Fall ’16 / Winter ’17 - Mission magazine | UT Health Science Center San Antonio

Healing starts here

In ancient times, medical advances were made through a mixture of trial and error. Today’s trials are a far cry from the methods of discovery made by early civilizations.

Tara Rojas-Padron places a flower on the gravesite during the burial of ashes ceremony

The dead teach the living

Above a double doorway at the end of a hallway, a wooden sign announces in Latin, “Mortui Vivos Docent.” It’s here that the dead teach the living.

Stop the music

Epigenetics is like an invisible pianist playing a genetic keyboard with each key representing a different gene.

Ready, set, Go Baby Go!

Modified toy cars give a new sense of movement to children who can’t easily get around because of mobility impairments.

Ronald A. DePinho, M.D., Bill McRaven and William L. Henrich, M.D., MACP (right),

Quantum leap in cancer care

UT Health San Antonio and The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center join forces to benefit South Texas cancer patients.

When a person has a stroke, brain tissue begins to die as oxygen-rich blood is blocked from entering the brain. But with a device about the size of a coffee stir, brain tissue is saved, and a full recovery is possible.

Colliding, bumping, smashing

They’re in every cell in every living organism, and now researchers have a better understanding about heat shock proteins and their role in human diseases.

Miles of smiles

If one child’s smile can warm the heart, imagine what tens of thousands can do. Miles of Smiles–Laredo provides elementary school children dental screenings, fluoride varnish and dental sealants—all for free.

Breaking down the prison walls

Individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder relive past traumas again and again, bound in a virtual prison of their memories.

Walking time bomb

It’s an unsettling thought: You could be walking around for 20 years developing Parkinson’s disease and not even know it.

New entry-point

The School of Health Professions is offering one of the country’s few entry-level master’s degree programs in medical laboratory science.

In her shoes

As a geriatric neurologist, Diane Solomon, M.D., examines patients with memory loss. Most of the time, the cause is Alzheimer’s disease. That was also the case for her grandmother.

Change agent

As a trauma and critical care Army nurse, Kimberly Smith served around the world, caring for the most critical of patients in the most dire of circumstances. After nearly three decades, she’s serving in a new capacity: change agent.

White House notes hepatitis C efforts

The Center for Research to Advance Community Health (ReACH), a part of UT Health San Antonio, was recognized by the White House at its 2016 National Hepatitis Testing Day observance in Washington, D.C.

Dollars for cancer cures

UT Health San Antonio received millions of dollars for cancer research in 2016 from the Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT).

U.S. News & World Report Best Grad Schools Rankings

High marks

UT Health San Antonio is ranked among the top universities around the world, listed as No. 388, according to the 2016 edition of U.S. News & World Report’s international universities ranking.

Trials and advances

The Cancer Therapy & Research Center has been named among the top 10 institutions that are members of SWOG, an international network of researchers that design and conduct cancer clinical trials.

William L. Henrich, M.D., MACP, and his wife, Mary, celebrated with honorees Gen. Joe Robles and his wife, Patty.

A salute to service

President's Gala celebrates military and health collaborations, and establishes chair in military health research.

Grant to boost Alzheimer’s institute

The John L. Santikos Charitable Foundation has given a $2.3 million grant to UT Health San Antonio for high-powered radiological equipment to diagnose Alzheimer’s disease and other age-related conditions.

Landmark gift for cancer center

The San Antonio Cancer Foundation has pledged $17 million to support a new affiliation between UT Health San Antonio and The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

Supporting a new generation of scientists

Three junior faculty members were selected to receive $450,000 from the Max and Minnie Tomerlin Voelcker Fund to develop innovative lines of research and make preliminary discoveries.

Baptist Health Foundation presents check

Milestone moments

The Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio’s commitment to supporting students at UT Health San Antonio achieved two milestones in 2016.

Hope On Wheels works to end pediatric cancer

Children who are fighting cancer helped UT Health San Antonio and University Health System celebrate a Hyundai Scholar Grant for pediatric cancer research.

Appointments and awards

The latest news in faculty appointments and honors.

We promise you

Each day, we work to fulfill a promise—a promise to educate tomorrow’s healers, to search for answers, to always work to make lives better. That will never change.