Biden Admin to Urge Americans to Get Fall COVID Booster Biden administration officials have told various news outlets that the White House is planning to urge Americans to get a COVID booster shot this fall in response to a spike in infections. United States
UK Scientists Identify Smoking Addiction Causes, Cures After analyzing the brain scans of more than 800 smokers, taken at the ages of 14, 19, and 24, scientists at the University of Cambridge say they've discovered differences in the brain from that of their non-smoking peers. United Kingdom
UK: NHS to Reduce Cancer Wait Time Targets The UK's National Health Service (NHS) is expected to reduce the number of cancer waiting time targets from nine to three, so as to help patients in England with the disease be diagnosed earlier. Health
UK: Inserts Added to Cigarette Packs to Encourage Quitting The UK government could soon make it mandatory to insert messages inside cigarette packs to help smokers quit. Health
Study: 4K Daily Steps Enough to Lower Risk of Death According to a study published Tuesday in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, walking just 4K steps a day could reduce the risk of dying prematurely from any cause. Health
New COVID Variant EG.5 Spreading in the US According to the latest estimates from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), EG.5, a new coronavirus variant, now accounts for the largest proportion of new COVID infections in the country. Coronavirus
Beyond Meat Sales Plummet, Shoppers Shift to Cheaper Options Sales at vegan food firm Beyond Meat have plunged by almost a third in recent months, amid a significant rise in living expenses for consumers. Health
US Air Force Orders Cleanup of Missile Silos Over Cancer Concerns On Monday, the US Air Force (USAF) announced a cleanup will be undertaken at two launch facilities at Malmstrom Air Force Base (AFB) in Montana where unsafe levels of a carcinogen have been detected, as cancer cases among those working at missile silos spike. Health
Study: Antibiotic Resistance Linked to Air Pollution According to a global study published Monday in The Lancet Planetary Health, antibiotic resistance among pathogenic bacterial infections may be linked to increased fine particle — or PM2·5 — air pollution. Health
FDA Approves First Pill for Postpartum Depression On Friday, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Zurzuvae — the first oral pill to treat postpartum depression (PPD). Health
Report: Major Indian Rivers Causing Cancer in Over 100 Villages High toxicity levels in the Hindon, Yamuna, and Kali rivers are causing cancer and death in over 100 villages, Indian MP Vijay Pal Singh Tomar recently told the Parliament. Tomar also urged the central government "to intervene and direct the state government to take strict action." India
Study: Bacteria Could Stop Malaria Transmission Scientists with GSK Pharmaceutical have reportedly discovered a naturally occurring bacteria that prevents mosquitos from developing the malaria parasite, with research suggesting it could reduce mosquito's malaria load by 73%. Health
Moderna: COVID Vaccine Sales Predicted to Reach $8B in 2023 Pharmaceutical giant Moderna has posted higher-than-expected revenue and lower losses as the company improves its outlook for COVID vaccine sales for 2023. Health
UK's NHS to Expand Use of Private Sector In an effort to clear record National Health Service (NHS) backlogs, UK PM Rishi Sunak is planning the largest expansion of private healthcare sector involvement since the Blair era. Politics
China Agency Proposes Limiting Kid's Daily Phone Use The Cyberspace Administration of China has unveiled draft legislation to limit 16- and 17-year-olds to two hours per day on smartphones, eight to 15-year-olds to one hour, and those under eight to 40 minutes. Minors would also lose phone access between 10pm and 6am. Health
UK: 25% Chance of 'Catastrophic' Pandemic Within 5 Years On Thursday, the UK's National Security Risk Assessment was declassified revealing that there's a one-in-four chance the European nation could face a "catastrophic" pandemic within the next five years. Health
Idaho Doctors can Refer Patients for Out-Of-State Abortions, Judge Rules On Monday, a US federal judge blocked the Idaho Attorney General's Office from prosecuting doctors for referring patients to receive out of state abortions, claiming that doing so would violate medical providers’ right to free speech. Social issues
Canada Launches Health Warnings on Individual Cigarettes On Tuesday, Health Canada announced a sweeping set of new tobacco regulations that will make it mandatory to label each cigarette with health warnings, such as "cigarettes cause impotence" and "poison in every puff." Canada
CDC: Leprosy Potentially Endemic in Florida According to a research paper published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday, leprosy cases in central Florida have increased dramatically over the last ten years. United States
Jeanne Marrazzo to Succeed Fauci at National Institute of Health The National Institute of Health (NIH) on Wednesday announced it had selected Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo to replace Dr. Anthony Fauci as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). Fauci led the department for 38 years before stepping down last December. Health
Study: AI Breast Cancer Screening as Good as Two Radiologists A Swedish study of more than 80K women published in the journal Lancet Oncology has found that artificial intelligence (AI) screening for breast cancer can reduce mortality by spotting the disease at an earlier, more treatable stage. Health
Report: New Alzheimer's Drugs Might be Less Effective for Ethnic Minorities On Monday, leading Alzheimer's experts reported that promising new treatments for the disease — which work by removing a toxic protein called beta-amyloid from the brain — may benefit white patients more than Black and Hispanic patients. Health
Bangladesh: Dengue 'Epidemic' Kills Over 170 At least 176 people have died of dengue fever in Bangladesh, with some health officials saying the disease has reached an “epidemic” status. However, the Bangladeshi government hasn't officially declared the outbreak as such. Bangladesh
Tornado Damages Pfizer Plant in North Carolina On Wednesday, a powerful tornado severely damaged a Pfizer pharmaceutical plant in Nash County, North Carolina, reportedly strewing roughly 50K pallets of medicine across the facility. Health
Eli Lilly Alzheimer's Drug Slows Cognitive Decline, Trial Shows Drugmaker Eli Lilly's experimental Alzheimer's drug donanemab significantly slowed cognitive and functional decline for people with the early stages of the disease, according to data published Monday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Health
