WHO's TB report: 1.13 million died and 10.6 million fell ill in 2025, as deaths fall faster than new cases

The stories

20 on this beat today.

Every story told the same way: what happened, who is involved, why it matters, how it works, the truth and the good news.

1. 01

   WHO's TB report: 1.13 million died and 10.6 million fell ill in 2025, as deaths fall faster than new cases

   1.13 million

   people killed by TB in 2025

   down from 1.74 million in 2015 [3]

   35% vs 14%

   fall since 2015 in TB deaths, and in the rate of new cases

   the goal for new cases by 2025 was a 50% fall [1]

   $5.6 billion

   spent on TB by the countries themselves in 2025

   up 14%, as donor money fell by about the same [1]

   2.2 million

   people with TB who were never diagnosed or reported

   out of 10.6 million who fell ill [1]

   What happened

   • The World Health Organization's yearly TB report says 10.6 million people fell ill with TB in 2025. [1]
   • TB is a disease caused by bacteria, and it most often attacks the lungs. [4] It spreads through the air when sick people cough or sneeze. [4]
   • It killed 1.13 million people in 2025, down from 1.18 million in 2024. [3]
   • No other single germ kills as many people. [1] It is also a leading killer of people with HIV. [6]
   • TB deaths fell from 2.09 million in 2010 and 1.74 million in 2015 to 1.13 million in 2025. [3]
   • That is 35% fewer deaths than in 2015. [1] It meets WHO's first goal for TB deaths, five years later than planned. [1]
   • New cases fell far more slowly: the rate is down 14% since 2015, against a goal of 50%. [1]
   • The rate is now 129 new cases for every 100,000 people, down from 149 in 2015. [3]
   • Donor money from abroad for TB fell 14% in 2025, from $1.1 billion to $0.94 billion. [3]
   • Countries' own spending on TB rose 14% to $5.6 billion. [1] That made up part of the money lost from donors. [1]
   • WHO's head, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said: "Many governments have dug deeper into their own budgets." [1]
   • TB services got $6.6 billion in 2025, 30% of the $22 billion a year the world agreed for 2027. [3]
   • 30 countries had 88% of the people who fell ill in 2025. [1]
   • India had about a quarter of all cases. [4] Indonesia had 10%, the Philippines 6.8% and China 6.5%. [4]
   • WHO puts India's fall in TB deaths since 2015 at 38%, against 35% worldwide. [4]
   • Since 2015 the case rate fell 42% in Europe and 30% in Africa. [1] In the Americas it rose for a fifth year, to 13% above 2015. [1]
   • Of the 10.6 million who fell ill, 8.4 million were diagnosed. [1] That left 2.2 million people undiagnosed or not reported. [1]
   • Only 59% of newly diagnosed people were checked with a rapid test that WHO recommends. [1]
   • An estimated 370,000 people had TB that resists rifampicin, one of the main TB drugs. [1] Only 42% of them were treated. [1]
   • Use of a shorter six-month treatment for them rose from 18% of those treated in 2024 to 42% in 2025. [1]
   • In 47% of households hit by TB, the costs came to more than a fifth of their income. [3][4]
   • Undernutrition was linked to 960,000 new cases, and diabetes to 920,000. [4]
   • TB research got $1.2 billion in 2023. [1] That is less than a quarter of the $5 billion a year sought by 2027. [1]
   • 3 new TB vaccines are in phase 3, the big final trials before approval. [3]

   Who is involved

   • The World Health Organization (WHO) the UN's health agency; it gathers TB data from 187 countries and published the report
   • Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus WHO's director-general; he praised governments for paying more as aid fell
   • India's Union Health Ministry the Indian government's health department, for the country with about a quarter of all TB cases; it credits AI X-rays and food support for fewer deaths
   • International donors rich countries and funds that pay for TB care abroad; they gave 14% less in 2025

   How it unfolded

   1. 2010 TB kills 2.09 million people [3]
   2. 2015 1.74 million deaths: the year the goals are measured from [3]
   3. 2024 1.18 million deaths [3]
   4. 2025 1.13 million deaths; donor money falls 14% [3]
   5. 12 Nov 2026 WHO publishes the Global Tuberculosis Report 2026 [1]

   Why it matters

   Where donor money is falling, countries with the most TB now carry more of the bill themselves. [1]

   The 2.2 million people never found can keep passing TB to the people around them. [4]

   How it works

   Epidemiologists split deaths into two numbers: how many people fall ill, and what share of them die.

