Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Letting Your Child Smoke And Letting Him Play Tackle Football Are Similar Dangers, Advocates Warn
The Associated Press: Concussion PSA Compares Youth Football Dangers To Smoking
Everybody seems to be having fun when the kids in a new public service announcement are just playing football, until one boy is thrown to the ground and the background music turns ominous. Then, the coach starts handing out cigarettes."Tackle football is like smoking," a youthful voice-over says as a smiling, motherly type lights a cigarette for one of the pre-teen players. "The younger I start, the longer I'm exposed to danger." (10/10)
Stat: Mortality Rate For Men With Breast Cancer Soars Over Women's
Men account for about 1% or less of all breast cancer diagnoses in the U.S., yet male breast cancer patients have a 19% higher mortality rate than their diagnosed female counterparts, according to a recent study in JAMA Oncology. Scientists from Vanderbilt University looked at data on mortality rates from over 1.8 million female patients and 16,025 male patients who were diagnosed with breast cancer. The stark contrast between the number of men surveyed compared to the number of women underscores the deep lack of male representation in breast cancer studies. (Spinella, 10/11)
The New York Times: A Virus In Koala DNA Shows Evolution In Action
Koalas have been running into hard times. They have suffered for years from habitat destruction, dog attacks, automobile accidents. But that’s only the beginning. They are also plagued by chlamydia and cancers like leukemia and lymphoma, and in researching those problems, scientists have found a natural laboratory in which to study one of the hottest topics in biology: how viruses can insert themselves into an animal’s DNA and sometimes change the course of evolution. (Gorman, 10/10)
The Oregonian: STD Epidemic Hitting U.S., Feds Warn
Federal health officials issued dire warnings this week about an STD epidemic that’s taken hold of the nation, with new data showing that dramatically more people were infected in 2018 than in the year prior. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s new report did not mince words. The rise in numbers is a “serious public health concern that requires immediate attention,” the health officials said. (Zarkhin, 10/10)
