Plans to devolve responsibility for the quality of England’s 11 national screening services could result in significant safety risks, experts tell The BMJ in an exclusive report today. Assistant news editor Gareth Iacobucci explains that NHS England is currently discussing proposals to delegate some of the functions of the national Screening Quality Assurance Service (SQAS) from NHSE to regional Integrated Care Boards (ICBs). But concerned experts warn that devolving responsibility to local organisations will spread resources more thinly, lead to a loss of expertise and independence, and compromise ...

Though most online dating apps have a minimum age requirement of 18 years, a new study finds a small number of 11 to 12 year-olds use them. Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) preteens are 13 times more likely to report engaging in online dating compared to their heterosexual peers. “Lesbian, gay, or bisexual adolescents, including preteens, may have limited romantic partner options in their schools, where they may also face discrimination, bullying, and stigma because of their sexual orientation,” says lead author Jason Nagata, MD, associate professor of pediatrics at ...

F. William Studier of Brookhaven National Laboratory has won the second annual Richard N. Merkin Prize in Biomedical Technology for his development of an efficient, scalable method of producing RNA and proteins in the laboratory. His T7 expression technology can be used to make large quantities of nearly any RNA or protein and has been for decades, and continues to be, a mainstay of biomedical research and pharmaceutical production. The approach has been used to produce numerous therapeutics, diagnostics, and vaccines — including the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines credited with extending millions of lives in recent years.  “F. William ...

DANVILLE, Pa. – Geisinger has been awarded $3 million from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health to continue its research on familial hypercholesterolemia (FH). The new funding will build on Geisinger’s ongoing work to improve communication with patients with FH and their family members and increase early screening and diagnosis. FH is an inherited condition that causes high levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, often referred to as “bad cholesterol.” Left untreated, high ...

A team of solar scientists have uncovered the possible originals of the engine that drives much of the sun’s volatile nature—generating the sunspots that move like storm clouds over the surface and causing the sun’s activity levels to rise and fall over 11-year cycles. The secret behind this engine, also known as the “solar dynamo,” may be among the oldest “unsolved problems of physics,” said Benjamin Brown, a solar physicist at CU Boulder. In new research, he and his colleagues used mathematical equations ...

Key stroke-care metrics improve at telestroke hospitals with stroke center certification and stroke coordinators. That’s what NORC researchers at the University of Chicago found when they conducted an external evaluation of the telestroke program at the Medical University of South Carolina. NORC, which stands for National Opinion Research Center, and MUSC researchers report their findings in the Journal of Stroke & Cerebrovascular Diseases. Mithuna Srinivasan, Ph.D., principal research scientist at NORC, is the lead author of the article and MUSC telestroke and telehealth experts Christine Holmstedt. D.O., Jillian Harvey, Ph.D., ...

Public interest in weight loss drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic is surging, but national data on dispensing patterns in the United States are surprisingly scarce.  Now, a national study from Michigan Medicine shows that the use of these weight loss drugs is increasing rapidly in adolescents and young adults 12-25 years, especially females.  Using 2020 - 2023 data from a national database representing 92% of pharmacies, the study team found a 594% increase in the monthly number of adolescents and young adults using Wegovy, Ozempic, and other glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists ...

Reading about the latest scientific discovery – such as the unearthing of a fossil representing a new species of tiny dinosaur – can be fascinating. But what if it were possible to do more than just read about it? What if you could go online, download a digital model and 3D print an exact replica of that fossil within minutes of reading the news? That is the goal of the Non-Clinical Tomography Users Research Network, or NoCTURN, an international group of researchers spearheaded by theUniversity of Arizona Health Sciences, the American ...

Autism is the most common neurodevelopmental disorder in the U.S., affecting an estimated one out of 36 children. Most people with autism experience unique sensory features such as differences in reactivity to touch, sounds, and sights or difficulty managing multiple sensory inputs at the same time. These sensory differences can make the healthcare environment — often characterized by fluorescent lights, idle waiting rooms and uncomfortable pokes and prods — difficult to navigate, preventing children with autism from getting the care they need. To change that, occupational therapists Roseann ...

Medical procedures capable of moving cells inside the body without making incisions have unique benefits. From faster recovery times to less trauma impacting the body, the list of reasons to do surgery without scalpels is growing with the technology used to perform noninvasive treatments. A new method that might be available in the future is coming to life through research conducted by Zhenhua Tian’s team. The assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering is using tube-shaped acoustic energy to capture tiny biological ...

TORONTO, May 22, 2024 – Community science volunteers – laypeople with an interest in bees and conservation – significantly contribute to the scientific knowledge of native bumble bees across Canada and the United States, finds a new study by York University. It’s buzz worthy confirmation that community science programs can play an important role in monitoring the changing distributions of bumble bees and more. Community scientists have importantly also detected several at-risk or endangered species in unexpected locations, including the rusty-patched bumble bee and the gypsy cuckoo bumble bee. Trained scientists often haven’t seen some ...

Location, race and insurance status play a significant part in the odds of a patient being diagnosed with early-stage or late-stage cancer, according to a detailed medical records analysis of more than 94,000 patients with cancer by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. Patients who lived farther away from a facility designated a comprehensive cancer center (CCC) by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and who received only a diagnosis or only treatment at the center had higher than average odds of a late-stage diagnosis, ...

