Wisconsin and Dane County are in bloom — and so is allergy season, which experts say is trending longer and becoming more severe for sufferers.
Tree pollen levels are high across Wisconsin this week, affecting many with seasonal allergies. While this spring’s pollen allergies may have arrived at a normal time, toward the end of March, trends in recent years point to earlier seasons that last longer, UW Health allergist Dr. Mark Moss said.
An ancient practice may hold significant benefits for your mental and physical well-being.
UW Health distinguished psychologist Dr. Shilagh Mirgain highlighted the benefits of therapeutic journaling.
Harm reduction tools like fentanyl and xylazine test strips have years of evidence behind their use, according to Dr. Elizabeth Salisbury-Afshar, a professor in the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health and an addiction medicine specialist.
UW MedFlight is scheduled to land at the Iowa County Sheriff’s Office Wednesday evening as part of a training event.
The sheriff’s office said the training will occur at approximately 7 p.m.
Iowa County Emergency Services will be training with the UW MedFlight team on landing zone safety.
“For everyone’s safety, anyone wishing to watch should not park in our parking lot or along the roadway. Please use adjacent parking lots and remain a safe distance away,” Sheriff Michael Peterson said in a statement.
In recent weeks, researchers have announced several breakthroughs in treatment for pancreatic cancer. Researchers in New York shared results of a small study with promising signs for mRNA vaccines, and scientists shared research on ways to target and block the KRAS protein.
“For the first time, we have a phase two trial that has told us that we can help patients live longer when we block this protein,” UW Health medical oncologist Dr. Jeremy Kratz told 27 News anchor Caroline Dade.
Pediatric oncologist and researcher Dr. Christian Capitini was named the new director of the UW Carbone Cancer Center.
Capitini said the new role is both a personal milestone and a statewide promise.
“This was the biggest honor of my career… to be able to serve everyone in the state through this leadership role is just an enormous privilege and opportunity,” Capitini said.
Yihana Melendez Alejandro decided at age 7 she wanted to be a doctor.
Alejandro, now a first-year medical student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is from Vieques, an island eight miles off the east coast of Puerto Rico. Vieques has no hospital and had only one small primary care clinic that was destroyed by Hurricane Maria in 2017 and has yet to reopen. For Alejandro, this served as inspiration to pursue medical school.
Members of the Wisconsin women’s hockey team brought their NCAA Championship trophy to the American Family Children’s Hospital on Friday afternoon.
This visit is part of Badger Fridays, during which UW athletes from various sports visit patients at American Family Children’s Hospital.
Kimaya Soin was diagnosed with celiac disease at age 4, but it took some pushing from her mother.
“My doctors actually weren’t really going to check me for it, so it wasn’t on their radars,” Soin said. “My mom had to research my symptoms. She looked them up, and based on the symptoms I had, it was either likely celiac disease or leukemia, and she had never heard of celiac disease, like most people haven’t.”
Mike Abernethy had an unexpected meeting with a former patient in 2020 — one he’ll never forget.
It was after a shift in the emergency department. He was checking out with groceries at Walmart when a man approached him and asked, “Are you Dr. Abernethy?”
Abernethy had no recollection of the man until he unzipped his jacket and revealed a large scar.
the Trump Administration has slashed the number of grants from the National Institutes of Health, with far fewer focused on women, cancer and mental health
Wisconsin mothers on Medicaid will soon have access to a full year of postpartum health coverage after Gov. Tony Evers signed legislation extending benefits from 60 days to 12 months after giving birth.
The policy change addresses what doctors consider a dangerous and long-standing gap in care, when many pregnancy-related complications and mental health challenges emerge.
UW Health has become the Official Health Care Partner of the Green Bay Packers through a new multi-year agreement.
The partnership, announced at a Thursday press conference, includes joint community initiatives, fan-focused events throughout the year and a visible presence at Lambeau Field. UW Health will have permanent signage at the north entry gate of Lambeau Field and logo patches on Packers practice jerseys.
