Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
A Hard-To-Detect Breast Cancer Type Is Rising At Triple The Rate Of Others
A fast-rising form of breast cancer that's harder to detect on mammograms now makes up more than one in ten cases in the United States, according to a new report from the American Cancer Society (ACS).聽Invasive lobular carcinoma, the second most common breast cancer type, is increasing about 3% each year, more than triple the rate of other breast cancers, the report, published on Tuesday morning, found. (Parkerson, 10/7)
The rise of GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs prescribed for weight loss and type 2 diabetes could be compromising the interpretation of some cancer scans and throwing doctors off course. This is the discovery of UK-based researchers who found the medications鈥攌nown to alter glucose metabolism, stomach function and the body鈥檚 stress and energy system鈥攎ay lead to 鈥渦nique uptake鈥 patterns of FDG PET-CT scans. (Millington, 10/7)
It鈥檚 not uncommon for breast cancer patients in the rural South to travel hundreds of miles to reach the medical practice run by Dr. Phillip Ley, a cancer surgeon in Jackson, Mississippi. For those who are good candidates, Ley recommends a therapy that delivers a single, targeted radiation dose to a patient鈥檚 breast tissue immediately after surgery to remove a tumor. Known as intraoperative radiation therapy, or IORT, it costs patients less in both time and money than traditional radiation treatments, and it is far less grueling. (Morgenson, 10/7)
The FDA approved nerandomilast (Jascayd) tablets for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), the first new product for the progressive lung condition in over a decade, the agency announced on Tuesday. (Ingram, 10/7)
Cancer researchers with Johns Hopkins All Children鈥檚 Hospital successfully boosted immune response to cancer tissue in a study that could dramatically improve survival and prevent tumor relapse. (Hille, 10/7)
States that expanded Medicaid coverage had significantly better cancer survival among patients in rural and high-poverty areas as compared with non-expansion states, data from U.S. cancer registries showed. Five-year cause-specific survival improved by 2.55 percentage points (ppt) among patients in rural areas of states that expanded Medicaid coverage versus those that did not. (Bankhead, 10/8)
In other health and wellness news 鈥
Heart health (or lack of) in your 20s could have more of a long-term impact than you realize. As well as being generally linked to heart attack and stroke, researchers discovered young adults who failed to maintain good heart health saw their risk of future cardiovascular disease directly increase by 10 times compared to people who stayed healthy. (Millington, 10/7)
Short bursts of purposeful activity 鈥 such as walking around the block or lifting small weights 鈥 may be the best way to get in the habit of exercising. Bite-sized bits of exercise also improve heart and muscle fitness, a study published Tuesday in BMJ Sports Medicine found. Less than half of adults in the United States get enough aerobic activity and less than a quarter get the recommended amount of both aerobic and muscle-strengthening exercise. (Sullivan, 10/7)
On climate change 鈥
Three scientists won the Nobel Prize in chemistry on Wednesday for their development of metal鈥搊rganic frameworks that could eventually help reduce pollution and combat climate change. A member of the Nobel committee likened the discovery to Hermione Granger鈥檚 seemingly bottomless enchanted handbag in the fictional 鈥淗arry Potter鈥 series, in that the frameworks may look small from the outside, but are able to hold surprisingly vast quantities within them. The Nobel Committee said Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson and Omar M. Yaghi were being awarded for 鈥済roundbreaking discoveries,鈥 saying 鈥渟ome of these may contribute to solving some of humankind鈥檚 greatest challenges.鈥 (Manenkov and Dazio, 10/8)
Less than two years ago, a group of the world鈥檚 biggest food companies, including Nestle SA, Danone SA and Kraft Heinz Co., announced a major alliance to cut methane emissions from their hundreds of thousands of dairy suppliers. Last month, however, Nestle鈥檚 logo vanished from the initiative鈥檚 website. Officials at the Swiss food giant confirmed that they鈥檝e withdrawn from the effort, known as the Dairy Methane Action Alliance. (Elgin, Raimonde, and Peng, 10/8)