   For many countries, WHO estimates TB deaths from new cases and the share of cases that end in death. [5]

   Treatment worked for 90% of people with ordinary TB, so fewer of the sick die. [3] But new cases fell only 0.7% from 2024 to 2025. [3]

   Seen it before

   A school nurse patches up every child who falls off the climbing frame. Only fixing the frame means fewer falls.

   The truth

   • What is really going on WHO's report shows TB treatment working: deaths fell 35% since 2015, while the rate of new cases fell only 14% and 2.2 million sick people were never found. [1]Donors cut their TB money by 14% in 2025, and the countries with TB paid more of the bill from their own budgets. [3]
   • Why it works on people A goal marked as reached feels like a finish line, though WHO reached it five years late and missed its bigger goal on new cases. [1]
   • WHO warns this year's estimates cannot be compared directly with numbers in its earlier reports. [2] Its estimates for India are under review. [3]
   • Who gains People with drug-resistant TB — More of those treated now get the six-month course instead of longer ones. [1]
   • Who pays Households hit by TB — Lost earnings and travel add to the cost of care, which pushes many past a fifth of their income. [4]
   • Who pays People with TB that resists the main drugs — Most of them did not get treatment in 2025. [1]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How many people in India really get TB each year.

     WHO says its estimates for India, about a quarter of the world's cases, are under review. [3]

   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether countries kept paying more for TB in 2026 as donor money fell.

     The report's money figures stop at 2025, and WHO says 2030 targets remain distant. [3]

   Good news

   • Treatment has saved an estimated 86 million lives since 2000. [1]
   • TB deaths among people living with HIV fell from 405,000 in 2015 to 137,000 in 2025.
   • 99 countries have cut their rate of new TB cases by at least a fifth since 2015, most of them in Africa and Europe.

1. 02

   US cancer group backs routine prostate tests

   What happened

   • The American Cancer Society, a large US cancer group, changed its prostate cancer screening advice on Thursday. [7]
   • It now says men aged 50 to 69 at average risk should have a PSA blood test every 2 years. [7]
   • PSA, prostate-specific antigen, is a blood marker that can be high without any cancer. [7]
   • Black men and men with a strong family history should start at 45 and test every year. [7]
   • Two high readings should now lead to an MRI scan or another test before any biopsy. [7]

   Who is involved

   • Black men yearly tests from 45
   • Men with a family history yearly tests from 45

   How it unfolded

   Its old advice, from 2010, left testing to each man and his doctor. [7] The change follows findings that PSA screening cut prostate cancer deaths for some men. [8]

   1. 2010 testing left to each man
   2. Now tests every 2 years from 50

   Why it matters

   Black men die of prostate cancer far more often than others. [7] The authors hope earlier tests catch more of their cancers before they spread. [7]

   How it works

   Cancer doctors call it overdiagnosis: finding a slow cancer that would never have harmed the man. [7]

   So the advice adds a scan before any biopsy, and stresses watching slow cancers instead of rushing to treat. [7]

   Seen it before

   A smoke alarm that goes off for burnt toast gets a second check before anyone calls the fire brigade.

   Why TB deaths fell faster than TB cases

   Epidemiologists count deaths as new cases times the share who die: a cure shrinks the share, and only stopping the spread shrinks the cases.

   The twist

   Curing the sick lowers deaths quickly. New cases fall only as fast as the spread is stopped, so a disease can kill far fewer people while almost as many still catch it.

