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Britain on Monday (January 10) put the biggest private health companies on high alert to deliver crucial treatments such as cancer surgery should Omicron overwhelm National Health Service hospitals in England. The United Kingdom's death toll from the Covid-19 pandemic stands at 150,154, the world's seventh worst official Covid toll after the United States, Brazil, India, Russia, Mexico and Peru. Prime minister Boris Johnson has bet on refraining from lockdowns to deal with the Omicron variant which in recent weeks has swept across the UK, albeit with death rates significantly lower than previous waves. In a sign of just how stretched the NHS could become, health secretary Sajid Javid ordered England's NHS to strike a three-month deal with private health companies to allow patients to get treatments such as cancer surgery outside. "Millions of patients have already got their tests and treatment quicker thanks to our existing deal with independent providers," said David Sloman, NHS England chief operating officer and Covid incident director.

The European Union's population shrank for a second year running last year, the bloc's statistics office said on Monday, as the region reels from over two million deaths from the coronavirus. According to Eurostat, the population of the 27 countries that make up the bloc fell by close to 172,000 from the previous year and over 656,000 from January 2020. "In 2020 and 2021 the positive net migration no longer compensated for the negative natural change in the EU and, as a consequence, the EU total population has been decreasing," it said, pointing to impacts from the pandemic. The number of deaths began outstripping births in the EU a decade ago, but immigration from outside the bloc helped offset the gap until the first year of the pandemic. The previous time the EU had registered a fall in population was in 2011 - the only other time since 1960 - but this rapidly picked up due to net migration.

The world has never been in a better position to end the Covid-19 pandemic, the head of the World Health Organization said on September 14, his most optimistic outlook yet on the years-long health crisis which has killed over six million people. "We are not there yet. But the end is in sight," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters at a virtual press conference. That was the most upbeat assessment from the UN agency since it declared an international emergency in January 2020 and started describing Covid-19 as a pandemic three months later. The virus, which emerged in China in late 2019, has killed nearly 6.5 million people and infected 606 million, roiling global economies and overwhelming healthcare systems. The rollout of vaccines and therapies have helped to stem deaths and hospitalisations, and the Omicron variant which emerged late last year causes less severe disease. Deaths from Covid-19 last week were the lowest since March 2020, the U.N. agency reported.

The UK is lagging behind comparable countries when it comes to cancer survival, Cancer Research UK (CRUK) has said, calling on all political parties to make cancer a top priority in their party manifestos. While cancer survival rates in the UK have doubled over the last 50 years, the charity warned that the hard-won progress is at risk of stalling, with NHS cancer services in "crisis" and around half a million cancer cases a year projected by 2040. The charity has published an ambitious cancer plan which, if adopted by the next UK government, could dramatically improve cancer outcomes and prevent 20,000 cancer deaths a year by 2040. Called "Longer Better Lives: A Manifesto for Cancer Research and Care", the plan has been developed with the insights of cancer patients and experts from across health, life sciences, government and academic sectors, it said.

UK regulator has approved a second oral antiviral for early treatment of Covid-19 in high-risk adults, after molnupiravir. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) gave its nod for a new treatment called Paxlovid (PF-07321332 and ritonavir), after finding it safe and effective at reducing the risk of hospitalisation and death in people diagnosed with mild Covid-19 infection. Developed by Pfizer, Paxlovid prevents the multiplying of virus, helping the body to overcome the infection. A clinical trial for the treatment in high risk individuals revealed that a five-days course of Paxlovid reduces the risk of hospitalisation and death by 89 per cent. It further revealed that Paxlovid is most effective when taken in the early stage of infection. Dr June Raine, MHRA chief executive, said: "We now have a further antiviral medicine for the treatment of Covid-19 that can be taken by mouth rather than administered intravenously. This means it can be administered outside a hospital setting, before Covid-19 has progressed to a severe stage."

An Indian court has sentenced two pharmaceutical company executives to two-and-half years in jail for exporting substandard drugs to Vietnam a decade ago, months after the WHO linked their cough syrups to the deaths of children in Gambia. India suspended production at Maiden Pharmaceuticals in October last year for violations of manufacturing standards after the World Health Organization said four of its cough syrups may have killed dozens of children in Gambia. The company has denied its drugs were at fault for the deaths in Gambia and tests by an Indian government laboratory found there were no toxins in them. The company had been facing legal difficulties for years over suspected shoddy products. A court in Sonipat, near New Delhi, where Maiden has its main production facility, ordered jail for company founder Naresh Kumar Goel and technical director M.K. Sharma for exporting heartburn medicine "not of standard quality" to Vietnam.

Beer brewing is an art, and this ancient art is dying a slow death. With the advent of technology and the introduction of numerous catalysts for...

Beer brewing is an art, and this ancient art is dying a slow death. With the advent of technology and the introduction of numerous catalysts for...

