Medical Treatments and Procedures

Troy Anderson: Are prisoner's conditions worse since winning supermax lawsuit?

Troy Anderson, a mentally ill inmate at Colorado's supermax prison, won a landmark decision last summer when a federal judge ruled he's entitled to at least three hours a week of fresh air and outdoor exercise. Now, Anderson's attorneys claim Department of Corrections officials have failed to comply ... More >>

Fetuses-aren't-people lawsuit: Colorado Supreme Court declines to hear the case

The Colorado Supreme Court has declined to hear a case in which Englewood-based Catholic Health Initiatives argued that it couldn't be held liable for the deaths of two unborn babies at one of its hospitals because fetuses are not people. The case was the focus of our recent cover story "The Meaning ... More >>

Joanne Conte shook up Arvada as a city council member -- and a transgendered person

Twenty years ago, a new member of the Arvada City Council was making waves in the normally sleepy suburb. Joanne Conte, who'd been elected in 1991, was shaking things up so much that then-Westword staff writer Karen Bowers started working on a political story about the situation. But she got a big ... More >>

Fetus = person? District court judges have come to different conclusions

This week's cover story, "The Meaning of Life," tells the story behind a seemingly contradictory legal argument being made by Englewood-based Catholic Health Initiatives: that a fetus is not a person. The court case in which it asserts that claim has now been appealed to the Colorado Supreme Court. ... More >>

Is a fetus a person? The Colorado Supreme Court may have to decide.

See also: Fetus = person? District court judges have come to different conclusions

Rep. Lois Court: Fees for gun background checks could help fund mental health services

Since the tragic mass shootings in Newtown, Connecticut left twenty children dead, there has been a renewed discussion on gun policy in Colorado as lawmakers prep for the legislative session. And we now have details on one idea that links the debates around gun access and mental health. Representati ... More >>

Medical marijuana dispensaries giving free Vape-Pen to chemotherapy patients

Medical marijuana advocates say THC is especially effective when it comes to reducing nausea for people who have cancer and are undergoing chemotherapy. Now, The Clinic and Flower of Life are offering a way of delivering that substance free of charge to medical marijuana patients on chemo -- with th ... More >>

THC-limit bill could ban many seniors and veterans from driving, activist says

On Monday, a Senate committee passed a THC-driving limits bill that's broader than one that fell short last year. As Senator Morgan Carroll noted here yesterday, the proposal establishes zero tolerance for any Schedule I or Schedule II drugs, including many prescription medications. Cannabis activis ... More >>

Komen Denver affiliate rejects ban on Planned Parenthood grants

Race for the Cure.​For many years, the regional Planned Parenthood headquarters was Westword's neighbor, and we had a front-row seat for the picketers who harassed employees of an organization that does so much more than providing abortion services.

Kristen Parker's hep-C rampage: Doctors deny duty to prevent drug thefts (VIDEO)

Although Kristen Parker, the surgical tech who infected dozens of Rose Medical Center patients with the hepatitis C virus in 2008 and 2009, is now serving a thirty-year prison sentence, the fallout from her crimes continues to keep a scrum of attorneys busy. In recent court filings in a patient laws ... More >>

Laura Triem, woman hit by light rail, has awoken from her coma

Mary Chadwick identifies days almost exclusively by number now. As in, Day 13 was when her daughter, Laura Triem, who was hit by a light rail downtown on November 4, woke up from her coma. Those thirteen days felt like months to Chadwick, and she thinks she's aged fifty years, but at least her daugh ... More >>

Post-mastectomy boutique: Pampered Passions lingerie shop to open at Porter Hospital

Next month, Alicia Vargo, the proprietress of Pampered Passions Fine Lingerie in Englewood, will open a new outpost of her much-lauded house of bras and panties with an unlikely address and a noble cause. The boutique, to be called Pampered Passions Care Wear, will cater to the needs of women who've ... More >>

