Health
‘Pickleball saved my sight,’ says Florida woman, 79: ‘I was really worried’
Those who play pickleball are known to gain physical and cognitive benefits from the activity — but for one Florida woman, the fast-growing game also helped to save her sight.
Linda Corcoran, 79, an avid pickleball player and great-grandmother, has been playing the paddle sport three times a week for the past four or five years.
She knew something was amiss in 2021, when the lines on the court suddenly began appearing wavy and distorted to her.
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“Beyond this affecting my ability to play, I was really worried about what these symptoms meant for my vision and overall eye health,” Corcoran told Fox News Digital via email.
Corcoran also began seeing floaters and wavy lines in both of her eyes – on and off the pickleball court.
Pickleball is known for offering physical and cognitive benefits — but for one Florida woman, the fast-growing sport helped to save her sight. (Florida Retina Institute)
“When I texted, the letters on the screen looked tilted,” she said — which she later found out was due to fluid in her retina.
Corcoran made an appointment with her eye specialist — who diagnosed her with wet age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD).
What is AMD?
The leading cause of vision loss for people age 65 and over, AMD affects 1.5 million people in the U.S., experts say.
Symptoms of wet AMD include blurred vision, blind spots in the middle of the field of vision, difficulty distinguishing colors, and edges or lines appearing wavy, according to Corcoran’s ophthalmologist, Dr. Matthew Cunningham of the Florida Retina Institute.
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“In Linda’s case, lines on the pickleball court were an effective indicator of her vision, as she saw something that was supposed to be straight appearing wavy,” he told Fox News Digital.
“For many who play pickleball or other sports, noticing the court looking wavy is an important sign to come in right away and get your eyes checked.”
Linda Corocan is shown receiving an eye exam from Dr. Matthew Cunningham from the Florida Retina Institute. (Florida Retina Institute)
Other warning signs can include noticing that window blinds appear crooked when they’re not, or that something that’s supposed to be straight, like a flagpole, appears wavy, Cunningham said.
Having trouble reading in low light can also be a symptom of wet AMD.
The condition may also affect the ability to see or recognize faces or objects, read and write, or drive, the doctor added.
“For many who play pickleball or other sports, noticing the court looking wavy is an important sign to get your eyes checked.”
Early detection is key to preventing vision loss due to wet AMD, according to Cunningham.
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“In the early stages, there may be no symptoms, which is why it’s important for everyone to visit their eye doctor at least once a year for an eye exam, even if they don’t notice anything wrong,” he advised.
If left untreated, wet AMD can cause rapid and severe vision loss, Cunningham warned.
Treatments for AMD
There are treatments available to help improve and maintain vision for people with wet AMD.
“Wet AMD is most often treated with medicine injected into the eye, which can help improve and maintain your vision,” said Cunningham.
“While treatment has traditionally required intravitreal injections as often as every month, newer treatments have been found to be effective for up to 12 to 16 weeks between injections.”
“In the early stages, there may be no symptoms, which is why it’s important for everyone to visit their eye doctor at least once a year for an eye exam, even if they don’t notice anything wrong,” advised Cunningham, pictured with Corcoran. (Florida Retina Institute)
After a different medication was ineffective, Cunningham suggested that Corcoran try a treatment called Vabysmo.
The prescription medication — made by Genentech, a member of the Roche Group in Switzerland — is administered in both eyes every 10 weeks, designed to dry up damaging fluid in the back of the eye to help preserve vision.
Vabysmo is the first and only FDA-approved treatment designed to block two causes of wet AMD, the company told Fox News Digital via email.
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“When the doctor first told me I needed to receive injections, I was overwhelmed and nervous,” Corcoran said.
“I dreaded the shots, but now I know that my consistency with the treatment allows me to preserve my vision to help me continue doing the things that I love, like pickleball.”
Symptoms of wet AMD include blurred vision, blind spots in the middle of the field of vision, difficulty distinguishing colors, and edges or lines appearing wavy. (iStock)
Today, a year after starting Vabysmo, Corcoran’s vision has significantly improved.
“It has successfully kept the fluid out of her retina and has had a positive effect on her vision,” said Cunningham.
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Corcoran added, “It’s overwhelming to feel like your favorite hobbies and ability to socialize could be in jeopardy when you start to see changes in your vision, so I feel really lucky to have found a treatment that has worked so well for me.”
Some of the common side effects of Vabysmo include cataract and blood on the white of the eye (conjunctival hemorrhage), according to a statement from the company provided to Fox News Digital.
Today, a year after starting Vabysmo, Corcoran’s vision has significantly improved. “It has successfully kept the fluid out of her retina and has had a positive effect on her vision,” said Cunningham. (Florida Retina Institute)
For all adults, Cunningham recommends getting annual, comprehensive eye exams to detect potential disease early — particularly for older adults or those who have been diagnosed with conditions like diabetes or hypertension, which can impact eye health and cause vision loss.
“You don’t need to wait to see an eye doctor, as we have a number of tests that can identify early signs of diseases before symptoms appear,” he added.
