Latest news with #UKNationalHealthService
The Print
20-07-2025
- Health
- The Print
A UK health study has collected a whopping 100,000 full-body scans, and Neanderthals had ‘family recipes'
It is transforming healthcare, because UK National Health Service clinics now use Biobank-developed tools for faster, sharper diagnosis. The project is still ongoing and is expected to end by 2029. Since 2015, researchers have used this vast dataset, which includes MRI scans of the brain, heart and abdomen, bone and fat measurements, and more, to develop earlier and more accurate diagnostics for conditions like dementia, heart disease and cancer. The project is impactful not just because of the deep imaging, but also because of 10 years' worth of lifestyle, genetic and health data from the same volunteers. New Delhi: The UK Biobank has collected the scans of 100,000 volunteers in the world's largest whole body imaging project, to understand how bodies change with age, and how disease begins. The milestone was announced Tuesday in a release by UK Biobank, a biomedical database and research resource. Scientists have also used the data to train AI models that can predict diseases years before symptoms appear, and altogether around 1,300 peer-reviewed scientific studies have been published worldwide using this data. The Biobank will soon make available a billion anonymised images of MRI scans of the 100,000 volunteers, providing increasing access for global biomedical research. 'Family recipes' of Neanderthals Just like modern humans, the Neanderthals too had their own 'family recipes', according to a new peer-reviewed study published Thursday. The paper in Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology by researchers from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem talks about the different meat curing methods of two Neanderthal groups, with researchers studying animal bones from two nearby caves in northern Israel, named Amud and Kebara, which were occupied by Neanderthals around 500,000 years ago. Both groups seemed to have hunted the same animals and used similar tools, yet their butchery marks were surprisingly different. At Amud, the cut-marks on the meat were more densely packed and irregular, while at Kebara, they were more spaced and orderly. These differences weren't due to skill or resources; instead, the researchers wrote that they reflect cultural food practices passed down through generations, like drying or ageing meat before cutting it. It is one of the strongest pieces of evidence yet that Neanderthals had distinct traditions, possibly shared through social learning. It's a glimpse into their cultural complexity and shows that meat prep may have carried deeper meaning in their communities, much like the food rituals we have today. Scientists catch a planet dying It is rare that a cosmic tragedy unfolds in real time, but astronomers from Australia's Macquarie University have caught a distant planet in the act of dying. In their study on orbital decay, the astronomers have found TOI-2109b, a giant exoplanet nearly five times the mass of Jupiter and twice the size, spiralling dangerously close to its host star, completing one blistering-hot orbit every 16 hours. This is even shorter than Mercury's orbit around the Sun. It is the shortest orbit ever seen for a planet this big. Using data that was collected over 14 years from NASA's TESS, ESA's CHEOPS and ground-based telescopes, the researchers confirmed that the planet's orbit is shrinking by about 10 seconds over the next few years. What happens next? According to the study, TOI-2109b might plunge into its star, be shredded by gravity, or have its gas layers stripped away, leaving just a rocky core behind. This rare glimpse into a planet's 'death spiral' is giving scientists new insights into how planetary systems change over time. The peer-reviewed study was published in The Astrophysical Journal Tuesday. A refuge for wildlife After a massive wildfire swept through Brazil's Pantanal wetlands in 2020, researchers noticed something surprising: more jaguars showed up. A protected 36,700-acre site that already had the world's highest jaguar density saw an increase in both jaguar activity and new cubs. A new peer-reviewed paper in Global Change Biology, published Tuesday, describes the findings. Led by Oregon State University, US, the study used camera traps and analysis of animal droppings to study jaguar populations before, during, and after the fire. The researchers found that resident jaguars stayed put, while others migrated in, and that the cats continued to feed mostly on aquatic prey like fish and caiman, rather than switching to land animals. The authors said the area may be acting as a climate refuge, a safe haven for wildlife during extreme climate events like wildfires and drought. They highlighted the value of protected wetlands in an era of increasing climate extremes. (Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui) Also Read: That morning brew could be doing more than just jumpstarting your day—helping your cells age gracefully
