Archive for June, 2009

Event on June 30th: Can Dogs Detect Cancer?

On Tuesday, June 30th, the Pine Street Foundation and the Marin Humane Society hosted a talk.

Volunteers Wanted

Volunteers Needed

We are seeking two volunteers to help with one of our cancer research project in downtown San Anselmo, California.

When the Answer Isn’t So Clear: Interpreting the Results of Medical Research

There are few things in life that are black and white and medical research is certainly no exception. Being able to skillfully evaluate the authority, usefulness, and reliability of medical information is a crucial step towards making informed decisions in one’s own healthcare.


Avenues 26 - Summer 2009

Avenues – Summer 2009

In our Summer 2009 newsletter, we offer advice for critically evaluating medical research and also give an update on our canine scent detection of ovarian cancer research.

Simple Tools For Understanding Risks: From Innumeracy to Insight

Bad presentation of medical statistics such as the risks associated with a particular intervention can lead to patients making poor decisions on treatment. Particularly confusing are single event probabilities, conditional probabilities (such as sensitivity and specificity), and relative risks. How can doctors improve the presentation of statistical information so that patients can make well informed decisions?