A new strategic alliance will target the prediction, prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases using artificial intelligence computing and big data, the American Heart Association (AHA) and the Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI) announced today.

According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, a part of the National Institutes of Health, Americans spend about $30.2 billion yearly out of pocket on complementary health products and practices. Almost half consist of visits to practitioners, such as acupuncturists and massage therapists.

Losing hair is one of the most noticeable and upsetting side effect for cancer patients going through chemotherapy. But a new process, called cold cap therapy, is helping more of these patients keep their hair.

One of the biggest obstacles to eradicating malaria is a dormant form of the parasite that lurks in the livers of some patients. This dormant form is resistant to most antimalarial drugs and can reawaken months or years later, causing disease relapse.

The Children’s Heart Foundation and the American Heart Association announced their latest collaborative investment in research to better understand and treat congenital heart defects (CHDs), the number one birth defect in the United States. This is the fourth round of their co-funded Congenital Heart Defect Research Awards program and represents a $826,600 investment in seven research programs from around the country. The program will ultimately fund more than $22 million in CHD-specific research through 2021.

For years, researchers have been trying to figure out better ways to find out if a person has cancer and to find it early when it’s most curable. They want a test that’s easier on patients and faster for doctors. One idea that’s gaining ground is called a liquid biopsy. A biopsy is a sample of tissue or cells taken from almost any part of the body and sent to a lab to check for cancer. The liquid in this case is your blood. The concept is that your doctor may one day be able to use a small sample of your blood to screen for cancer, before you have any symptoms.