The US loses its measles-free status after 26 years, the Wall Street Journal reports

The stories

23 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

   The US loses its measles-free status after 26 years, the Wall Street Journal reports

   5,182

   confirmed US measles cases in 2026, counted by 12 November

   more than double 2025's total of 2,289 [2]

   92.4%

   of US kindergartners vaccinated against measles in 2026

   down from 95.2% in 2020 [3]

   26 years

   that the US counted as measles-free, since 2000

   Canada lost the same status last year [3]

   13

   people dead of measles in the US since 2025

   out of about 7,500 infected [1]

   What happened

   • The US has lost its measles-free status after 26 years, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday. [1]
   • The reported decision came from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the World Health Organization's branch for the Americas. [1]
   • It acted because measles had spread inside the US without a break for more than a year, the report said. [1]
   • About 7,500 people in the US have caught measles since 2025, and 13 have died. [1]
   • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the US public health agency, has counted 5,182 cases in 2026. [3]
   • That is up from 2,289 in all of 2025 and 285 in 2024. [3]
   • Cases have turned up in 45 states, as well as New York City and Washington DC. [1]
   • It is the most measles the US has seen in more than 30 years. [1]
   • PAHO's measles commission, a panel of international experts, met from 10 to 13 November to review the Americas. [3]
   • It checked whether one strain of measles had circulated for 12 months or longer. [1]
   • That shows measles spreading inside the US, rather than cases brought in from other countries. [1]
   • A source told Reuters the CDC had found 12 months of unbroken spread. [2]
   • In 2026, 92.4% of US kindergartners had their measles shots, down from 95.2% in 2020. [3]
   • A country stops measles spreading when 95% of people are vaccinated, which experts call herd immunity. [1]
   • In 18 states fewer than 90% of children have the shot, and in Idaho only 75.2% do. [3]
   • Two doses of the vaccine give 97% protection against the virus. [1]
   • Measles can cause blindness, deafness, brain damage or death. [1]
   • The rise in cases came as vaccination fell and doubt about vaccines grew under Kennedy. [1]

   Measles cases

   2024285

   20252,289

   2026 so far5,182

   Who is involved

   Noel Brewer, who chairs an independent advisory panel on measles, presented the CDC's report to PAHO on Tuesday. [2]

   Robert Kennedy Jr, the US health secretary, has for years spread doubts about measles vaccines without scientific evidence. [1]

   Michael Osterholm, who runs a University of Minnesota disease centre, said losing the status only recognises a months-old fact. [3]

   • Noel Brewer chairs a measles advisory panel; gave PAHO the report
   • Robert Kennedy Jr the US health secretary; he has long cast doubt on vaccine safety without evidence
   • Michael Osterholm director of a University of Minnesota infectious disease centre; he says pockets of low cover drive the outbreaks
   • Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) the World Health Organization's office for the Americas; it reviews whether each country is measles-free
   • CDC the US public health agency; it counted the cases and found 12 months of spread

   How it unfolded

   1. 10 Nov the panel meets
   2. 13 Nov the loss is reported
   3. 2000 the US is declared measles-free [1]
   4. 2024 285 measles cases [3]
   5. 2025 2,289 cases; Canada loses its status [3]
   6. 10-13 Nov PAHO's measles commission meets [3]
   7. 13 Nov the Wall Street Journal reports the US status is revoked [1]

   Why it matters

   To win the status back, the US must end the spread and stay outbreak-free for at least 12 months. [2]

   Canada lost its status last year, and its outbreak was declared over last month. [3]

   CDC director Erica Schwartz said before the decision that the agency would keep helping states encourage vaccination. [2]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Does losing the status change anything in law?

      No: losing it carries no formal penalty, but experts call it a blow to US public health. [3]

      Formal penaltynone

      vsvs

      Standing in public healthdamaged
   2. 2

      So who is catching measles now?

      Of this year's cases, 96% were in people unvaccinated or of unknown status. [3] More than 40% were aged 20 or older. [3]

      96 of 100

      cases unvaccinated or status unknown

   3. 3

      If the national rate is 92%, why so many outbreaks?

      Cover is uneven: some Minnesota school districts are at 40%, Osterholm said. [3] Some US counties are below 60%. [3]

      123

      0% vaccinated50% vaccinated100% vaccinated

      1. 1herd immunity95% vaccinated
      2. 2some counties60% vaccinated
      3. 3some districts40% vaccinated
   4. 4

      Who else relies on those shots?

      Herd immunity also protects people who are unable to get the vaccine. [1]

      95% vaccinated→Measles cannot spread→People who cannot be vaccinated stay safe
   5. 5

      How bad could it get?

      Canada lost its status after more than 5,000 cases among 40 million people. [3] At that rate the US, with 350 million, would see over 50,000 a year, Osterholm said. [3]

      Canada's outbreak5,000 cases

      US at Canada's rate50,000 cases
   6. 6

      Did US officials see it coming?

