Gross Anatomy

Every November, men are challenged to grow their facial hair for the next 30 days to make a mustache that sparks curiosity and conversation. The reason, the mustache is Movember Foundation's ribbon of awareness for men's health. The Foundation is the leading charity tackling prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health on a global scale. So today, the first of Movember, we’re talking about...

Just in time for Halloween, we get into the real stories and scientific discoveries that led to the creation of cinema’s most iconic and spooky creatures… Dracula, The Gill-Man, Frankenstein and much more. We also talk about our favorite and least favorite scary movies — so be prepared to learn some eerie truths!

Are there health benefits to going to theme parks? Can a roller coaster drop help with anxiety? We explore those questions and discuss the psychological thriller/hit movie Joker — and our completely different reactions to the film! Note, there are some Joker spoilers for those listeners that haven't watched it yet. *GROSS ANATOMY IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE,...

This week's episode is an edited version of one of our favorite podcasts that we did with celebrity guest Mark Feuerstein. Mark played Dr. Hank Lawson on Royal Pains for eight seasons and talks about what it’s like to play a doctor on TV and how he and Dr. Cohen met while he was filming another medical show called 3 lbs. The friendly banter between TV doctor and real doctor is a short and sweetly...

Male breast cancer is rare with an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 cases a year in the United States — but that doesn’t mean men shouldn’t get the BRCA gene test. In this episode we discuss male breast cancer, genetic testing and the importance of people like Mathew Knowles (Beyonce’s dad) speaking out about his recent breast cancer battle. We also get into some of the health effects of air pollution and...

The latest numbers are in for America — childhood obesity rates are now reaching 19% or roughly 1 in 5 children, and then there’s a recent report claiming an all-time high of nine U.S. states with adult obesity rates above 35%. We discuss the chronic health conditions and diseases that can come with childhood and adult obesity, such as asthma, sleep apnea, bone and joint problems, and type 2 diabe...

We look into the latest news on an outbreak of severe lung disease among users of electronic cigarettes that continues to spread to new patients and states. All this and more, including some of our Emmy predictions and favorite nominees! **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF YOUR PHYSICIAN OR O...

The US Open has winners, losers and a handful of athletes known for their quirks and rituals like Rafael Nadal — which Nadal insists are mechanisms to help him focus on tennis. Dr. Cohen attended the US Open and gives his take on watching Nadal play with these tics (some might call OCD). We also discuss the idiosyncrasies of other professionals like doctors, actors and musicians. Plus, we answer a...

A-listers like Natalie Portman and Beyonce are going vegan and endorsing plant based diets along with many other celebrities that promote their diets on social media. So, it’s no wonder the meatless products from Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods have exploded. Beyond Meat has even made big deals with Carl’s Jr., Dunkin, Del Taco and TGI Friday’s, and Impossible Foods products are now in about 10,0...

Many scripted series consult with actual doctors in order to accurately portray medical professionals on television — but that doesn’t always mean your favorite show gets it right. We discuss some of the top TV tropes (like Dr. Jerk and instant bullet removal) that could get a doctor fired in real life. **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE, DIA...

More people are taking to social media to share their medical problems with the hope of finding answers from anyone who might have suffered the same symptoms. New shows like TNT’s Chasing the Cure and Netflix’s Diagnosis aim to capitalize on this trend while helping those who suffer from undiagnosed, misdiagnosed or uncured medical mysteries. We discuss these shows and how social media is changing...

About 10 percent of women (6.1 million) in the United States have difficulty getting pregnant or staying pregnant, according to the CDC. Infertility is also used as a major plot line on the hit TV shows Handmaid’s Tale and This Is Us. We discuss these shows and the realities of infertility & sterility and the increased use of IVF to help women conceive. **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INTENDED TO B...

Now that Game of Thrones has concluded, there’s a new show that Dr. Cohen thinks is just as binge worthy and essentially more important — Big Mouth, a Netflix animated sitcom. Plus, we talk about Dr. Mike Varshavski, recognized as America's Sexiest Doctor in 2015, he’s since gained over eight million followers online and used his viral fame to educate on health. **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INTE...