Medical marijuana: Larry Shurtleff, who credits MMJ for cancer-free diagnosis, leaves hospital

Big pic below.​We've been following the progress of Larry Shurtleff, who was finally able to undergo facial reconstruction surgery after being deemed cancer-free -- a diagnosis he largely credits to Phoenix Tears, a cannabis oil treatment. This weekend, he left Porter Hospital to continue his ... More >>

Marijuana: Surgery success for Larry Shurtleff, who credits Phoenix Tears with whipping cancer

Larry Shurtleff.​Update:Larry Shurtleff's facial reconstruction surgery -- a procedure that couldn't go forward until he was deemed cancer-free -- was a success, reports Timothy Tipton, his medical marijuana caretaker. An indication that doctors encountered fewer problems than anticipated: Th ... More >>

Chemo101: Denver-based website puts chemotherapy education in patients' hands

​Chemo101.com, a Denver-based website designed to educate patients and caregivers about chemotherapy drugs, has welcomed over 125,000 unique visitors since it's launch in December 2010. That's equal parts impressive and sad for its president and founder, Kristin Gustafson.

In honor of Minor Threat's 30th anniversary, here are five straight-edge bands keeping the spirit alive

Minor Threat (Glen E. Friedman)​December marks the thirtieth anniversary of the first show by Minor Threat, one of the best American punk bands that formed on these angsty shores. To commemorate the occasion, we've come up with a list of the top five current straight-edge hardcore bands that a ... More >>

Aaron Klug: Top 5 (probably) worse places to get arrested than at a Dungeons & Dragons event

Aaron Klug.​ There Aaron Klug was, minding his own business at a Dungeons & Dragons event Tuesday, when the pesky cops showed up. Did he slay them with his Flaming Battle Axe or bludgeon them with his skull-topped Staff of Power? Did he pelt them to death with polyhedral dice? No, he did not. ... More >>

Medical marijuana for vets: Veterans Health Administration still unenthusiastic about its use

Wanda James.​Last month in this space, dispensary owner and veteran Wanda James shared her excitement about the decision by the Veterans Health Administration to allow vets to use medical marijuana. But "excitement" isn't a word that leaps to mind after reading the VHA's directive on this poli ... More >>

Hepatitis scare at Grand Lake restaurants: Who needs to get shots?

Max & T's.​It was one of those moments when the personal and the professional collided. On Friday, my wife and I were in Grand Lake when a summer storm passed through -- so we took refuge at Max & T's Bar and Grill, where we ate a delicious lunch. Then, the next morning, I opened up my Denver ... More >>

The Unkindest Cut

Eyewitness to Hell: Dr. Scott Burke on Haiti's medical nightmare

Street treatment following an amputation in Port-au-Prince. Photo from despardes.com​Just a few hours after touching down in Denver, after a week of performing emergency amputations in a makeshift operating room in Port-au-Prince, local surgeon Scott Burke was trying to catch up on his sleep a ... More >>

This just in: Slayer drops off KBPI's Midwinter Melee

Update: Just received word from Live Nation that the entire show/tour has been postponed. No word on when it will be rescheduled, but tickets will be honored. ​Bad news if you had your heart set on being deafened by this wall of amps in a few weeks. The American Carnage tour, due at Magness A ... More >>

Mile Highs and Lows: Pain Management of Colorado

​As Colorado's medical-marijuana industry grows, marijuana dispensaries of all types and sizes are proliferating around the state. Some resemble swanky bars or sterile dentist offices; others feel like a dope dealer's college dorm room. To help keep them all straight, Westword will be offering ... More >>

Swine flu protocol: Children and inmates first

​In the movie The Dark Knight, the Joker conducts a nail-biting sociology experiment by rigging bombs on two ships -- one loaded with ordinary folk, the other transporting prisoners. A detonator for each bomb is then placed in the hands of the opposing camps, who are invited to blow up the oth ... More >>