      Yes: in January, then-CDC official Ralph Abraham called losing the status "the cost of doing business". [4]

   7. 7

      Is this only about Kennedy?

      Abdul El-Sayed, an epidemiologist just elected to the US Senate, blames Kennedy. [5] He also blames scientists and health care for leaving room for him. [5]

   8. 8

      So what is really going on?

      Measles needs 95% cover everywhere, so pockets far below it keep outbreaks going. [3] The status comes back only after 12 months with no spread. [2]

      Pockets below 95%→Measles keeps spreading→No status for 12 months

   How it works

   Epidemiologists separate elimination, no unbroken spread inside one country, from eradication, a disease gone from the whole world.

   The US was declared measles-free in 2000 because the disease did not spread inside it for a whole year. [3] Single cases could still arrive and be stopped. [3]

   Seen it before

   A school stays lice-free if one child brings lice in, as long as they never spread from class to class.

   The truth

   • What is really going on The US has lost the measles-free status it held since 2000, the Wall Street Journal reported, after one strain of measles spread inside the country for more than a year. [1]The share of kindergartners with the measles shot fell to 92.4% in 2026, below the 95% that stops spread. [3]
   • Why it works on people A national figure of 92% sounds close to safe, while some school districts sit at 40%. [3]
   • The report rests on people familiar with the decision, and PAHO did not immediately answer Reuters' request for comment. [1]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How many people measles has killed in the US this year.

     The CDC counts 4 deaths, while local health departments report 8. [3]

   Good news

   • Canada's measles outbreak was declared over last month, a year after the country lost its measles-free status.

1. 02

   China fires leaders of a fatal gene trial

   What happened

   • Chinese authorities fired 2 researchers after a child died in an experimental gene-editing study. [6]
   • An investigation found safety and ethical flaws in the study. [6]
   • The 2 had led the study at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine. [6]
   • They are also barred from government science and technology projects for 5 years. [6]
   • State television CCTV reported the penalties on Friday, citing a Shanghai investigative task force. [6]

   Who is involved

   • Shanghai task force investigated the study
   • CCTV state television; reported it

   Why it matters

   The investigators found flaws in a study that led to a child's death, so the blame fell on its leaders. [6]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Who else was punished?

      Several others were removed from their posts, demoted or given warnings. [6]

      Removed from postssome

      ++

      Demotedsome

      ++

      Warnedsome
   2. 2

      What does the ban mean for the 2 leaders?

      They cannot take part in government science and technology projects for 5 years. [6]

   How it works

   Medical ethicists call it the duty to protect trial volunteers: their safety comes before the science.

   Here investigators found the study broke safety and ethical rules, and a child died. [6]

   Seen it before

   A swimming coach who skips the safety checks is sacked after a swimmer is hurt, whatever the medals.

   The truth

   • Nobody knows yet

     What disease China's fatal gene-editing study treated, and how the child died.

     The report of the firings gives neither. [6]

2. 03

   First drug approved for a rare kidney disease

   What happened

   • The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the drug regulator, approved Gazyva for adults with primary membranous nephropathy. [7]
   • It is the first drug approved for this rare kidney disease. [7]
   • In the disease, the immune system attacks the kidney's tiny filters, so protein leaks into the urine. [7]
   • Patients can get swelling, high blood pressure and kidney failure. [7]
   • In a trial of 142 adults, 36% on Gazyva had full remission at 104 weeks, against 6% on tacrolimus. [7]
   • Tacrolimus is another drug that doctors sometimes use for this disease without approval for it. [7]

   % in full remission

   Gazyva36

   Tacrolimus6

   Why it matters

   People with this disease had no drug approved for it until now. [7]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Is the new drug risk-free?

      No: its label carries a boxed warning about hepatitis B returning and a rare brain infection. [7]

   2. 2

      How firm is the trial result?

      The trial was open-label, so patients and doctors knew who got which drug. [7]

      Patientsknew their drug

      ++

      Doctorsknew too

   How it works

   Pharmacologists call using an approved drug against a new disease repurposing.

   Gazyva was already approved for some cancers, lupus kidney disease and a childhood kidney disease. [7]

   Seen it before

   A screwdriver bought for one shelf ends up fixing the door and the bike too.

   Good news

   • Adults with membranous nephropathy, a rare kidney disease, have a drug approved for it for the first time.
3. 04

   A new treatment around bladder cancer surgery

   What happened

   • On 13 November the FDA approved AstraZeneca's Imfinzi with a second drug for bladder cancer grown into the muscle. [8]
   • It is for patients who cannot take, or refuse, cisplatin chemotherapy. [8]
   • They get both drugs before surgery to remove the bladder, and Imfinzi alone after it. [8]
   • The trial randomly split 695 patients into 3 groups. [8]
   • Those given the drugs went longer without the cancer returning, and lived longer, than those who had surgery alone. [8]
   • With surgery alone, half the patients had a setback such as a relapse within 12.1 months. [8]

   Who is involved

   • Patients who cannot or will not take cisplatin

   Why it matters

   It gives patients who cannot take cisplatin a drug treatment to have before and after surgery. [8]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      How much did it cut the risk?

