At 27 years old, Shraddha Kalgutkar was told she had less than a year to live. Determined to prove everyone wrong, she turned to Mayo Clinic in Arizona.

Now Shraddha is living proof of the power of innovation combined with a patient's will to survive.

Watch: Harnessing the power of innovation and a patient's will to survive

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Shraddha's Story

It was November 2022, just a month shy of her 28th birthday.

Shraddha was wrapping up another day at the medical clinic where she worked as an occupational therapist. Shraddha's job was to help patients regain the ability to perform day-to-day activities following a health challenge like a surgery.

Suddenly that afternoon, Shraddha became the patient who needed help.

"My co-worker looked at me and said, 'Why is your hand all purple and blue?'" Shraddha says. She admits she had been feeling exceptionally tired as of late, but attributed it to a thyroid condition.

Her co-worker checked Shraddha's vital signs and found her blood oxygen level was dangerously low. "I remember her saying, 'If this is right, you wouldn't even be standing.'" A repeat test showed the same result. "The next thing I remember was we were on our way to the hospital," says Shraddha.

At the hospital doctors began looking for the cause of Shraddha's low blood oxygen level. A series of tests traced Shraddha's condition all the way back to the day she was born.

"When I was born, doctors said I had fatty liver, but they didn't know why so they called it 'undiagnosed,'" says Shraddha. "The doctors thought it wouldn't be a problem because the liver has a tendency to heal itself." It didn't. Shraddha grew up seemingly in perfect health, unaware that her liver disease was silently doing damage to her body.

A little girl with a big dream

Shraddha was born in Mumbai, India which is often called the "City of Dreams." At a young age, Shraddha had big dreams of her own. She wanted to pursue a career in the medical field that would allow her to help others.

Every year Shraddha went to the doctor for her routine physical. Each time she was given a clean bill of health. "I used to do blood tests, but everything always looked good," says Shraddha. Still, the question of what caused her congenital liver condition lingered in her mind.

"I didn't have a family history of any liver condition. I've never had alcohol in my life," says Shraddha. "There was always a question mark. I needed to find out why this happened to me."

At 23, Shraddha became the first person in her family to leave India and go to the U.S. to attend college. She studied occupational therapy and got her master's degree at the University of Southern California. After college, Shraddha found her dream job at a medical clinic in California.

'You have less than a year to live'

All was going well until Shraddha began to noticed she was unusually tired. "When my sister came to visit she noticed I got tired after walking short distances. I went to the doctor and they thought maybe it was my thyroid," recalls Shraddha.

Then came the day her hands turned purple and her blood oxygen level mysteriously dropped. "My co-worker is a nurse so she got the oximeter and checked and it was 78%," says Shraddha. "And I was like, No, that's not possible because I wouldn't be alive." Shraddha's co-worker checked again, looked at the reading and said, "That's it, you have to go to the hospital."

A series of tests at the hospital revealed shocking results. Shraddha's liver condition had silently led to a more serious condition called hepatopulmonary syndrome.

Hepatopulmonary syndrome

Hepatopulmonary syndrome is caused when liver disease shunts blood away from the lungs preventing the body from getting the appropriate amount of oxygen. Doctors told Shraddha the only way she would survive is with a liver transplant. However, she says she was told her condition was so severe and the risk so high, that she would likely not survive a transplant.

She was denied the transplant and given less than a year to live.

"I told the doctors 'that just can't be. I can't have just one year with nothing to bring to this world. I have not served my purpose,'" recalls Shraddha.

Refusing to give up, Shraddha turned to Mayo Clinic in Arizona.

"More than 40% of her blood was being shunted away from her lungs. Because of that she had extremely low oxygen levels in her blood," explains Bashar Aqel, M.D., director of the Transplant Center at Mayo Clinic in Arizona. "Shraddha's case was one of the most severe cases of liver disease and hepatopulmonary syndrome."

Saving Shraddha

The liver transplant was Shraddha's only hope for survival. "Without a transplant, this disease was progressive and fatal. We don't like to use this word, but it is a very progressive disease," says Dr. Aqel. "There was no other cure than a liver transplant."

