Mark Harden News

03/20/2026

It took many years for 180 University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine students to reach a crucial step in their journey to become the healers of tomorrow. It took just a moment today to rip open an envelope and discover where that step will take them.
In a day that began with anticipation, then evolved into elation, fourth-year medical students gathered with their families and friends for Match Day – the day they learned where they will be heading after graduation for their clinical-training residencies, on their way to becoming licensed physicians.
Here's my story, with photos by Melissa Santorelli. University of Colorado Anschutz

It took years for 180 medical students to reach a crucial step toward becoming healers. It took just a moment to discover where that step will take them.

03/20/2026

CU Anschutz Cancer Center member Urs Weber, MD, walks us through a family of focused treatments that can block or slow cancer’s growth.

03/20/2026

It’s almost time to kick the tires and light the fires on Match Day 2026 at the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine! Our 4th year students are about to learn where they’re headed for residency.
Follow the action through the day on our school social media channels, and I’ll have full coverage later today (with photos by Melissa Santorelli)!

03/18/2026

One great health science news story after another. My University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine writer colleagues offer up articles worthy of an Oscar in the latest University of Colorado Anschutz newsletter! This week we have:
> Megan Palffy on a new clinical trial looking at when chemotherapy should be added to prostate cancer care.
> Greg Glasgow on a peer support program that helps surgeons cope with adverse events in patient care.
> Me on how emergency departments are bracing for potential increased patient loads with many people’s insurance coverage in jeopardy.
> And as a special bonus, Devon Balent offers a mashup of Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and March Madness (you heard me right) in his latest Instagram masterwork for the University of Colorado Anschutz Cancer Center.
Plus our campus comms pals write about a drummer who found his brain was the source of his chronic back pain, on helping women with multiple sclerosis have children, and much more.
It's all here and then some! ⬇️
https://tinyurl.com/CUAnschutzToday031826

03/17/2026

“Every ED is talking about this. It’ll take time to see what the ramifications are going to be.”
There’s nothing new about people coming to hospital emergency departments for non-emergency reasons, and ED patient volumes have been rising for years. So far, it’s unclear whether those trends will be impacted by recent changes in federal policy – changes that are projected to increase the number of U.S. residents without health insurance by several million over the next few years.
We hear from CU Anschutz Department of Emergency Medicine faculty members Jean Hoffman, MD, and Gregory Adams, DO, in my latest story for the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine at University of Colorado Anschutz.

CU Anschutz Emergency Medicine doctors say it remains too early to know whether recent federal policy changes will increase emergency department volumes.

03/11/2026

It's that time of year when we can be shoveling snow one day and basking in summery weather the next. And it's that time of the week when my University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine writer colleagues serve up our latest batch of health science news stories in the University of Colorado Anschutz newsletter! This week we have:
> Greg Glasgow on how NCAA name, image and likeness rules impact the health of college athletes, on new studies bringing options and hope to patients with hard-to-treat kidney cancers, and on CU Anschutz surgeons leading the way in preventing and treating lymphedema.
> Tayler Shaw on how an optic nerve biopsy, a high-risk procedure, can help find answers for patients losing vision.
> And me on the differences between imaging technologies and how they impact cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Plus, our campus comms colleagues share news on a molecular defect in the taste buds that may explain how COVID-19 can steal your sense of taste, why allergy seasons are getting longer and worse, and much more.
It's all here in the new CU Anschutz Today newsletter! Check it out here.
⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️
https://tinyurl.com/CUAnschutzToday031126

03/10/2026

Radiologist Dulcy Wolverton, MD, says tools using x-rays, sound, magnets, radio waves, and computers have 'changed everything.'

03/05/2026

At the University of Colorado Anschutz Cancer Center, providers have an arsenal of imaging tools at the ready, not only to detect cancer, but also to assess how far the disease has spread, target treatment while reducing harm to patients, and evaluate treatment success.
But the sheer variety of these imaging tools – MRI, CT, PET, x-ray, mammography, ultrasound, and more – can be bewildering to many of us. What are they? How do they work? What are they used for? Radiologist and imaging expert Dulcy Wolverton, MD, explains several imaging technologies most commonly used for cancer in my latest story for the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine.
University of Colorado Anschutz

Radiologist Dulcy Wolverton, MD, says tools using x-rays, sound, magnets, radio waves, and computers have 'changed everything.'

03/04/2026

I must confess I'm not really into college hoops, brackets and such, but I'm definitely feeling some March Madness for the great work by my University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine communications colleague in this week's University of Colorado Anschutz health-science newsletter!
> Greg Glasgow writes about a patient who, after a heart transplant, wants to give back and become a nurse, and on taking on bile duct cancer with new clinical trials.
> Mara Kalinoski reports on new research looking at the connections between sleep, PTSD-related nightmares and cardiovascular health in women.
> Tayler Shaw says a laser treatment for glaucoma shows early promise.
> And I write how cancer-causing genetic changes can be inherited, but cancer is not your destiny.
Plus our campus comms friends report on how AI could help detect signs of lung and heart disease in preemies, on efforts to make our indoor air cleaner, and much more!
It's all here in this week's CU Anschutz Today.
⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️
https://tinyurl.com/CUAnschutzToday030426

03/02/2026

Most cancers stem from changes in our genes during our lifetime, but 5% to 10% of cancers can be linked to something we’re born with: inherited genetic mutations. Genetic counselors at the University of Colorado Anschutz Cancer Center can advise patients on ways to unlock clues to their cancer risk that may be encoded in their genes since birth.
My latest story for the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine at University of Colorado Anschutz.

Inherited genetic mutations that can cause cancer are mostly rare, but they can greatly increase cancer risk, says a certified genetic counselor.

02/25/2026

Pups rule in this week's edition of the University of Colorado Anschutz health science newsletter, with Kara Mason and me writing about how medical research involving pooches and people can help both.
Plus there's more from our University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine communications team in the newsletter. Tayler Shaw goes for the gold with Olympics-themed stories on how the athletes can face breathing challenges and the impact of hormonal changes from aging, plus a piece on CU Anschutz’s first fellow in uveitis, an eye inflammation that can lead to vision problems and permanent blindness.
And our campus comms friends explain what Exploding Head Syndrome is, how stigma and biases can cause pain for pregnant women with substance use disorder, how cardiovascular diseases differ between the sexes, and a bunch more.
It's all here in the latest CU Anschutz Today! ⬇️
https://tinyurl.com/CUAToday022526

02/24/2026

A research collaboration between the CU Anschutz Department of Emergency Medicine and the nationally-ranked veterinary medical programs at Colorado State University seeks better ways to care for trauma in both humans and dogs, in combat zones as well as at home. It’s one facet of a long-standing CU Anschutz-CSU research partnership in a variety of medical fields.
My latest story for the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine at University of Colorado Anschutz.

A research collaboration between CU Anschutz and the veterinary medical programs at Colorado State University seeks better care for trauma in humans and dogs