Chronic pain can be caused by a number of conditions, including nerve damage, muscle pain, injuries that don’t heal properly, arthritis, cancer and sickle cell disease. Identifying the source of someone’s pain can be a trial-and-error process. Even if two people have the same source of pain, they may experience different pain symptoms. In some instances, chronic pain can be relieved through an intravenous (IV) infusion of lidocaine.

With the green light from the FDA, a new immunotherapy treatment is now available to treat certain adult patients with metastatic melanoma, an aggressive skin cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. Called tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy, this option is for people with metastatic melanoma that can’t be treated with surgery and that has continued to grow and spread despite already having been heavily treated with other approved strategies.

There lies a paradox in sleep. Its apparent tranquility juxtaposes with the brain’s bustling activity. The night is still, but the brain is far from dormant. During sleep, brain cells produce bursts of electrical pulses that cumulate into rhythmic waves—a sign of heightened brain cell function. But why is the brain active when we are resting?

Taking a single pill that combines medications targeting cardiovascular disease-related conditions was shown long ago to lower the risk of death from such causes, including heart attacks and strokes. The concept of using such “polypills” to prevent and treat atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease was introduced nearly 25 years ago. Still, many years and a body of supportive research later, use of such pills remains low throughout the world.

Last year, St. Louis mom Sara Schwartz discovered she was pregnant with not one but two babies –– identical twin girls. Schwartz, who was already a mother of three (to children ages 12, 11 and 9) felt excited about her “bonus babies” on the way, despite it being a high-risk pregnancy.