News18
16-07-2025
- Health
- News18
Cancer Breakthrough In Britain: Patients Discharged Within Minutes Of Injection
This saves patients hours annually, time they can spend with family, at work, or relaxing, while also offering major psychological relief from spending less time in hospitals With scientific advancements, cancer treatment has made significant progress. Several modern therapies are now available, making it possible to treat even advanced stages of the disease. While a complete cure for cancer is still elusive, many cases can now be effectively managed. One such advanced treatment is immunotherapy, which is typically administered through a drip that takes one to two hours. In a major breakthrough for cancer care, the UK National Health Service (NHS) has introduced a faster, more efficient way to deliver immunotherapy. Patients receiving the drug Nivolumab, used in the treatment of various cancers, can now get it via a quick injection that takes just 1 to 5 minutes. Until now, the same treatment required an hour-long IV drip, marking this shift as a significant step toward improving comfort and reducing time spent in hospitals. According to a Times of India report, Nivolumab is a type of immunotherapy that enhances the body's immune response against cancer cells. While the drug itself is not new, the method of delivery represents a significant improvement. This change is expected to have profound effects on cancer treatment, offering substantial benefits not only medically but also emotionally and practically for thousands of patients. This improvement can save patients dozens of hours annually, time that can be spent with family, at work, or relaxing at home. The psychological benefits of less time in hospital and more time in life are considerable. The new injection system also provides substantial advantages for the NHS, potentially saving around 1,000 hours each month, which can be reallocated to care for more patients, better manage appointments, and reduce waiting times. For many, this injection represents not just a medical advancement but a means to maintain a better routine and lead a less burdensome life. According to the Times of India report, the new injectable form of the immunotherapy drug Nivolumab has been approved for use in treating 15 different types of cancer, including skin, bladder, and oesophageal cancers. This quicker treatment method is expected to benefit nearly 1,200 patients in England every month, covering both new patients and those already on IV-based Nivolumab. Roughly 40% of existing IV recipients could shift to this injection-based option, which takes just 1 to 5 minutes to administer—compared to the hour-long IV sessions. Though not suitable for every patient, for those who qualify, the shorter and simpler process is a significant relief, medically and emotionally. Clinical trials have shown the injection to be equally effective as the IV form, with most patients reporting higher comfort and convenience. In fact, many preferred the injection over traditional drips, citing both time saved and less physical strain. Notably, this advancement comes at no additional cost. The NHS has successfully negotiated pricing with the drug manufacturer to ensure that the faster treatment does not put extra pressure on healthcare budgets. This aligns with the NHS's broader push toward more efficient, patient-friendly medical solutions that also make better use of limited resources. view comments Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
NHS rolls out liquid biopsy testing for lung cancer patients
The UK National Health Service (NHS) England has rolled out a new liquid biopsy test intended to fast-track lung cancer patients to receive targeted therapy. Liquid biopsy testing works by detecting cancer-related molecules such as circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) or circulating tumour cells (CTCs) that cancer cells release into the bloodstream. According to NHS England, the rollout means that up to 15,000 patients with suspected lung cancer will benefit from the test each year, with the move making the UK health service the first in the world to adopt a 'blood test-first' approach to diagnosing cancer over the use of traditional tissue biopsy. Data from a pilot of the lung cancer test indicated that in some cases, patients received the results of ctDNA testing required to make treatment decisions up to 16 days sooner than with the tissue biopsy approach. The NHS has also pledged to expand liquid biopsy testing for several genetic variants in advanced breast cancer, with around 5,000 women set to benefit each year. An independent health economic assessment of the pilot estimated that the test's rollout could save the NHS up to £11m each year in lung cancer care. In addition, the test's availability signifies that some