Breast cancer gene testing options

Tuesday, May 14th, 2013, 12:26pm

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)- Angelina Jolie recently announced her decision to undergo a preventative double mastectomy after learning that she carries BRCA1, which is a gene that studies have shown increases the risk of breast and ovarian cancer.

WAFF looked into this type of testing and found that there are test sites across Alabama. There is one in Mobile, two in Birmingham, and one in Huntsville at the Clearview Cancer Institute.

Doctors draw blood and then send it off to a lab in Utah. The test costs thousands of dollars and not all insurance providers are willing to pay for it.

Over 1-million people have had the testing done since it first became available in 1996, but the Susan G. Komen Foundation warns the test is not for everyone.

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Stream it: 'Sports Night'

Submitted by Chase Erwin, WAFFstaffer

Monday, May 13th, 2013, 7:53pm

"Sports Night" is the show that got me interested in working at a TV station. I can guarantee you that I was the only eighth-grader in my little Texas middle school that was tuning into this show as religiously as I was. Come to think of it, I was probably the only person in the area watching it; "Sports Night" lasted two seasons before being unceremoniously canceled in 2000.

This is a shame because the concept had legs. Set behind the scenes of a nightly sports news show, "Sports Night" was the television debut for creator and head writer Aaron Sorkin, who would set up similar fly-on-the-wall shows "West Wing," "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip," and "The Newsroom."

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5-hour standoff ends with 2 dead, 1 injured

Submitted by WAFF Web Staff

Monday, May 13th, 2013, 6:48pm

Police closed off parts of the Knox Creek Subdivision.

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)- A standoff lasting more than five hours ended with two people dead and one injured.

It started with a domestic dispute at a home in the Knox Creek subdivision, off Balch Road in Huntsville.

Huntsville Police were called to the house at 221 Mountain Creek drive around 7:40 a.m. Saturday.

They made contact with Brandon Titsworth, who barricaded himself; his live-in girlfriend, Briana Perkey; Ashley Spangler and two children inside the home. Titsworth threatened to shoot if police came any closer.

Authorities evacuated homes in the neighborhood and diverted traffic from the area during the standoff.

After hours of attempted communication by negotiators, SWAT members entered the home just before 12:30 p.m.

Authorities found two bodies inside the home, including that of the suspect.

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May is stroke awareness month

Submitted by WAFF Web Staff

Monday, May 13th, 2013, 6:43pm

Stephen Schneider was 30 when he had a stroke.

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)- Stephen Schneider, 31, doesn't look old enough to be a stroke survivor, but he is. Last year he had Army Reserve training and decided to run alongside a soldier he was helping to test.

"I noticed I couldn't talk. My speech was real slurred," he said. "And then the next thing I knew I was on the bleachers. My ACU jacket was off. My boots were off."

His face was drooping on one side, and he couldn't move the left side of his body.

Schneider was soon on his way to the hospital.

Patients who have had a stroke are taken to the trauma room at Huntsville Hospital.

Dr. Amit Arora is a neurologist who specializes in strokes.

"Time is brain. The faster we can get treatment, the more brain we can salvage," he said.

That message is extremely important when trying to fight the after effects of a stroke.

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Emergency medical cat care at your fingertips

Submitted by Lonnie Liebner, Community Web Producer

Monday, May 13th, 2013, 3:41pm

Emergency medical cat care at your fingertips

By Dr. Jessica Vogelsang
From The Daily Cat

We've all been there: It's midnight, and your cat is acting strange. Then it vomits. You watch your pet, wondering if you need to bundle it into the carrier and incur a $100 emergency vet bill to be told your cat is probably fine, or that you should wait until the morning and take your chances on not giving your pet immediate attention.

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Huntsville Police investigate 2 separate burglaries

Submitted by Sarah Broadway on Sunday, May 12th, 10:56 am

Huntsville Police responded to two separate burglaries Saturday.

The first happened around 1am Saturday in the 4300 block of Barry Street in Huntsville.

The victim told police a man entered his home, produced a gun and demanded money. The offender took the victim’s wallet and fled. No injuries were reported.

The second burglary happened around 1pm Saturday in the 2200 block of Walnut Street. The victim told police that a man climbed into her bedroom window and stole items from her home. The offender fled out the front door.

No injuries were reported in either case. Police continue to investigate.

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