      The risk of a setback fell by about half, a hazard ratio of 0.51. [8]

      0.51risk of a setback, against surgery alone

   2. 2

      What does it cost the body?

      Common side effects included rash, tiredness, nerve damage and hair loss. [8]

   How it works

   Cancer doctors call drugs given before surgery neoadjuvant treatment, and drugs given after it adjuvant.

   Here both drugs come first for 3 cycles, surgery removes the bladder, then Imfinzi follows for up to 9 cycles. [8]

   Seen it before

   A painter primes a wall before painting, then adds a top coat after.

   Good news

   • Bladder cancer patients who cannot take cisplatin lived longer when two drugs were added around surgery, and the US approved the treatment on 13 November.
4. 05

   A daily pill for a rare joint tumour

   What happened

   • On 10 November the FDA approved pimicotinib, a daily pill from EMD Serono, for tenosynovial giant cell tumour. [9]
   • It is for adults whose joint tumour cannot be cut out without causing worse harm. [9]
   • In the trial, 56% of patients on the pill saw their tumours shrink, against 3.2% on a dummy pill. [9]
   • Of those whose tumours shrank, 77% still had the benefit after 12 months. [9]
   • Patients also moved the joint more and had less pain. [9]
   • The FDA reviewed it alongside Australia's drug regulator under Project Orbis, which lets countries review cancer drugs together. [9]

   Why it matters

   Patients for whom surgery would harm the joint now have an approved pill. [9]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      How do we know the pill did it?

      The trial was double-blind: neither patients nor doctors knew who got the real pill. [9]

   2. 2

      What are the side effects?

      The most common were itching, rash, a swollen face and tiredness. [9]

      Itchingcommon

      ++

      Rashcommon

      ++

      Tirednesscommon

   How it works

   Pharmacologists call it a kinase inhibitor: it blocks an enzyme that passes on signals for cells to grow.

   Pimicotinib is a kinase inhibitor, and in the trial tumours shrank in 56% of patients taking it. [9]

   Seen it before

   Turn off the tap, and the sink stops filling.

5. 06

   China approves Lilly's weight-loss pill

   What happened

   • China's drug regulator approved Eli Lilly's weight-loss pill orforglipron on Thursday. [10]
   • It is the first pill of its kind for obesity in China. [10] Similar drugs such as Ozempic are weekly injections. [11]
   • It is sold as Foundayo, for adults with obesity or overweight. [10]
   • In the US, Lilly's injection Mounjaro costs about $500 a month. [11] In Pakistan imported Mounjaro costs $723, and a local copy $61. [11]
   • Pills need no fridge, which makes them easier to send to rural areas. [11]

   Why it matters

   Global drugmakers want a share of China's huge weight-loss market. [10]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Why would a pill help poorer countries more?

      In parts of the Global South, a locally made semaglutide pill costs about $18 for 30 days. [11]

      $18for 30 days of a local pill copy

   2. 2

      How many people could these drugs reach?

      One in 9 adults worldwide lives with diabetes. [11] One in 8 people worldwide is obese. [11]

      1 of 9

      adults living with diabetes

   How it works

   Pharmacologists call a drug's form, such as a pill or an injection, its formulation.

   Orforglipron is swallowed once a day. [10] The older drugs of its kind are injected once a week. [11]

   Seen it before

   A juice box needs no fridge, so it can go anywhere a carton of fresh milk cannot.

6. 07

   Novo seeks approval for a sickle cell drug

   What happened

   • Novo Nordisk, the Danish drugmaker, filed on Friday for US and European approval of etavopivat, a sickle cell disease drug. [12]
   • In testing it cut the bouts of pain the disease causes by 27% over a year. [12]
   • Novo got the drug through a $1 billion purchase of Forma Therapeutics in 2022. [12]
   • The deal was part of a plan to bet more heavily on rare diseases. [12]
   • The drug is also in mid-stage testing for thalassemia, another blood condition. [12]
   • Novo says it wants etavopivat to become a new standard of care. [12]

   Why it matters

   If approved, people with sickle cell disease would get another drug against its bouts of pain. [12]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Why pay $1 billion for one company?

      Novo was betting on rare diseases, and calls this drug a future blockbuster, a top seller. [12]

      Paid in 2022$1 billion

      ↓→

      Hoped fora blockbuster
   2. 2

      What happens next?

      The filings now go to regulators in the US and Europe. [12]

   How it works

   Drug companies call the medicines they are still developing their pipeline.