Spring cleaning can feel good, but have you thought about applying that same effort to other parts of your life?
UW Health distinguished psychologist Dr. Shilagh Mirgain provides a four-step checklist to help you lighten the load and make room for the things that bring joy and overall well-being.
The University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center welcomed the public this weekend for its annual open house, giving visitors a closer look at cancer research and prevention efforts.
The event featured lab tours, interactive exhibits and family-friendly activities, including appearances by Bucky Badger.
Ukrainian surgeons are in Madison this week, training at the University of Wisconsin-Madison to learn specialized techniques they can take back home to treat patients injured in the war.
Six surgeons are taking part in a two-week intensive training at UW’s Microsurgery Regenerative Medicine Lab, working under microscopes to practice reconnecting tiny blood vessels and nerves.
It began with a fall. Then another, and another.
LuAnn Guffey had watched over the years as her brother suffered with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that gradually disrupts a person’s basic muscle functions. When she began losing strength in her own legs, falling without tripping, suddenly losing the ability to stand, she feared she was following the family footsteps.
UW Health said Wednesday it has acquired University Podiatry Associates of Madison.
The podiatry clinic, which opened in 1981, is located in a roughly 7,600-square-foot facility at 450 S. Yellowstone Dr. on the West Side.
The practice provides podiatry care for a wide range of conditions, including diabetic foot ulcers, arthritis, bunions, hammertoes and other deformities or injuries.
UW-Madison’s women’s sports teams will soon have some extra branding on their jerseys.
UW Health on Thursday announced it would become the official jersey patch sponsor for the Badgers women’s squads. The healthcare provider’s logo will appear on basketball, volleyball, hockey and softball uniforms beginning with the 2026-27 season.
The University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health and UW Health are pleased to announce that Dr. Christian Capitini, a national expert in the treatment and research of childhood cancers, has been named the next director of the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center. Capitini will also hold the title of director of UW Health Cancer Services. He will assume the role of Carbone Cancer Center director on April 19.
UW Health is joining organizations across the country to recognize April as Donate Life Month, honoring organ, eye, and tissue donors.
Over 108,000 adults and children in the U.S. are awaiting an organ transplant, including 1,500 people in Wisconsin.
UW Health states that most individuals on the waitlist need a kidney, but more than 13 people die each day while waiting for a transplant, according to Michael Anderson, executive director of UW Organ and Tissue Donation.
Genevieve Simmons grimaced the more Mitch Reuter tightened a tourniquet around her arm.
“Definitely don’t have a pulse,” Simmons chuckled as Reuter checked her wrist.
Reuter was demonstrating how to use a tourniquet as he led a Stop the Bleed training last month at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Students filled a classroom in Birge Hall to learn how to pack a wound and apply pressure in a medical emergency.
We live in a heyday of meat. Americans ate $45 billion of beef in 2025, up more than 10 percent from the previous year, according to Beef Research, an industry marketing group. Ground beef is driving sales — McDonald’s recently released its new half-pounder, the Big Arch — but steak sales remain robust. In a February interview at CattleCon, the beef industry conference, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. revealed that his favorite beef cut was strip steak. He eats beef every day — “usually twice a day,” he said, to applause.
Dr. Lauren W. Yowelunh McLester-Davis is a Research Fellow in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and on the advisory council for the Native American Center for Health Professions.
Dr. Jeneile Luebke is an assistant professor in the School of Nursing at UW-Madison and an enrolled member of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians. Her research focuses on gender-based violence in the lives of Indigenous women, using community-engaged and Indigenous-specific research methodologies.
Tara Tindall, an enrolled member of the Ho-Chunk Nation, is the Native American teacher leader for the Madison Metropolitan School District, where she oversees the Native American Education Program and the federal Title VI program serving Native students from pre-K through 12th grade.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in history from UW-Stevens Point and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from UW-Madison.
