Category: Health

In an alert on Tuesday, UN aid coordinators OCHA said that six humanitarian workers have been killed since January – the latest victim was shot during clashes last week near a hospital in Masisi Territory about 80 kilometres west of Goma, in North Kivu. The same clashes reportedly killed three other civilians and injured a […]

The agency is this week celebrating the 20th anniversary of the entry into force of its Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) – one of the most widely embraced UN treaties in history. The Convention provides a legal framework and a comprehensive package of evidence-based tobacco control measures which include large pictorial health warnings […]

The findings, published in Nature Medicine on Monday, warn that if current trends continue, the world will see 3.2 million new breast cancer cases and 1.1 million related deaths each year by mid-century. The burden will be disproportionately felt in low- and middle-income countries, where access to early detection, treatment and care remains limited. “Every […]

India has responded to an alarming public health issue in West Africa by banning the production and export of two potent opioids—tapentadol and carisoprodol—following an investigation by the BBC. The two drugs, which have fueled an addiction crisis in countries like Ghana, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire, have now been deemed illegal for manufacturing and export. […]

It follows a campaign last year that reached hundreds of thousands of young children under the age of 10.  Polio virus was recently detected in wastewater samples in Gaza, indicating that circulation is ongoing, thus putting young lives at risk. The campaign is being led by the Palestinian Ministry of Health and implemented with support […]

“I was married at 14, and I lost my first child at 16 during pregnancy,” Ranu Chakma said. Child marriage is common in her village of Teknaf Upazila, on the southern coast of Bangladesh, even though it is illegal and a human rights violation. Those violations occur even at a time when many countries are banning […]

An Indian pharmaceutical company, Aveo Pharmaceuticals, has been found at the heart of West Africa’s escalating opioid crisis, manufacturing unlicensed, highly addictive drugs and exporting them illegally to countries like Ghana, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire. A BBC Eye investigation uncovered the disturbing role Aveo plays in producing tapentadol, a potent opioid, mixed with carisoprodol, a […]

For two decades, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has been a cornerstone of U.S. foreign aid, delivering life-saving HIV treatment and prevention to millions in low-income countries. Its bipartisan success story stands as one of the most impactful U.S. foreign assistance programs in history. However, as funding and operations face uncertainty, a […]

WHO said in a news release that more than 591,000 children under 10 years old will receive the vaccine to protect them from the highly infectious disease, beginning this weekend for an anticipated period of five days. The campaign follows the recent detection of poliovirus in wastewater samples in the shattered enclave which signal that […]

A new study has uncovered both promising and concerning findings about blockbuster weight-loss drugs such as Wegovy, Ozempic, and Zepbound, revealing that they do more than help with weight loss. These medications, which belong to the GLP-1 receptor agonist class, have been linked to a reduced risk of conditions like addiction, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer’s disease, […]