Dr. Aqel and his multidisciplinary team of experts at Mayo Clinic went to work on a strategy to save Shraddha. The team came up with a plan using a combination of some of the latest cutting-edge technologies in medicine.

"Liver in a box"

Transplanting any organ is a race agains the clock. Every second the donor organ is outside the body it begins to break down. Surgeons only have a limited time window to transplant the organ. Due to the complexity of Shraddha's case, Dr. Aqel's team knew they would need extra time. They decided to use one of the latest medical breakthroughs in transplant often referred to as "liver in a box."

Traditionally donor organs are kept cold until transplanted. "Liver in a box" uses a warm organ preservation method. The organ is placed in a container that pumps oxygenated, nutrient-rich blood through the liver simulating conditions in the human body. The innovative perfusion system gives surgeons more time to perform the transplant.

"Having the donor "liver in a box" allowed the donor liver to stay healthy while we performed this complex surgery," says Dr. Aqel.

Currently, this warm perfusion technology is primarily being used for heart, lungs and liver transplants.

Saving lives with mobile ECMO

The next challenge was how to keep Shraddha's blood oxygen levels stable after her transplant. Dr. Aqel's team turned to a device called extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, or ECMO. The device often is used when the lungs aren't working properly. ECMO helps with the appropriate gas exchange that must occur to keep the body's blood oxygen level safe.

"It helps in getting oxygen into the blood and carbon dioxide out of the blood through the machine," explains Ayan Sen, M.D., medical director of Mayo Clinic's Intensive Care Unit in Arizona. "It helped us while her lungs recovered after her transplant."

The Mayo team also used one of the newest advancements in ECMO where the device is mobile.

"The best part of the mobile ECMO was that we do it in a way where she could actually walk around with the machine so that we could continue with her physical therapy, which is so important for the healing process after such a complex surgery," says Dr. Sen.

Shraddha was in the ICU for nearly two months. With mobile ECMO she walked nearly every day.

Dr. Sen says mobile ECMO has proved to be a game-changer in critical cases like Shraddha's.

"It is technology that has really expanded from what surgeons do when they do heart surgeries and transplants where now we can do this to save lives at any place that is not a complex environment, like the ICU or the operating rooms," explains Dr. Sen.

Mobile ECMO has become a lifesaving medical breakthrough for many patients.

"It has enabled us to raise the bar when it comes to saving people, who, until now, could not have been saved in the absence of this heart-lung machine," says Dr. Sen.

A team of highly specialized experts escorted Shraddha on her daily walks, meticulously monitoring her vital signs. Each step required Shraddha to muster every bit of strength she had.

"From the first day, I thought even if it pains me, if it hurts, even if it feels impossible, I still need to put that step forward to do something better today than yesterday," recalls Shraddha.

'Mayo's mission is now my purpose'

Almost two years after her harrowing experience, Shraddha is healthy and back at work. She continues her daily walks, only now, at the beach, in solitude, reflecting on how her own experience can make her a better healthcare professional.

"Mayo Clinic doesn't like to say no. They set out to achieve the unachievable," says Shraddha. "My goal is to treat patients as they do, making them a priority."

Shraddha says words of thanks alone are not enough to convey her gratitude.

"Dr. Aqel and his team achieved something for me that everyone else thought was impossible," says Shraddha. "It was a gift. I will keep the mission of Mayo Clinic in mind when I am serving my patients. My purpose now is to put forward their purpose and help someone else."

Related articles:

• Heart Transplant Innovation: New ‘heart in a box’ technology provides gift of life to Arizona man, as couple prepares to celebrate 50-year anniversary
• Breaking barriers: Helping Native Americans in need get the gift of life
• Organ Transplant Innovation: Helping more people get the gift of life

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ROCHESTER, Minn. — Doctors at Mayo Clinic used a new catheter-based approach to draw out resistant pockets of infection that settle in the heart, known as right-sided infective endocarditis, without surgery. Unless treated quickly, the walled-off infections can grow, severely damaging heart valves and potentially affecting other organs as well. In a recent study, over 90% of the participants had their infection cleared, and they had lower in-hospital mortality compared to those whose infections remained.

