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No one knew what was wrong with her — until an MRI found incurable disease. She turned her harrowing journey into unique art.

Nardiz Cooke was alarmed when she felt a lump in her right breast in late 2018. Her OB-GYN wasn’t: Cooke was 38 and had no family history of cancer. Cooke’s doctor diagnosed her with fibrosis, a common condition that causes tissue to feel lumpy.   Cooke was reassured, but almost two years later, new symptoms…

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Baby with heart defect carried by surrogate must receive treatment, Texas court rules, after intended parents request abortion

A fetus with a rare heart defect being carried by a surrogate from Alaska must receive lifesaving care after birth, a Texas court ruled Tuesday after state Attorney General Ken Paxton intervened in the case.  The surrogate, McKenna West, was about 20 weeks pregnant when the fetus was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a…

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A conductor gained 40 pounds in a matter of weeks. It took open-heart surgery to learn why

Conductor John Mauceri is no stranger to health struggles. He was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis in 2017, then chronic lymphocytic leukemia and interstitial lung disease in 2019. Medication treated the conditions and sent the cancer into remission, but he has remained on the lookout for recurrence.  In December 2023, Mauceri, then 78, contracted COVID-19. He…

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Trump administration bars use of Medicaid funds for some youth transgender care

President Trump’s administration said that Medicaid will stop paying for gender-affirming surgeries and hormone treatments for transgender minors and the state Children’s Health Insurance Program won’t pay for the treatments for those under 19. The announcement is the latest in a series of policies from the administration aimed at transgender people that began the day…

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ICE plans to give officers gloves that can deliver electric shocks

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers may soon be outfitted with gloves that can deliver painful electric shocks intended to gain compliance from combative individuals. ICE plans to spend between $10 million and $20 million to purchase “conductive distraction and de-escalation devices” for officers and agents by March, according to a notice published Monday by…

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