The “New Organ” in the News: Is It Real and What Does It Mean?
The past week (week of March 26th, 2018) has seen a buzzing wave of media activity surrounding the report of a “new organ” permeating the whole body that could be important for cancer spread. Dr. Langevin discussed these findings in the context of previous research on connective and interstitial tissues.
Read some of the news articles discussing this topic:
New York Times: Is This Tissue a New Organ? Maybe. A Conduit for Cancer? It Seems Likely.
BuzzFeed: That “New Organ” Everyone Is Freaking Out About Is Probably Not New
Event Details
Date: Tuesday, April 3rd, 2018
Time: 8:00 am – 9:00 am (followed by Coffee Hour)
Venue: Bornstein Family Amphitheater, BWH
Address: 45 Francis Street, Boston, MA 02115
Presenter: Helene Langevin, MD
Professor in Residence of Medicine
Director, Osher Center for Integrative Medicine
Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Dr. Langevin received an MD degree from McGill University. She completed a post doctoral research fellowship in Neurochemistry at the MRC Neurochemical Pharmacology Unit in Cambridge, England, and residency in Internal Medicine and fellowship in Endocrinology and Metabolism at John Hopkins Hospital.
She is a Professor in Residence of Medicine and Director of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She is also a Visiting Professor of Neurological Sciences at the University of Vermont College of Medicine. Dr. Langevin has been the Principal Investigator of several NIH-funded studies investigating the role of connective tissue in low back pain and the mechanisms of acupuncture, manual and movement-based therapies.
Her previous studies in humans and animal models have shown that mechanical tissue stimulation during both tissue stretch and acupuncture causes dynamic cellular responses in connective tissue. Her current work focuses on the effects of stretching on inflammation resolution mechanisms within connective tissue, and their relevance to chronic musculoskeletal pain and cancer.