   The picture

   Fall in TB deaths since 201535%

   Fall in the new-case rate since 201514%

   Step by step

   1. 1 People fall ill: the number of new cases
   2. 2 Some of them die: the share who die
   3. 3 Deaths are new cases times that share
   4. 4 A cure shrinks the share who die
   5. 5 Only stopping spread shrinks the new cases

   The same force, elsewhere today

   Where this chain is also running, in today's other stories.

   • MSF's Ebola report from Congo

     Two-thirds of the deaths happen at home, away from care, so the share who die stays high wherever treatment never arrives.

   • England's resistant blood infections

     When germs survive the drugs, treatment loses its grip on the share who die, so UKHSA turns to stopping infections in the first place.

   • The meningitis B vaccine campaign

     A vaccine works on the number who fall ill, not on the share who die, and only 28.2% of those offered it have started.

   • The new prostate screening advice

     Earlier tests aim at the share who die, by finding cancers while treatment can still work, and they add to the number of cancers counted.

   Where you've seen this

   Road safety

   seat belts cut the share of crashes that kill, and safer roads cut the number of crashes

   House fires

   sprinklers save people once a fire starts, and wiring checks stop fires starting

   Swimming pools

   lifeguards save swimmers in trouble, and swimming lessons mean fewer get into trouble

   The catch

   The two numbers are linked: a TB patient cured early stops infecting the people at home, so good treatment slowly lowers new cases too.

   And the whole of it

   The 2.2 million people with TB who were never found still live with families and work beside others, and the germ spreads by coughing. A clinic sees the patients who walk in, and no one sees the next case until it starts.

   The truth

   • The US Preventive Services Task Force, whose advice insurers follow, still opposes routine PSA testing. [7] It says an update is coming. [7]
   • Who gains Black men and men with prostate cancer in the family — The new advice starts their yearly tests at 45, which the authors hope finds cancers before they spread. [7]
   • Nobody knows yet

     When US insurers will follow the new prostate screening advice.

     The federal task force whose advice sets what insurers must cover still opposes routine PSA tests, and has given no date for its update. [7]

1. 03

   FDA shelves its fastest review scheme

   What happened

   • The FDA, the US drug regulator, has shelved its fastest review scheme, Reuters reported on Thursday. [9]
   • Launched in June 2025, it aimed to cut reviews to 1 to 2 months for drugs meeting national priorities. [9]
   • No new drug has been given a voucher since Makary left. [9] A council of political appointees that steered these reviews has gone quiet. [9]

   Who is involved

   It was called the Commissioner's National Priority Voucher, and Marty Makary, then head of the FDA, launched it. [9]

   • Marty Makary former FDA head who launched it

   How it unfolded

   Psilocybin treatments from Compass Pathways and Usona got vouchers after an April 2026 order on psychedelic drugs. [14]

   1. June 2025 scheme launched
   2. 2026 psilocybin drugs get vouchers
   3. Nov 2026 scheme shelved

   Why it matters

   The change lands while the FDA's drug review centres have 1,343 fewer staff than in 2024. [15]

   The truth

   • Critics said the scheme could favour companies that met President Trump's demands, such as lower prices. [9]
   • Nobody knows yet

     What happens to drugs that already hold an FDA priority voucher.

     STAT's account, citing Reuters, does not say whether vouchers already handed out will still be honoured. [9]

2. 04

   Blackstone pays for Pfizer's obesity trials

   What happened

   • Blackstone, a big US investment firm, will pay up to $1.5 billion toward testing a Pfizer obesity drug. [11]
   • The drug, berobenatide, is a weight-loss shot meant to be taken once a month. [11]
   • The money pays for up to 10 final-stage trials through 2028. [11]
   • If the drug is approved and meets sales goals, Pfizer makes milestone payments to Blackstone over several years. [11] Pfizer keeps full control of the drug. [12]

   How it unfolded

   Pfizer first bid $4.9 billion for its maker, Metsera. [11] It won Metsera with about $10 billion after a bidding war with Novo Nordisk. [11]

   Why it matters

   Pfizer faces cheaper copies of best sellers like Eliquis and Ibrance. [11] The deal helps its cash over the next two years. [11]

   How it works

   Finance people call this risk sharing: an outside investor pays part of a cost for a share of any win.

