Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Research Roundup: The Latest Science, Discoveries, And Breakthroughs
NBC News: Brain Tumor Vaccine: Experimental Shot Shows Promise Against Glioblastoma In Some Patients
When Tracey Kassman was diagnosed with glioblastoma in 2022 at age 64, she thought her life was over. The cancer is one of the deadliest types of brain tumor, and despite treatment with chemotherapy, surgery and radiation, it almost always comes back. (Lovelace Jr., Kopf and Thompson, 10/7)
CIDRAP: No Evidence RSV Is Mutating In Response To Infant Immunizations, Study Finds
Immunizations that prevent respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections in infants continue to be effective three years after the medications were approved, according to two new studies. In a study published in JAMA Network Open in mid-September, Canadian researchers found one of these immunizations, a set of lab-grown antibodies called nirsevimab, reduced emergency department visits related to RSV by 77%, hospitalizations by 79%, and intensive care unit admissions by 97%. (Szabo, 10/1)
CIDRAP: Vaxcyte’s 31-Strain Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine Passes Phase 3 Test
Vaccine maker Vaxcyte this week announced positive topline results from a phase 3 trial of its investigational 31-valent (31-strain) pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) candidate, VAX-31. VAX-31 was designed to prevent serious and sometimes fatal infections caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, including invasive pneumococcal disease IPD and pneumococcal pneumonia. The 31 serotypes covered by the vaccine account for approximately 95% of IPD and 88% of pneumococcal pneumonia cases circulating in adults age 50 and older. (Dall, 10/7)
Stat: Optogenetics Restores Some Vision In Small Study
Retinitis pigmentosa is a genetic disorder that causes degeneration of the light-sensing cells in the retina. Generally diagnosed in childhood or early adolescence, patients gradually lose peripheral and night vision, often becoming legally blind by young adulthood. (Merelli, 10/7)
MedPage Today: Dramatic Improvement In Suicidal Ideation After Brain Radiosurgery Capsulotomy
Patients with treatment-resistant depression and suicidal ideation had significant symptomatic improvement after radiosurgical treatment of a brain pathway involved in mood and obsessive-compulsive behavior, a small clinical trial showed. Suicidal ideation resolved in 13 of 14 patients, and depression symptom scores decreased by more than half on average across 18 evaluable patients treated with radiosurgical capsulotomy. (Bankhead, 10/5)
MedPage Today: LVADs Linked To Concerning Neurologic Events, Strokes Aside
It's not all about stroke: Various neurologic events boded poorly for survival on the contemporary magnetically levitated HeartMate 3 left ventricular assist device (LVAD) in a retrospective registry study. Based on the U.S. INTERMACS database, there was an 8% incidence of both stroke and nonstroke neurologic adverse events (NAEs) over a median 1.4 years among nearly 12,000 people with advanced heart failure who got the contemporary magnetically levitated LVAD. (Lou, 10/7)
HealthDay: Cash Rewards Help Folks Quit Smoking
Fat stacks of cash can provide powerful motivation to quit smoking, a new study says. Twice as many smokers quit when offered cash rewards of up to $600, researchers reported Oct. 5 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. (Thompson, 10/6)
