The Washington Post - 05.11.2019

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HEalth&Science

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2019. SECTION E EZ EE

A cosmic mystery

Scientists say the universe is expanding — but exactly how fast? The answer may be found in a “new physics.”

NASA/JPL-CALTECH/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA.

BY STEPHEN ORNES

There’s an inexpensive, widely ac-
cessible and markedly effective ap-
proach to cancer care that’s as close as
the tips of our fingers. It’s not a new
drug, type of radiation or surgical
breakthrough with a slew of unwel-
come side effects. It’s also not a cure,
but it is surprising for its simplicity.
It’s a matter of regularly answering
a few questions about symptoms.
A growing body of research has
found that people with cancer who
are routinely prompted to answer
questions about their symptoms may
live months longer and have a higher
quality of life than people who don’t
track their symptoms as closely.
SEE CANCER ON E4

Tracking cancer

symptoms aids

patients’ care

BY JELENA KECMANOVIC

“Worry has consumed my life. I

have worried about everything and

everybody, and am always preparing

for the possibility of things going

wrong,” said Marla White, a 55-year-

old publicist from Los Angeles.

She is not alone. A 2018 Gallup poll

found that 45 percent of Americans

said they felt worried a lot, more than

in any year since 2006.

As a clinical psychologist in the

Washington-metropolitan area and

an adjunct professor at Georgetown

University, excessive worry is one of

the most pressing psychological

problems I see.

My patients worry about work,

SEE ANXIETY ON E5

How to combat

constant worry

and anxiety

BY HOLLY ROSENKRANTZ

A severe shortage of immune glob-

ulin — a popular medicine used to

treat epilepsy, cancer and immune

disorders — is forcing doctors nation-

wide to cancel patients’ lifesaving

infusions, even as hospitals and treat-

ment centers are resorting to ration-

ing and dose-cutting.

Immune globulin helps protect pa-

tients from infections, and it is used to

treat many medical conditions in-

cluding seizures, leukemia, auto -

immune diseases, organ transplants,

acute muscle illnesses and nerve dis-

orders.

“It is miraculous,” said John Boyle,

president of the Immune Deficiency

SEE SHORTAGE ON E4

Shortage leaves

people without

lifesaving drug

RICCARDO MARCHGIANI/WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR

Wildlife images rise to the occasion

“Early Riser,” a photo by Riccardo Marchgiani of a monkey species in

Ethio pia called gelada, was among 100 eye-catching entries in the

international Wildlife Photographer of the Year, developed and

produced by the Natural History Museum, London. E2

BY JOEL ACHENBACH

¶ The universe doesn’t look right. It suddenly looks... out of whack. ¶ That is the strange message coming from

astronomers and physicists, who are wondering whether they need to revise cosmic history. ¶ The universe is

unimaginably big, and it keeps getting bigger. But astronomers cannot agree on how quickly it is growing — and the

more they study the problem, the more they disagree. Some scientists call this a “crisis” in cosmology. A less dramatic

term in circulation is “the Hubble Constant tension.” ¶ Nine decades ago, the astronomer Edwin Hubble showed that the

universe is orders of magnitude vaster than previously imagined — and the whole kit and kaboodle is expanding. The

rate of that expansion is a number called the Hubble Constant. ¶ It’s a slippery number, however. Measurements using

different techniques have produced different results, and the numbers show no sign of converging even as researchers

refine their observations. ¶ No one is panicking. To the contrary, the theorists are intrigued. They hope the Hubble

Constant confusion is the harbinger of a potential major discovery — some “new physics.” SEE HUBBLE ON E6

An infrared image of the Helix Nebula. This massive cloud of dust and gas is in the constellation of Aquarius, about 650

light-years away. Amateur astronomers often take photos of the planetary nebula because it resembles a giant eye.

ALSO INSIDE The many ways in which coffee is good for your health. E3 Americans consume way more added sugar than recommended. E3

An odd syndrome made a nondrinker smell like alcohol and seem drunk. E3 A viral video of an unhappy 22-pound cat on a treadmill hints at our fat pet problem. E4