A new Dartmouth study finds that pharmaceutical companies’ promotional access to outpatient practices that deliver primary care in the U.S. is substantial, especially in smaller practices, those outside of healthcare systems, and those without academic affiliation, possibly impacting prescribing quality and cost.
Latest News
Nancy Formella, Former Geisel Associate Professor and President of Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital, Dies
Nancy Formella, MSN, CNNA, who held many top positions at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, died Thursday, January 16. She was 66 years old and lived in East Kingston, NH.
Researchers Investigate Molecule, VISTA, Which Keeps the Immune System Quiet Against Cancer
Researchers led by Dartmouth’s and Dartmouth-Hitchcock’s Norris Cotton Cancer Center are studying a valuable target in regulating the immune response in cancer and autoimmunity. VISTA is a tempering molecule that hinders T cells in the immune system from activating against self-antigens such as cancer cells. Their new publication describes how VISTA controls T-cell responses.
Rachel Solotaroff MED ’01 Receives Dartmouth Social Justice Award
Alumna Rachel Solotaroff MED ’01 will receive the 2020 Martin Luther King Jr. Social Justice Award for Ongoing Commitment in recognition of her work with Central City Concern, a Portland, Ore., organization serving adults and families who are affected by homelessness, poverty, and addictions.
New Mechanism May Safely Prevent and Reverse Obesity
Researchers at Dartmouth’s and Dartmouth-Hitchcock’s Norris Cotton Cancer Center have discovered that a receptor found in almost all cells plays a big role in the body’s metabolism. By blocking the receptor with use of a drug, mice on a high-fat diet did not become any fatter than mice on a low-fat control diet, and obese mice dropped in weight with use of the same drug. No ill side effects were observed in either study.
Annual Poster Presentation Night
A snow squall couldn’t get in the way of the Geisel community coming out to support second-year medical students presenting their summer research at the ninth annual “Geisel School Research Poster Presentation Night” on January 8th at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. View the gallery of photos from the event.
Scientists Capture for First Time, Light Flashes from Human Eye During Radiotherapy
People have long reported seeing flashes of light during brain radiotherapy. Until now, no one has been able to capture evidence of this sensation in humans, and only theory, models, and speculation exist to explain it. Scientists at Dartmouth’s Norris Cotton Cancer Center, for the first time, have not only caught real-time observation of this phenomenon, but explain how the light is produced in the eye when radiation passes through it.
Scientists Learn What Women Know—and Don’t Know—About Breast Density and Cancer Risk
A new study by scientists at Dartmouth’s Norris Cotton Cancer Center and the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice conducted focus groups with women in three different states to learn what they did and did not know about breast density, in general and their own. The study found that women had varying knowledge. What they all had in common was a strong desire to learn more.
Top Stories of 2019
As we prepare for the new year, we thought we’d share some of the most popular Geisel news stories of 2019.
Breast Cancer Cells Swallow a “Free Lunch” of Dietary Fat Particles from the Bloodstream
Scientists at Dartmouth’s Norris Cotton Cancer Center make a direct connection between dietary fat and cancer cell biology by showing that fat particles from the blood are taken into breast cancer cells through a novel mechanism.









