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Boosters have billed it as the cheek swab that could save football: an easy genetic test that promises to identify which young athletes are likely to suffer the most severe consequences from a concussion. The idea is to nudge those kids away from contact sports, while giving their less susceptible peers the green light to hit the gridiron. “Isn’t it just better to know than to not know?” one gene testing company asked in a Facebook ad. ... The hitch? The market for this test, touted just a few years ago as revolutionary, seems to be remarkably soft. (Robbins, 8/15)

Olympic medals are won by margins of tenths or even hundredths of a second. So, it's no surprise that athletes want any edge they can get — even methods not backed by a lot of scientific evidence. The alternative practice du jour in Rio, so far, has been cupping. In years past it was special, stretchy tape, said to support sore muscles and improve range of motion. And dietary supplements are an ever-popular option. Like every other treatment or intervention, though, these purported performance-enhancers are subject to the placebo effect — benefits due to the recipient's belief in a treatment. (Hobson, 8/14)

Take my kidneys. Please. Take my lungs, too, and my liver. Heart, skin, corneas, anything useful. Once I’ve died, I’ll have no further need for my body parts, but they could prove vital for some of the tens of thousands of people anxiously awaiting organ transplants. The fact that I’m over 65 doesn’t disqualify me (or you). In fact, it makes us particularly desirable as donors, living or dead, for older recipients, who represent a growing proportion of transplant patients. (Span, 8/12)