BCBSMA News Service

Doctors say one of the most common misconceptions about low back pain is that it requires an X-ray or an MRI.

Like many teens, Laura Kocubinski once enjoyed long summer days by the pool and the beach and trips to the tanning salon with her older sister. She never thought she would one day hear the words, “You have cancer.”

Researchers have found that helping others is correlated with positive effects on both physical and emotional well-being and may even help people live longer.

During the hardest times, help can sometimes come from a simple phone call.

Every day, a Massachusetts mom named Lauri takes her 26-year-old daughter named Ashley, who has intellectual disabilities and several complex medical needs, to doctor’s visits, keeps her on a medication schedule, gets her Dunkin Donuts coffee at 2 p.m. and attends to her needs, a well-oiled machine of love and caretaking. But that machine was in danger of breaking down in December.