   Blackstone pays trial bills now, and gets paid only if berobenatide is approved and sells. [11] Merck and Johnson & Johnson have made similar deals with it. [12]

   Seen it before

   A neighbour buys half your lemonade stand's lemons and takes half the money, but only if you sell any.

   The truth

   • Analysts at BMO Capital Markets called the deal "a modest positive for Pfizer". [12]
   • Who gains Pfizer — Blackstone's money takes part of its trial spending off its books while cheaper copies of its best sellers arrive. [12]
   • Who gains Blackstone Life Sciences — It earns milestone payments over several years if berobenatide is approved and meets sales goals. [11]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How much Pfizer will pay Blackstone if berobenatide succeeds.

     Neither company has disclosed the size of the milestone payments. [12]

3. 05

   Ebola money not reaching Congo's workers

   What happened

   • MSF, the medical charity, says hundreds of millions of dollars for Congo's Ebola response are not reaching the front line. [16]
   • It says health workers go unpaid, lack training and are short of supplies. [16] In some places ambulances ran out of fuel. [16]
   • Congo's health minister said only 22% of aid groups had reported their work to his ministry. [16]
   • More than 5,400 people have died and 11,000 been infected since the outbreak was declared in May. [16]

   How it unfolded

   Africa CDC, Africa's disease control agency, said last month that $700 million of $962 million paid out was unaccounted for. [16]

   Why it matters

   MSF says two-thirds of deaths happen in communities, not in treatment centres. [16]

   How it works

   Epidemiologists call it contact tracing: finding everyone a sick person met, and keeping them apart. [16]

   MSF says Ebola surveillance teams exist on paper but are nowhere to be seen on the ground. [16]

   Seen it before

   A class register full of names tells the teacher nothing if nobody checks who is really in the room.

   The truth

   • Africa CDC's head, Jean Kaseya, said it was too early to call it embezzlement, and blamed failures in financial reporting. [16]
   • Who pays Ebola workers in eastern Congo — MSF says they go unpaid and short of supplies while the money meant for them goes astray. [16]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Where the missing Ebola money in Congo went.

     Africa CDC said $700 million was unaccounted for, and its head said it was too early to call it embezzlement. [16]

4. 06

   England's resistant infections keep rising

   What happened

   • England had 21,129 blood infections that resisted antibiotics in 2025, UK health officials said on Thursday. [17]
   • That is up 16.8% from 18,086 in 2019, or more than 400 a week. [17]
   • A blood infection, or bacteraemia, means bacteria are in the bloodstream, and it can kill. [17]
   • Antibiotic use in England's NHS fell 10.7% over the same years. [17]
   • People in the poorest areas had a 44.2% higher rate than those in the richest. [17] Adults over 45 had 89.3% of the infections. [17]

   Who is involved

   • The poorest areas 44.2% higher rate
   • Adults over 45 89.3% of cases

   Why it matters

   Shona Arora of the UK Health Security Agency said: "We can't rely on reducing antibiotic use alone." [17]

   How it works

   Microbiologists call it antimicrobial resistance: germs that survive the medicines meant to kill them. [17]

   So UKHSA wants fewer infections in the first place, through infection prevention and vaccines, plus new medicines. [17]

   Seen it before

   Turning a tap down does not dry a flooded floor; someone still has to stop the leak.

   When germs survive the drugs, treatment loses its grip on the share who die, so UKHSA turns to stopping infections in the first place.