Surgery involving sentinel lymph node biopsy for middle-aged women with estrogen receptor-positive (ER+) breast cancer may do more harm than good, according to a new study led by University of Pittsburgh and UPMC Hillman Cancer Center researchers. The team used a novel artificial intelligence pipeline developed by Realyze Intelligence, a UPMC Enterprises portfolio company, to analyze electronic health records. The findings, published today in JCO Clinical Cancer Informatics, suggest that clinical guidelines for de-escalating surgery in women aged over 70 years with early-stage ER+ breast cancer may be safely ...

MINNEAPOLIS – People who eat more ultra-processed foods like soft drinks, chips and cookies may have a higher risk of having memory and thinking problems and having a stroke than those who eat fewer processed foods, according to a new study published in the May 22, 2024, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study does not prove that eating ultra-processed foods causes memory and thinking problems and stroke. It only shows an association. Ultra-processed foods are high in added sugar, fat and salt, and low in protein and fiber. They include soft drinks, salty and sugary snacks, ...

MINNEAPOLIS – What factors lead older adults to stop driving? A new study followed older adults who had no memory or thinking problems to examine this question. The study is published in the May 22, 2024, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. “Alzheimer’s disease develops over a long time—people may have a 10- to 15-year period where they have no symptoms, but the disease process is developing in the brain,” said study author Ganesh M. Babulal, PhD, OTD, of Washington University School of Medicine in St. ...

One of the thorniest decisions facing older adults is when to give up their keys and stop driving. A new study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis could provide guidance in helping seniors plan ahead. The researchers found that impaired cognitive function foreshadows the decision for many seniors to stop driving — more so than age or molecular signs of Alzheimer’s disease. Even very slight cognitive changes are a sign that retirement from driving is imminent. Further, women are more likely to stop driving than ...

May 22, 2024 – Irina Petrache, MD, ATSF, today added president of the American Thoracic Society to her list of accomplishments. The announcement came on the heels of the Plenary Session at the ATS 2024 International Conference. The slate of officers to serve on the Society’s Executive Committee for the 2024-2025 term consists of the following:   Irina Petrache, MD, ATSF, Incoming President Dr. Petrache is professor of medicine at National Jewish Health and at the University of Colorado. She also serves as chief of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, associate ...

Contact: Nina Raffio, raffio@usc.edu or (213) 442-8464 Rising sea levels and urban development are accelerating coastal erosion at an alarming rate in Southern California with significant ripple effects on the region’s economy, a USC study reveals. The study, published in Communications Earth & Environment, predicts that Southern California’s coastal living costs will surge fivefold by 2050 as a direct result of beach erosion. This erosion will require more frequent and costly beach nourishment projects to maintain the state’s treasured shorelines, consequently driving up the cost of living along the coast. “Our ...

World renowned pulmonologists and experts in respiratory medicine from the Mount Sinai Health System in New York City will present new research at the American Thoracic Society (ATS) 2024 International Conference in San Diego from May 17–May 22. Please let me know if you would like to coordinate an interview about their work. Mount Sinai doctors and researchers are also available to comment on breaking news and trending topics. Sessions and Symposiums (All abstracts listed below are under embargo until the scheduled start ...

Thousands of years ago, early hunter-gatherers returned regularly to Tagua Tagua Lake in Chile to hunt ancient elephants and take advantage of other local resources, according to a study published May 22, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Rafael Labarca of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and colleagues. Multiple archaeological sites are known from the region of Tagua Tagua Lake in central Chile, representing some of the earliest known human settlements in the Americas. In this study, Labarca and colleagues report ...

Twitter may be overlooking misinformation "superspreaders" - political pundits, low-credibility media outlets, and influencers who use more toxic language than the typical misinformation spreader ### Article URL:  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0302201 Article Title: Identifying and characterizing superspreaders of low-credibility content on Twitter Author Countries: USA, UK Funding: This work was supported by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Craig Newmark Philanthropies, and the National Science Foundation (grant ACI-1548562). The funders had no role in study design, data ...

Populations of canola plants genetically engineered to be resistant to herbicides can survive outside of farms, but may be gradually losing their engineered genes, reports a new study led by Cynthia Sagers of Arizona State University, US, published May 22 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE. The hypothesis has been put forward that if any genetically engineered crop plants escape farm fields, they will be short-lived. This would make them unlikely to take over wild areas or spread their inserted genes, called transgenes, to wild populations ...

A famous Mycenaean suit of armor was not just ceremonial, but suitable for extended combat, according to a study published May 22, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Andreas Flouris of the University of Thessaly, Greece and colleagues. One of the oldest known suits of European armor is a 3500-year-old suit found near the village of Dendra, a few kilometers away from ancient Mycenae. Since its discovery in 1960, it has been unclear if this was a ceremonial suit or if it was suitable for battle. This question has important implications for understanding ...

Breastmilk can promote equitable child health and save healthcare costs by reducing childhood illnesses and healthcare utilization in the early years, according to a new study published this week in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Tomi Ajetunmobi of the Glasgow Centre for Population Health, Scotland, and colleagues. Breastfeeding has previously been found to promote development and prevent disease among infants. In Scotland – as well as other developed countries – low rates of breastfeeding in more economically deprived areas are thought to contribute to inequalities in early childhood health. However, government policies ...

An interview-based study in San Francisco, CA, highlights individual experiences and local trends around fentanyl smoking, deepening understanding of this growing practice. Daniel Ciccarone of the University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues present their findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on May 22, 2024. Use of illicitly manufactured fentanyl is associated with high risk of addiction, health issues, and exceptionally high overdose risk. Fentanyl significantly contributes to the escalating rate of drug ...