Written by Jonathan Patz, the Vilas Distinguished Professor & John P. Holton Chair of Health and the Environment at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Nelson Institute & Department of Population Health Sciences.
A physical medicine and rehabilitation resident at UW Health is reimagining crayons by creating adaptive crayons for people with developmental disabilities, stemming from her past experiences.
Amber McKenna was in her first residency program back in 2022 at Louisiana State University Health Shreveport when she came up with the idea to use molds to melt wax and make fun-shaped crayons. Her friend suggested she take them to work and hand them out to kids at the hospital where she was doing a pediatrics residency.
Researchers from several prominent universities examined the self-reported sleep habits of nearly 130,000 teens. They found that the number of teens getting insufficient sleep, defined as seven hours or less a night, rose from 69% in 2007 to 78% in 2023, the most recent year for which data was available.
“We know that sleep plays a really critical role in adolescent brain development,” said Tanner Bommersbach, a child and adolescent psychiatrist and assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and one of the authors of the study. “So when large numbers of teens aren’t getting enough sleep, it really raises concerns about the downstream effects that that could be having on their mental health, on their academic performance, on their engagement and risk behaviors.”
The importance of relationships cannot be overstated, said Robert McGrath, a University of Wisconsin-Madison psychologist who gives public talks on how to live with vitality and resilience. He pointed to one of the longest-running studies on well-being, where Harvard University scientists followed the same group of men since 1938. The study revealed a simple yet profound conclusion: Good relationships lead to health and happiness.
Share experiences with others, even if it’s a solitary activity, McGrath recommended. He teaches a meditation class, for example, which is not exactly made for sparking conversation. But he sees strangers connect before and after class.
“Any form of connection is going to boost one’s mood,” he said. “Make that effort. Get out and connect.”
Madison-based biotech leader Exact Sciences has gifted UW-Madison’s foundation $2.5 million to improve early cancer detection discoveries through research.
The Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association’s new grant will establish the James Dahlberg Fund for Cancer Detection and Clinical Integration, named after UW-Madison professor emeritus James Dahlberg, to support university researchers and clinical trials at UW Health focused on detecting and preventing cancer.
Physical therapists Lori Thein Brody and Jill Thein-Nissenbaum return to talk about solutions for knee and hip osteoarthritis.
They’re tiny organisms, invisible to the human eye, and they’re inside you right now. This isn’t a description of a sci-fi monster but it is one of bacteria — single-celled organisms that can cause illness and death but might also help us to sleep better or find the motivation to exercise.
In short, we depend on bacteria, said Timothy Paustian, a professor in the Department of Bacteriology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“They’re really important for your health. You have a whole group of organisms that live inside you,” Paustian said.
Once the viruses adapted to microgravity by subtly shape-shifting, though, they became even more effective bacteria killers. “A simple microgravity experiment exposes these mutations that have much higher efficacy against pathogens,” says senior study author Srivatsan Raman, a chemical and biological engineer at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
A roadside sign that welcomes drivers to Burlington notes that the Wisconsin city was the boyhood home of Tony Romo, a former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and current television commentator.
There is no mention of Frederic Edward Mohs, born there in 1910, the visionary physician who invented a skin-cancer procedure bearing his name that has benefited millions.
After taking community and tribal input, the Manoomin Team aimed to address mixed concerns regarding the state of the restored wild rice — some members of the community feared the rice because of the water it was living in, while others thought that if manoomin was present and growing, it must be healthy, according to Ojibway.
The Hua Lab at UW, led by associate professor within the Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology Jessica Hua, has been a key partner in testing samples for heavy metals and PFAS.
“What we know so far … is that wild rice plants, the way that they grow, the way they make seed, is pretty protective of people’s health,” Erickson said. “I think we feel pretty good about people eating rice in the estuary and we can share that with people.”
“Adolescence is one of the big time periods of growth, next to infants,” said Taiya Bach, a member of the teaching faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Department of Nutritional Sciences told Gizmodo. “They need way more calories than a grown adult does.”
