and corporate ownership of U.S. health care—highlighted by the collapse of Steward Health Care—has sparked new scrutiny over the industry’s growing pursuit of profits at the expense of patient care. Steward’s collapse, after being flipped from a struggling non-profit system to a private equity-backed for-profit entity and then saddled with high rents by a real estate investment trust, left patients underserved and staff displaced. This case is not isolated, as more health systems and physician practices are acquired by private equity and other corporate interests focused on quick returns. Research shows that these takeovers often lead to cost-cutting…
Enhance your patient care skills with this season covering select AGA Clinical Practice Updates. Originally released as a bonus episode in January 2023, this episode shares key insights from the AGA Clinical Practice Update on Lifestyle Modification Using Diet and Exercise to Achieve Weight Loss in the Management of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (published in the February 2021 issue of Gastroenterology). This episode is hosted by Dr. Jana Al Hashash, member of the AGA Clinical Practice Update Committee. She is joined by: -Dr. Heather Patton, NAFLD expert and past member of the AGA Clinical Practice Update Committee -Dr. Joseph K.…
Irish start-up FoodMarble, creator of a handheld digestive breath analyzer called Aire, is expanding its team, focusing on the US healthcare market, and expecting around €4 million in annual revenue. The company’s device helps users identify food intolerances and manage symptoms of conditions such as IBS by analyzing breath samples and providing tailored dietary insights through a smartphone app. Having sold over 50,000 devices across 50 countries and conducted more than 5 million breath tests, FoodMarble now offers a free personalized analysis program to existing and new customers. With about 35 employees currently, the Dublin-based business aims to raise funding…
A recent study comparing two AI-driven computer-aided detection (CADe) systems for colonoscopy found that a lower false positive (FP) rate led to significantly better clinical outcomes. The system with fewer FPs improved the adenoma detection rate and adenomas per colonoscopy, without increasing unnecessary removals of non-neoplastic lesions. In contrast, the higher-FP system did not enhance detection and caused more unnecessary resections. These findings highlight the importance of minimizing FPs for maximizing the effectiveness of AI-assisted colonoscopy.
U.S. national health spending hit $4.9 trillion in 2023, a figure that’s on par with the entire economies of major countries and large multinational corporations. For context, Germany’s economy was valued around $5 trillion in 2024, and forecasters predict India will reach the $5 trillion mark by 2026. In the corporate world, investors have speculated that tech giants like Nvidia or Amazon could achieve $5 trillion market valuations in coming years. Amid these global benchmarks, America’s $4.9 trillion health spending underscores just how large and influential healthcare is in the U.S. economy. The spending, detailed in the latest CMS report…
Gastro Health has opened the IR Center of Greater Cincinnati, a specialized facility offering advanced hemorrhoid treatments. Established in partnership with The Urology Group and Radiology Associates of Northern Kentucky, the center combines a doctor’s office and a surgical suite, where interventional radiologists perform hemorrhoid embolization. This minimally invasive procedure blocks abnormal blood vessel connections in the rectum, providing long-lasting relief from rectal bleeding caused by internal hemorrhoids.
Recent controversies over anesthesia reimbursement have underscored the precarious balance between insurers’ cost-cutting measures and the necessity of fairly compensating providers for complex gastrointestinal (GI) procedures. Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan both recently reversed planned reimbursement changes after pushback from providers and patients. These policies would have tied anesthesia payments more closely to compressed physician work time values, potentially undervaluing long, intricate procedures like endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP).
International researchers have identified distinctive bacterial signatures in the gut microbiome that may lead to new, noninvasive diagnostics for inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), specifically ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD). Using metagenomic data from nearly 6,000 fecal samples across multiple ethnicities, the team pinpointed certain bacterial species consistently associated with IBD, including enrichments like Escherichia coli and Bacteroides fragilis in CD patients. Notably, these microbiome-based markers remained stable even during inactive disease phases, suggesting their reliability as disease indicators.
A clinical trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) has led to the FDA granting a Breakthrough Therapy Designation to Jemperli (dostarlimab), an immunotherapy drug from GSK, for treating a specific subset of rectal cancer patients. The trial focuses on patients with mismatch repair-deficient (MMRd) or microsatellite instability-high (MSI) tumors. By using immunotherapy alone—without surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation—researchers achieved a 100% remission rate in all 42 participants, with no evidence of disease persisting for up to four years and counting. This approach spares patients from the life-altering side effects of standard treatments, such as infertility and incontinence, greatly improving…