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has called for a 'firm commitment' to prosecuting those making profits through the sale of DNP (2,4-Dinitrophenol). It has also urged the social media companies to 'remove content promoting or selling DNP to further reduce harm'. Legislation to regulate DNP will come into effect on 1 October 2023. On Monday (23 January) it was announced that DNP will be included in the 1972 Poisons Act. President of RPS Professor Claire Anderson said: "DNP is unfit for human consumption and its main use is in the manufacture of explosives and pesticides. It is sold by unscrupulous dealers to vulnerable individuals wanting to lose weight but has a dangerous effect on the metabolism and has led to 32 deaths since 2007 in those taking it as a 'diet drug'. "Including DNP in the Poisons Act is a positive move as it will restrict its availability, but what's really needed is an outright ban to reduce the risk to the public. Australia has already classified DNP as a substance of such a danger to health as to warrant prohibition of sale and we'd like the UK to follow suit.

More than 7,000 hospitalisations and deaths in the UK could have been averted in summer 2022 if people had received their recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses, a new study published in The Lancet has revealed. The largest ever study carried out in the UK found that between a third and a half of the UK population had not had the recommended number of COVID vaccinations and boosters by summer 2022. In Northern Ireland, nearly 50 per cent of the population were under-vaccinated, while the proportion of under-vaccinated people in England was 45.7 per cent, 34.2 per cent for Scotland and 32.8 per cent Wales. Researchers from the Health Data Research UK (HDR UK) and the University of Edinburgh analysed the electronic health records of 67 million residents aged 5 and older from across the four countries during June 1 to September 30 2022.

Diet, exercise, and stress management all play important roles in heart, lung, and brain health. however a recent report from the world Health Organization suggests that the positive effects of those healthy way decisions may be jeopardized by the straightforward act of taking a breath.

A cancer registry is the cancer cases which are registered in a population or specific country. In whole world mortality rate due to cancer is 20%. In USA cancer is the second largest disease of causing death after heart disease. Recently in 2016 estimated that 595,690 people die from this disease according to cancer statistics of National Cancer Institute USA.

Flu season, every year initiates the discussion of Flue Facts and Myths. Around 647,000 hospitalizations have been observed and 36,400 to 61,200 deaths in the United States according to CDC during last season

Around 90 percent of coronavirus patients in intensive care units have not had a booster jab, prime minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday (December 29) - defending his decision not to tighten virus curbs in England. Speaking at a vaccination centre, Johnson urged people to get "vital" booster jabs, saying "the overwhelming majority" of those currently going into intensive care in our hospitals have not had the booster jab. "I've talked to doctors who say the numbers are running up to 90 percent of people in intensive care who are not boosted," the prime minister added in Milton Keynes in Hertfordshire. Those who have not been vaccinated are "eight times more likely to get into hospital," he warned. The UK has been hit by a huge surge of the new Omicron variant, with England and Wales reporting record case numbers on Tuesday. The UK has been one of Europe's worst hit with a death toll of 148,021.

Existing Covid-19 inoculations will struggle against the fast-spreading Omicron variant, the head of vaccine manufacturer Moderna warned on Tuesday (November 30), as countries ramp up vaccination programmes and impose further restrictions in an effort to curb growing concern. First reported to the World Health Organization in South Africa less than a week ago, the new strain has rapidly spread from Africa to the Pacific, and from Europe to North America as dozens of countries have announced travel restrictions. While no deaths have yet been reported from Omicron, and it could take weeks to know how infectious and how resistant the strain may prove to vaccines, its emergence underscores how besieged the world remains by Covid-19, nearly two years after the first cases were recorded. Stephane Bancel, the head of US vaccine manufacturer Moderna, told the Financial Times in an interview published today that data would be available on the effectiveness of vaccines in the two weeks' time, but that scientists were pessimistic.

Smoking is the most significant cause of preventable deaths in England, and the health risks associated with smoking well documented. This not only puts a heavy burden on the healthcare system but also has a substantial social impact. Its link to health inequalities is more evident because it is more prevalent amongst the most vulnerable in our society, with low educational attainment and poor socioeconomic status. Even as smoking rates progressively reduced, these patients remained the most difficultto reach with cessation services. Recent years have also seen many local authorities stop providing locally commissionedNHS stop smoking service, citing funding constraints. The postpandemic financial reckoning may yet see more strain on what is left in the coffers. The Healthy Living pharmacy ethos community pharmacy teams, proactively supporting patients to quit and advising on the best evidence-shaped approach, deliver successful outcomes.

