Banjo Jones reports that Leigh Hopper, the Chron’s medical writer and blogger, will leave our beloved hometown rag after New Year’s:

Besides writing stories in the circulation-dwindling newsprint version of the Houston daily, Leigh writes the popular Medblog. According to the grapevine, Leigh, a former cheerleader for Brazoswood High (which won its playoff game Saturday and could go to STATE!) will depart the fast-paced Houston journalism scene on Jan. 2. Good luck, Leigh.

That’s a real shame. I’ve found Leigh to be diligent, responsive to her readers, and just a nice lady. She even gave me a cuddly pathogen!

But hey, now that the actual journalists are leaving, I guess the Chron’s management can focus on its core business: cartoons set to rap parodies.