Rae Ellen Bichell
Rae Ellen Bichell is a reporter for NPR's Science Desk. She first came to NPR in 2013 as a Kroc fellow and has since reported Web and radio stories on biomedical research, global health, and basic science. She won a 2016 Michael E. DeBakey Journalism Award from the Foundation for Biomedical Research. After graduating from Yale University, she spent two years in Helsinki, Finland, as a freelance reporter and Fulbright grantee.
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It typically causes fever and joint pain. A new study looks at a possible link to encephalitis, a brain infection. -
Scientists worldwide face a yearly challenge in deciding what goes into the annual flu vaccine to make it effective. The job requires keeping tabs on a massive group of speedy, shape-shifting viruses.
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An NPR poll finds nearly two-thirds of adults got this year's flu vaccine or plan to get it. Many of those who are skipping vaccination cite a lack of need and worries about side effects.
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Sensors that work inside the body are gaining new skills. The latest version can track heart rate and respiratory rate, as well as temperature, as it travels through the digestive system. -
He came into the hospital in bad shape. In addition to being HIV-positive, he had what looked like a malignant tumor. The tumor, it turned out, was not human. -
Untested cancer drugs are often hyped by journalists, doctors and biotech firms, a survey finds. Dressing up unproved medications with shiny words can inspire false optimism among patients.
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An uptick in cases of Rocky Mountain spotted fever might actually be due to a newer tick-borne bacterium. It looks like it's causing milder infections — and a lot of confusion.
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In response to a big jump in diabetes in the U.S., a federal panel advises tens of millions of overweight Americans to get their blood tested, and to get intensive counseling if sugar's too high. -
United Nations member states pledged Friday to eliminate extreme poverty by 2030. That's defined as surviving on $1.25 per person per day. What is life really like on that amount? -
In developing countries, folks may trek hours to fetch water — or turn on the spigot and wait endlessly for drops to flow. A new app offers a promising solution for the latter problem.
