EP 114: The Leap Year Gene of Kit McKinley with Shelley Wood, Bestselling Author & Editor-in-Chief of TCTMD
In this week’s Parallax, Dr Ankur Kalra welcomes back Shelley Wood, best known for her work in the cardiology community as the editor-in-chief of TCTMD and Editorial Director of CRF. They discuss her work as a creative author and her second novel, The Leap Year Gene of Kit McKinley, set to be published by Harper Collins in Canada and Union Square Press in the US in August 2024.
Blending the intrigue of a medical thriller with a sweeping overview of the twentieth century, The Leap Year Gene of Kit McKinley tells the story of Kit McKinley, whose rare genetic condition causes her to age one year for every four. In this rich discussion, Ms Wood shares how her extensive experience as a medical writer and editor shaped her approach to crafting the novel. Dr Kalra and Ms Wood also explore one of the book’s central themes: eugenics, tracing its historical roots and examining its long shadow on medicine. Ms Wood, who balances a demanding full-time job with her creative writing, shares candid insights into her routine and the challenges of writing and publishing fiction.
Tune in for an inspiring conversation about creativity, the human condition and balancing responsibilities.
To pre-order Shelley Wood new novel search for The Leap Year Gene/ The Leap Year Gene of Kit McKinley in your favourite independent bookshop or here.
Read MoreRead Less
Also listen on
In this compelling episode of the Parallax Podcast, host Dr Ankur Kalra sits down with Dr Janarthanan Sathananthan, an interventional and structural cardiologist and the Chief Medical Officer of Interventional Cardiology at Boston Scientific. Dr Sathananthan recounts his life's journey, from being born in Sri Lanka during the civil war, and moving to Zimbabwe, New Zealand, Canada, and finally North America. He shares how his diverse upbringing profoundly shaped his career in cardiology.
Read More
All Episodes
In this week’s Parallax Dr Kalra’s guests are the team that fought for justice in Dr Kaki’s case: Dr Lawrence R. Huntoon, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons and Deborah Gordon, employment attorney.
Read More
Rohin believes that authenticity is one of the keys of his videos’ success. When asked about his journey to medicine he summarises: “I was being rebellious and ended up doing the most cliché job for an Indian possible.” He turns the table and asks Ankur what he think is behind the stereotype of the Indian cardiologist.
Rohin shares an advice that he received at the beginning of his career: “If you can deal with an average day, the exciting day will take care of itself.”
Ankur asks Rohin about Medlife Crisis and the work that goes into producing a show followed by 500K people. Rohin reiterates his passion for research and science communication. Ankur and Rohin discuss what it means to be yourself on social media and what is Rohin’s advice to our early-career listeners.
Read More
Rohin shares an advice that he received at the beginning of his career: “If you can deal with an average day, the exciting day will take care of itself.”
Ankur asks Rohin about Medlife Crisis and the work that goes into producing a show followed by 500K people. Rohin reiterates his passion for research and science communication. Ankur and Rohin discuss what it means to be yourself on social media and what is Rohin’s advice to our early-career listeners.
Year on year, the organisers of the Scientific Sessions aim to give platform to cardiovascular science at its best: innovative, impactful, and collaborative.
In this information-packed episode, Dr Patel takes us behind the scenes and talks about the work that goes into the curation of the programme and the considerations that shape the event. Dr Kalra asks Dr Patel about his highlights over the years and the movement and changes that he observed as vice chair and chair of the event. Dr Patel elaborates on the key late-breaking science trials in 2022. Dr Kalra and Dr Patel discuss the grading system of the award applications and share some useful information with our listeners.
Read More
In this information-packed episode, Dr Patel takes us behind the scenes and talks about the work that goes into the curation of the programme and the considerations that shape the event. Dr Kalra asks Dr Patel about his highlights over the years and the movement and changes that he observed as vice chair and chair of the event. Dr Patel elaborates on the key late-breaking science trials in 2022. Dr Kalra and Dr Patel discuss the grading system of the award applications and share some useful information with our listeners.
