Mark Harden News

Trustworthy news has become a scarce resource. It’s being replaced by a flood of agenda-driven content disguised as news.

Trusted Sources, a new documentary film by Don Colacino featuring Colorado journalists, shows how we got here, how to find trustworthy news, and how to protect good journalism.

Join the Society of Professional Journalists, Colorado Pro Chapter, on Thursday, September 26, for a special screening of “Trusted Sources” at the Denver Press Club. You’ll see how news became so sensationalized, the professional standards that good journalists are held to, and where to find news that lives up to those standards.

Following the screening, a panel discussion will feature filmmaker Colacino and two Colorado journalists who appear in the film: Nina Joss, reporter for Colorado Community Media, and Thelma Grimes, deputy editor of Colorado Politics. The panel will be moderated by Corey Hutchins, an SPJ Colorado Pro board member and co-director of the Journalism Institute at Colorado College.

For more information and to register, click on the link below. ⬇️

https://tinyurl.com/SPJColoTrustedSources

As a young girl in Puerto Rico, her parents gave her a microscope. That’s when “the science spark started,” says Daysha Ferrer Torres, PhD. Now she's an award-winning researcher dedicated to unlocking the secrets of esophageal cancer. And she just joined the University of Colorado Cancer Center's Rady Center of Excellence and the CU Department of Medicine's Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

New to CU Anschutz, Scientist Uses ‘Mini-Organs in a Dish’ to Unlock Secrets of Esophageal Cancer Daysha Ferrer Torres, PhD, joins the Rady Center of Excellence at the CU Cancer Center, where she will advocate for more diverse cancer research.

It's West Nile virus season again, with the year's first cases in Denver and Boulder County reported. The mosquito-borne virus even sent Dr. Fauci to the hospital. So how worried should we be? And what should we do to protect ourselves?
Infectious disease expert Lakshmi Chauhan, MD, of the CU Department of Medicine answers our questions in my latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

It’s West Nile Virus Season Again. How Worried Should We Be? In Colorado, 2023 was a bad year for West Nile virus, and the mosquito-borne infection continues to spark concern and questions this year.

For nearly a quarter century, Steven Johnson, MD, of the CU Department of Medicine has been hopping on planes once a month, flying across Colorado to treat people living with HIV at a pair of clinics far from the big city. He figures he’s made about 200 round trips between Denver and Grand Junction and 100 journeys to Durango.
The internationally recognized HIV expert has been seeing patients since 2000 at two CU-backed clinics on the Western Slope that provide the only specialized HIV clinical services for hundreds of miles.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

‘An Unsung Hero’ Brings Expert HIV Care to Rural Colorado For a quarter century, Steven Johnson, MD, has been hopping on planes once a month, flying across Colorado to treat people living with HIV.

“This is something I’ve been trying to do for a long time." University of Colorado Cancer Center leader Hatim Sabaawy, MD, PhD, whose mission is to move medical science discoveries quickly from "bench to bedside" to help patients, talks about a major project to more effectively evaluate potential cancer-fighting therapies in my latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. PLEASE SHARE.

Major Project to Address ‘Urgent Need’ For Improved Testing of Cancer Therapies A major project at CU Anschutz to improve models for evaluating cancer-fighting therapies before clinical trials has been awarded a grant.

“A passion for patient care is the same as a passion for customer service,” says Sean Buchan. After earning his Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from the University of Colorado School of Medicine, he's now the co-owner of Cerebral Brewing, which just opened its second taproom in the Aurora Cultural Arts District near the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.
Buchan talks about how a science background fuels his scientific approach to making award-winning beer in my latest story.

From Physical Therapy to Brewing: CU School of Medicine Grad Crafts a Beer Career ‘Beer is equal parts art and science,’ says Sean Buchan, DPT, whose Cerebral Brewing now has an outpost near the CU Anschutz Medical Campus.

