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Lab-grown human teeth to 'fill in the gaps' in regenerative dentistry

BBC News – Health - Sun, 04/13/2025 - 07:59
Scientists from King's College London manage to grow a human tooth under laboratory conditions.
Categories: National News

In the rush towards a law on assisted dying, the vulnerable have become expendable | Sonia Sodha

Guardian – Society – Health - Sun, 04/13/2025 - 07:00

Concerns that Kim Leadbeater’s proposed legislation is ‘flawed and dangerous’ are being overlooked

Last month, ITV News reported on the case of 51-year-old Anne, who travelled to a Swiss assisted suicide clinic to end her own life after her only son died. The first her family knew of it was when they received the goodbye letters Anne had posted them from Switzerland. It follows another case from 2023, when 47-year-old Alastair Hamilton went to the same Swiss clinic after telling his mother he was going on holiday. He had been suffering from stomach problems but had no diagnosed illness. There are similar cases of individuals being prescribed lethal drugs in Canada without the knowledge of their families, to their profound distress.

If MPs in Britain vote to legalise assisted dying next month, the same could happen. Eligibility would be more limited than in Switzerland or Canada, to people diagnosed with a terminal illness where a doctor believes they probably have fewer than six months to live. That’s more subjective than it might sound: in Oregon, for example, doctors have interpreted terminal illness to include malnutrition from eating disorders, and the assisted dying bill’s sponsor, Kim Leadbeater, rejected amendments backed by eating disorder charities to prevent this happening here. Having learning difficulties or a mental illness, feeling depressed or suicidal, or alcohol misuse that might impair judgment would not preclude someone from seeking a medically assisted death. There would be no obligation on assisted suicide providers to notify families their relative is about to die, and no route for relatives to raise concerns about coercion.

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 250 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at observer.letters@observer.co.uk

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Categories: National News

Three million child deaths linked to drug resistance, study shows

BBC News – Health - Sun, 04/13/2025 - 00:24
Children in Africa and South East Asia are most at risk from antibiotics medicines no longer working, a study suggests.
Categories: National News

Blood test could detect Parkinson’s disease before symptoms emerge

Guardian – Society – Health - Sat, 04/12/2025 - 17:33

Researchers behind test using biomarkers say it could ‘revolutionise’ early diagnosis of disease

Researchers have developed a simple and “cost-effective” blood test capable of detecting Parkinson’s disease long before symptoms emerge, according to a study.

About 153,000 people live with Parkinson’s in the UK, and scientists who undertook the research said the test could “revolutionise” an early diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease, “paving the way for timely interventions and improved patient outcomes”.

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Categories: National News

'I didn't know I was pregnant until I gave birth'

BBC News – Health - Sat, 04/12/2025 - 07:07
Bryony had no pregnancy symptoms when she went into labour at the beauty salon she worked at.
Categories: National News

'I didn't know I was pregnant until I gave birth'

BBC News – Health - Sat, 04/12/2025 - 07:07
Bryony had no pregnancy symptoms when she went into labour at the beauty salon she worked at.
Categories: National News

Cancer pill gave me 'four years of extra time'

BBC News – Health - Fri, 04/11/2025 - 10:47
More than 1,000 women a year with advanced cancer could benefit from capivasertib which can slow the disease.
Categories: National News
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