David Nabarro, British physician who led UN response to Ebola and COVID-19, dies
GENEVA — Dr. David Nabarro, a British physician who led the UN response to some of the biggest health crises in recent years, including bird flu, Ebola and the coronavirus pandemic, has died.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization, confirmed Nabarro's death on social media platform X.
'David was a great champion of global health and health equity, and a wise, generous mentor to countless individuals,' Tedros wrote Saturday. 'His work touched and impacted so many lives across the world.'
King Charles knighted Nabarro in 2023 for his contributions to global health after he served as one of six special envoys to the WHO on COVID-19. He won the 2018 World Food Prize for his work on health and hunger issues.
He also was a candidate for the top job at the WHO in 2017 but lost out to Tedros in the final round of voting. Nabarro left the UN later that year.
The 4SD Foundation, a social enterprise in Switzerland focused on mentoring the next generation of leaders in global sustainable development, said its strategic director died at his home Friday in a 'sudden passing.' Other details were not immediately available.
'David's generosity and unwavering commitment to improve the lives of others will be sorely missed,' the foundation wrote on its website Saturday.
Survivors include his wife, Flo, as well as his five children and seven grandchildren.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Doctors brace for potential measles surge in Calgary as Alberta's outbreaks drag on
Social Sharing Health experts are keeping a close eye on the measles situation in Calgary as case counts tick up and they're warning that vigilance is key. With a new case reported in the Calgary health zone on Friday, the number of confirmed cases has nearly doubled in about a month after remaining relatively low and stable for several months. As of midday Friday, the zone accounted for 44 of the province's 1,538 confirmed cases this year. "We have more to come and I think that this is the tip of the iceberg," said Dr. Tania Principi, a pediatric emergency physician and associate clinical professor at the University of Calgary's Cumming School of Medicine. She's seeing an increase in Calgary children with measles. And they can be very sick, she warned. "A lot of these kids get quite significant pneumonias, trouble breathing. They've needed to go to the ICU," she said. "Measles is dangerous. People can die from it.... You can have brain damage from it. So it's not just like a cold." Measles is highly contagious and can hang in the air for several hours after a person leaves a location. The virus can lead to serious complications including pneumonia, brain inflammation, premature delivery and even death. And there is no treatment for measles, according to Principi. "I'm worried, to be honest.... People start spreading measles even before they know they have it.," she said. She expects to see a bigger surge in the coming weeks. "With festivals,... people travelling and vacation, I anticipate that we're going to see a lot more measles especially in Calgary, but throughout the province, [through] the summer and as kids go back to school in the fall," said Principi. "The only way we can stop the spread is ensuring that people are vaccinated and if people do have symptoms that they stay home. But otherwise unfortunately this is going to continue to spread and our numbers are going to continue to increase." Vaccination rates "My level of concern is very high. And Calgary, and the north, are at the top of that concern," said Dr. James Talbot, a former chief medical officer of health for Alberta. He made the comments in response to a question from CBC News at a recent expert panel hosted by the Alberta Medical Association. While the north and south health zones continue to be the hardest hit parts of the province, Talbot sees worrying signs in Calgary. Some of the locations identified in the most recent Alberta Health Services measles exposure advisories include the emergency department at Alberta Children's Hospital, the ER at South Health Campus and the Glenmore Landing location of Alberta Precision Laboratories. "Calgary has amongst the better immunization rates in this age group, but it's well below the 95 per cent that's required for protection." According to provincial data, 74 per cent of children in the Calgary zone who turned two years old in 2024 were up-to-date with two doses of the measles vaccine. The provincial average was 68 per cent. That vaccination rate has, so far, prevented community-level transmission, according to the University of Calgary's Craig Jenne. "Because we're not truly at herd immunity, there is a risk that the virus can find an under-vaccinated population in the city and maintain some spread," said Jenne, a professor in the department of microbiology, immunology and infectious diseases. "We have to be quite aware of that and hopefully we can stay on top of contact tracing, exposure alerts and anybody that may be at risk of contracting measles, and has been