patients will avoid undergoing treatments such as chemotherapy by being more effectively triaged to receive the most appropriate targeted therapy for their cancer. Professor Peter Johnson, NHS national clinical director for cancer, commented: 'Liquid biopsies are leading us into a new era of personalised cancer care, and it's fantastic that we are now able to expand the use of this revolutionary test on the NHS to help tailor treatment for thousands of patients across the country. Since April, 1,600 patients with suspected lung cancer and around 600 advanced breast cancer patients have been tested with liquid biopsy. Professor Johnson continued: 'We are already seeing the difference this test can make in lung and breast cancer – and we hope to roll it out for patients with other forms of cancer in the near future.' Beyond lung cancer, the NHS said it also assessing the viability of the test's use in other cancers, including pancreatic and gallbladder cancer. When the UK's Labour Party came to power last year, ending 14 years of Conservative rule, they outlined a plan to rejuvenate the NHS after a lengthy period of underinvestment and funding cuts by the Conservative Party. UK health and social care secretary Wes Streeting commented: 'Thanks to this government's investment and modernisation, we have already delivered faster diagnoses for tens of thousands of suspected cancer patients, and there's much more to come. 'Through our Plan for Change, we are investing in cutting-edge modern treatments and tests to make our NHS fit for the future.' "NHS rolls out liquid biopsy testing for lung cancer patients " was originally created and published by Medical Device Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
WIRED
13-03-2025
- Health
- WIRED
Covid Vaccines Have Paved the Way for Cancer Vaccines
Mar 13, 2025 4:00 AM The mRNA technology behind coronavirus vaccines is now being used to create bespoke vaccines for cancer patients. If you buy something using links in our stories, we may earn a commission. This helps support our journalism. Learn more. Please also consider subscribing to WIRED Lennard Lee, a UK National Health Service oncologist and medical director at the Ellison Institute of Technology in Oxford, calls himself just a 'simple doctor,' but he's anything but. During the pandemic, he led clinical efforts that showed it was still safe to give cancer patients chemotherapy, disproving fears that the coronavirus made this too risky, helping to maintain cancer treatment worldwide. He also delivered UK research that showed lateral flow testing was effective in identifying the most infectious Covid patients. His most important project, however, is the one he's currently leading as the national government advisor for mRNA cancer vaccines. This new type of vaccine, which is based on the same technology as the Covid vaccines first developed by BioNTech and Moderna, is seen by many as a potential breakthrough in the fight against cancer. Ahead of speaking at WIRED Health in London next week, Lee tells WIRED why he hopes these vaccines will prove to be the 'silver lining of the pandemic.' This interview has been edited for length and clarity. WIRED: There are currently hundreds of mRNA cancer vaccine trials ongoing worldwide. How did the success of mRNA Covid vaccines kickstart this? Lennard Lee: Cancer vaccines weren't a proper field of research before the pandemic. There was nothing. Apart from one exception, pretty much every clinical trial had failed. With the pandemic, however, we proved that mRNA vaccines were possible. WIRED Health showcases the most exciting and thought-provoking disruptors, scientists, and practitioners making a positive change in how we provide and access health care. Find out more. mRNA cancer vaccines work by giving the body instructions to make a harmless piece of a cancer-related protein. This trains the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells carrying that protein. Think of it like a training manual for security guards. The vaccine gives the immune system a guide on what cancer looks like, so it knows exactly who to watch for and remove. Going from mRNA Covid vaccines to mRNA cancer vaccines is straightforward: same fridges, same protocol, same drug, just a different patient. In the current trials, we do a biopsy of the patient, sequence the tissue, send it to the pharmaceutical company, and they design a personalized vaccine that's bespoke to that patient's cancer. That vaccine is not suitable for anyone else. It's like science fiction. In the UK, you set up the Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad at the end of 2022 to fast-track cancer vaccine trials. Why set up such an ambitious project right after the Covid pandemic? The pandemic was ending, the Omicron variant was much milder than previous variants, and everyone had had their vaccines. Research in the area of Covid vaccines was starting to close down, but companies like Moderna and