The research is part of a Mayo Clinic-led study across 19 U.S. sites involving patients who were not good candidates for surgery and whose right-sided heart infections had not responded to antibiotics. Abdallah El Sabbagh, M.D., an interventional cardiologist at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, was the study's principal investigator. Dr. El Sabbagh presented late-breaking research findings at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics Symposium on Oct. 30.

High-risk patients have few treatment options when a serious infection becomes entrenched in a heart valve. People with weakened immune systems, such as those who have had a transplant or cancer treatment, are more susceptible to such infections. IV drug users and patients with implanted medical devices such as pacemakers and artificial heart valves are also more likely to develop infective endocarditis. Approximately half of the 285 study participants were people who inject IV drugs.

"Our research findings show that using a catheter to draw out most of the heart infection potentially made a significant difference in a patient's response to antibiotic therapy afterward to clear up the infection. The participants in this study were all high-risk patients, and most were not responding to antibiotic therapy alone and were considered to have significant risks with open heart surgery. We were able to show that minimally invasive catheter-based aspiration of the infection is feasible, successful and may help a significant population of patients who otherwise have no alternative therapeutic options," says Dr. El Sabbagh.

The catheter-based system was originally developed to remove blood clots from the lungs without surgery. While its off-label use for infective endocarditis shows potential as a safe and effective option, Dr. El Sabbagh notes that further prospective study is needed.  

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About Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to innovation in clinical practice, education and research, and providing compassion, expertise and answers to everyone who needs healing. Visit the Mayo Clinic News Network for additional Mayo Clinic news.

Media contact:

• Terri Malloy, Mayo Clinic Communications, newsbureau@mayo.edu

The post Research shows new method helps doctors safely remove dangerous heart infections without surgery appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

Mayo Clinic has been designated a Tier 1 Center of Excellence for Telomere Biology Disorders by Team Telomere, an international organization devoted to improving the lives of those affected by these complex conditions. This recognition reinforces Mayo Clinic's commitment to enhance diagnostic precision, advance patient care and develop groundbreaking treatments. 

Telomere biology disorders, also known as short telomere syndromes or disorders, are rare diseases due to genetic mutations that accelerate shortening of telomeres, which are protective caps at the ends of chromosomes. People with these disorders often face multiple diseases such as pulmonary fibrosis, bone marrow failure, osteoporosis, various cancers and liver fibrosis. Some people experience early signs of aging, like graying hair or fragile nails. 

"Since its launch in 2016 by Mayo Clinic's Center for Individualized Medicine, the Telomere Biology Disorders clinic has rapidly developed into a leading program, now seeing 3-5 new cases each month and serving more than 126 families across its Minnesota and Arizona locations," says Mrinal Patnaik, M.B.B.S., a hematologist and director of the program. "The clinic leverages expertise from hematologists, oncologists, pulmonologists, gastroenterologists, dermatologists, liver specialists, pharmacists, molecular biologists, genetic counselors and more." 

The clinic offers a wide range of diagnostic and treatment options for patients, including: 

• Blood tests (including CBC and liver function tests) 

• Measurement of telomere length 

• Bone marrow studies  

• Lung function testing  

• Advanced imaging techniques such as CT, MRI, MRE and ultrasound 

• Contrast echocardiography and endoscopy 

• Head and neck and anogenital cancer screening 

• Hematopoietic cell transplantation 

• Lung and liver transplantation 

• DEXA scan for bone density 

• Genetic counseling and family screening  

The Tier 1 designation is part of a newly established tier system by Team Telomere that recognizes organizations demonstrating excellence in several key areas, including coordinated and comprehensive care, advocacy and collaborative research efforts.  

Mayo Clinic's status as a Tier 1 center further enhances its leading role in shaping the future of Telomere Biology Disorders management and treatment. 

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ROCHESTER, Minn.  — Mayo Clinic Platform_Accelerate has announced a strategic agreement with the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) to implement a two-phase program aimed at enhancing U.S. healthcare and business immersion opportunities for Japanese health technology companies.

In the first phase, 16 Japanese companies will gain insights through an educational immersion program led by Mayo Clinic Platform_Accelerate aimed to provide firsthand experience in observing how healthcare professionals use or would benefit from artificial intelligence (AI) in their clinical practices. In the second phase, up to five companies will be selected for onboarding into Mayo Clinic Platform_Accelerate.