exposed, can self-isolate and get help as needed to really reduce the risk of this getting a foothold in the city." Jenne said a lot of the cases in Calgary appear to be travel-related because locations such as hotels and the airport have been included in AHS exposure alerts. The more cases that are brought into the city, the more likely the virus will find under-vaccinated groups and spark more widespread transmission in Calgary, he warned. "Unfortunately the more times it's challenged, the more cases that appear, the more likely it is the virus will find a little daylight and be able to spread," said Jenne, who's also the deputy director of the Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases. Visitor restrictions Meanwhile, visitor restrictions are in place at some Alberta hospitals now, as health officials work to reduce the risk of measles spreading to vulnerable patients. Alberta Health Services (AHS) said temporary limits can be put in place in locations including pediatric hospitals, cancer treatment sites, labour and delivery units, as well as neonatal intensive care units and pediatric intensive care units AHS says it's up to zone leadership to decide on a case-by-case basis whether to implement these restrictions and compassionate exemptions will be considered. "As the measles situation continues to be dynamic, this approach allows zone leadership to determine whether restrictions are needed to support the well-being of patients," spokesperson Kristi Bland said in a statement emailed on Friday. "In areas such as Edmonton and Calgary, where measles cases currently remain low, these precautions may be implemented due to the potential risk posed by visitors from regions with substantial measles circulation. They are not a response to increased risk or transmission within Calgary or Edmonton."
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Manitoba hepatitis C rate highest in nation
Manitoba has the highest rate of hepatitis C virus in the country and it's why World Hepatitis Day is an important day for education, an infectious disease and liver expert says. Dr. Kelly Kaita, who heads the viral hepatitis unit at the Health Sciences Centre, said the province's hep C virus rate of 42.3 cases per 100,000 means 589 Manitobans are diagnosed with the disease every year. But Kaita, who wants to use World Hepatitis Day, which is on Monday, to help educate people on how to reduce the spread of the infection, said he thinks the numbers are even worse. 'I believe 589 in Manitoba would be low,' he said. 'And with hepatitis C in 0.8 per cent of the population in Canada, that would be 8,000 Manitobans with the disease.' Hepatitis C infects the liver and, if not treated, it can cause both cirrhosis and liver cancer. It is spread by blood contact, usually through shared needles during drug use or while getting a tattoo outside of a salon. Six years ago, Kaita was hopeful Manitoba's move to cover the cost of a new drug, Maviret, for eligible pharmacare patients would help the province meet the World Health Organization's target of ending viral hepatitis as a public health concern by 2030. With only five years to go, Kaita isn't so sure, not just for Manitoba, but for people across the globe. 'Things are not going well worldwide,' he said. 'I don't think anyone is set to meet the 2030 WHO guidelines. It all comes down to awareness. People have to recognize who is at risk.' Inmates are one of the at-risk groups. Kaita said that's why staff at federal correctional facilities immediately arrange for medical treatment once it is learned an inmate has been infected with hep C. 'Provinces like Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec are falling behind, with new modelling suggesting Manitoba may not reach hepatitis C elimination until 2050 without urgent action.'– Lucy You, vice-president of Liver Canada Kaita said because provincial jail sentences are much shorter than two-year plus federal sentences — sometimes just weeks — many inmates are discharged before their treatment starts. 'Then we don't know where they are,' he said. 'They are lost to the system.' Other marginalized communities that are affected include Indigenous people, new Canadians, people born between 1945 and 1975, and people who inject recreational drugs. Lucy You, vice-president of Liver Canada, said there are several reasons hepatitis C is still not being reduced to the WHO goal. 'The issue isn't the treatment,' You said. 'It's systemic barriers to access, particularly for marginal communities.' 'Provinces like Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec are falling behind, with new modelling suggesting Manitoba may not reach hepatitis C elimination until 2050 without urgent action.' You said there are things the federal government can do to help reduce virus rates. 'We need federal leadership to modernize screening for both hepatitis B and C, prioritize universal birth-dose HBV vaccination, invest in accurate and disaggregated data, and provide long-term funding to community organizations that are best positioned to reach and support those most affected.' 