This week's Parallax is hosting a guest episode recorded for Internal Medicine & Beyond. Tune in to this new podcast from Dr Varun Aitharaju.
Exploring Art & Advancement Within Medicine - A Conversation with an Interventional Cardiologist.
Read More
Exploring Art & Advancement Within Medicine - A Conversation with an Interventional Cardiologist.
This week’s Parallax episode is focusing on the latest science and questions surrounding one of the conundrums of cardiovascular science: Lipoprotein(a).
Dr. Ankur Kalra invites Dr Salim S Virani to help simplify the concept of Lp(a) with answering key questions about its measurement and its place in practice and prevention.
Read More
Dr. Ankur Kalra invites Dr Salim S Virani to help simplify the concept of Lp(a) with answering key questions about its measurement and its place in practice and prevention.
Back by popular demand, Dr Ankur Kalra's guest is Dr Purvi Parwani, Director of Women’s Cardiovascular Disease Clinic and Assistant Professor at Loma Linda University Medical Center, US. In this ESC 2022 edition of Parallax, Ankur asks Purvi to review her highlights of the congress. Purvi details the study design and key findings of each trial and provides her insights after attending the event in Barcelona. Ankur and Purvi discuss how each trial will inform their practice.
Read More
In this inspiring episode, Dr Ankur Kalra’s guest is Dr Sohail Khan, Chief Operating Officer at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases in Karāchi.
Dr Khan talks about education in the US and his decision to move back to Pakistan. Ankur asks Sohail about his new professional home: NICVD, a free clinic providing primary heartcare for Pakistanis. They discuss some of the innovations Dr Khan works on to improve patient care that utilise simple but effective interventions. We learn more about free screening clinics and about Dr Khan’s work on the largest ever study in Pakistan on association of Lpa and CV disease in South Asians.
Read More
Dr Khan talks about education in the US and his decision to move back to Pakistan. Ankur asks Sohail about his new professional home: NICVD, a free clinic providing primary heartcare for Pakistanis. They discuss some of the innovations Dr Khan works on to improve patient care that utilise simple but effective interventions. We learn more about free screening clinics and about Dr Khan’s work on the largest ever study in Pakistan on association of Lpa and CV disease in South Asians.
In this personal interview, Dr Itchhaporia recalls her early years and the influences and decisions that led her to medicine and cardiology. She talks about her connection to ACC and the importance of choosing a professional home where one can find their purpose under the mentorship of their community. Ankur asks Dr Itchhaporia about the most memorable moments of her presidency. They talk about South Asian identity and curbing CVD in this population.
Read More
This nurturing episode focuses on questions that touch on what it is that we seek as human beings and how can we cultivate awareness and authenticity while practicing modern medicine. Ankur asks Kavitha about what it means to be spiritual as a cardiologist. Kavitha talks about the experiences made possible by mindfulness. They discuss the difference between conditioning and growth. Kavitha talks about burn out and how we could make changes by embracing medicine not only as a measurable science but as an art.
Read More
In this refreshing and spiritual episode Carolyn reflects on her journey and the decisions and mentors that shaped her career as a heart failure specialist, trialist and as a public speaker. Ankur and Carolyn dive into the question whether being balanced is what we should be all aiming for. Ankur asks Carolyn about her work as a co-founder of Us2.ai, a start-up dedicated to the automation of the fight against heart disease by applying AI to echocardiography.
Read More
The State of Ohio reported its first coronavirus cases on March 9. Prior to that, on February 28, the Cleveland Clinic announced that they are prepared to open 1,000 additional hospital beds if needed. Ohio was one of the states to follow recommendations and intervene quickly.
Ankur Kalra asks Grant W Reed, Director of the Cleveland Clinic’s STEMI program, to reflect on the actions they took and the challenges of delaying cardiovascular procedures in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Dr Reed offers insight on the factors that influenced the Cleveland Clinic’s STEMI policy for COVID-19. Ankur and Grant discuss the triage considerations for patients with structural heart disease and the steps the clinic took to protect its healthcare workers.