Using Mayo Clinic Platform's global, de-identified data network, Mayo Clinic Platform_Accelerate helps health technology startups focus on validation and clinical readiness of their AI-driven solutions in line with healthcare industry standards. The program provides participants access to Mayo Clinic experts in regulatory, clinical, technology and business domains.

"We are excited to welcome 16 innovative Japanese digital health companies into the first phase of this program. We look forward to supporting their journey and fostering their growth as they prepare to make a potentially significant impact on global healthcare," says Jamie Sundsbak, senior manager of the Accelerate program.

Learn more about the 16 companies intending to participate in the phase 1 education program:

• Aillis Inc. Aillis developed one of the world's largest pharyngeal image databases along with AI diagnostic technology for diseases detectable from the pharynx. The company launched NODOCA, an AI-powered pharyngeal endoscopy system, as its first product, which is approved and reimbursed in Japan as an AI medical device for diagnosing influenza. The company is based in Tokyo.
• Ayumo Inc. Ayumo's gait recognition technology remotely screens musculoskeletal diseases without wearables, aiding early detection. These conditions, often hard to identify, can lead to severe outcomes such as spinal injury and paralysis. The company is based in Osaka, Japan.
• BiPSEE Inc. provides virtual reality (VR) solutions based on cognitive behavioral therapy through visualization and gamification using VR sessions and complementary web apps. The company is developing software as a medical device (SaMD) for depression and non-SaMD to support mental wellness. The company is based in Tokyo.
• Boston Medical Sciences Inc. Boston Medical Sciences aims to eradicate deaths caused by colorectal cancer and simplify screenings by introducing a laxative-free virtual colonoscopy. The company is based in Tokyo.
• CureApp Inc. CureApp develops evidence-based, best-in-class digital therapeutics. Their flagship solution pioneering remission of high blood pressure is validated by randomized clinical trials and obtained medical device approval in Japan. The single arm trial result in the U.S. is outstanding compared to other solutions. The company is based in Tokyo.
• I.W.G. Inc. I.W.G. developed a cloud-based platform to improve operational efficiency in hospitals, including secure data sharing, AI screening for medical checkups, task management, billing and hospital administration. The company is based in Tokyo.
• Jmees Inc. Jmees developed the SurVis program, which uses AI to analyze laparoscopic surgery images in real time and support the surgeon's ability to recognize organs, thereby enabling safer surgery. The company is based in Chiba, Japan.
• Quadlytics Quadlytics specializes in wearable sensor technology and real-time physiological signal analytics to provide predictive health, safety and security services. Their core technology focuses on heart rate variability analysis, particularly for predicting epileptic seizures. The company is based in Chiba, Japan.
• Reboost Partners Inc. Reboost uses an AI-enabled medical device to estimate bone density from chest X-rays to improve detection and treatment of osteoporosis. The company is based in Tokyo.
• Smart Opinion Inc. Smart Opinion developed an AI imaging system to assist in the early detection of breast cancer, both through mammography and sonography, improving diagnostic accuracy. The company is based in Tokyo.
• Smile Curve Smile Curve is developing a noninvasive screening system for early detection of scoliosis which is commonly issued during the growth of adolescents. The company is based in Tokyo.
• Southwood Inc. Southwood aims to provide portable echocardiogram and ultrasound diagnostic tools, enabling patients to receive an examination with a physician specialist anytime, anywhere. The company is based in Tokushima, Japan.
• Splink Inc. To support cognitive function testing and dementia diagnosis, Splink developed AI tools for MRI visualization and analysis tools for brain healthcare. The company is based in Tokyo.
• Ubie Inc. Ubie leverages its cutting-edge AI symptom checker to benefit consumers, providers and pharmacists. They globally guide 10 million consumers to appropriate healthcare and also support 1,700 hospitals and clinics for better clinical outcomes. The company is based in Tokyo.
• YStory Inc. To provide support for women with menopause, YStory developed a platform that uses AI to assist in symptom tracking, provide educational materials and build community (currently undergoing clinical trial testing). The company is based in Tokyo.
• Yuimedi Inc. Yuimedi's YuiQuery is an AI-powered assistant that streamlines data extraction, unifies knowledge and ensures data governance for medical teams and data scientists. The company is based in Tokyo and Boston.