'We need federal leadership to modernize screening for both hepatitis B and C.'– Lucy You Sundays Kevin Rollason's Sunday newsletter honouring and remembering lives well-lived in Manitoba. Kaita said many people are unaware of the advances in treatment, which has become easier and has fewer side-effects. He said new drugs, taken orally, cure a person in only eight weeks, compared with the old treatment, which took six months to a year and included side-effects that patients reported were worse than getting chemotherapy. 'It is closer to 99 per cent of people being treated are cured,' Kaita said. 'We want to educate the public that there is treatment and it can lead to a reduction in liver cancer.' Kevin RollasonReporter Kevin Rollason is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He graduated from Western University with a Masters of Journalism in 1985 and worked at the Winnipeg Sun until 1988, when he joined the Free Press. He has served as the Free Press's city hall and law courts reporter and has won several awards, including a National Newspaper Award. Read more about Kevin. Every piece of reporting Kevin produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Globe and Mail
3 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
BeOne Medicines Receives Positive CHMP Opinion for TEVIMBRA® in Neoadjuvant/Adjuvant NSCLC Treatment
BeOne Medicines Ltd. (NASDAQ: ONC; HKEX: 06160; SSE: 688235), a global oncology company, today announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency issued a positive opinion recommending approval of TEVIMBRA ® (tislelizumab), in combination with platinum-containing chemotherapy as neoadjuvant treatment and then continued as monotherapy as adjuvant treatment, for the treatment of adult patients with resectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) at high risk of recurrence. This recommendation is based on the Phase 3 RATIONALE-315 study ( NCT04379635). 'Patients with resectable, early-stage NSCLC face an urgent challenge – despite surgery and current therapies, recurrence rates remain alarmingly high,' said Dr. Mariano Provencio, Head of the Medical Oncology Department at Hospital Universitario Puerta de Hierro and Professor at the Faculty of Medicine of Universidad Autonoma de Madrid in Spain. 'The significant clinical benefit observed in the RATIONALE-315 study has important implications for patients. If approved, perioperative tislelizumab will offer oncologists a powerful new option to improve outcomes and potentially alter the course of this difficult-to-treat disease.' RATIONALE-315 is a double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter, Phase 3 study that randomized 453 patients with resectable NSCLC 1:1 to receive either TEVIMBRA plus platinum-based doublet chemotherapy as neoadjuvant treatment followed by TEVIMBRA as adjuvant treatment or placebo plus platinum-based doublet chemotherapy as neoadjuvant treatment followed by placebo as adjuvant treatment. As previously reported at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress Virtual Plenary in February 2024 1, the dual primary endpoints of event-free survival (EFS) and major pathologic response (MPR) were met at the interim analyses of the RATIONALE-315 study. Results include: Statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in MPR and pathological complete response (pCR) rates: 56.2% of NSCLC patients treated with TEVIMBRA in combination with chemotherapy before surgery achieved MPR compared to 15.0% of patients treated with chemotherapy in combination with placebo (difference: 41.1%; 95% CI: 33.2-49.1, p<0.0001) 40.7% of patients on the TEVIMBRA-based regimen achieved pCR, compared to 5.7% of patients treated with chemotherapy in combination with placebo (difference: 35.0%; 95% CI: 27.9-42.1, p<0.0001) Statistically significant EFS (HR [95% CI], 0.56 [0.40–0.79]; 1-sided P=0.0003) and trend for overall survival (OS) (HR [95% CI], 0.62 [0.39–0.98]; 1-sided P=0.0193) benefits favoring TEVIMBRA in early data. Consistent safety profile of the TEVIMBRA arm with that of individual therapies, with 72.1% of patients in the TEVIMBRA arm (vs. 66.4% in the placebo arm) experiencing grade ≥3 treatment-related adverse events (TRAEs) and 15.5% of patients in the TEVIMBRA arm (vs. 8.0% in the placebo arm) experiencing serious TRAEs. There were no new safety signals identified with this regimen, and the most common Grade 3 or 4 TRAEs (≥ 10%) in the TEVIMBRA arm were decreased neutrophil count and decreased white blood cell count. No impact on the feasibility and completeness of surgery, a key concern around neoadjuvant treatment. Updated EFS and OS data from the pre-planned final analysis of RATIONALE-315 will be submitted for presentation at an upcoming medical conference. 'TEVIMBRA is already approved in the EU across multiple settings in NSCLC, the most common form of lung cancer, and this positive CHMP opinion expands its potential to help patients earlier in their treatment journey,' said Mark Lanasa, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer, Solid Tumors at BeOne. 