News & Views: Articles

  Obesity is one of the biggest public health challenges facing the world. Globally, the incidence of obesity has tripled since 1975,[1] and it now affects around 800 million people, with many more at risk. [2] Today is World Obesity Day, a day to raise awareness of the complex causes of obesity, increase knowledge of …

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Overview There are an estimated 300 million people living with a rare disease and there are over 200 rare cancers globally. To raise awareness for those affected by these rare disorders and to support Rare Disease Day – 28 February 2022 – this article focusses on an extremely rare cancer known as pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP). …

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  Porterhouse Medical Group is supporting World Cancer Day and its aim to help ‘Close the Care Gap’ in cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment. Health inequity is a pressing and persistent challenge that affects everyone, with the greatest impact felt among the populations of developing countries, where 70% of cancer deaths occur. Take a look …

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  Overview To support World Cancer Day – 4 February 2022 – the aim of this article is to raise awareness of an extremely rare cancer known as pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP). PMP is a malignant disorder of the abdomen and pelvis characterised by the progressive accumulation of mucinous tumour cells [1]. The annual incidence of …

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  As of 21 January 2022, the world has been living with the COVID-19 pandemic for nearly two years. The introduction of vaccinations beginning in the UK on 8 December 2020 and the use of lateral flow tests (LFTs), polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests and self­-isolation following a positive test result have gone some way …

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  Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women worldwide, despite being largely preventable [1]. Although the aim of vaccination against human papillomaviruses (HPV) is to prevent the disease from occurring, the aim of cervical screening (also known as a smear test) is to detect the disease early. This is because cervical cancer …

Continue reading “Cervical Cancer Prevention Week 2022: Screening saves lives”

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  In January 2020, while the threat of a global COVID-19 pandemic was still in its infancy, 5.7% of UK workers reported working exclusively from home; by April of the same year, this figure had increased to 43.1% [1]. Since 2021, with the world recovering and the workforce returning, companies have been debating whether or …

Continue reading “Hybrid working: Insights and tips for success”

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  After years of looking at tumours and other pathology under the microscope, there came a point when I wondered how else I might be able to apply the specialist skill set of a histopathologist (known affectionately as the ‘pink and purple dot docs’ because of the appearance of human tissue under the microscope after …

Continue reading “Patient centricity in pharma: musings of a doctor turned medical writer”

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  The vulnerabilities of vaccines There is no doubt that the development of vaccines was a pivotal moment in the COVID-19 pandemic and that they have saved hundreds of thousands of lives globally [1]. However, accessibility issues surrounding the vaccines have highlighted huge inequalities between high- and low-income countries [2, 3]. To achieve global herd …

Continue reading “Could oral antivirals be the key to conquering COVID-19?”

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  November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month, an opportunity to shine a spotlight on the cancer that claims more lives than any other in the UK (approximately 35,000) per year [1]; this is more than the combined number of lives lost to bowel and breast cancer. This year for Lung Cancer Awareness Month, the Roy …

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  For the last 2 years, 18–24 November has been marked as World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (previously named World Antibacterial Awareness Week) by the Antimicrobial Resistance Tripartite, which consists of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the World Health Organization (WHO). The theme …

Continue reading “The fight against antimicrobial resistance: Everyone’s responsibility!”

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  Today is World Pancreatic Cancer Day. This campaign, represented by the iconic purple ribbon, aims to raise awareness of the risks and symptoms of pancreatic cancer to promote earlier diagnosis and therefore longer survival rates, in the hopes of helping to prevent millions of deaths globally each year [1]. What is pancreatic cancer? Pancreatic …

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