Health

Psoriatic arthritis happens when your body’s immune systemcauses inflammation where your tendons or ligaments connect to your bone.

About a third of people who have psoriasis get psoriatic arthritis. Symptoms may be severe and get worse quickly. They can also be mild and get worse slowly over many years.

For many years, the primary treatment for melanoma was surgery and a type of immunotherapy called interferon. According to the Melanoma Research Alliance, interferon works by stimulating the body’s immune system to kill any cancer cells that may have spread beyond the original tumor. John M. Kirkwood, M.D., professor of medicine, and director of the Melanoma Program at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center’s Hillman Cancer Center, says a year of interferon ...

When Melissa Meli received a diagnosis of breast cancer earlier this year, her boyfriend’s mother was the first person to suggest — gently — that she look into freezing eggs before starting chemotherapy that could make her infertile. Meli’s oncologist agreed, and a few days later, Meli met with a reproductive specialist while her boyfriend was deployed. Aside from having breast cancer, Meli, who is under 40, was in good health, and the doctor said fertility preservation would take just ...