Global demand for Pfizer's oral Covid-19 antiviral treatment Paxlovid has been unexpectedly low due to complicated eligibility requirements, reduced testing, and potential for drug interactions, according to a media report. Demand also has been hampered by the perception that Omicron infections are not that severe. Paxlovid was expected to be a major tool in the fight against Covid after it reduced hospitalizations or deaths in high-risk patients by around 90 per cent in a clinical trial. Thousands of people still die from Covid-19 every week, even as global infections are far off their peak. And there are only a few proven antiviral treatments, of which Paxlovid is the most attractive. The others are Merck & Co's far less effective rival pill molnupiravir, and Gilead Sciences' intravenous remdesivir.

The Indian government has suspended manufacturing in over 40 pharmaceutical companies based on a risk-based assessment conducted earlier in the year across 162 firms, according to the data provided by Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya in Parliament on Thursday (Aug. 10). "Overall, a sum of 143 show-cause notices has been issued," Mandaviya said. There have been numerous recent incidents involving accusations from foreign countries regarding the contamination of syrups, eye drops, and ointments manufactured in India. Countries such as the Gambia, Uzbekistan, and Cameroon have linked the deaths of 70, 18, and six children, respectively, to cough syrups contaminated in India. Licenses for specific products have been either temporarily suspended or fully revoked for an additional 66 companies. In one case, an FIR has been registered, and in 21 cases, warning letters have been issued following inspections by both the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization and State authorities, the Minister added. Meanwhile, the Indian government has mandated rigorous testing for cough syrups before export. Starting June 1, any cough syrup must possess a government laboratory-issued certificate of analysis before being exported, the government said in a notice dated May 22.

A community pharmacist who supplied a drug addict with "under the counter drugs" has been jailed for 18 months. Dushyant Patel, 67, a London pharmacist with more than 40 years' experience, had supplied class C drugs to a drug user in Norwich for months in 2020. Police identified Patel as a suspect four months after the death of drug user, Alisha Siddiqi, whose body was found at a property in Colossus Way, Costessey, in August 2020. An initial post-mortem examination was inconclusive, but toxicology results later showed she died from an overdose of prescription medication. An analysis of her phone revealed that she had frequent communication with Patel between January and August 2020. Class C drugs sold without prescription There was also communication regarding transactions relating to the sale of prescription drugs including class C drugs, without a prescription, namely Zolpidem and Zopiclone. Patel was identified as a suspect and later charged with drugs offences. He was jailed at Norwich Crown Court in December after a trial in August when he was found guilty of two counts of being concerned in supplying a controlled drug between March and August 2020.

Being able to access high-quality healthcare at the times you need it most is vital. Regardless of whether this is a simple check-up, a medical review or complex surgery, having a suitable healthcare package designed according to your medical needs will be beneficial in the long run. The NHS has recently come under significant strain. Factors such as an increase in the number of patients, reduced funding and increased life expectancy have led to long waiting times and limited treatments. As a result, more individuals are now seeking private healthcare which, while it may be more expensive, offers faster and more effective treatment. Here we'll discuss some of the main benefits of private healthcare and why it is becoming the ideal choice for healthcare in 2023. Reduced waiting times One of the main issues faced by the NHS is waiting times, with some patients being made to wait up to a year for routine hospital care. Currently, ambulance services and A&E units are under unprecedented pressure and it is estimated that hundreds of deaths each week are associated with admission delays. Understaffing has been a chronic issue in recent years in the NHS and is a major threat to the welfare of patients. This has been one of the major concerns that has led to nurses and ambulance staff taking strike action. As nurses and hospital workers are put under higher strain, they are more likely to make mistakes, which could well lead to patients coming into harm and making a claim. Opting for private healthcare guarantees that you are able to access your appointments, surgeries and treatments much quicker, with some flexibility offered to align with your lifestyle. The capacity to bypass the painfully long waiting times ensures you receive the necessary medical attention much sooner and could prevent the emergence of other health complications.

Health authorities in India have launched an inquiry into an allegation that a local pharmaceutical regulator, in return for a bribe, helped switch samples of cough syrups that the World Health Organization (WHO) had linked to the deaths of children in Gambia before the samples were tested at an Indian laboratory, according to two government officials and documents reviewed by the Reuters news agency. In an April 29 letter to the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in Haryana state reviewed by the news agency, a lawyer named Yashpal accused the state's drug controller, Manmohan Taneja, of taking a bribe of 50 million rupees (£481,600 approx.) from local manufacturer Maiden Pharmaceuticals to help it switch the samples before an Indian government laboratory tested them. Maiden's factory is based in Haryana state. Reuters points out that it was unable to independently establish that any bribes were paid. Taneja did not respond to phone calls, messages or emails seeking comment. Maiden did not respond to requests for comment. The WHO said it had no knowledge of the allegation. Yashpal - who like some Indians uses only one name - did not say in the letter where he got the information, or provide evidence for his claim about the syrups made by Maiden. Reuters was unable to independently establish that any bribes were paid.