MedEvidence! Truth Behind the Data

Send us Fan Mail Medical headlines shape our food, our drugs, and our fears. But how much should we believe? In this episode, Dr. Michael Koren and Dr. Mitchell Rothstein explore how medical news is made, why headlines can be misleading, and how to tell the difference between evidence and hype. Learn a simple 4-step practical framework to evaluate health claims: check the claim, evidence, source, and incentives. We discuss study design, relative vs. absolute risk, and reporting on topics lik...

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Michael Hafran joins Dr. Michael Koren to discuss new investigational gene editing therapies. They talk about what genes and gene editing are, the history of gene editing, and some of the FDA-approved therapies on the market today. They also address fears people have about gene editing and clinical trials, explain the long and intensive safety measures in place, and reveal that these therapies aren't too different from what the body does naturally, just in a more guided a...

Send us Fan Mail Leslie Byatt joins Dr. Michael Koren to talk about leadership in the clinical research space. The two research professionals discuss the importance of qualified researchers in a research trial and the qualities that make for a good clinical research leader. They also talk about research as a treatment option and the benefits observed in research patients (even those in the placebo arm). They explain that the attention, care, and time with research professionals leads to bette...

Send us Fan Mail A Cardiologist & Nephrologist Go Head-to-Head, er... "Heart-to-Kidney" Nephrologist Dr. Ali Rawabdeh joins Cardiologist Dr. Michael Koren to debate which is the bigger contributor (and problem) with high blood pressure: the heart or the kidneys. The two doctors discuss this extremely prevalent condition from their competing perspectives and give information on how different body systems can influence blood pressure. they also talk about the importance of understanding tha...

Send us Fan Mail Cardiologists Dr. Seth Baum and Dr. Michael Koren discuss the newly released top-line results from a big Lp(a) study investigating the effects of the drug pelacarsen. They talk about what Lp(a) is, why it matters, happened in the study, and what this means for other pelacarsen and Lp(a) studies worldwide. They take a deep dive into some of the factors that can reduce the effectiveness of clinical trials and explain that this particular failure doesn't undermine the theory beh...