Category: Community
Healthy baby born from transplanted womb
A healthy baby girl has been born using a transplanted womb. The 10-hour transplant operation used a womb from a dead donor, and took place in São Paulo, Brazil, in 2016. The mother, 32, was born without a womb. There have been 39 womb transplants using a live donor, including mothers donating their womb to [...]
Successful face transplant gives man a new lease on life
A Californian man who tried to kill himself with a shotgun has undergone the most advanced face transplant surgery ever performed. Cameron Underwood, 26, had struggled for years with depression, and in 2016, he placed a shotgun under his chin and pulled the trigger. Two years later, he made his first public appearance after undergoing [...]
Chinese scientist defends his gene editing work
A Chinese scientist who is said to have created the world’s first genetically edited babies is standing by his work. He Jiankui, an associate professor at a Shenzhen university, said he was proud of his work, and another potential pregnancy of a gene-edited embryo was in its early stages. His claims have yet to be [...]
A genetic mutation among the Bajau tribe allows them to become better freedivers
The Bajau people of Southeast Asia some of the best freedivers in the world. In 2015, Melissa Ilardo went on a diving trip with Pai Bayubu, who had already gone fairly deep when he saw a giant clam, 30 to 50 feet below him. “He just dropped down,” Ilardo recalls. “He pointed at it, and [...]
Australia gets rid of Rubella
Rubella has officially been eradicated in Australia. The WHO confirmed on Wednesday that the contagious disease that can cause pregnant women to miscarry or result in serious birth defects or stillbirth, also known as German measles, no longer exists in the nation. The symptoms, including fever, rash and swollen lymph glands are mild but the [...]
Surgeons perform UK’s first in-utero spinal surgery
Two unborn babies have had their spines repaired by surgeons,weeks before they were born. The operations were carried out by a team of 30 doctors at University College Hospital in London, and are the first of its kind to be performed in the UK. The babies had spina bifida, a condition where the neural tube [...]
A curious case of pancake kidneys
After an 18-year-old in India underwent a CT scan due to intestinal problems, doctors encountered condition called “pancake kidney.”. “The extraordinarily rare condition is almost exactly what it sounds like”, said Dr. Steven Chang, an assistant professor of surgery in the division of urology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. Chang treats patients who [...]
Malaysia first regional country to eradicate mother-to-child HIV cases
Malaysia has become the first country in the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Region to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis. “Thanks to Malaysia’s efforts over the past several years, parents can now ensure their babies are born free of HIV and syphilis and have a healthy start to life,” said Dr.Shin Young-soo, [...]
Hospis Malaysia initiates campaign to promote dialogue around serious illnesses
The diagnosis of a serious, life-threatening illness such as cancer, organ failure, HIV/AIDS, and certain degenerating neurological conditions can be overwhelming, not only to the patient, but often also to their loved ones. With the stress of treatments and caregiving needs, patients often bottle up their feelings of despair and sadness. Sometimes, denial of the [...]
Australia leads the way in eliminating cervical cancer
Australia will become the first country to eliminate cervical cancer with the continued vaccination and screening rates, research shows. Australia’s current annual cervical cancer rate stands at seven cases per 100,000 people, about half the global average.It is predicted to be classified as a “rare cancer” in Australia by 2022, when it should drop to [...]