   Novo bought Forma to fill its pipeline with rare disease drugs, and etavopivat is now ready for review. [12]

   Seen it before

   A team that cannot grow its own players buys a promising one from a smaller club.

7. 08

   Gates and Flagship put $25 million into poorer countries' health

   What happened

   • The Gates Foundation and Flagship Pioneering, a firm that creates biotech companies, committed $25 million to a joint effort. [12]
   • It runs over 5 years and aims at health and farming for people in low- and middle-income countries. [12]
   • A new Flagship arm will search its startups for ideas in women's health, farming and global health. [12]
   • The Gates Foundation has already invested in 3 Flagship companies. [12]

   Why it matters

   The partners say it creates a broader and more systematic way to find such projects. [12]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Is $25 million a lot here?

      It is spread over 5 years. [12] One brain-drug startup, Neurosterix, raised $105 million in a single round this week. [12]

      Gates and Flagship, 5 years$25 million

      Neurosterix, one round$105 million
   2. 2

      Who picks the projects?

      The new Flagship arm sifts its own startups and picks which may deserve more money. [12]

   How it works

   Economists call a product people need but cannot pay for a market failure: no seller profits from making it.

   Here the partners' $25 million pays to hunt for women's health and farming projects for poorer countries. [12]

8. 09

   Brain-drug startups raise $450 million

   What happened

   • In the last few weeks, 5 brain-focused drug startups raised about $450 million together. [24]
   • Neurosterix, spun out of Addex Therapeutics, raised $105 million to test a schizophrenia drug. [12]
   • Its drug targets the M4 receptor, a brain protein that Bristol Myers Squibb's approved drug Cobenfy also targets. [12]
   • Brain startups took in $1.09 billion in 2023, $1.58 billion in 2024 and $1.9 billion in 2025. [24]
   • This year's total so far is $664 million. [24]

   Why it matters

   Brain drugs are one of the riskiest areas of research, yet they are drawing investors again. [24]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Is this a boom?

      Not yet: this year's $664 million is about a third of 2025's $1.9 billion. [24]

      $1.9 billion2025

      vsvs

      $664 millionThis year so far
   2. 2

      Who is putting money in?

      Funds run by drugmakers such as Novo Holdings, Eli Lilly and Sanofi Ventures are among this year's busiest startup investors. [12]

   How it works

   Investors call money for young firms venture capital: they buy a share and hope one win pays for many misses.

   London's Oyster Therapeutics raised $60 million from 9 investors, Eli Lilly among them, so each carries part of the risk. [24]

   Seen it before

   Friends who each chip in for one raffle ticket share the cost, and share any prize.

9. 10

   RSV jabs empty Danish baby wards

   What happened

   • Denmark began vaccinating pregnant women against RSV on 1 October 2025. [13]
   • RSV is a breathing virus that is usually mild, but can be deadly for babies and older adults. [13]
   • The mother's antibodies cross the placenta and protect the baby for about its first 6 months. [13]
   • High-risk newborns whose mothers were not vaccinated got antibody injections instead. [13]
   • Last winter, hospital admissions of Danish babies with RSV plummeted, a study found. [13]
   • 72% of eligible mothers took the vaccine. [13]

   Why it matters

   Each year RSV puts about 3.6 million children under 5 in hospital and kills about 100,000, the WHO estimates. [13]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Where do most of those children die?

      97% of the deaths are in low- and middle-income countries. [13]

      97 of 100

      RSV child deaths in poorer countries

   2. 2

      Is it only a danger to babies?

      In the US, RSV killed between about 10,000 and 25,000 people in each of the past two winters. [13]

      US deaths a winter

      Low estimate10,000

      High estimate25,000

   How it works

   Immunologists call protection passed from mother to baby passive immunity: borrowed antibodies, not the baby's own.

   The Danish mothers' shots made antibodies that crossed the placenta and covered babies in their first months. [13]

   Seen it before

   A borrowed umbrella keeps you dry until you have your own.

   Good news

   • Since 2022, when Europe approved the first long-acting RSV antibody, a second antibody and 3 vaccines have been developed. [13]
   • Hospital admissions of Danish babies with RSV plummeted last winter, after the country began vaccinating pregnant women in October 2025.
10. 11

    Brain implant maker Synchron pauses trials

    What happened

    • Synchron, a brain implant company based in Brooklyn, has paused trials of its second-generation device. [14]
    • Its first device runs a thin tube through the veins to place a stent near the brain's movement area. [14]
    • The new one was a wireless version, meant to let users control digital devices with their brain activity. [14]
    • Implants like it aim to help people with ALS or paralysis live more independently. [14]
    • Company leaders said the pause is not about safety. [14]
    • Synchron will also cut jobs in New York City and work on a new device, WIRED reported. [14]

    Who is involved

    • People with ALS or paralysis the users it is built for

    Why it matters

    It is the first major setback for one of the leading firms in a fast-growing field. [14]

    Think it through

    1. 1

       If not safety, then what?

