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<p>This weekend, Oct. 16 and 17, <em>Sound Medicine</em>, the award-winning weekly public radio program hosted by Barbara Lewis, will offer two perspectives on the Food and Drug Administration’s decision to re-evaluate approval of the drug Avastin for treating late-stage breast cancer.</p>

The Avastin Debate — This Week on Sound Medicine

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By December of this year, the FDA will make a final decision to approve – or not – the use of Avastin for metastatic, or late-stage, breast cancer. IU Simon Cancer Center physician Kathy Miller, M.D., was lead investigator on the original study that added Avastin to the standard chemotherapy regimen. Dr. Miller will explain the predicament the FDA’s decision-making process poses for breast cancer patients and their doctors.

IU health care policy specialist Aaron Carroll, M.D., will offer a different view of the FDA’s re-evaluation of the drug, which is only somewhat effective and extremely expensive.

Any workplace can have disruptive employees, including the operating room. Jack Mitenbuler, a job-coach for physicians, will explain counseling techniques for smoothing the “rough edges” from doctors whose extreme behavior on the job could result in lawsuits, including malpractice suits. 

Wishard Hospital palliative care specialist Greg Gramelspacher, M.D., will talk about photos he’s taken of some of his patients, people he’s had the privilege to help die “a good death.” Dr. Gramelspacher directs the Palliative Care Fellowship at the IU School of Medicine.

Long-time family physician Dr. Karl Weyrauch will relate an unusual experience he had with a dying patient, early in his career. Dr. Weyrauch’s radio essay is entitled “When a Doctor Meets the Soul.” His daughter, Anna Boiko-Weyrauch, produced this audio tale.

In this week’s Checkup feature, Jeramy Shere finds out why bedbugs have become such a widespread problem. He will chat with entomologist and bed-bug expert Marc Lame, Ph.D., clinical assistant professor at the IU School of Public and Environmental Affairs.

Find archived editions and other helpful information at the Sound Medicine website.

Sound Medicine is produced by the Indiana University School of Medicine in conjunction with WFYI Public Radio. The show is underwritten by Clarian Health, IU Medical Group and Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. Reports on Primary Health Care topics are sponsored by Wishard Health Services.

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Check out Sound Medicine on the following Indiana public radio stations:
WBSB (Anderson), WFIU (Bloomington, Columbus, Kokomo, Terre Haute), WNDY (Crawfordsville), WVPE (Elkhart/South Bend), WNIN (Evansville), WBOI (Fort Wayne), WFCI (Franklin), WBSH (Hagerstown/New Castle), WFYI (Indianapolis), WBSW (Marion), WBST (Muncie), WBSJ (Portland), WLPR, (Lake County), and WBAA, (W. Lafayette).

The show also airs on these out-of-state public radio stations:
KOTZ and KINU (Kotzebue, AK), KRCC (Colorado Springs, CO),  KEDM (Monroe, LA), WCNY (Syracuse, NY), WYSO (Yellow Springs, OH), WYSU (Youngstown, OH), KWGS (Tulsa, OK), KPOV (Bend, OR), KMHA (Four Bears, ND), and KLMS (Carlsbad, NM).