“Even if you are overweight, you still have that growth piece because a bunch of your calories are still going towards hormones and development and bone growth,” Bach said.
Chef Lauren Montelbano has worked as Wisconsin Union’s first chef-in-residence since last April, expanding vegetarian and vegan options across Union restaurants and collaborating with Union chefs to develop recipes and culinary programs for the Madison community.
Over the past year, she designed dishes for the catering menus, Grab ‘N’ Go areas and the Rathskeller and hosted a cooking demo and class through WUD Cuisine to teach more about vegan food preparation.
“I had the opportunity to collaborate and learn from the highly skilled and talented chefs that have made the Union their home,” Montelbano said. “Their attention to detail, passion for teaching and ability to manage multiple high volume businesses at once was inspiring to witness and be a small part of.”
Scientists at the Wisconsin Crop Innovation Center are pioneering the future of hemp farming. Researchers at UW-Madison have received deregulation from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for 3 gene-edited hemp lines, allowing field cultivation without special permits.
Senior research scientist Mike Petersen explained they use a tool called CRISPR to gently edit the plant’s DNA, giving it traits like no THC or resistance to disease. Back in November 2025, the first line approved was Badger G, high in CBG, and known to reduce inflammation and other pharmaceutical benefits.
Amy Zelenski, associate professor and director of Education Innovation and Scholarship at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, teaches an elective class in improvisational theater.
She recently visited WPR’s “The Larry Meiller Show” to discuss the relationship between improv and improving health care.
“I started my career working with medical residents, and I realized that they could say the words, but they were struggling with the connection piece,” Zelenski recalled.
Ron Kean, University of Wisconsin-Madison’s poultry specialist, told Wisconsin Public Radio that poultry producers are also growing frustrated by a lack of solutions in this new era of avian flu response.
“There’s going to have to be more work on vaccination, which is a big international political issue,” he said. “That I think is one of the big frustrations for the poultry industry.”
In December, President Donald Trump issued an executive order to bar hospitals from providing “sex-rejecting” services for youth under 18.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says that children may experience “irreversible damage” when exposed to puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgical operations at a young age — for example, infertility, impaired sexual function, diminished bone density and other irreversible physiological effects.
As a result, UW Health and Children’s Wisconsin halted what the health organization calls gender-affirming care in January. If hospitals didn’t abide by federal rules, they would lose funding for Medicare and Medicaid.
“Sleep plays a crucial role in adolescent brain development,” says Tanner Bommersbach, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. “It’s important for emotional regulation in teenagers and important for their overall physical and mental health.”
Some young people are using chatbots “to test out being flirty or being romantic or being a little bit sexy and seeing how the chatbot responds to that,” Megan Moreno, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who studies technology and adolescent health, told me.
That kind of experimentation may be more common among boys, who generally engage in more risky behavior online than girls, Moreno said.
The link to mental health also has a physiological basis that researchers like Dr. Charles Raison are trying to understand.
“High heat administered for a time-limited period is an antidepressant and a pretty good one,” says Raison, a professor of psychiatry and human ecology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
As of Thursday, Feb. 12, a new University of Wisconsin policy requires its students to share their vaccination status amidst the recent measles outbreak.
Despite some confusion, according to Jake Baggott, Associate Vice Chancellor & Executive Director of University Health Services, students are not required to be vaccinated but rather obligated to share their status for specific vaccinations, such as Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR), Varicella (Chicken Pox), Hepatitis B and more, according to the UHS Vaccination Records website.
The Open Seat food pantry, located in the UW Student Activity Center, provides food and hygiene products to students experiencing food insecurity. Open to all UW–Madison students without income verification, the pantry aims to remove barriers to basic needs so students can focus on academics instead of worrying about their next meal.
Now, the eight part-time student employees who operate the pantry are calling on Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin and Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Lori Reesor to fund a full-time, permanent staff position dedicated solely to pantry operations. Student organizers say the current model — in which students manage every aspect of a large-scale food distribution program — is no longer sustainable.
