Introduction It doesn’t take a scientist to tell you that Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside has a drug problem. Junkies can be seen shooting up in alleys, high on street corners, and selling dope to fellow junkies. In addition the obvious threat of death by drug overdose, drug users face issues of HIV and Hepatitis virus infection along with bacterial infection. These problems were addressed by the opening of Insite—North America’s first supervised safe injection site. Based on a model of harm reduction implemented successfully in several European nations, Insite provides a safe and clean environment for intravenous drug users to inject…

The Case of the Poor Student: Sick after Exams It’s happened to all of us. Tom was staying up late for the last two weeks cramming for his barrage of final exams, and finally his last exam was over. After one more late night—this time partying—he woke up with that all-too-familiar soreness in his throat, along with that annoying stuffy nose. “Great,” he thought. “I’m sick in time just for Christmas shopping. Must be that pesky cold bug going around again.” What is Psychoneuroimmunology? Just how exactly stress affects our immune system has long been debated, but the field of…