Despite decades of progress in education, detection and treatment, breast cancer remains an ominous threat. It's the No. 1 cancer diagnosed in women. And in recent years, breast cancer incidence rates in the U.S. have risen.
Virginia Borges, MD, MMSc, a leading University of Colorado Cancer Center and medical oncology professor, offers an update on breast cancer and what women should know about the threat.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

Despite Advances, Breast Cancer Remains the Number 1 Cancer Among Women Despite decades of progress in education, detection, and treatment, breast cancer remains an ominous threat, both here and abroad.

“Collecting this information is long overdue": Carey Candrian, PhD, of the CU Department of Medicine says health care professionals should improve data collection of patients’ sexual orientation and gender identity to improve the quality of care.
Mark Couch writes about Candrian's important message for the University of Colorado School of Medicine
at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

CU Researcher Issues a Call for More Data to Improve Care for LGBTQ Patients Carey Candrian, PhD, writes in The New England Journal of Medicine that bias against LGBTQ patients continues due to a lack of information.

Mapping cancer’s impact across Colorado is now easier than ever for medical professionals, researchers, and others, thanks to a new interactive platform from the University of Colorado Cancer Center.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

Introducing an Interactive Mapping Tool to Display Colorado Cancer Data Mapping cancer’s impact across Colorado is now easier than ever, thanks to a new interactive platform from the University of Colorado Cancer Center.

“Dr. Badesch, I came to you in desperate need, in a dark place, relying on your exceptional expertise. And you gave me that, and my family that, and so much more.”
Grateful patient Kerry Hicks and his wife fund the Kerry and Megan Hicks Endowed Chair in Pulmonary Hypertension at the CU Department of Medicine to support research, and his doctor, David Badesch, MD, is the chair's inaugural holder.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

A Grateful Couple Supports CU Pulmonary Hypertension Research With Endowed Chair David Badesch, MD, is the inaugural holder of the Kerry and Megan Hicks Endowed Chair in Pulmonary Hypertension.

An amazing year of medicine! Check out Onward: The 2023-24 CU Department of Medicine Annual Report, masterminded by our DOM communications lead Rachael Fischer and featuring great stories by Tayler Shaw, Greg Glasgow and me. Link below. University of Colorado School of Medicine
https://tinyurl.com/CUDOMAnnualReport

"When you grow up wanting to be a doctor, you want to be someone who really cares about patients."
Christopher Lieu, MD, is a nationally recognized cancer researcher and leader in the CU Department of Medicine and the University of Colorado Cancer Center. And now he's been recognized by his peers as a champion for patients.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

Providing Cancer Patients with Hope: Christopher Lieu, MD, Says His Research Helps Fuel His Clinical Care For Christopher Lieu, MD, the recognition of his peers for the quality of his clinical work with patients with cancer is both a source of pride and a challenge.

I'm proud to have 3 of my stories featured in the latest University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus newsletter, on the welcome ceremony for the University of Colorado School of Medicine Class of 2028, on a University of Colorado Cancer Center member's national award for a lifetime of research, and on the launch of a "one-stop shop" for kidney care. Plus great work by my colleagues! Link below.
https://tinyurl.com/CUAnschutzToday073124

Service to patients. Passion and drive. Excellence, integrity, and humanism. Those and other qualities were cited by admiring presenters as University of Colorado School of Medicine faculty received Distinguished Clinician and Distinguished Faculty Professionalism awards. My latest story.
University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

‘Really Extraordinary’: CU School of Medicine Honors Distinguished Clinicians and Faculty Professionalism Ten CU School of Medicine faculty were honored July 29 at the school’s Distinguished Clinician and Distinguished Faculty Professionalism Awards ceremony.

On a busy Denver street stands a new building that’s the product of years of planning and effort – a stand-alone facility that represents a milestone in care of patients with chronic kidney disease, powered by the specialized medical skills of University of Colorado School of Medicine faculty.
My latest story for the CU Department of Medicine on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

‘A One Stop Shop’ for Kidney Care: CU Anschutz Departments Partner on New Stand-Alone Center Years in the planning, the Lowry Renal Center will offer surgery, radiology, and nephrology services under one roof outside a hospital.