Read More
Ankur Kalra asks Grant W Reed, Director of the Cleveland Clinic’s STEMI program, to reflect on the actions they took and the challenges of delaying cardiovascular procedures in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Dr Reed offers insight on the factors that influenced the Cleveland Clinic’s STEMI policy for COVID-19. Ankur and Grant discuss the triage considerations for patients with structural heart disease and the steps the clinic took to protect its healthcare workers.
Lisa Rosenbaum has been writing extensively about the human face of medicine. Her articles have been widely circulated by publications like The New York Times, The New Yorker and The New England Journal of Medicine.
In this edition of Parallax Dr Kalra asked Dr Rosenbaum about the influences that shaped her choices as a writer and as a healthcare professional. Dr Rosenbaum opens up about her childhood and how she connected to her grandfather through writing and medicine. We learn about Lisa’s first day at medical school and her latest writing project.
Read More
In this edition of Parallax Dr Kalra asked Dr Rosenbaum about the influences that shaped her choices as a writer and as a healthcare professional. Dr Rosenbaum opens up about her childhood and how she connected to her grandfather through writing and medicine. We learn about Lisa’s first day at medical school and her latest writing project.
A week after Jag Singh had tested positive for 2019-nCoV, he became a patient in his hospital’s intensive care unit. This week he joins Ankur Kalra, MD to tell us about his journey as a clinician-scientist.
Jagmeet P Singh, associate chief of the cardiology division at Massachusetts General Hospital and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School joins Ankur Kalra for a deep conversation about his journey across three continents. Dr Singh talks about the importance of choosing fulfilment over success. We gain more insights on the recent late-breaking trial, MADIT-CHIC focusing on cardiac resynchronization therapy. Ankur asks Jag about his experience of being on the other side of the healthcare system and his enrolment in the since halted remdesivir trial.
Read More
Jagmeet P Singh, associate chief of the cardiology division at Massachusetts General Hospital and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School joins Ankur Kalra for a deep conversation about his journey across three continents. Dr Singh talks about the importance of choosing fulfilment over success. We gain more insights on the recent late-breaking trial, MADIT-CHIC focusing on cardiac resynchronization therapy. Ankur asks Jag about his experience of being on the other side of the healthcare system and his enrolment in the since halted remdesivir trial.
“It’s a tsunami not just a wave. The worst tsunami you can imagine”
Prof Michele Senni is Director of Cardiology at Papa Giovanni XXIII Hospital, Bergamo Italy. He contracted COVID-19 himself and in this latest podcast he meets with Ankur Kalra, MD to discuss his personal experience in dealing with patients and COVID-19 in Europe’s outbreak epicentre.
Hear them discuss the burden on healthcare, patient selection, the importance of testing and PPE and how COVID has resulted in a reduction of acute myocardial infarction and heart failure in patients.
Read More
Prof Michele Senni is Director of Cardiology at Papa Giovanni XXIII Hospital, Bergamo Italy. He contracted COVID-19 himself and in this latest podcast he meets with Ankur Kalra, MD to discuss his personal experience in dealing with patients and COVID-19 in Europe’s outbreak epicentre.
Hear them discuss the burden on healthcare, patient selection, the importance of testing and PPE and how COVID has resulted in a reduction of acute myocardial infarction and heart failure in patients.
“We are at war with a pandemic and the enemy is not each other, it’s the virus.”
In this latest episode, Ankur Kalra, MD meets with Andrew Sauer, MD, co-author of an upcoming paper in US Cardiology Review on COVID-19 and Cardiovascular Disease that provides a concise and current summary of cardiovascular complications from COVID-19.
Hear them discuss the latest issues surrounding the pandemic, the known cardiac implications and the rapidly emerging data.
Read More
In this latest episode, Ankur Kalra, MD meets with Andrew Sauer, MD, co-author of an upcoming paper in US Cardiology Review on COVID-19 and Cardiovascular Disease that provides a concise and current summary of cardiovascular complications from COVID-19.
Hear them discuss the latest issues surrounding the pandemic, the known cardiac implications and the rapidly emerging data.