       Chief executive Tom Oxley said last week that one delayed part slowed its filing to the FDA. [14] His system has hundreds of parts, he said. [14]

       Hundreds of parts→One part delayed→FDA filing slowed
    2. 2

       Who is it racing?

       Oxley spoke on a panel beside rivals from Neuralink and Precision Neuroscience. [14]

    How it works

    Engineers call the chain of tasks that sets a project's finish date the critical path.

    Oxley said one late component held up Synchron's whole filing to the FDA. [14]

    Seen it before

    A cake cannot go in the oven until the last egg arrives.

    The truth

    • Nobody knows yet

      Why Synchron really paused its implant trials.

      Its leaders said only that the pause is not about safety, and its chief executive spoke of one delayed part. [14]

1. 12

   Brain implant volunteers write their own rules

   What happened

   • People who have lived with brain implants in trials published guidelines for researchers on Tuesday. [15]
   • They come from the BCI Pioneers Coalition, co-founded in 2022 by Ian Burkhart. [15]
   • Burkhart, paralysed in a diving accident, had 96 electrodes in his brain for 7.5 years. [15]
   • The guidelines cover 13 areas, including pay and credit for volunteers. [15]
   • They say brain data belongs to the volunteer, who should be able to see it at any time. [15]
   • They also ask researchers to keep devices working for a reasonable time after a trial ends. [15]

   Who is involved

   • Ian Burkhart co-founded the coalition; had an implant

   Why it matters

   Some volunteers have lost implants when funding ran out or a company failed. [15]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Why would anyone lose an implant that works?

      Rita Leggett's epilepsy implant was removed against her will when its maker went bust. [15]

      Company goes bust→Implant removed→Patient loses it
   2. 2

      What do volunteers give?

      Burkhart said his lab visits, 2 or 3 days a week for 4 hours, were a part-time job. [15]

      2 or 3Days a week

      ++

      4Hours a visit
   3. 3

      Do researchers have to follow the rules?

      No: they are version one, some are vague, and they came from a small group. [15]

   How it works

   Research ethicists call it respect for autonomy: the volunteer decides what happens to their body and data.

   The guidelines apply it by giving volunteers their own brain data, free of secrecy contracts. [15]

   Seen it before

   Lend your bike to a friend's project, and you still expect to ride it afterwards.

   Why one family skipping a vaccine leans on everyone else's shots

   Health economists call it the free-rider problem: when a shot protects everyone nearby, a family can skip it and still be covered, until too many do.

   The twist

   A vaccine protects the people around a child, not only the child. So a family that skips still gets cover from vaccinated neighbours, until so many skip that measles gets through.

   The picture

   % vaccinated

   Needed to stop spread95

   Kindergartners, 202095.2

   Kindergartners, 202692.4

   Step by step

   1. 1 A measles shot protects the child and the people around them
   2. 2 Once about 95% are protected, measles can hardly spread
   3. 3 So a family that skips still gets cover from everyone else
   4. 4 As more families skip, cover slips below 95%
   5. 5 Measles finds the gaps and spreads again

   The same force, elsewhere today

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

   • Brain implant volunteers' guidelines

     Volunteers give years and brain surgery to trials whose results help every later patient, so their guidelines ask for pay and credit rather than leaving the benefit free to all.

   • The medetomidine guidance

     Hospitals in hard-hit places learned the withdrawal signs at their own cost, and the national guidance passes that lesson free to places that cannot afford their own drug checking.

   Where you've seen this

   Street lights

   everyone on the street gets the light, whether or not they paid for it

   School group projects

   one pupil can coast while the others do the work, and still get the mark

   A shared kitchen

   each flatmate gains by leaving the washing-up for someone else

   The catch

   Free-riding explains only part of it: many families skip because they doubt the vaccine, not to gain from other people's shots.

   And the whole of it

   Each family deciding about a measles shot is also deciding for people who cannot have one. From inside any one home the 95% line cannot be seen, and it shows only when measles arrives.

1. 13

   Unproven IVF method sold to older women

   What happened

   • A STAT investigation found an industry selling mitochondrial replacement, a lab method, to older women abroad. [16]
   • The method makes embryos from a mother, a father and a little DNA from a third person's mitochondria. [16]
   • It is illegal in the US, and the UK allows it at one centre, only to avoid inherited disease. [16]
   • International Fertility Group, a US company, marketed it to women over 35 who had struggled with IVF. [16]
   • Its clients' average age was 45.6 last year, up from 39.2 in 2022. [16]
   • No peer-reviewed study in humans shows it helps older women. [16]
   • At Kyiv's Nadiya Clinic, only 1 of 19 women aged 36 to 44 gave birth after it. [16]

   Why it matters

   One British couple paid tens of thousands of dollars for a procedure the evidence does not support for older women. [16]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Does it work for anyone?

