Pandemic Latest News

Non Communicable Diseases

EU and US launch joint task force on global health threats; The latest health stories from around the world

Article by Lalita Panicker, Consulting Editor, Views and Editor, Insight, Hindustan Times, New Delhi The European Union and the United States have launched a new joint health task force to cooperate on cancer, global health threats and related supply chains and infrastructure, officials told a press conference last Wednesday. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/992081?ecd=wnl_edit_tpal&uac=398271FG&impID=5445031&faf=1 The task force was set …

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New global database highlights health inequality; The latest health stories from around the world

Article by Lalita Panicker, Consulting Editor, Views and Editor, Insight, Hindustan Times, New Delhi Billed as the world’s most comprehensive collection of statistics on the topic, the Health Inequality Data Repository allows users to compare how people of differing incomes, ages, genders and rural-versus-urban settings compare on more than 2,000 measures of health, ranging from …

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WHO expands mRNA facilities to South Africa; The latest health stories from around the world

Article by Lalita Panicker, Consulting Editor, Views and Editor, Insight, Hindustan Times, New Delhi The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday launched its mRNA vaccine technology hub in South Africa’s Cape Town, to help poorer countries struggling to gain access to life-saving medication. www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/who-officially-launches-mrna-vaccine-hub-cape-town-2023-04-20/ In 2021, the WHO picked South African biotech firm Afrigen Biologics …

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Chinese researchers release new COVID-19 data; The latest health stories from around the world

Article by Lalita Panicker, Consulting Editor, Views and Editor, Insight, Hindustan Times, New Delhi Chinese researchers released a trove of new genetic data last Wednesday that may offer fresh clues to the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic. They also substantially revised a related study they first posted online 13 months ago to include this evidence, …

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WHO reviews risk of bird flu transmission; The latest health stories from around the world

Article by Lalita Panicker, Consulting Editor, Views and Editor, Insight, Hindustan Times, New Delhi The World Health Organization (WHO) expressed concern about bird flu on February 24 after the father of an 11-year-old Cambodian girl who died from the disease also tested positive, raising fears of human-to-human transmission. However, officials say the father is asymptomatic. …

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Cancer now accounts for nearly one in six deaths

Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide, and accounts for nearly one in six deaths. The good news before COVID-19 was that countries across the world, even in low-income regions, had improved their diagnosis and treatment capability, and cancer survival outcomes were improving. www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/nov/18/covid-epidemic-cancer-diagnosis-pandemic-europe? But the pandemic has reversed these gains. A report from …

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A new monoclonal antibody treatment for Alzheimer’s disease

The pharmaceutical companies Biogen and Eisai last week announced that a monoclonal antibody treatment reduced cognitive decline by 27% in people with early stage Alzheimer’s compared with those on a placebo after 18 months. www.science.org/content/article/news-glance-ai-regulation-renewable-energy-and-alzheimer-s-therapy? Lecanemab belongs to a class of therapies that break down or inhibit build up of amyloid plaques in the brain, …

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Monoclonal antibody marks first approved Alzheimer’s treatment in nearly twenty years

Earlier this week, the pharmaceutical companies Biogen and Eisai announced encouraging results from a clinical trial for patients with Alzheimer’s disease: a monoclonal antibody treatment, called lecanemab, reduced cognitive decline by 27% in people with early-stage Alzheimer’s compared with those on a placebo after a year and a half. Outside observers say the trial could …

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Breast implants linked to cancer risk?

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday warned women who have breast implants or are considering getting them that certain cancers may develop in scar tissue forming around the implants. www.nytimes.com/2022/09/08/health/breast-implants-cancer.html? The malignancies seem to be rare, but they have been linked to implants of all types, including those with textured and smooth …

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World Mosquito Day 2022: Climate change could threaten to expand malaria transmissions in Africa

Africa faces new challenges in its fight against malaria: the climate is becoming more mosquito friendly just as the insects are evolving to evade the insecticides and the malaria parasites are becoming resistant to medicines that have brought down deaths. In 2020, the World Health Organization estimated approximately 90% of malaria cases and 92% of deaths occurred in Africa. Over 600,000 African children died of malaria in that year alone.