Medical marvels

As part of its efforts to inform the public about best practice with antibiotics and the risks involved with their use, the World Health Organisation (WHO) designated one week in November as World Antibiotic Awareness Week.

The start of November marks the beginning of Movember, a month set aside by The Movember Foundation to raise awareness of some of the biggest health issues faced by men: prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental health and suicide.

Movember was established in 2004 to raise awareness of and funds for health issues affecting men globally.

World Polio Day was established on the birthday of the creator of the first polio vaccines, Jonas Salk, to focus on educating and informing the world about polio and the success GPEI had had in eradicating the disease on a global scale.

It’s World Menopause Day, the main day during World Menopause Month which is set aside to focus on raising awareness of menopausal symptoms.

World Mental Health Day is observed on the 10 October every year.

World Menopause Month, which runs throughout October, raises awareness of menopause and associated disorders and diseases.

Hereditary disposition towards the development of Alzheimer’s is a concern for many with family members who have lived with the disease, but the Alzheimer’s Society makes it clear that for the vast majority of those living with Alzheimer’s, age is the most important risk factor, with genetic susceptibility towards the development of hereditary Alzheimer’s being less

The UK Government has added to its list of industry-focused technical notices laying out its preparations for a possible no-deal Brexit.

National Health Service (NHS) England has announced it has come to a deal with Novartis to fund the use of its chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) immunotherapy Kymriah (tisagenlecleucel) for children and young adults under 25 years old with refractory acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL).

Concerns about the possibility of a no-deal Brexit in March 2019, when the UK begins its transitional period to leave the EU, have been expressed repeatedly by the pharmaceutical industry.

In recent months, one of US President Donald Trump’s focuses has been to reduce the price of medication in the US, all the way from the most expensive drugs to the cheapest.

Google, Amazon, and IBM joined forces with Microsoft, Salesforce, and Oracle to pledge to speed up the progress of health data standards and interoperability.

As the demand for new technologies in the medical field continues to grow, so too does the number of ambitious startups looking to fill gaps in the market and provide new solutions to persistent health issues.