BioNTech were trying to figure out what to do next, because there wasn't going to be a need for a Covid vaccine market forever. So they started to pivot to cancer vaccines using mRNA technology, and they were looking for countries with proven capabilities for vaccine research and manufacture. In the meantime, the UK was ready. We had fridges and we had world-class manufacturing and research facilities. During the pandemic, we had proven we could open and deliver clinical trials fast. Also, the UK had established a genomic global lead with Genomics England and the 100,000 Genome Project. All doctors and nurses in this country are trained in genomics. That was a big signpost for any pharmaceutical industry. So the UK government signed two partnerships: one with BioNTech to provide 10,000 patients with access to personalized cancer treatments by 2030, and a 10-year investment with Moderna in an innovation and technology center with capacity to produce up to 250 million vaccines. The stars were aligned. During the pandemic, the UK was opening clinical trials in a matter of a few weeks. But before it used to take years to complete a clinical trial. What changed? It was really fascinating, because for many years, we believed that research is inherently slow. It used to take 20 years to get a drug to market. Most cancer patients, unfortunately, will succumb by the time a drug gets to market. We showed the world that it could be done in a year if you modernize your process, run parts of the process in parallel, and use digital tools. Of course, opening a clinical trial during a pandemic is not necessarily the same as a clinical trial for cancer. But you had a breakthrough moment for the cancer vaccine project at an early stage. There was a trial run by BioNTech, called BNT122, on people with high-risk bowel cancer, which was not recruiting very well across the world. So when we announced the Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad, the UK cancer community took that opportunity. We opened that trial at Birmingham University Hospital, which was the most surprising thing for me, because it is not a leading cancer vaccine studies center. We needed to get 10,000 patients enrolled in the trial, and we got there within the course of three months. It was quite amazing. It just goes to show that because we're a single health care system, we can do this much quicker than any other country. The dominoes started falling very quickly on the back of that success: we opened a head and neck cancer trial in Liverpool, an esophageal and gastric cancer trial in Dundee, and a lung cancer trial in London. We started to create a community of people who were all pushing for launching cancer vaccine trials as quickly as possible. Several mRNA-based cancer vaccines are in late-stage clinical trials internationally, and the UK is currently running 15 cancer-vaccine trials. When will we see the first approved mRNA cancer vaccine? We have a trial to stop skin cancer coming back after you cut it out. It's now completed. We over-recruited again, just like every single one of the trials that we ran, and the trial finished one year ahead of schedule. That's completely unheard of in cancer trials because they normally run over-long. What will happen now is that, over the next six to 12 months, we will monitor the people in the trial and work out if there's a difference between the people who took the cancer vaccine and the ones who didn't. We're hoping to have results by the end of the year or beginning of 2026. If it's successful, we will have invented the first approved personalized mRNA vaccine, within only five years of the first licensed mRNA vaccine for Covid. That's pretty impressive. Hear Lennard Lee speak at WIRED Health on March 18 at Kings Place, London. Get tickets at .
South China Morning Post
30-01-2025
- Health
- South China Morning Post
How ancient bones reveal secrets to old diseases such as plague
Bones aren't a dry subject for academic Alice Roberts – they are the stuff of life itself. The well-known presenter of science TV programmes is professor of public engagement in science at Birmingham University in the UK, and an expert in palaeopathology, the study of ancient diseases. One of the best ways to learn about them is through examining ancient skeletal remains. The former UK National Health Service doctor is also a researcher in osteoarchaeology, which involves investigating skeletons discovered on archaeological sites. This is about the Middle Ages, so be prepared to be horrified. Alice Roberts, author and anthropologist New scientific techniques reveal a lot about their long dead owners, including diet, physical activities, and overall lifestyle. 'My 'thing' is the intersection of biology and history,' Roberts says at a lecture organised by New Scientist magazine, during which she discussed her new book, Crypt: Life, Death and Disease in the Middle Ages , the third in a trilogy focusing on the UK.
