In Case You Missed It
Explore a curated roundup of this week's articles, offering deep insights into the latest medical and healthcare advancements.
General
A New Study Shows Cash And Counselling Can Improve TB Outcomes By 50%
A groundbreaking study conducted by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) in partnership with Wits University revealed that tuberculosis patients who receive cash incentives and counselling have a 52% lower relative risk of having an unsuccessful treatment outcome.
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World-leading AI trial to tackle breast cancer launched
An innovative new AI trial to transform cancer care aims to help radiologists catch breast cancer earlier.
The NIHR-funded EDITH trial (‘Early Detection using Information Technology in Health’) launches today on World Cancer Day.
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Cybersecurity requires new approaches, where all stakeholders contribute
As cyberthreats against healthcare surge, a new EU cybersecurity Action Plan emphasises proactive defense, enhanced training, and collective responsibility to safeguard patient care and medical infrastructure.
With the increasing digital transformation of healthcare and improvements in the quality of data, IT systems in healthcare are becoming an increasingly attractive target for malicious actors. A cyberattack can cripple an institution, cause disruptions in service delivery and result in patient harm.
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Oncology
Short-course radiation therapy effective for endometrial cancer patients
Researchers have found that fewer sessions of higher dose vaginal cuff brachytherapy work just as well as more frequent, lower-dose treatments for endometrial cancer patients.
In a randomized clinical trial, researchers from Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah (the U) have found that short-course, higher dose vaginal brachytherapy for endometrial cancer had similar effectiveness to more frequent, lower dose sessions.
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Cardiology
AI is better than humans at analyzing long-term ECG recordings
In patients with symptoms such as irregular heartbeats, dizziness, or fainting, or in individuals that physicians suspect may have atrial fibrillation, many days of ECGs may be required for diagnosis -- 'long-term ECG recordings'. These recordings must then undergo a time-consuming and human resource-intensive review to identify heart rhythm abnormalities. In a large international study, researchers tested whether an AI model can replace humans in analyzing long-term ECG recordings. The results: 14 times fewer missed diagnoses by the AI.
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Obestetrics & Gynaecology
New blood test accurately predicts preeclampsia
A new blood test has an 80% accuracy in predicting preterm preeclampsia, according to a new study. The condition, which results in over 70,000 maternal deaths and 500,000 fetal deaths each year worldwide, has long been hard to predict.
A new blood test has an 80% accuracy in predicting preterm preeclampsia, according to a study published today, Feb. 12, in the journal Nature Medicine.
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