      For 10 infertile women under 35 at the same clinic, it led to 9 births. [16]

      9 of 10Under 35

      vsvs

      1 of 19Aged 36 to 44
   2. 2

      What did the company do when STAT asked?

      It removed the adverts and paused its programme, saying it never promised a birth. [16]

   3. 3

      Who watches the children born this way?

      Bioethicists worry that nobody will track their health later in life. [16]

   How it works

   Evidence-based medicine ranks proof: trials in people at the top, a single study in mice near the bottom.

   For older women, the best evidence for this method is a single lab study in mice, STAT found. [16]

   Seen it before

   A shop selling a cure because it once worked on a hamster.

   The truth

   • The company's figure of births in 40% or more of 66 patients came from a conference abstract. [16] Scientists said it lacked key details. [16]
2. 14

   Watchdog asks for a probe of a US health official

   What happened

   • The Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan ethics watchdog, asked the US health department's inspector general to investigate Alicia Jackson. [17]
   • Jackson heads ARPA-H, a US health research agency with a $1.5 billion budget. [17]
   • She backed dropping the most serious safety warning from menopause hormone drugs while owning shares in a hormone company. [17]
   • She owned at least $115,000 in Evernow, a company she founded that links women to hormone treatments. [17]
   • Jackson was recently put on leave, with no reason given. [17]

   Who is involved

   • Alicia Jackson head of ARPA-H; now on leave

   Why it matters

   Federal law bars US officials from taking part in matters that touch their own money. [17]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Did she make the decision?

      Unclear: the FDA regulates drugs, and an FDA panel urged dropping the warning before she arrived. [17]

   2. 2

      What else does the watchdog ask?

      Whether she properly reported up to $400 million in assets held by her husband's firm. [17]

      $400 millionassets of her husband's firm in question

   How it works

   Ethics lawyers call it a conflict of interest: a public duty pulling against a private gain.

   Jackson spoke for a policy that could help a company in which she owned shares. [17]

   Seen it before

   A referee who has bet on one team should not run the match.

   The truth

   • Neither Jackson nor the US health department will say if she had a waiver letting her take part. [17]
3. 15

   First guide for a brutal sedative withdrawal

   What happened

   • The American Society of Addiction Medicine issued the first national guidance on medetomidine this week. [18]
   • Medetomidine is a powerful sedative now mixed into illegal opioids in the US. [18]
   • Doctors first saw it in Philadelphia's drug supply in spring 2024. [18]
   • By the end of 2025 it had been found in at least 18 states. [18]
   • Coming off it can need a stay in intensive care, unlike other illegal drugs. [18]
   • It replaced xylazine, an earlier additive that left users with terrible wounds. [18]

   Why it matters

   Its symptoms can look like sepsis, so doctors need to know if it is in the local drug supply. [18]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Why 'considerations' and not rules?

      Larger studies to test what doctors are seeing have not been done yet. [18]

   2. 2

      What happens after withdrawal?

      Some patients later crave the sedative and mistake it for an opioid craving. [18]

      Withdrawal ends→Craving returns→Mistaken for opioids

   How it works

   Pharmacologists call it withdrawal: the body adapts to a drug, and swings the other way when the drug stops.

   Patients who stop medetomidine can quickly develop very high blood pressure and a fast heart rate. [18]

   Seen it before

   A spring held down for weeks jumps hard when you let go.

   Hospitals in hard-hit places learned the withdrawal signs at their own cost, and the national guidance passes that lesson free to places that cannot afford their own drug checking.

   The idea, in story 12: Why one family skipping a vaccine leans on everyone else's shots →
4. 16

   Ozempic in early pregnancy: diabetes, not the drug?

   What happened

   • A Danish study of 756,636 pregnancies looked at women who took Ozempic-type drugs around conception. [19]
   • 529 pregnancies had a prescription filled in the 8 weeks before or after the last period. [19]
   • Women on the drugs for diabetes were more likely to give birth early. [19]
   • Women on the same drugs for weight loss showed no such link. [19]
   • For semaglutide, the drug in Ozempic, the odds of an early birth were 84% higher for women with diabetes. [19]
   • It was published in the journal Human Reproduction Open. [19]

   Why it matters

   About 70% of weight-loss drug users in Denmark are women, so some will take it before knowing they are pregnant. [19]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      So is the drug safe in pregnancy?

      That is not shown: the study cannot prove cause, and safety in pregnancy is not established. [19]

   2. 2

      Then why the early births?

      The researchers think diabetes itself, not the drug, may raise the risk. [19]

      Diabetes→Higher risk of early birth→Drug blamed

   How it works

   Epidemiologists call this confounding by indication: the illness a drug treats can cause the harm blamed on the drug.

   Here diabetes, the reason for the prescription, may explain the early births, since weight-loss users showed no rise. [19]

   Seen it before

   Umbrellas do not cause rain, though you see the most of them on wet days.