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About Mayo Clinic Platform
Founded on Mayo Clinic's dedication to patient-centered care, Mayo Clinic Platform enables new knowledge, new solutions and new technologies through collaborations with health technology innovators to create a healthier world. To learn more, visit Mayo Clinic Platform at www.mayoclinicplatform.org.

About JETRO
JETRO, or the Japan External Trade Organization, is a government-related organization that works to promote mutual trade and investment between Japan and the rest of the world. Originally established in 1958 to promote Japanese exports abroad, JETRO's core focus in the 21st century has shifted toward promoting foreign direct investment into Japan and helping small to medium size Japanese firms and startups maximize their global export potential.

Media contacts:

• Kaitlin Haar, Mayo Clinic Communications, newsbureau@mayo.edu
• JETRO, su-support@je3tro.go.jp

The post Mayo Clinic Platform_Accelerate and JETRO Japan join forces with U.S. Healthcare Immersion Program appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

“We are deeply grateful to Lou and Robin Gerstner for their long-standing friendship and support,” says Gianrico Farrugia, M.D., Mayo Clinic's president and CEO. “Lou’s remarkable generosity over many years has been instrumental in pushing the boundaries of innovation, allowing us to deliver the best care to our patients. This gift further empowers our clinicians to lead practice-changing advancements in healthcare through the strategic and ethical application of AI.”

Mr. Gerstner’s philanthropy to Mayo Clinic is driven by his commitment to fostering innovation, entrepreneurship, bold thinking and cutting-edge research to benefit patients. As the former chairman and CEO of IBM, Mr. Gerstner understands the power of investing in talented and motivated professionals amid a technical revolution.

"AI holds incredible promise for the future of medicine, but it takes more than just algorithms to make that promise a reality,” says Mr. Gerstner. “It requires a commitment to innovation and to the talented individuals who can turn theory into practice. By creating the Gerstner Scholars Program at Mayo Clinic, we ensure that clinicians with patient-first strategies have what they need to redefine what’s possible in healthcare."

Mayo Clinic established Mayo Clinic Platform, the first true platform in healthcare, in part to advance AI innovations globally and ensure these solutions reach patients everywhere. Mayo Clinic Platform is enabling the development and integration of AI solutions in a massively scalable and meaningful way, with more than 250 AI solutions in use or under development at Mayo Clinic alone. Supported by the world’s largest privacy-protected global dataset, these solutions focus on enhancing early disease detection, improving treatment accuracy and supporting diagnostics. Mayo Clinic is a leader in responsible and ethical AI and is committed to patient-centric solutions, with rigorous safety, regulatory and privacy measures, including physician oversight of all patient care solutions.

The Gerstner Scholars Program will accelerate these advancements by providing critical funding and dedicated time for clinicians to pursue high-impact AI projects across Mayo Clinic and ensure more AI-powered solutions are available to patients.

“Mayo Clinic is a leader in artificial intelligence in healthcare because we are able to translate innovation into real solutions for our patients earlier in their care journeys,” says Matthew R. Callstrom, M.D., Ph.D., Mayo Clinic’s medical director for Strategy, chair of Radiology in Rochester, and leader of the Generative Artificial Intelligence Program. “We are profoundly grateful to Mr. Gerstner for this visionary gift. The Gerstner Scholars Program empowers us to stay at the forefront of healthcare transformation by investing in our world-leading staff.”

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About Mr. Gerstner
Louis V. Gerstner Jr. served as CEO and chairman of the board of International Business Machines Corp. from 1993 to 2002. Mr. Gerstner subsequently joined The Carlyle Group, a global private equity firm, where he served as chairman and, upon retiring from that position, continued as a senior adviser through 2016.

Before joining IBM, Mr. Gerstner served as chairman and CEO of RJR Nabisco, Inc., president of the American Express Company, and a director of the management consulting firm McKinsey & Co., Inc. A native of Mineola, New York, Mr. Gerstner received a bachelor's degree in engineering from Dartmouth College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

The Gerstner family is a long-standing supporter of Mayo Clinic, funding research and education initiatives and the Gerstner Family Career Development Awards in Mayo Clinic’s Center for Individualized Medicine. In recognition of his work on behalf of public education and his business accomplishments, Mr. Gerstner was awarded the designation of honorary Knight of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 2001.