   The idea, in story 02: Why TB deaths fell faster than TB cases →

   The truth

   • Who pays People in England's poorest areas — They have a higher rate of resistant blood infections, which can be life-threatening. [17]
5. 07

   US agency funds ibogaine tests for PTSD

   What happened

   • ARPA-H, a US health research agency, will spend up to $4.9 million over 5 years testing ibogaine for PTSD. [14]
   • Ibogaine is a naturally occurring psychedelic drug, studied for opioid addiction and depression. [14]
   • PTSD is lasting distress after a terrible event, and the work will focus on military veterans. [14]
   • The US mental health institute also offered $20 million for a network studying fast-acting drugs like ketamine. [14]

   Who is involved

   • Veterans the main group to be studied

   How it unfolded

   Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr discussed ibogaine with the podcaster Joe Rogan. [14] The FDA rejected an MDMA therapy for PTSD in August 2024. [14]

   1. Aug 2024 FDA rejects an MDMA therapy
   2. Now ibogaine funding announced

   Why it matters

   The agency says testing several uses at once raises the odds that one gives a clear answer. [14]

   How it works

   Research funders call this a portfolio: several bets at once, so one failure does not end the search.

   ARPA-H plans later awards for drug addictions as well as PTSD, so one failed trial does not end the work. [14]

   Seen it before

   Planting seeds in three pots means one bad pot does not leave you with no flowers.

   The truth

   • Agency leaders, Kennedy among them, say veterans told them "ibogaine changed their lives". [14]
   • Who gains Researchers studying fast-acting mental health drugs — The US mental health institute offered $20 million for a network to study drugs like ketamine and psilocybin. [14]
6. 08

   Senator investigates Kennedy's Samoa testimony

   What happened

   • Ron Wyden, a US Democratic senator, is investigating whether Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr lied to the US Congress. [25]
   • At his 2025 confirmation hearings, Kennedy said the trip had "nothing to do with vaccines". [25]
   • But a 2019 letter he wrote to Samoa's prime minister used the word vaccine or vaccination 8 times. [25]
   • Wyden asked Children's Health Defense, the anti-vaccine group Kennedy once chaired, for its records. [25]

   Who is involved

   • Ron Wyden Democratic senator
   • Robert Kennedy Jr US health secretary

   How it unfolded

   It is about Kennedy's 2019 trip to Samoa, months before measles killed 83 people there, mostly young children. [25]

   1. Wednesday letter sent
   2. 4 Dec deadline for records

   Why it matters

   Wyden is the incoming chair of the US Senate's powerful finance committee, after Democrats won control of the chamber. [25]

   How it works

   Law scholars call this oversight: the power of a legislature to check the officials it confirms.

   The letter has no legal force, but a refusal could bring subpoenas, which do. [25]

   Seen it before

   A teacher first asks for your phone, and if you refuse, the head teacher can order it.

   The truth

   • The health department has called any claim that Kennedy lied "outright defamatory". [25]

   What comes next

   Children's Health Defense has until 4 December to hand over the records. [25]

7. 09

   FDA drug reviewers 1,343 staff short

   What happened

   • The FDA's two main medicine review centres had 1,343 fewer staff this September than in September 2024. [15]
   • The agency has over 1,000 open jobs, and in June it aimed to fill about 2,200. [15]
   • Nathan Downing, a lawyer who works with the agency, says staff now send emails at 11:30 pm or 12:30 am. [15]
   • Companies told a hearing in the US Congress in July that FDA reviews have grown less predictable. [15]

   How it unfolded

   Staff left last year in layoffs and early retirement offers. [15]

   1. Last year layoffs and early retirements
   2. This September 1,343 fewer staff

   Why it matters

   Smaller drug companies feel delays most, because they have less money to wait. [15]

   The truth

   • Downing says fired staff are wary of coming back, and companies pay more for the same skills. [15]
   • Who pays Small drug companies — Each lost phone call with a stretched FDA means another formal meeting or filing, which costs time and money they lack. [15]
8. 10

   Bristol Myers joins research and testing

   What happened

   • Bristol Myers Squibb, a big US drugmaker, will merge its research and development units on 1 January. [13]
   • Its staff fell from 34,100 at the end of 2023 to 32,500 at the end of 2025. [13]
   • Eli Lilly, Merck and Pfizer already have one leader over both research and development. [13]

   Who is involved

   Cristian Massacesi, its chief medical officer, will run both as head of R&D. [13] Research chief Robert Plenge will leave in March. [10]

   • Cristian Massacesi new head of R&D
   • Robert Plenge research chief, leaving

   How it unfolded

   BMS split the two units after it bought Celgene, another drugmaker, in 2019. [13]

   1. 2019 units split after buying Celgene
   2. 1 January units joined again

   Why it matters

   Chief executive Christopher Boerner says the change should link the lab and the clinic and speed up decisions. [13]

   How it works

   In drugmaking, research finds a possible medicine, and development tests it in people.