:The bigger and broader your network is, the earlier you’re going to get data and direct access to global outbreak intelligence and alerts,” said Janis Tupesis, a Madison public health official and a global health expert at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “That is super beneficial to the state.”
Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin called the win “exciting” and highlighted the importance of the partnership in saving lives.
“The Badgers contributed more than 15,400 donations over the course of the competition,” Mnookin said. “That included our students, alumni, community members, anybody who went and donated.”
UW-Madison School of Education professor Erika Bullock describes how the daily necessities of life — from family and food to housing and health — can impact how children learn in classroom settings.
“Colorectal cancer is the number two most common cancer in the United States,” Dr. Noelle LoConte, M.D., said. “It is decreasing, but not fast enough.”
The 25th Bowlin’ for Colons event was held Sunday, with participants raising money for colon cancer research at the UW Carbone Cancer Center.
Bowlers laced up their shoes at one of nine south central Wisconsin bowling alleys for the fundraiser. Colon cancer is the third most diagnosed cancer.
“I only recommend devices that are cleared by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). FDA-clearance indicates that the product was submitted to and reviewed by the organization,” says Dr. Apple Bodemer, a board-certified dermatologist and professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
A study led by a University of Wisconsin researcher shows the first empirical documentation of digital voter suppression on social media and foreign election interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The study was published Jan. 26 in the official journal of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.
The Badger Challenge is launching a new event to raise funds for cancer research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The 2026 Badger Challenge Ball will bring together survivors, supporters, researchers, and community partners for a formal dinner, reception, and auction at The Edgewater. Set against the lakefront backdrop, the evening aims to celebrate hope while directly supporting life-changing cancer research.
The BerbeeWalsh Emergency Department at University Hospital will now have its own dedicated address, UW Health announced on Thursday.
The emergency department’s new address is 1565 Highland Ave., in Madison.
UW Health explained the emergency department had shared the previous same address as the hospital’s main entrance.
The new address allows for patients and families to get to the department quicker.
Rudin has incorporated lectures about EDS into the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s medical school curriculum, hoping to expand awareness in academia. He’s also given lectures to various clinical departments to “sensitize” them to the condition and helped create an addition to UW Health’s electronic records that can help assess, diagnose and begin treatment for people with EDS.
Co-authored by rofessor of environmental medicine, and djunct associate professor of Population Health Sciences, both at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The preparation of this year’s guidelines deviated from the past years’ processes, according to associate professor in the University of Wisconsin Department of Food Science Brad Bolling.
“There was a new scientific review process that didn’t follow the established public accountability and measures that typically the dietary guidelines goes through,” Bolling said.
The revised guidelines are lacking review and thought, retired senior clinical nutritionist of UW Hospital and Clinics Donna Weihofen said. The adaptation of the guidelines into effect is scary, given the existing controversy behind them, according to Weihofen.
The layout and suggestions presented in the new guidelines also confuse Weihofen. The graphic is completely flipped, and the placement of whole grains, an important source of fiber, on the bottom is a confusing choice, according to Weihofen.
“Fiber is really an important part of our diet … so to put that at the bottom of the pyramid doesn’t seem to make nutritional sense,” Weihofen said.
The Madison Water Utility oversees the 21 wells that service the City of Madison, including the University of Wisconsin campus, according to Grande. They closely monitor a wide variety of regulated contaminants, like volatile organic compounds, pesticides, inorganic compounds, bacterial contaminations and PFAS, according to Grande.
In moves they described as efforts to make the state’s higher education system more meritocratic and safe for conservative students, Assembly Republicans voted Thursday to change eligibility for certain financial aid programs, and make it easier to sue universities for free speech violations.
UW-Madison students now will be required to report their vaccination status to the university, campus officials said Thursday.
The mandate comes after UW-Madison announced earlier this month that a student living in an off-campus apartment tested positive for measles. University and Dane County officials said at least 4,000 people were exposed.