About Mayo Clinic 
Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to innovation in clinical practice, education and research and to providing compassion, expertise and answers to everyone who needs healing. Visit Mayo Clinic News Network for additional Mayo Clinic news.

Media contact:

• Mayo Clinic Communications, newsbureau@mayo.edu

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Dr. Justin Cramer, a Mayo Clinic neuroradiologist, explains how detailed brain scans help Mayo Clinic care teams diagnose and treat patients with epilepsy and other neurologic diseases.

Learn more about how Mayo Clinic experts are utilizing these tools to help more patients.

Watch: The Mayo Clinic Minute

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video (1:00) is in the downloads at the end of this post. Please courtesy: "Mayo Clinic News Network." Read the script.

"This is a 7-Tesla MRI here, 3-Tesla MRI here. You can see pretty clearly that there's a dramatic difference between the two," explains Dr. Cramer.

The clinical use of 7-Tesla MRI enhances Mayo Clinic's ability to manage epilepsy, specific brain and peripheral nerve tumors, and other neurological disorders. 

"You can image smaller, like higher spatial resolution, better with lower noise or just faster. You also get better contrast. So the images are more vivid, and you can differentiate different structures better," says Dr. Cramer.

How improved MRI scans help

The increased image quality from the MRI systems gives radiologists an advantage in finding certain brain irregularities.

"There are several things that 7-Tesla has been really proven to be beneficial for, like epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and vascular imaging," he explains.

This advanced imaging technology is key to ensuring patients receive an accurate diagnosis to guide treatment.

"We want to really turn it into a workhorse for all brain imaging so that any patient who needs a brain MRI could potentially benefit from the increased image quality of 7-Tesla," Dr. Cramer says.

Mayo Clinic was the first center in North America to use clinical 7-Tesla MRI after the Food and Drug Administration approved the system in late 2017.

Related posts:

• Mayo Clinic opens new building for cancer, neurology patients
• 1st clinical 7-Tesla MRI scanner in North America will enable Mayo Clinic to achieve higher-resolution imaging for patients
• Science Saturday: Installing clinical 7-Tesla MRI scanner is a high-flying feat

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Research teams from Mayo Clinic in Florida and Carnegie Mellon University will work on a federally funded project to accelerate the development and testing of a new device to treat patients with type 2 diabetes and obesity.

The bioelectrical device, known as Rx On-site Generation Using Electronics, or ROGUE, is being developed at Carnegie Mellon University. It will act as a "living pharmacy" using engineered cells capable of producing therapy to treat patients with both conditions. At the conclusion of device development, Mayo Clinic will conduct a first-in-human clinical trial to test the viability of ROGUE in humans for wider applicability.

The goal for the device is to produce regulated levels of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1)-based therapies, which can improve glucose levels in patients with diabetes and also promote weight loss.

The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, or ARPA-H, made the award to Carnegie Mellon and the project's principal investigator, Itzhaq Cohen-Karni, Ph.D. The ROGUE collaboration also includes bioengineering faculty from Boston University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, Rice University, University of California Berkeley and Bruder Consulting and Venture Group.

"There is great potential for ROGUE to expand access and decrease the costs of these medical therapies for at-risk patients who may not otherwise be able to use these agents for diabetes and obesity," says Susan Samson, M.D., Ph.D., chair of the Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic in Florida. Dr. Samson has a background in preclinical models and translational research in the use of GLP-1 receptor agonists for metabolic disorders and is the clinical team lead and principal investigator of the project at Mayo.

ROGUE is an implanted device designed to make biological drugs more accessible to patients by reducing development and manufacturing costs while making it easier for patients to follow their treatment plan. The device, implanted during a minimally invasive outpatient procedure, will be designed to deliver continuous therapeutic peptides.

"Our team will be engaged throughout the project to provide expertise from the clinical side to ensure that the device is usable, safe and comfortable for patients down the line," says Mayo physician-scientist and co-principal investigator Maria Daniela Hurtado Andrade, M.D., Ph.D. Dr. Hurtado Andrade brings basic science and clinical trial expertise to the project and also is an expert in the field of weight management.