   Boerner said "traditional boundaries between research and development are collapsing", and wants one team to decide faster. [13]

   Seen it before

   A relay team loses time at every baton pass, and one runner going the whole way loses none.

   The truth

   • Nobody knows yet

     What Bristol Myers Squibb's merger means for its research staff.

     The company has not said, and its R&D groups employed about 8,000 people in 2023. [13]

9. 11

   Few young people take the MenB jab

   What happened

   • Only 28.2% of UK 18- and 19-year-olds have had a first dose of a meningitis B vaccine offered this year. [18]
   • Meningitis B is a rare but extremely serious illness caused by MenB bacteria. [18]
   • So in June the UK government offered young adults 2 doses in a one-off campaign. [18]

   How it unfolded

   An outbreak in Kent and cases in Dorset and Berkshire killed 3 people earlier this year. [18]

   1. 31 Dec last day for a first dose
   2. 31 Mar 2027 last day for a second dose

   Why it matters

   Students starting university have about 7 times the risk of peers who do not go. [18]

   How it works

   Epidemiologists say a vaccine protects a group only when enough of its members take it in time.

   Dr Eliza Gil says too few doses before the December to March peak would make outbreaks harder to stop. [18]

   Seen it before

   An umbrella shared by three friends keeps only one of them dry.

   Good news

   • Almost 70% of those who had a first dose have already had their second. [18]

   What comes next

   First doses must be given by 31 December, and second doses by 31 March 2027. [18]

10. 12

    Forever chemicals linked to a breast cancer

    What happened

    • A study by the US National Institutes of Health linked two "forever chemicals" to an aggressive kind of breast cancer. [19]
    • Women with the most PFOS in their blood had a 93% higher rate than those with the least. [19] For PFOA the gap was 67%. [19]
    • The cancer is ER-negative: its cells lack the receptors that let the hormone estrogen drive growth. [19]
    • Forever chemicals, or PFAS, break down very slowly and can stay in the body for years. [19]

    How it unfolded

    The team measured 17 PFAS in blood taken years before diagnosis, from a study of 50,884 women. [19]

    Why it matters

    ER-negative cancers have few known causes, so a possible one matters to doctors studying them. [19]

    How it works

    Epidemiologists call these numbers relative risk: one group's rate compared with another group's.

    A 93% higher rate compares two groups; it is not one woman's own chance of getting the cancer. [19]

    Seen it before

    A shop that sells more umbrellas than last week may still sell only a handful.

    The truth

    • The study shows a link, not proof that the chemicals cause the cancer. [19] It found no clear link to breast cancer overall. [19]
    • Nobody knows yet

      Whether forever chemicals cause the aggressive breast cancer, and whether newer ones do too.

      The NIH study shows a link, not a cause, and replacement chemicals were not studied. [19]

11. 13

    A sugar helps ovarian cancer spread in lab tests

    What happened

    • Scientists at the Wistar Institute found ovarian cancer cells that survive chemotherapy give off fructose, a common sugar. [20]
    • In lab models, that sugar helped nearby cancer cells break away and spread. [20]
    • Spread to other parts of the body causes about 90% of ovarian cancer deaths. [20]
    • Fructose lowered cholesterol in nearby cells, which loosened the links holding them together. [20] Statins, cholesterol-lowering pills, did the same in the experiments. [20]

    Why it matters

    Ovarian cancer comes back in most patients after chemotherapy, so what drives its spread matters. [20]

    How it works

    Cancer biologists call the spread of cancer to new places metastasis. [20]

    Cholesterol helps hold cancer cells together, so less of it lets them come apart and travel. [20]

    Seen it before

    A model held with wet glue comes apart at the first knock.

