New Drug-Resistant Strain Of Malaria Threatens To Upend Years Of Eradication Efforts
“It has a big potential to spread,” says Dr. Arjen M. Dondorp, deputy director of the Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit in Bangkok. “We should be very worried that other countries in Southeast Asia can be affected by this, and, of course, that it will reach Africa at some point.” In other public health news: stem cell treatments, breast cancer, transgender patients, Legionnaires’ disease, allergies, and more.
The New York Times:
As Malaria Resists Treatment, Experts Warn Of Global Crisis
When Tran Viet Hung was a soldier patrolling these forested hills in southern Vietnam six years ago, he came down with a fever and chills. He tested positive for malaria and spent a few days recovering in a government clinic. Now Mr. Hung, 37, shrugs off the incident as an occupational hazard of working in this corner of Binh Phuoc Province, a malaria hot spot along Vietnam’s porous border with Cambodia. (McNeil, 11/21)
Stat:
Bacteria Swap DNA That Spreads Antibiotic Resistance
The growing threat of antibiotic resistance has sparked calls to use antibiotics more responsibly to curb the spread of drug-resistant bacteria. The idea: If we reduce antibiotic use, we could reduce the resistance that’s been naturally selected for over time. But new research published Wednesday in Nature Communications finds that isn’t always the case. (Thielking, 11/22)
Stat:
What Will FDA’s New Rules Mean For Legitimate Stem Cell Treatments?
When the Food and Drug Administration last week issued guidelines for investigative stem cell therapies, much of the attention fell to the agency’s vow to crack down further on unregulated clinics offering potentially unsafe treatments. But the guidances also have plenty of ramifications for companies trying to bring to market innovative and legitimate stem cell treatments by moving them through clinical trials and getting them approved by the FDA. (Joseph, 11/22)
The Sacramento Bee:
How African-American Parents Can Lower Their Daughters’ Risk Of Breast Cancer
African-American women in the United States are about twice as likely as women of all other races to develop an aggressive form of breast cancer known as triple negative. Many believe it’s a product of their race or genetics, but science has found that the risk of this deadly disease can be drastically reduced if parents help their daughters do just one thing – help them stay lean. (Anderson, 11/21)
NPR:
Health Care System Fails Many Transgender Americans
On a recent weekday afternoon, Ruby Corado let herself into the drop-in center at the homeless shelter she founded for LGBTQ youth to make the rounds with new clients. In the basement of Casa Ruby in Washington, D.C., transgender men and women in their late teens and 20s, mostly brown or black, shared snacks, watched TV, chatted or played games on their phones. Many of them, said Corado, are part of the 31 percent. (Ulaby, 11/21)
Georgia Health News:
Legionnaires’ Disease: Its Appearance Was Historic, But It’s Not History
In July 1976, a severe outbreak of a type of pneumonia occurred at a convention of the American Legion in Philadelphia. It eventually infected scores of people, and at least 29 of them died. The incident caught the attention of the nation. A mysterious illness is always scary, but this one had a kind of cruel resonance, because the military veterans had chosen the place and time of their convention as a way of celebrating the 200th anniversary of the United States. (Hensley, 11/21)
The New York Times:
‘I Have No Idea How to Tell This Horror Story’
John Branch, a sports reporter at The New York Times, has been in sporadic contact via text messaging and email with Walter Peat since writing about him and his son Stephen, a former N.H.L. player. At the time of the article, in June 2016, Stephen Peat was 36 and experiencing debilitating headaches and violent mood swings. Peat was primarily an enforcer, a player designated to drop his gloves and square off in fist-to-fist combat with an opponent. The Peats presumed that Stephen’s problems were rooted in brain trauma sustained on the ice in so many fights. (11/21)
Kaiser Health News:
Got Food Allergies? Add Milk To The Worries For Your Meal
Since her son Matt was an infant, Lynda Mitchell knew he had a milk allergy. She controlled the symptoms by switching his baby formula. But when he was 1, Halloween proved horrifying. While trick-or-treating in a pumpkin costume, Matt grabbed a chocolate bar and bit through the wrapper. Although he spit out the candy, his violent allergic reaction morphed into a mess of hives, swelling and labored breathing. He ended up in the emergency room. (Heredia Rodriguez, 11/22)
The Washington Post:
These Conjoined Twins Spent Their Lives In A Hospital. They Just Went Home — As Two.
Abby and Erin Delaney have finally gone home — more than five months after the formerly conjoined twins were separated in a rare surgery. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia said Monday that the twins have been discharged, ending an emotional 485-day stay at the hospital where they were born in summer 2016. (Bever, 11/21)
The Associated Press:
Hulu Sued For Not Offering Audio Service For Blind Customers
Advocacy groups have sued Hulu in an effort to force the subscription streaming service to provide an audio track that helps people who are blind or visually impaired enjoy TV shows and movies. The federal lawsuit filed in Boston on Monday asks the court to declare that Hulu's failure to provide services for the blind violates the Americans with Disabilities Act. The groups say Hulu has refused to do so despite repeated requests from advocates and blind customers. (Richer, 11/21)
