In today’s Good News, optimistic scientists believe their lab process of using human eye cells and a 3D printer to create corneas could result in more patients regaining their sight. And at a Long Island high school, students who feel overwhelmed find solace with the menagerie of animals living on their campus.

Catherine Garcia
The Week Digital

The American Cancer Society recently issued new guidelines for cervical cancer screenings, saying patients should be able to collect their own samples of their cervical cells. This is an “accessible alternative” to the Pap smear, which can be uncomfortable and also distressing for women with a history of sexual or medical trauma, said The New York Times. Research has shown that self-collection, using a swab at home or in a doctor’s office, improves screening rates and is effective for early detection and prevention.

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People with diabetes may soon have a noninvasive way to check blood glucose levels. MIT scientists developed a device that shines near-infrared light on the skin to obtain glucose measurements — rather than the current method, pricking a finger with a needle. The initial device was the size of a shoebox, but a wearable version is now being tested. If this one also has a high accuracy rate, “almost everyone with diabetes will benefit from this new technology,” said senior study author Jeon Woong Kang.

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When students at Kellenberg Memorial High School in Uniondale, New York, need to relax or forget about classes, they turn to the four dogs, two peacocks, five peahens and nine parrots that live on campus. One visit with a dog is “sometimes worth two to the guidance counselor,” Kellenberg’s principal, Brother Kenneth Hoagland, told The Washington Post. Students interact with the animals throughout the day and say they feel more at ease when the pets are nearby.

A 3D-printed cornea made of human cells has been successfully implanted in the eye of a person considered legally blind, restoring their vision. Precise Bio, which manufactured the cornea in a laboratory, said the process has the potential to create hundreds of grafts out of one donated cornea. The transplant is a “defining moment for the future of regenerative medicine,” said Precise Bio co-founder Dr. Anthony Atala.

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