Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Researchers Are One Step Closer To A Universal Cancer Vaccine
Newsweek: Cancer Vaccine Breakthrough: What We Know About 'Exciting' Early Data
Researchers at the University of Florida are moving closer to developing what they have described as a "universal" cancer vaccine, according to a study published in Nature Biomedical Engineering on July 18. The vaccine would work by "waking the immune system up against something that looks dangerous, and then that response spills over to recognize and reject the tumor," Dr. Elias Sayour, co-author of the study, director of the Pediatric Cancer Immunotherapy Initiative, and principal investigator at the RNA Engineering Laboratory at the University of Florida, told Newsweek. (Laws, 7/24)
Newsweek: Early Warning Sign For One Of The Most Lethal Cancers Discovered
Doctors may soon have a new tool in the fight against one of the most aggressive and lethal forms of cancer—in the form of an 'early warning' signature of precancerous cells. This is the promise of a new study by researchers at the University of California San Diego, who have found a link between inflammation, cellular stress and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), the most common type of pancreatic cancer. (Millington, 7/22)
Newsweek: Gecko's Sticky Toes Inspire Better Cancer Treatment
The amazingly "grippy" toes of geckos have inspired a new approach to cancer therapy that could lead to fewer side effects and better outcomes for patients. This is the conclusion of a study by researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder, who have developed a material that can stick fast to tumors inside the body and release chemotherapy drugs—even in difficult-to-treat cases. (Millington, 7/23)
Newsweek: Weight Loss Jab Found To Shrink Breast Cancer Tumors
Millions of Americans have turned to weight-loss injections originally developed to treat diabetes—and now, research suggests that these medications may offer a surprising additional benefit: shrinking obesity-related breast tumors. A new study in mice shows that tirzepatide—the active ingredient in the popular drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound—not only helps shed pounds but may also slow or reduce the growth of breast cancer tumors linked to obesity. (Notarantonio, 7/23)
San Francisco Chronicle: UCSF, Stanford Launch $200M Cancer Hub For Breakthrough Research
UCSF and Stanford are launching a $200 million cancer hub that will be the largest collaborative project of its kind on the West Coast, with the goal to dramatically improve cancer care, especially for the most stubborn diseases, over the next decade. The Weill Family Foundation is funding the center with a $100 million matching donation, for which Stanford and UCSF together have raised about $25 million in institutional funds; each university will raise $50 million over the next decade. (Allday, 7/23)
In other health and wellness news —
MedPage Today: 10,000 Daily Step Count Goal Debunked By Huge Study
Study after study, higher daily step counts were shown to track with better health outcomes, even well below the oft-touted target of 10,000 steps. Based on a meta-analysis of studies published since 2014, increasing daily step counts above 2,000 was associated with a risk reduction, according to Ding (Melody) Ding, PhD, MPH, of the University of Sydney, and colleagues. (Lou, 7/23)
The Hill: Eating Eggs May Lower Alzheimer’s Risk, Study Shows
A new study suggests diets including eggs, especially the yolk, may help reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Published in The Journal of Nutrition, the study followed more than 1,000 U.S. adults and found that those who consumed more than one egg weekly had a 47 percent reduced risk of Alzheimer’s. Over an average follow-up of 6.7 years, 280 participants, or 27.3 percent, were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s dementia. Researchers found that 39 percent of the “total effect of egg intake” was linked to choline, a nutrient found in egg yolks known to support memory and brain function. (Delandro, 7/23)
AP: Meta Launches New Teen Safety Features, Removes 635,000 Accounts That Sexualize Children
Instagram parent company Meta has introduced new safety features aimed at protecting teens who use its platforms, including information about accounts that message them and an option to block and report accounts with one tap. The company also announced Wednesday that it has removed thousands of accounts that were leaving sexualized comments or requesting sexual images from adult-run accounts of kids under 13. Of these, 135,000 were commenting and another 500,000 were linked to accounts that “interacted inappropriately,” Meta said in a blog post. (Ortutay, 7/23)