"Our work is more than a job. It is in fact a calling to serve.”
With proud family and friends seated behind them, with those who will teach and guide them over the next four years in front of them, and with their dean inviting them to “celebrate your accomplishments,” 183 new students at the University of Colorado School of Medicine gathered today on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus for their Class of 2028 Matriculation Ceremony. They took away new white coats, stethoscopes, and advice to take time for gratitude and fun amid the hard work ahead.
My latest story, with photography by Melissa Santorelli.

‘You Have Earned Being Here’: CU School of Medicine Welcomes Class of 2028 at Matriculation Ceremony 183 first-year medical students donned white coats, received stethoscopes and journals, and vowed to be champions for their patients.

On Friday morning, 7/26, 183 aspiring healers will don their white coats, recite the Hippocratic Oath, and set out on their medical school journey at the University of Colorado School of Medicine's Matriculation Ceremony for the Class of 2028.
Here are profiles of three of the aspiring health care professionals, plus a link to details of the event and a live stream. And watch for my story on the ceremony Friday afternoon.

CU School of Medicine Matriculation 2024 We are excited to introduce the University of Colorado School of Medicine Class of 2028 at our annual Matriculation Ceremony on Friday, July 26, at 9 a.m.

“If you see something promising, don’t be reluctant to change direction.”
That philosophy about lung cancer research has led to decades of important work by York Miller, MD, a University of Colorado Cancer Center member and CU Department of Medicine professor of pulmonary sciences. And now, that work has resulted in national recognition of Miller’s career.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

York Miller, MD, Receives Lifetime Achievement Award for Trailblazing Cancer Research York Miller, MD, has been presented with the annual Lifetime Achievement Award by the Thoracic Oncology Assembly of the American Thoracic Society

In 1979, while I was a journalism student at San Francisco State University, the local professional chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists sent me to SPJ's national convention in New York (my first trip there), where I stayed at the Waldorf Astoria and sat on a banquet dais with Jean Otto (SPJ's first woman president and later editorial page editor at the Rocky Mountain News) and the keynote speaker, Charles Osgood.
Ever since, across a 40-year career as a full-time journalist, I've stayed connected with SPJ, largely as a contestant, entry manager for various news outlets, and judge in its national and regional journalism contests.
Now, I'm proud to say that I've joined the board of SPJ's Colorado Professional chapter as an at-large member and on its communications committee, helping to manage its online operations.
SPJ, 115 years old, is the nation's foremost professional organization for journalists and a fierce advocate for First Amendment rights, journalistic ethics, and other values important to a free and vital press. And Colorado SPJ Pro manages the four-state Top of the Rockies contest, the region's broadest platform for honoring journalism excellence. Also, the chapter each year provides thousands of dollars in scholarships to the young journalists of tomorrow.
At a time when the profession is under fire from all sides, I'm grateful for the chance to serve on the SPJ Colorado Pro board. And I hope you'll join us as a member. Info at the link below under "Join."
https://coloradospj.wordpress.com/

Not all versions of Medicare are created equal – and when it comes to end-of-life care, some versions may serve a patient’s needs better than others. That’s the focus of newly published research by Lauren Hersch Nicholas, PhD, MPP, a CU Department of Medicine and University of Colorado Cancer Center health economist.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

How Well Does Medicare Cover End-of-Life Care? It Depends on What Type Not all versions of Medicare are created equal – and when it comes to end-of-life care, some versions may serve a patient’s needs better than others.

There are good docs, and then there are the “best of the best.” Tayler Shaw and I have been profiling the 21 inductees into the CU Department of Medicine’s Clinical Excellence Society. Learn more about them here.
University of Colorado School of Medicine University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Department of Medicine | Clinical Excellence Society Clinical Excellence Society | The latest news in the Department of Medicine at CU Anschutz, topics include research, patient care, and more.

