Fewer smear tests still safe due to HPV test
- Cervical screening will now occur every five years (previously every three), but a major study confirms this will not negatively impact cancers spotted
- 3 million women’s data showed the move to be positive, say experts, thanks to an improved lab test for smear samples which checks for HPV
- Before the advent of this test, labs could only try to identify suspicious cells in smear samples that mean cancer is already present or could develop in the future
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-61646947
Huge disparity in cancer diagnoses through screening identified in England
- A groundbreaking study has shown that black people are more than a third less likely than white people to be diagnosed with cancer via screening in England – sparking calls for improved targeting efforts
- Mixed-race patients fared much better with 9.49% being diagnosed, with Asian patients at 10.09%, almost double the rate for black patients
New antibiotics aim to tackle antibiotic resistant tuberculosis bacteria
- New antibiotics have been discovered by researchers, which have the potential to tackle drug-resistant tuberculosis bacteria
- Discovered by the team from Soonchunhyang University in the Republic of Korea, this could be a major advancement in drug development
New clinical trials deal struck to better protect world from future pandemics
- UK and Argentina-led resolution at World Health Assembly will protect the world from future pandemics as well as existing health threats
- By encouraging more specific funding, the resolution will help developing countries increase their capacity to run their own clinical trials – helping them to test new drugs, vaccines and other health interventions which will benefit their populations – while working across countries to respond to future pandemics more rapidly
- There will also be closer collaboration between researchers on clinical trials across the world – reducing research waste – while increased transparency will mean the results of trials will be more readily shared between countries
Genetic test can prevent some colon cancer patients from undergoing unnecessary chemo
- A simple blood test could prevent some colon cancer patients from getting unnecessary chemotherapy following surgery
- The circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) test looks for tiny amounts of genetic material that have been released by cancerous tumors
- The presence of cancer DNA in the blood signals that someone likely requires follow-up chemotherapy
Scientists show how fast-growing bacteria can resist antibiotics
- The results show that fast-growing individuals within bacterial colonies display a significantly higher expression of active ribosomes – particles within the cell that synthesise proteins
- This helps the bacteria avoid the accumulation of an important class of antibiotics called macrolides and therefore resist therapies
- These findings could be used to inform the development of improved antibiotic compounds that target this survival strategy