   The truth

   • The study counted prescriptions filled, not doses actually taken. [19]
5. 17

   A trial of stopping statins after 70

   What happened

   • A trial of 1,880 adults aged 70 and older tested stopping statins, the cholesterol-lowering pills. [20]
   • None had had a heart attack or stroke, and each had at least 2 long-term illnesses. [20]
   • 938 were told to stop and 942 to keep taking them, at 24 centres in Switzerland, France and the Netherlands. [20]
   • After about 2 years, stopping did not raise heart attacks, strokes or deaths by a significant amount. [20]
   • Over up to 4 years, 12.7% of those who stopped had one, against 9.2% of those who kept going. [20]
   • It was presented at the American Heart Association meeting and is preliminary. [20]

   Why it matters

   About 1 in 4 American adults has high bad cholesterol. [20] Statins are widely given to prevent a first heart event. [20]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Did stopping make life better?

      No: muscle pain, falls and quality of life were about the same in both groups. [20]

   2. 2

      What did the lead researcher conclude?

      Rita Redberg said the small extra risk rules out a general recommendation to stop. [20]

   3. 3

      How clean was the test?

      About 14% of people switched groups, though extra analyses did not change the result. [20]

      14 of 100

      people who switched groups

   How it works

   Clinical researchers test stopping a drug the same way they test starting one: two groups, picked at random.

   Here doctors stopped statins in half the group on purpose and compared heart events with the other half. [20]

   Seen it before

   To know if a night-light helps a child sleep, leave it off some nights and compare.

   The truth

   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether stopping statins after 70 is safe over many years.

     The trial's results were presented at a meeting and are labelled preliminary. [20]

6. 18

   How a hospital superbug spread in Denmark

   What happened

   • Researchers in Portugal traced how one drug-resistant gut bacterium spread through Danish hospitals from 2012 to 2020. [21]
   • The bug, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium, is on the WHO's list of highest-priority bacteria. [21]
   • They read the full genes of 334 samples from 9 hospitals. [21]
   • One branch of the bug made up 72% of samples from 2012 to 2015, then it split into many. [21]
   • It carried a piece of DNA that made it resist several antibiotics at once. [21]

   Why it matters

   Using any one of those antibiotics can favour bugs carrying the whole set, the lab's leader Maria Miragaia said. [21]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      So would using less vancomycin fix it?

      Not alone: if the linked antibiotics are still used, the resistant bugs can still win, Miragaia said. [21]

      Less vancomycinnot enough

      vsvs

      Linked antibioticsstill favour it
   2. 2

      What could work instead?

      Targeting how it hangs on in the gut, such as by forming slimy films, could help clear it. [21]

   How it works

   Microbiologists call it co-selection: resistance genes travel together, so one drug can favour all of them.

   Here one DNA piece carried vancomycin resistance with others, so any of those drugs kept the bug alive. [21]

   Seen it before

   Sign up for one app in a bundle, and you get all the others too.

7. 19

   A cell map of early breast cancer

   What happened

   • Researchers at MD Anderson Cancer Center mapped 854,911 cells from 159 patients, with normal tissue, early and invasive breast cancer. [22]
   • They studied DCIS, abnormal cells inside the milk ducts that have not spread into the breast. [22]
   • DCIS is called stage 0 breast cancer, and it often comes before the invasive kind. [22]
   • Screening has found so many cases that DCIS is now up to 25% of all breast cancer diagnoses. [22]
   • They found 9 cell types and 60 cell states that change as the disease advances. [22]
   • The paper was published in the journal Science. [22]

   Why it matters

   The map could help doctors tell which women need strong treatment and which can safely avoid it. [22]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      Why does it matter which cases spread?

      Untreated, only 10 to 30% of DCIS cases turn invasive, the team wrote. [22]

      % that turn invasive

      Low estimate10

      High estimate30
   2. 2

      What might make a case spread?

      The team found changes in the cells around the cancer, not only in the cancer cells. [22]

   How it works

   Cancer doctors call finding a disease that would never have harmed you overdiagnosis.

   Mammograms find many DCIS cases that would never turn invasive, so some women get treatment they did not need. [22]

   Seen it before

   A smoke alarm that goes off for burnt toast still makes everyone run outside.

8. 20

   Swiss lung-drug firm raises $175 million

   What happened

   • Windward Bio, a Swiss biotech formed 2 years ago, raised $175 million by listing on the stock market on Thursday. [23]
   • It sold about 10.3 million shares at $17 each, and was due to start trading on Friday. [23]
   • Sanofi, a big drugmaker and earlier backer, bought another $50 million of shares privately. [23]
   • Its main drug, WIN378, aims at the same inflammation protein as the asthma drug Tezspire. [23]
   • Tezspire is taken monthly, but WIN378 might be needed as little as twice a year. [23]
   • Both of Windward's drugs were licensed from Chinese drugmakers for $70 million up front. [23]

   Why it matters

   It is the 30th biotech stock listing this year, the busiest year for them since 2021. [23]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      What could the Chinese firms still earn?