“I think about the talents around this table and the work that everyone has done to move the needle on cancer. It’s really a privilege to be here." The top White House science official visits the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus to talk about progress against cancer with Colorado elected officials, University of Colorado System leaders and University of Colorado Cancer Center members.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

White House Science Official Comes to CU Anschutz for Cancer Briefing, Moonshot Updates Top White House science official Arati Prabhakar, PhD, visited the CU Anschutz Medical Campus for a meeting on progress against cancer.

Growing up in Iowa, Jason Kolfenbach, MD, might not have seemed the most likely person to pursue a medical career. He did not come from a family of physicians. In fact, he was the first in his blue-collar family to go to college.
Today, he's a nationally esteemed rheumatologist, and an inductee into the CU Department of Medicine's Clinical Excellence Society.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

‘I Trust Him With My Life’: Rheumatologist Sees Years Spent With Patients as a Privilege Jason Kolfenbach, MD, is one of 21 inaugural inductees in the CU Department of Medicine’s Clinical Excellence Society.

I'm delighted that three of my stories for the University of Colorado School of Medicine are featured in this week's University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus newsletter, on cancer disparities in LGBTQ+ communities, on improving home health care, and on world-class melanoma expert Sapna Patel, MD, coming to CU Anschutz. Link below.
https://tinyurl.com/CUAnschutzToday071024

Kids in an adult hospital. Adults in a children's hospital. Adults with diseases that start in childhood. These are challenges for doctors at the side-by-side hospitals on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. So a team of physicians cross-trained in internal medicine and pediatrics is helping to bridge the care gap in a way that's rare nationwide.
My latest story for the CU Department of Medicine / University of Colorado School of Medicine.

Leading Patients Out of No Man’s Land: Med-Peds Team Bridges Gap Between Pediatric and Adult Care A CU Department of Medicine team cross-trained in internal medicine and pediatrics is bridging the care gap between children’s and adult hospitals.

“She has quite literally changed the field of melanoma, and she is a world-class leader. We are so fortunate to have her at CU.”
Sapna Patel, MD, joins the University of Colorado Cancer Center and the CU Department of Medicine. Find out about her plans in my latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus .

A ‘World-Class Leader’ in Melanoma Oncology Plans to Help Build a Pinnacle Program in the Rockies Sapna Patel, MD, a widely renowned melanoma oncologist and clinical investigator, has joined the CU Cancer Center and the CU Department of Medicine.

"It’s really just over the past 10 or 20 years that we started to focus on cancer disparities among LGBTQ+ people." Cancer impacts people from LGBTQ+ communities differently from other people – and there’s still a long way to go to understand those differences, says University of Colorado Cancer Center leader Miria Kano, PhD.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

‘An Obligation to Make Things Better’: Coping With Cancer Disparities Among LGBTQ+ Communities Cancer impacts people from le***an, gay, bisexual, transgender, and q***r communities differently, and there’s a long way to go to understand why.

Just as a primary care doctor uses a stethoscope and a surgeon employs a scalpel, the medical tool of preference for Judith Ouellet, PhD, of the CU Division of Health Care Policy and Research is data. “I really like finding patterns in data,” she says. “That’s why I enjoy working with home health data. Putting all the pieces together with such large data sets is something that fascinates me.”
It's the tool Ouellet uses to help homebound Medicare patients receiving home care stay safe and healthy.
My latest story for the University of Colorado School of Medicine at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

‘Putting All the Pieces Together’: Data Drives Work to Improve Home Health Care As a Medicare program to incentivize home care quality goes nationwide, Judith Ouellet, PhD, MPH, crunches the numbers to report on the program’s results.

“Our vision is that the musculoskeletal oncology program will become the premier center not only in the region, but in the country.” A patient compared him to the Avengers. Now, a renowned orthopedic surgical oncologist and sarcoma specialist
is the program's new chief at CU Orthopedics.
My latest story for the University of Colorado Cancer Center at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

A Star in Musculoskeletal Oncology and an ‘Avenger’ for Patients Joins the CU Cancer Center Steven Thorpe, MD, FACS, is the new chief of a CU Department of Orthopedics program focused on sarcomas and other bone and soft-tissue cancers.