A phase one clinical trial will be conducted at Mayo Clinic in Florida, the sole clinical site for testing the device in humans. The trial requires the recruitment of a diverse group of patients, including those most at risk for diabetes and obesity.

"Mayo Clinic in Florida, which is embedded within the Jacksonville community, is strategically positioned to recruit this diverse study population," says Dr. Hurtado Andrade. As part of the project, Mayo Clinic will provide diabetes educators to help educate patients on the device's use.

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Mayo Clinic is recognized in Newsweek's list of "World's Best Smart Hospitals" with seven No. 1 rankings in "World's Best Specialized Hospitals."

Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, is recognized as a Best Smart Hospital and Best Specialized Hospital with seven No. 1 specialty rankings, more than any other hospital, according to Newsweek's "World's Best Smart Hospitals 2025" and "World's Best Specialized Hospitals 2025."

The "World's Best Smart Hospitals" ranks 350 healthcare organizations from 28 countries that lead in their use of new medical technologies, telemedicine, artificial intelligence and robotics. Mayo Clinic was recognized in particular for its use of artificial intelligence, digital imaging, robotics and telemedicine.

Mayo Clinic in Arizona, Mayo Clinic in Florida, and Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, also were recognized in the rankings.

"Technology has transformed healthcare. Telehealth services now enable round-the-clock communication between patients and medical providers, and it is estimated that over 116 million individuals will seek virtual consultations with doctors in 2024," Newsweek states. "New advances in digital imaging, artificial intelligence and robotics allow professionals to detect issues faster and more accurately." 

Visit the Newsweek "World's Best Smart Hospitals" page to learn more.

World's Best Specialized Hospitals

This year's list highlights hospitals excelling in 12 medical specialties — the top 300 in cardiology and oncology; the top 250 in pediatrics; the top 150 in cardiac surgery, endocrinology, gastroenterology, orthopedics, and pulmonology; the top 125 in neurology, neurosurgery, and urology; and the top 100 in obstetrics and gynecology.

Mayo Clinic in Arizona, Florida and Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire have experienced gains in their rankings since last year. Specifically, Mayo Clinic in Florida has improved in 10 specialties, Mayo Clinic in Arizona in nine, and Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire in eight.

Visit the Newsweek "World's Best Specialized Hospitals 2025" page to learn more.

Mayo Clinic is the medical center most recognized as a top choice by many ranking organizations. Many agencies rate quality in healthcare. Mayo Clinic is the only healthcare organization that consistently ranks among the top providers nationwide regardless of the quality measures used.

Additional Resources:

• Mayo Clinic in Rochester team ranked among ‘America’s Best Fertility Clinics’ by Newsweek
• Mayo Clinic ranked No. 1 ‘World’s Best Hospital’ by Newsweek for sixth straight year
• Mayo Clinic ranked among ‘America’s Best Children’s Hospitals’ according to Newsweek

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Mayo Clinic is leading the way with a new treatment for advanced prostate cancer, specifically for prostate-specific membrane antigen-positive metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (PSMA-positive mCRPC).

This treatment involves a radiopharmaceutical known as Pluvicto. It acts like a smart missile, targeting and eliminating cancer cells.

Mayo Clinic experts offer this therapy for patients whose prostate cancer has spread and is resistant to standard treatments such as hormonal treatments and chemotherapy.

Dr. Oliver Sartor, a Mayo Clinic medical oncologist focused on prostate cancer, says Mayo Clinic is at the forefront of treating patients with this novel therapy, offering new options and hope for patients with advanced prostate cancer. He explains what this means.

Watch: New hope for patients with metastatic prostate cancer

Journalists: Broadcast-quality video (1:19) is in the downloads at the end of this post. Please "Courtesy: Mayo Clinic News Network." Read the script.

Prostate cancer that spreads beyond the prostate is known as stage 4 or metastatic prostate cancer. There's a variety of treatments – including hormonal treatments that can help control the disease.

Therapy for advanced prostate cancer

"Once the hormonal therapies begin to fail, then we have a new term, and we call it castrate-resistant. Metastatic means spread, so it has spread and it's resistant to the hormones. That's metastatic castrate-resistant," says Dr. Sartor.