      Up to $1.6 billion more, if the drugs hit research and sales goals. [23]

      $70 millionPaid up front

      ↓→

      $1.6 billionPossible later
   2. 2

      Is the market open to every biotech?

      No: Rezera, a Boston biotech, put off its own listing the same week, citing market conditions. [23]

   How it works

   In finance, an initial public offering is a company's first sale of its shares to anyone on a stock market.

   Windward sold 10.3 million new shares at $17 each to fund its lung drug trials. [23]

   Seen it before

   A bake sale for a school trip: sell enough cakes and the bus is paid for.

9. 21

   Europe's hospitals plan for war

   What happened

   • European health chiefs told Euronews that hospitals must prepare for missile, drone, chemical and biological attacks. [25]
   • Petter Iversen, Norway's surgeon general, chairs NATO's committee of military medical chiefs. [25]
   • He said countries are about halfway ready: 200 metres into a 400-metre lap. [25]
   • Germany, Norway and the Baltic and Nordic countries are adding hospital beds. [25]
   • HERA, the EU's health emergency agency, is working on broad treatments for threats not yet known. [25]

   Who is involved

   • Petter Iversen Norway's surgeon general; chairs NATO's medical chiefs
   • Germany adding beds
   • Norway adding beds
   • Baltic and Nordic states adding beds

   Why it matters

   The war in Ukraine has shown that hospitals and ambulances can come under attack. [25]

   Think it through

   1. 1

      What new threat worries them most?

      AI could help bad actors make dangerous germs, said HERA's Laurent Muschel. [25]

   2. 2

      What did Ukraine teach them?

      Many thousands more amputations, so far more need for rehabilitation, said Jarno Habicht, who led the WHO's Ukraine office. [25]

      War injuriesmore amputations

      ↓→

      Rehabilitationmore needed

   How it works

   Emergency planners call extra capacity kept ready for a sudden rush surge capacity.

   Here that means more beds, stockpiled supplies and staff trained to work outside their own speciality. [25]

   Seen it before

   A family keeps spare candles and bottled water for a power cut.

10. 22

    More cigarettes, more dementia risk

    What happened

    • A review of studies covering about 2.8 million people linked smoking to a higher risk of dementia. [26]
    • Smokers had a 31% higher risk than people who had never smoked. [26]
    • Lead researcher Mario Serfo said the link grows stronger the more cigarettes people smoke. [26]
    • The review was led by Curtin University in Australia and published in the journal eClinicalMedicine. [26]
    • The risk was 40% higher for Alzheimer's disease and 52% for vascular dementia. [26]

    Why it matters

    The authors want brain health warnings on cigarette packs. [26]

    Think it through

    1. 1

       Does this prove smoking causes dementia?

       No: the researchers say it shows a link, not a direct cause. [26]

    2. 2

       Do people who quit still carry the risk?

       People who had quit showed no higher risk than people who never smoked. [26]

       Still smoking31% higher

       vsvs

       Quitno higher

    How it works

    Epidemiologists call it a dose-response: the more of an exposure, the more of the harm.

    Here the extra risk rose from 16% at 10 cigarettes a day to 34% at 20. [26]

    Seen it before

    One spoon of salt makes soup salty, and three make it much saltier.

11. 23

    HIV spreads widely in 27 Russian regions

    What happened

    • Rospotrebnadzor, Russia's public health agency, says HIV has spread into the general population in 27 regions. [27]
    • About 1.23 million people in Russia have a confirmed HIV diagnosis, 0.8% of the population. [27]
    • New cases fell 13.4% in 2025, to 45,000. [27]
    • Only about half of people with HIV had the virus under control by the end of 2025. [27]
    • Infections caught inside Russian hospitals hit a 15-year high, often from single-use tools used on several patients. [27]

    Why it matters

    HIV is now the leading cause of death among working-age Russians, the report says. [27]

    Think it through

    1. 1

       If new cases fell, why is it worse?

       For each death there are 1.5 new infections, so the number living with HIV keeps growing. [27]

       1 death→1.5 new infections→More people living with HIV
    2. 2

       Who pays for it?

       Spending on HIV reached 279 billion roubles in 2025, and most donors for HIV prevention have left Russia. [27]

       279 billion roublesspent on HIV in 2025

    How it works

    Epidemiologists call an epidemic generalised when a virus spreads beyond high-risk groups to everyone.

    Russia's agency uses one test for it, more than 1% of pregnant women testing positive, and 27 regions meet it. [27]

    Seen it before

    A spilled drink stays a puddle until it reaches the rug, then it soaks everywhere.

    The truth

    • Two Russian agencies count differently: 1.23 million diagnosed, against 846,500 under regular care. [27]