'As the foundational asset of our solid tumor portfolio, TEVIMBRA continues to demonstrate its strength and versatility across the continuum of care, bringing us closer to our goal of delivering more comprehensive and effective cancer treatment to more patients.' In lung cancer, TEVIMBRA is already approved in the EU for the first-line treatment of patients with squamous NSCLC, for the first-line treatment of patients with non-squamous NSCLC with PD-L1 high expression, for the treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic NSCLC after prior platinum-based therapy, and as a first-line treatment for extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC). It is also approved as a first-line treatment for patients with gastric or gastroesophageal junction (G/GEJ) adenocarcinoma, as a first-line treatment for unresectable esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), as a second-line treatment in ESCC after prior platinum-based chemotherapy, and as a first-line treatment for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). About NSCLC Lung cancer is the most commonly diagnosed type of cancer and the leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. 2 In Europe, lung cancer is the third most frequent cancer with 484,306 new cases diagnosed in 2022. 3 NSCLC accounts for 80–90% of all lung cancers 4, of which resectable NSCLC patients at diagnosis represent around 25–30% 5. About TEVIMBRA (tislelizumab) TEVIMBRA is a uniquely designed humanized immunoglobulin G4 (IgG4) anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) monoclonal antibody with high affinity and binding specificity against PD-1. It is designed to minimize binding to Fc-gamma (Fcγ) receptors on macrophages, helping to aid the body's immune cells to detect and fight tumors. TEVIMBRA is the foundational asset of BeOne's solid tumor portfolio and has shown potential across multiple tumor types and disease settings. The global TEVIMBRA clinical development program includes almost 14,000 patients enrolled to date in 35 countries and regions across 70 trials, including 21 registration-enabling studies. TEVIMBRA is approved in 46 countries, and more than 1.5 million patients have been treated globally. Important Safety Information The current European Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC) for TEVIMBRA is available from the European Medicines Agency. This information is intended for a global audience. Product indications vary by region. About BeOne BeOne Medicines is a global oncology company domiciled in Switzerland that is discovering and developing innovative treatments that are more affordable and accessible to cancer patients worldwide. With a portfolio spanning hematology and solid tumors, BeOne is expediting development of its diverse pipeline of novel therapeutics through its internal capabilities and collaborations. With a growing global team of more than 11,000 colleagues spanning six continents, the Company is committed to radically improving access to medicines for far more patients who need them. To learn more about BeOne, please visit and follow us on LinkedIn, X, Facebook and Instagram. Forward-Looking Statement This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws, including statements regarding the ability of TEVIMBRA to improve patient outcome and potentially alter the course of the disease and to potentially help patients earlier in their treatment journey; the ability of BeOne to deliver more comprehensive and effective cancer treatment to more patients; and BeOne's plans, commitments, aspirations, and goals under the heading 'About BeOne.' Actual results may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including BeOne's ability to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of its drug candidates; the clinical results for its drug candidates, which may not support further development or marketing approval; actions of regulatory agencies, which may affect the initiation, timing, and progress of clinical trials and marketing approval; BeOne's ability to achieve commercial success for its marketed medicines and drug candidates, if approved; BeOne's ability to obtain and maintain protection of intellectual property for its medicines and technology; BeOne's reliance on third parties to conduct drug development, manufacturing, commercialization, and other services; BeOne's limited experience in obtaining regulatory approvals and commercializing pharmaceutical products and its ability to obtain additional funding for operations and to complete the development of its drug candidates and achieve and maintain profitability; and those risks more fully discussed in the section entitled 'Risk Factors' in BeOne's most recent quarterly report on Form 10-Q, as well as discussions of potential risks, uncertainties, and other important factors in BeOne's subsequent filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. All information in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and BeOne undertakes no duty to update such information unless required by law. To access BeOne media resources, please visit our Newsroom site.