He says PSMA lutetium-177, the chemical name for Pluvicto, may be an option for some patients.

"We have to do a scan to be able to determine eligibility because we only want to treat the people that have good PSMA uptake. PSMA stands for prostate-specific membrane antigen, and we have a PET scan that can look at that very specifically," Dr. Sartor explains.

Once eligibility is confirmed, this therapy can be considered.

"It's a radioactive element. It's given intravenously in a short infusion. The FDA-approved regimen is to give it once every six weeks for a maximum of six doses," says Dr. Sartor.

Patients with advanced prostate cancer need a personalized treatment plan. "Please remember that individualization of care is absolutely critical in this disease," he says.

Dr. Sartor is hopeful that this treatment will be made available to patients with prostate cancer earlier in their treatment course. 

Conflict of Interest or Disclosure: Dr. Sartor is a paid consultant for Novartis, the maker of the drug Pluvicto.

The post (Video) New hope for patients with metastatic prostate cancer appeared first on Mayo Clinic News Network.

ROCHESTER, Minn. — A team of Mayo Clinic researchers has developed an innovative computational tool that analyzes the gut microbiome, a complex ecosystem of trillions of bacteria, fungi, viruses and other microorganisms within the digestive system, to provide insights into overall well-being.

In a new study published in Nature Communications, the tool demonstrated at least 80% accuracy in differentiating healthy individuals from those with any disease. The tool was developed by analyzing stool gut microbiome profiles from more than 8,000 samples representing various diseases, geographic regions and demographic groups.

The tool, called Gut Microbiome Wellness Index 2, could detect even subtle changes in gut health, identifying whether a person may be progressing toward or recovering from a disease. The researchers used bioinformatics and machine learning methods to analyze gut microbiome profiles in stool samples gathered from 54 published studies spanning 26 countries and six continents. This approach produced a diverse and comprehensive dataset.

This capability addresses longstanding challenges in human microbiome research, including defining what constitutes a "healthy" microbiome and identifying early indicators of potential health issues. It also fills a significant gap in existing measurement tools of health and wellness.

The gut microbiome plays a crucial role in digestion, metabolism and immune function, and researchers are finding an imbalance in the gut microbiome can be linked to various chronic diseases.

"Finally, we have a standardized index to quantitatively measure how 'healthy' a person's gut microbiome is," says Jaeyun Sung, Ph.D., the senior author and computational biologist at Mayo Clinic Center for Individualized Medicine's Microbiomics Program.

"Our tool is not intended to diagnose specific diseases but rather to serve as a proactive health indicator," he adds. "By identifying adverse changes in gut health before serious symptoms arise, the tool could potentially inform dietary or lifestyle modifications to prevent mild issues from escalating into more severe health conditions, or prompt further diagnostic testing. By being able to answer whether a person’s gut is healthy or trending toward a diseased state, we ultimately aim to empower individuals to take proactive steps in managing their own health."

The tool development process involved identifying microbial species, carefully selecting the most relevant features and optimizing the machine learning model.

The end result is an index that screens a gut microbiome sample and quantifies how much it resembles a healthy (disease-free) or non-healthy (diseased) individual.

The study team first tested the index on a training set of more than 8,000 microbiome samples, and then validated its work on a new cohort of 1,140 samples.

The team also tested its tool across various clinical scenarios, including people who had undergone fecal microbiota transplantation, as well as people who made changes in dietary fiber intake or who had antibiotic exposure, to demonstrate its ability to detect shifts in gut health.

The Gut Microbiome Wellness Index 2 builds upon the team's original tool by incorporating a wider range of data and using refined computational methods. The team hopes this new version enhances precision in assessing gut health and monitoring changes in the gut microbiome.

Dr. Sung and his team plan to further develop the Gut Microbiome Health Index 2 by expanding its dataset to include a broader range of microbiome samples from diverse populations, and by adding more advanced artificial intelligence techniques to enhance the tool's predictive accuracy and adaptability.

Review the study for a complete list of authors, disclosures and funding.

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Media contact:

• Susan Murphy, Mayo Clinic Communications, newsbureau@mayo.edu

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