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Betsy McKay @betswrites

Senior Writer, The Wall Street Journal. I write about public health issues. Please send tips to betsy.mckay@wsj.com.

Joined January 2010
  • Tweets 3,295
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  • Followers 6,427
87 Photos and videos
Scientists are closing in on ways to help patients grow new heart muscle after a heart attack, as well as new lung tissue to treat fibrosis, and other organs wsj.com/health/grow-heart-lu… via @WSJ

Science Is Finding Ways to Regenerate Your Heart

Tissue-engineering techniques are in the works to regrow heart muscle after a heart attack and repair lungs and other organs.

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Eric Topol
@EricTopol
7 Oct 2024
Chronic inflammation with aging—inflammaging— is a risk factor for age-related diseases. We're not doing enough to test for it or suppress it. wsj.com/health/wellness/infl… by @AlexLJanin @betswrites
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“Inflammaging” really is a thing - chronic inflammation the builds with age. What it can do to your health and what you can do about it. W/ ⁦@AlexLJanin⁩ wsj.com/health/wellness/infl…

Inflammaging Is Chronic, Stealthy and Can Be a Serious Threat to Your Health

Scientists say we should pay closer attention to the chronic inflammation that can build as we age.

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How do you haul a keyboard up a ski lift? Pianist David Feurzeig aims to perform in every town in #Vermont, but booking those gigs isn’t always easy. wsj.com/articles/WP-WSJ-0002…

A Musician Scores Unusual Gigs in Yearslong Quest to Play Every Corner of Vermont

David Feurzeig’s plans for 256 concerts have him hauling a keyboard up a ski lift and to a wildlife refuge.

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My story on #preeclampsia. It’s on the rise, and is a big risk not just during pregnancy but postpartum too. wsj.com/health/preeclampsia-…

‘She Didn’t Seem Right Yet’: The Deadly Threat to New Mothers

Preeclampsia, marked by a sudden increase in blood pressure, is on the rise in the U.S. Yet there’s little research about the life-threatening disorder.

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A trial in the case of falsely accused ⁦@WSJ⁩ Reporter Evan Gershkovich will be held in secret in Yekaterinburg, first hearing June 26. #FreeEvan #IStandWithEvan wsj.com/world/russia/russia-…

Russia Sets Hearing as It Moves Toward Secret Trial of Falsely Accused WSJ Reporter Evan Gershkovich

A Russian court said judicial proceedings in the case of Evan Gershkovich would be held in secret, with the first hearing beginning on June 26.

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WSJ Reporter Evan Gershkovich, falsely accused of espionage, was indicted in Russia after more than a year of pre-trial detention. #IStandwithEvan #FreeEvan wsj.com/world/russia/wsj-rep…

WSJ Reporter Evan Gershkovich, Falsely Accused of Espionage, Is Indicted in Russia

Russian prosecutors said they have approved an indictment of Evan Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal reporter held in Russia for over a year, falsely accusing him of espionage and referring his...

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It’s been 441 long days since Evan Gershkovich was detained in Russia and put into pre-trial detention where he remains. It’s far past time for his release. #IStandWithEvan
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Putin’s Existential Problem: Not Enough Russians. Our story on Russia’s demographic challenges. Me w/ ⁦@georgikantchev⁩ wsj.com/world/russia/putin-r…

Putin’s Existential Problem: Not Enough Russians

Russia’s population has been in decline for years, and the war in Ukraine has made matters worse.

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You lost weight. Now how do you keep it off? It’s tough. My story on the quest to find treatments for weight maintenance. #Wegovy #Zepbound @ColumbiaMed wsj.com/health/pharma/mainta…

The Quest for Treatments to Keep Weight Off After Ozempic

Obesity researchers and companies turn toward helping people maintain losses.

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My story about how #ParkinsonDisease Can Now Be Detected Through the Skin wsj.com/articles/parkinsons-…

Parkinson’s Disease Can Now Be Detected Through the Skin

A new test identifies Parkinson’s by a protein rather than waiting for symptoms that can take years to appear.

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Betsy McKay retweeted
Eric Topol
@EricTopol
12 Mar 2024
Editing genes inside the body, A1 WSJ, on progress for hereditary amyloidosis and familial hypercholesterolemia wsj.com/health/pharma/doctor… by @betswrites w/ @skathire @kiranmusunuru @intelliatx @VerveTx
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Doctors Can Now Edit the Genes Inside Your Body. Here are two patients who have had it done, in clinical trials. wsj.com/health/pharma/doctor…

Doctors Can Now Edit the Genes Inside Your Body

It sounds like science fiction, but dozens of people have undergone gene editing for cardiovascular disease and other conditions.

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Pjotr Sauer@PjotrSauer
16 Feb 2024
Navalny's last message on Valentine's Day to his wife Yulia: "Baby, it's just like the song says: cities, airfield lights, blue snowstorms and thousands of kilometres between us. But I feel that you are with me every second, and I love you more and more"
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Alexei Navalny’s death just a month before Russia’s presidential election robs the country of a powerful opposition voice. He urged Russians to vote against Putin, who he once called a “naked, thieving emperor.”⁦@AMSimmons1⁩ wsj.com/world/russia/alexei-…

Alexei Navalny’s Death Robs Russian Opposition of a Tenacious Anti-Putin Voice

Anticorruption activist who galvanized Russia’s political opposition was serving long sentences in a penal colony.

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Alexei Navalny, Putin’s toughest critic, died in a remote Arctic prison, circumstances unknown. wsj.com/world/russia/alexei-…

Alexei Navalny, the Kremlin’s Most Ardent Critic, Dies in Prison

Navalny, a fierce anticorruption campaigner who galvanized Russia’s political opposition, had been serving sentences amounting to more than 30 years in a penal colony. He was 47 years old.

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This cat loving reporter’s dream assignment: following the tree climbers who rescue cats from epic heights. #cat #catrescue
jennifer levitz@jenniferlevitz
15 Feb 2024
“Ralphie, why don’t you let me help you, buddy?” Love this @betswrites story so much. Tree climbers have side gigs helping cats that have climbed way, way up trees. Great photos and videos. wsj.com/lifestyle/cats-stuck… via @WSJ #CatsOfTwitter #Caturday #LocalNews
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Your Cat Up a Tree? Arborists and expert tree climbers swing to the rescue. Your cat content for the day! wsj.com/lifestyle/cats-stuck…

The Incredible Rescue of Ralphie the Cat

Tree climbers are specializing in the high-tech fixing of feline misadventures. ‘Let me help you, buddy?’

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For some readers, the traditional book club has lost the plot. So they're rewriting it and joining a growing number of rebel reading groups. @silentbookclub #bookstagram #books wsj.com/lifestyle/book-clubs… via @WSJ

No, I Don’t Want to Join Your Book Club

Tired of the rules of traditional reading groups, more people are joining rebel versions. ‘I will not read a book that other people say you have to read.’

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Betsy McKay retweeted
jennifer levitz@jenniferlevitz
7 Nov 2023
For some readers, the traditional book club has lost the plot. They are joining a growing number of rebel reading groups, including the Silent Book Club and "not-a-book-club book club." Great ahed by @betswrites wsj.com/lifestyle/book-clubs… via @WSJ #BookTwitter #books

No, I Don’t Want to Join Your Book Club

Tired of the rules of traditional reading groups, more people are joining rebel versions. ‘I will not read a book that other people say you have to read.’

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