According to a recent Harvard report, burnout is “a public health crisis that urgently demands action.” With doctors reporting troubling burnout symptoms: depression, exhaustion, dissatisfaction and a sense of failure. So, we discuss some strategies to cope with job stress and avoid burnout. Plus, we get into some of our favorite TV and movie watches of the week. **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INT...

We talk about doctors that left their medical career behind so they could pursue a completely different job. Like, Ken Jeong, Michael Crichton, Anton Chekov and Che Guevara — all were doctors who decided to change course. **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF YOUR PHYSICIAN OR OTHER QUALIFIED H...

We discuss celebrities that broadcast their personal health and medical advice and how that can lead other people to ignore the advice of a doctor and delay necessary medical care. And, how people today are constantly Google searching for answers to their health problems — often sending them spiraling down a rabbit hole of worry and despair unnecessarily. **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INTENDED TO...

We discuss the new Hulu documentary - Ask Dr. Ruth. The documentary charts the incredible life of Dr. Ruth Westheimer, a Holocaust survivor who became America's most famous sex therapist. **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF YOUR PHYSICIAN OR OTHER QUALIFIED HEALTH PROVIDER WITH ANY QUESTIONS...

Ali Stroker made history at the 73rd annual Tony Awards as the “Oklahoma!” actress became the first wheelchair user to win a Tony - which was a huge moment for the disability community in regards to representation. In this episode we talk about paralysis, how people with disabilities are portrayed in movies and discuss the journey of Dr. Cohen’s close friend that is an advocate and champion for di...

Let's talk about The Hot Zone! A new TV show that’s based on a true story and stars Julianna Margulies and Liam Cunningham aka Sir Davos. The show examines the origins of the Ebola virus, a highly infectious, deadly virus from the central African rain forest and its first arrival on U.S. soil. Then, we get into our favorite outbreak movies and naturally, the movie Outbreak. **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST...

In this episode we discuss Lewy Body Dementia (LBD) which famous baseball player Bill Buckner recently died from and Robin Williams was said to have suffered from, and we try to understand the differences in Alzheimer’s and LBD. Then, we get into Zac Efron’s Ted Bundy performance verse the real Ted Bundy in The Ted Bundy Tapes, debate if the actress painted gold in Goldfinger really died or if it...

In this episode we talk about JUUL, a type of e-cigarette that’s extremely popular among young people. Almost half of the people who followed JUUL on Twitter last year were not old enough to legally purchase e-cigarettes in the United States. We also discuss the complications smoking can have on patients after surgery, an alternative idea to e-cigarettes and, because we need to let it out, our tho...

Recently stars like Sophie Turner and Maisie Williams have spoken out about the insults they’ve endured regarding their weight and how people’s negative comments affected the way they saw themselves. On this episode, we talk about body image in the social media age and how having a negative body image can threaten mental, physical and social wellbeing. **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INTENDED TO BE...

On April 26th 1986, explosions at reactor number four of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine led to huge releases of radioactive materials into the atmosphere. The HBO miniseries, Chernobyl, explores the cause and aftermath of this nuclear disaster. On the podcast we discuss the first episode of the series and the health impacts of Chernobyl, specifically, the rise in thyroid cancers over...

In this dark episode, we discuss how a Maester is as close to a doctor as it gets in the fictional world of Game of Thrones, and all of the medicines and poisons GOT characters use for good and evil reasons. We also debate which GOT character we would be (Podrick is a real possibility)! **GROSS ANATOMY PODCAST IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATM...

Dieting information fills news feeds, magazines and are often discussed by celebrities, including Beyonce, who stated in her new Netflix film Homecoming: “In order for me to meet my (weight loss) goal, I’m limiting myself to no bread, no carbs, no sugar, no dairy, no meat, no fish, no alcohol, and I’m hungry.” That being said, we thought it was time to explore diet trends, like the keto diet, and...