When cold and flu season hit, reach for chicken soup

​Cold and flu season has arrived, and while there are vaccines and a multitude of drugs out there that will be used to combat these illnesses, doctors remain constant on one remedy: chicken soup. According to WebMD, doctors prefer milder, natural alternatives to treat cold and flu cases, with ... More >>

Healthcare pro says "no" to swine-flu vaccine

The virus at work.​In a Tuesday blog, the Colorado Department of Health's Margaret Huffman reassured the public that the H1N1/swine-flu vaccine was safe and said concerns about it weren't dominating calls received on the state's CoHELP info line. If so, that flies in the face of a new Associat ... More >>

What's scarier: swine flu or the vaccine to prevent it?

The virus.​Plenty of parents are terrified to vaccinate their children these days, fearing side effects that are worse than what the vaccine was intended to prevent in the first place. Such concerns are magnified in the case of H1N1, aka the swine flu. After all, as noted in Joel Warner's blog ... More >>

Hep C victims speak out about getting stuck by Kristen Parker and Rose Medical Center

Etta James and The Roots Band

Saturday, June 6, Boulder Theater, 303-786-7030.

How I became a swine flu expert

A Flickr photo."Quick, call Professor Warner! This porker has the sniffles!" As the swine flu scare spreads across the country, people are desperate for answers. They're looking for experts to give them direction, context and reassurance about this strange new terror gripping the globe. Turns out ... More >>

Channel 4 to Twitter -- gallbladder surgery?

Chop, chop. Who isn't jumping on the Twitter bandwagon? Last week, we told you about the Boulder Police Department's new Twitter feed. Now, Channel 4 is boasting about Dr. Dave Hnida, the station's medical expert, Twittering the gallbladder surgery of a seven-year-old girl. This gimmick, which can ... More >>

Meet Dr. Marc Philippon, the man on whom Alex Rodriguez's 2009 season rests

Dr. Marc Philippon. Yesterday, baseball fans read plenty about Dr. Marc Philippon. He's the Vail-based hip expert who recently examined Yankees slugger (and admitted steroid user) Alex Rodriguez, determining that he's not only got a bizarre cyst -- wonder how that popped up? -- but also a torn labr ... More >>

Least popular button on 14th Street: FluVote

Pain Management

Cancer patient Tim Thomason didn't think he could feel any worse. His Denver jailers showed that he could.

A Cut Above

Taking a whack at circumcision.

It Happened One Night

The Thanksgiving party started early. And then the shots rang out.

Best Way to Make a Fast Friend

Recycled Racers of Colorado

Drink of the Week

Fernet-Branca

Best Place to Lose Your Doghood

Maxfund Wellness Clinic

Pet Project

From animal CAT scans to one of People's most eligible bachelors, Alameda East has it all.

Best Travel Advice for Scary Places

International Travel Clinic

Best Fledgling Talk-Show Host

Mark Schlereth
KOA-AM/850

The Kid Bounces Back

A boy's death gives snowboarder Chris Klug a second chance at life and the Olympics.

A Plague on All Your Houses

Denver readies itself for a bio-bomb — but is the federal program behind this exercise a dud?

Takin' It in the Pants

In Jefferson County, vasectomies are quick, cheap and cool.

Under the Knife

No matter who wins a medical malpractice case, the verdict cuts both ways.

Sex Machine

Dr. Stanley Biber has made 3,500 women--and 300 men.

Shot in the Arm

Colorado starts mandatory hepatitis B vaccinations for schoolkids.

CRITICAL CONDITIONS

WHEN MEGAN JONES ASKED HER INSURANCE COMPANY TO PAY FOR HER CANCER TREATMENT, SHE FOUND TRUTH WAS AT A PREMIUM.

THE NURSE WAS SCRUBBED

DOCTORS CLANDESTINELY OPERATED ON A COLLEAGUE. GUESS WHO GOT FIRED.