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More than half of pickleball players in the U.S. are age 55 or older, with almost a third (32%) of them over the age of 65.
Fox News Digital reached out to Genentech, maker of Vabysmo, for comment.
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An accidental lab discovery has opened the door to entirely new ways of preventing the flu.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells, SWNS reported.
By targeting the specific molecules the viruses rely on, scientists found that they could block them from entering new cells and halt their replication altogether.
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Researchers say these “fundamental insights” into seasonal influenza highlight a clear path toward developing better preventive medications.
“The hope is that fundamental, curiosity-based research like this helps to pave the way for novel strategies to treat and prevent influenza infections,” principal investigator Dr. Emily Bruce, from the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine, said in the SWNS report.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells. (iStock)
While several flu strains cause illness, H1N1 and H3N2 influenza A viruses are the most common. However, current flu tests cannot differentiate between them, and clinical treatments are identical for both.
Although vaccines and antivirals are available, Bruce noted a “dire” need for better medications to stop the virus from spreading cell to xxcell.
“You don’t get sick when a virus is in one cell,” he noted. “You get sick because a virus replicates itself and goes into many more cells.”
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The study, which was published in The Journal of Virology, originally aimed to map how viral RNA segments are transported within cells to create new viral particles.
The team used H1N1 and H3N2 viruses isolated from the nasal passages of positive patients in 2022.
Clinical treatments remain identical for both primary strains of the flu virus. (iStock)
During the investigation, the team unexpectedly stumbled upon a cellular pathway that blocked the virus from entering lung cells, SWNS reported.
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The data revealed that when a specific human protein called Rab11B was depleted, H3N2 viruses failed to enter human lung cells. H1N1 viruses were completely unaffected.
Using reverse genetics, the team mapped this defect and uncovered a brand-new, H3N2-specific role for Rab11B during viral entry.
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This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way.
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“Viruses are like pirates from different countries hijacking someone’s ship,” Bruce said. “Different viruses, like different types of pirates, use different methods to get onboard.”
This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way. (iStock)
“We had previously thought that all flu viruses used the same way to get into a cell, but we discovered that this is not true,” she went on. “H1N1 and H3N2 need different proteins to get in, and if you get rid of the right protein, a specific virus can’t get in.”
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While these findings identify a critical cellular pathway for viral entry, the study was conducted using isolated cells, the researchers acknowledged.
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Further research is needed to determine whether blocking the protein is safe and effective within a live, complex human respiratory system.
Bruce and the team hope to conduct further research to determine whether this Rab11B-dependency is a fundamental property of H3N2, or if it’s a trait unique to currently circulating flu strains.
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Eating processed meat like ham, sausage and bacon may be linked to a higher risk of certain types of cancer, according to new research.
While health organizations have already confirmed that processed meat can contribute to colon cancer, this study looked closer at cancers in the upper digestive tract, where the link has historically been less clear.
To understand these connections, researchers from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), one of the world’s largest long-term nutrition and cancer cohorts, tracked the health and diets of 450,112 people across Europe for an average of 14 years.
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The study group included 131,426 men and 318,686 women, according to the study’s press release.
During the follow-up period, 876 people developed stomach cancer and 215 people developed esophageal adenocarcinoma, which is cancer of the tube connecting the mouth to the stomach.
For female participants, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk of developing the disease. (iStock)
Researchers tracked where the stomach cancers grew, separating them into the upper part of the stomach near the throat and the lower part of the stomach.
The researchers also sorted the tumors into two categories based on how the cancer cells appeared under a microscope: intestinal, which forms more organized structures, and diffuse, in which the cells are more scattered throughout the tissue.
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After adjusting for other lifestyle factors, the researchers found that for every extra 30 grams of processed meat a person ate per day, their overall risk of stomach cancer went up by 9%. Eating that same extra 30 grams a day was also linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma.
A standard single slice of regular deli-sliced ham or lunch meat averages around 28 grams, according to USDA data and nutritional tracking databases.
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken and turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach. (iStock)
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken or turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach, the researchers noted.
The study also revealed differences between men and women. For male participants, only processed meat showed a clear, statistically significant link to a higher risk of stomach cancer. For female participants, however, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk.
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These findings align with global health benchmarks, particularly those established by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer.
The agency has long classified processed meat as a known human carcinogen, primarily due to its strong, well-documented links to colorectal cancer.
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However, health organizations have also consistently pointed to a potential, yet less definitive, relationship between these meats and cancers of the stomach.
Eating 30 grams of processed meat a day, or the equivalent to one slice of ham, was linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma. (iStock)
Further scientific investigation is needed to confirm the findings and to account for other underlying risk factors, such as certain stomach infections, which could interact with dietary habits.
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A key limitation of the study is its reliance on self-reported diets, which can sometimes lead to inaccuracies in how participants recall their meat consumption over time, the researchers noted.
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The findings were published in the International Journal of Cancer.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers requesting comment.
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