Health

A world-first Australian trial has found that a simple fingerstick test for hepatitis B DNA is as accurate as standard lab testing, paving the way for wider access in remote and resource-limited settings.  Published in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology, the study showed that the point-of-care test can deliver results within an hour and be performed in decentralised clinics, Xinhua news agency reported.  The fingerstick test can help overcome delays caused by laboratory-based testing, according to a statement from the Kirby Institute at the University of New South Wales in Australia.  "The results of our trial found that the fingerstick point-of-care test is highly accurate, closely matching the accuracy of traditional tests," said Professor Gail Matthews, who led the research at the ...

A team of researchers in Japan has announced a clinical trial to confirm a vaccine`s efficacy against the deadly Nipah virus in humans.  The vaccine candidate developed at the University of Tokyo is set to start clinical trials in Belgium in April, Nikkei Asia, a Japan-based English-language news magazine, reported.  The new vaccine offers a potential breakthrough against a disease whose fatality rate is estimated to be between 40 per cent and 75 per cent.  Currently, there is no licensed vaccine or specific treatment for Nipah virus infection. The latest development comes even as India reported two confirmed cases of Nipah virus from West Bengal in January.   The new vaccine is reportedly being developed by inserting a portion of the Nipah virus`s genetic information into the measles...

Up to four in 10 or 7.1 million cancer cases worldwide could be prevented, according to a new global analysis from the World Health Organization (WHO) and its International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) on Wednesday.  The study, released on World Cancer Day on February 4, identified tobacco as the leading preventable cause of cancer globally, responsible for 15 per cent of all new cancer cases. It also found, for the first time, that nine cancer-causing infections are responsible for about 10 per cent of cancer cases. Other reasons include alcohol, high body mass index, physical inactivity, air pollution, and ultraviolet radiation. The analysis, based on data from 185 countries and 36 cancer types, estimated that 37 per cent of all new cancer cases in 2022, around 7.1 million ca...

Scientists in Australia have mapped the "neighbourhoods" of lung cancer cells and found that cell metabolism plays a key role in determining how patients respond to immunotherapy.  Researchers from the University of Queensland`s (UQ) Frazer Institute studied cell interactions at cellular resolution in non-small cell lung carcinoma, the most common form of lung cancer, to better understand why some patients don`t respond to immunotherapy treatment, Xinhua news agency reported. Using machine-learning algorithms and computational approaches, the team examined how cells interact and metabolise glucose, which cancer cells thrive on, said Associate Professor Arutha Kulasinghe from UQ`s Frazer Institute. "We were able to dive deep into the complex nature of cells, basically looking at the cell...

Slashing global aid, particularly by the US and European countries, will reverse decades of progress in fighting diseases, and lead to 22.6 million additional deaths in people of all age groups, including children under five years of age, by 2030, warned a new study published in The Lancet Global Health on Tuesday.  The peer-reviewed study led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), in Spain, showed that the additional deaths will be across 93 low- and middle- income countries, including India. The figures also include 5.4 million children under the age of five. Severe cuts to official development assistance (ODA) will affect Sub-Saharan Africa, accounting for 38 of the 93 countries analysed, the most. In Asia, 21 countries, including India, are at risk, followed by 12 ...

Amid a rapidly ageing population in India, experts on Tuesday, February 3, stressed the need for a home-based, community-led and integrated elder care model to boost geriatric care in the country.  Speaking at an event held in the national capital, the health experts also discussed the growing challenges confronting the country’s elderly population and the urgent need for more responsive and inclusive approaches to geriatric care.  The experts highlighted that the challenges for geriatric care are multi-dimensional in nature. These include rising disabilities and age-related health conditions such as dementia and Alzheimer’s, significant gaps in geriatric healthcare infrastructure coupled with a sharp urban–rural divide in access to medical services, and mounting economic pressures drive...

Routine childhood vaccinations are not associated with an increased risk of epilepsy in young children, according to a new study led by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  The study, published in The Journal of Pediatrics, showed that the aluminum used as vaccine adjuvants also does not increase the risk of the neurological condition. “Incident epilepsy was not associated with up-to-date vaccination status or cumulative vaccine aluminum exposure among children less than 4 years of age,” said the team, including those from the Marshfield Clinic Research Institute in Marshfield, US. The study included 2,089 children diagnosed as having epilepsy from age 1 year to less than 4 years. These were compared with 20,139 children without epilepsy based on age, sex, and health care...

Commonly found viruses such as the parvovirus B19 (PVB19) can cause serious brain infections like encephalitis, said researchers from the AIIMS Bhopal on Saturday. Parvovirus B19 is a common virus with which most people come into contact at some point in their lives. In some rare cases, especially in children, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems, this virus can affect the brain. The researchers analysed 14 international studies conducted over the past 30 years, involving more than 3,000 patients. The virus was found in approximately three out of every 100 patients. “The common virus called parvovirus B19 can cause serious brain disease encephalitis in some rare cases,” AIIMS Bhopal shared in a post on the social media platform X. “Encephalitis can involve high fever, ...

Adverse effects on health due to emissions from the world`s plastics system, including greenhouse gases, air-polluting particles and toxic chemicals released from production, could more than double by 2040, compared to levels in 2016, if current trends continue, according to a study. The study, published in The Lancet Planetary Health journal, also highlighted that the global production of plastics may not peak until beyond 2100, worsening environmental and health burdens in an already overwhelmed system. Plastic pollution and emissions released across its lifecycle are increasingly recognised for their potential impacts on human health, yet the overall scale of the impact is only beginning to be fully quantified, researchers from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and in...

Chinese researchers have unveiled a crucial mutation in the Ebola virus that significantly enhanced its infectivity during a major outbreak, providing new insights for epidemic surveillance and drug development.  The study, published in the journal Cell, focused on the Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) from 2018 to 2020, the second-largest in history, which caused over 3,000 infections and more than 2,000 deaths, Xinhua news agency reported. "The research tells us that during major emerging infectious disease outbreaks, real-time genomic surveillance and evolutionary analysis of the pathogen are crucial," said Professor Qian Jun from Sun Yat-sen University. "This is not only able to warn of changes in transmission risk but also to prospecti...