    The truth

    • None of this has been tested in patients, and the researchers say it is no reason to stop taking statins. [20]
    • Nobody knows yet

      Whether fructose or statins change how ovarian cancer spreads in patients.

      The work was done in lab models, and no patient has been tested. [20]

12. 14

    Full DNA maps of two neglected malaria parasites

    What happened

    • Scientists built the most complete DNA maps yet of two neglected malaria parasites, using patients' blood from Mali. [21]
    • Plasmodium falciparum causes most malaria deaths. [21] Plasmodium ovale and Plasmodium malariae also cause long-lasting infections. [21]
    • The Wellcome Sanger Institute and a team in Mali read the DNA straight from 8 patients' blood. [21]
    • One parasite has more than 2,000 genes from a single family, about a quarter of its genome. [21]

    How it unfolded

    These parasites are hard to grow in labs, so their DNA had been poorly mapped. [21]

    Why it matters

    These parasites can linger where the deadliest malaria is falling, so tests must learn to find them. [21]

    How it works

    Geneticists call this a reference genome: a complete map that other samples are checked against. [21]

    The new maps reach the chromosome ends, where gene families shuffle to dodge the immune system. [21]

    Seen it before

    A full map of a town shows the back streets that a partial map leaves out.

13. 15

    92 blood proteins found crossing into the brain

    What happened

    • Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes tracked 861 blood proteins in mice, and 92 crossed into the brain. [22]
    • The blood-brain barrier is the layer of cells that decides what passes from the blood into the brain. [22]
    • Most of the 92 are made mainly in the liver, and some in body fat or the gut. [22]
    • In mice with an Alzheimer's-like disease, the barrier stopped letting in a liver protein called APOA1 early on. [22]
    • Mice made to produce more APOA1 showed fewer signs of the disease. [22]

    Why it matters

    If it holds in people, Alzheimer's might one day be treated from outside the brain. [22]

    How it works

    Neuroscientists see the barrier as selective: its cells pick some proteins out of the blood and block others. [22]

    Here its cells picked proteins like APOA1 from the blood and delivered them to the brain cells that need them. [22]

    Seen it before

    A school receptionist lets parents in and keeps strangers out.

    The truth

    • All of this was in mice. [22] Andrew Yang, one of the authors, said treating it from outside the brain may work "If that's right". [22]
14. 16

    A computer score picks who a lung cancer drug helps

    What happened

    • A computer reading of tumour slides picked out lung cancer patients helped by the drug Dato-DXd. [23]
    • Dato-DXd is an antibody that carries a cancer-killing drug to cells with the protein TROP2 on them. [23]
    • The computer, described in Nature Medicine, compared how much TROP2 sat on each cell's surface with how much sat inside. [23]
    • Patients scoring positive went 7.2 months on Dato-DXd before the cancer grew, against 4.0 months for those scoring negative. [23]

    How it unfolded

    Doctors scoring TROP2 by eye could not tell who would respond. [23]

    Why it matters

    The authors say the score may tell doctors in advance who the drug will help. [23]

    How it works

    Doctors call this a predictive biomarker: a test that says who a treatment will help. [23]

    On the older drug docetaxel, the score made no difference. [23] So it tracks this drug's effect, not just how sick patients were. [23]

    Seen it before

    A metal detector helps only when the thing you are looking for is metal.

    The truth

    • The score was built and checked on patients from two trials of the drug itself, TROPION-PanTumor01 and TROPION-Lung01. [23]
15. 17

    Gut bacteria shape menopause therapy results

    What happened

    • A 6-month study found menopause hormone therapy changes the bacteria in women's gut and vagina. [24]
    • Vaginal bacteria shifted back toward the mix seen in younger women of child-bearing age. [24]
    • The bacteria a woman started with affected how well the therapy eased her symptoms. [24]
    • Combining health details with gut bacteria predicted whose symptoms would ease fast. [24]

    Who is involved

    The study, in women nearing menopause, was published in Nature Medicine on 13 November. [24]

    Why it matters

    The authors call it a blueprint for menopause care matched to each woman. [24]

    How it works

    Microbiologists call the bacteria living in a part of the body its microbiome. [24]

    Some gut bacteria can switch used-up estrogen back on, so bacteria may change how much of a dose works. [24]

    Seen it before

    Two cars filled with the same fuel go different distances if their engines are tuned differently.

