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Thousands with undiagnosed hepatitis and HIV found in A&E testing

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has published an evaluation of the NHS emergency department (ED) opt-out testing programme for bloodborne viruses (BBVs) — HIV, hepatitis B (HBV), and hepatitis C (HCV). The initiative, running in 34 EDs across high HIV-prevalence areas, automatically tests patients for BBVs as part of routine bloodwork unless they opt out. Over its first 33…
Ben Kemp
November 4, 2025
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Media Monitoring: 23rd – 29th October

Could expanding BRCA gene testing save lives in breast and ovarian cancer? Although cancer is not usually inherited, certain types, including breast and ovarian, can be triggered by inherited gene faults, meaning they can run in families. Now that we can test for these mutations, could – and should – we be testing as many people as possible to identify…
Ben Kemp
October 29, 2025
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Generation Study providing lifechanging early diagnoses for babies across UK

A baby born with a rare eye cancer — typically diagnosed only after symptoms develop in early childhood — is among the growing number of newborns receiving earlier diagnoses and life-changing treatment through the Generation Study. This world-leading research programme, led by Genomics England in partnership with NHS England, uses whole-genome sequencing (WGS) to screen 100,000 newborns for over 200…
Ben Kemp
October 28, 2025
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NHS Medium Term Planning Framework released

The NHS has published its Medium Term Planning Framework for 2026/27 to 2028/29 which sets out a 3-year roadmap to get the NHS back to its constitutional standards. This marks a shift away from the annual planning cycle, offering NHS organisations a three-year horizon to align reform, recovery and transformation. Diagnostics (alongside elective care and cancer) is a core performance…
Ben Kemp
October 28, 2025
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Government launches major R&D challenge on diagnosing dementia

Science Minister Lord Vallance has announced the launch of a major R&D challenge aiming to ensure 92% of patients are diagnosed with dementia within 18 weeks of referral by 2029. Diagnostic solutions identified include: accelerating work on blood tests that spot the build-up of proteins associated with dementia and developing saliva analysis which picks up hormone changes at the early…
Ben Kemp
October 28, 2025
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Media Monitoring: 16th – 22nd October

One in six bacterial infections worldwide are now resistant to antibiotics, WHO warns The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned of a sharp rise in antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with one in six bacterial infections worldwide now resistant to antibiotic treatments. WHO’s latest global surveillance report found that antibiotic resistance rose in over 40% of the pathogen-antibiotic combinations monitored from 2018…
Ben Kemp
October 21, 2025
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BIVDA provides Budget and Life Science Investment Inquiry submissions

In the last week, BIVDA have provided submissions to the Treasury ahead of the Budget on the 26th November and to the Commons' Science, Innovation and Technology Committee for their emergency inquiry into life sciences investment in the UK. The latter was prompted by high-profile withdrawals from the UK's life science sphere, notably Merck's recent decision to scrap a £1bn…
Ben Kemp
October 21, 2025
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Galleri test for 50 cancers yields exciting results in trial

The cutting-edge Galleri blood test, currently under evaluation by the NHS, has shown strong promise during a trial in detecting more than 50 types of cancer in people with no symptoms. In the US trial known as PATHFINDER 2, involving around 23,161 participants, the test found a “cancer signal” in 216 individuals and cancer was later confirmed in 133 of them,…
Ben Kemp
October 21, 2025
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Experts call for prostate cancer screening for men with BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations

Prostate cancer guidelines should be updated so that all men aged 40 and over with BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations are offered regular PSA testing, according to scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London. Their call follows new results from the international IMPACT study, which found that PSA screening detects more aggressive prostate cancers in men carrying BRCA1…
Ben Kemp
October 21, 2025
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