Despite the painful arthritis in his hips, David Payne wasn’t sure he should have hip replacement surgery. “At my age, I was wondering if I should get it done,” the Weymouth resident recalled. “But the doctor (orthopedic surgeon Michael Ayers, MD) recommended it.” And Payne is glad he did.

With more than 5 million cases diagnosed in the United States each year, skin cancer is the most common cancer in the U.S. It’s also one of the most preventable.

Two years into the pandemic, the COVID-19 vaccine is strongly recommended for pregnant people by numerous professional medical organizations and yet according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), just over 40 percent of that population is vaccinated against the virus, compared to...