    The truth

    • The published summary gives no patient numbers or effect sizes. [24]
16. 18

    UK maternity trainee doctors report most burnout

    What happened

    • Trainee doctors on UK maternity wards report more overwork and lost sleep than trainees in any other field. [26]
    • 70% of maternity trainees were at moderate to high risk of burnout, against 61% across all fields. [26]
    • 1 in 3 said they were regularly short of sleep, against 1 in 5 across all trainees. [26]
    • Almost 1 in 3 felt wary of raising a worry about a patient with a senior colleague. [26]

    Who is involved

    The finding comes from the General Medical Council, which regulates UK doctors, and its survey of almost 52,000 trainees. [26]

    Why it matters

    GMC head Charlie Massey said doctors who cannot speak up could have a "critical impact on patients". [26]

    The truth

    • Adam Kay, a former doctor and author, says "nothing has been done" to improve the culture on the wards. [26]
    • Who pays Trainee doctors on UK maternity wards — They work short of sleep, and many are wary of calling a senior about a patient. [26]
17. 19

    Australia's critical medicine shortages keep coming back

    What happened

    • Australia has had 40 medicines in critical shortage recently, an ABC News analysis of government data found. [27]
    • A critical shortage means a risk of serious harm, with no suitable replacement on the market. [27]
    • 13 of the 40 have been critically short more than once. [27]
    • Bicillin L-A, a long-lasting penicillin used for syphilis and rheumatic heart disease, ran out of emergency supplies in September. [27]
    • Its shortage began in April 2025, and supply is not expected back to normal until March 2027. [27]
    • Australia's only Q fever vaccine, for a serious bacterial disease, was due to run out this week. [27]

    How it unfolded

    Australia imports 90% of its medicines but is only about 2% of the world market. [27]

    1. April 2025 shortage begins
    2. March 2027 supply expected normal

    Why it matters

    Peter Coomber, a supply chain researcher, says that size makes Australia "an unattractive market" for drugmakers. [27]

    How it works

    Supply chain experts call this resilience: how well a supply line keeps running after a shock.

    Most critical shortages start with factory problems, and Australia buys 90% of its medicines from overseas. [27]

    Seen it before

    A shop with one supplier has empty shelves whenever that supplier's van breaks down.

    The truth

    • The TGA, Australia's medicines regulator, says the government cannot force a drug company to keep supplying a medicine. [27]
18. 20

    Alzheimer's before 65 builds brain tau faster

    What happened

    • People who get Alzheimer's before 65 build up a toxic brain protein, tau, faster than older patients. [28]
    • The study, in Science Translational Medicine, compared brain scans of 390 younger and 211 older patients. [28]
    • Tau forms tangles inside nerve cells, one of the two protein deposits that mark Alzheimer's. [28]
    • In repeat scans, tau built up more than twice as fast in the younger patients. [28]
    • It also spread across more of the brain early, which may explain language and planning problems in younger patients. [28]

    How it unfolded

    Younger patients are often diagnosed late, because their symptoms get blamed on depression or burnout. [28]

    Why it matters

    Amyloid-clearing drugs like lecanemab and donanemab seem to help more when tau is low. [28] So younger patients may need treatment sooner. [28]

    How it works

    Researchers call this adjusting for a confounder: removing a second cause that could explain the same result.

    Younger patients were sicker when first scanned, so the team allowed for that, and the faster build-up remained. [28]

    Seen it before

    To compare two runners fairly, you start them from the same line.

    The truth

    • Several authors have financial ties to imaging and drug companies, and the results are group averages, not one patient's path. [28]