STAT

JUNE 26, 2025

State workers who for decades have been pivotal in identifying U.S. cancer trends, curbing new cases, and improving screening fear their federally funded programs could be deeply cut or eliminated altogether come July.  By next week, state and local programs that work on cancer are supposed to find out if their annual allocations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be renewed.

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JUNE 26, 2025

Over the last five years, health systems, medical societies, and their clinicians have been working to unravel the role of race in clinical practice. After clinical algorithms that use race as a variable came under scrutiny in 2020, several commonly used tools have been revised to align with medicine’s understanding that race is not a biological construct, but a social one.

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JUNE 26, 2025

This is the online version of Adam’s Biotech Scorecard, a subscriber-only newsletter. STAT+ subscribers can sign up  here  to get it delivered to their inbox. Insmed CEO Will Lewis keeps a newspaper story from 2014 framed on the wall of his office. The headline reads, “Insmed joins the biotech trash heap.”  If you’re wondering, I didn’t write that story, although I could have.

Drug Development 265

Drug Development 265

STAT

JUNE 25, 2025

A leader of a federal vaccine advisory committee said Wednesday that the panel would start a review of long-approved vaccines, as well as the cumulative effect of the shots given to children and adolescents. Martin Kulldorff, named co-chair of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices after health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired the former members of the 17-person panel and replaced them with seven hand-picked panelists, announced the news at the start of a two-day highly anticipate

Immunity 363

Immunity Immunization Vaccines 363

STAT

JUNE 25, 2025

With all the discussion around the adolescent mental health crisis, a prime suspect has gone relatively unnoticed: sleep.  I have treated thousands of youths struggling with mental illness over the past 25 years. As a child and adolescent psychiatrist, I have observed a remarkable shift in their everyday habits thanks to screen time. A 2021 report from Common Sense Media found that people between the ages of 13 and 18 spend almost nine hours a day looking at screens.

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JUNE 25, 2025

A drug for a rare blood disorder that instead is prescribed to amp up “mental clarity.” A peptide approved for growth hormone deficiency that may boost muscle lost to Ozempic. A full-body MRI administered not for symptoms, but for prevention, to detect any incipient cancer.   These are just a few of the tests and treatments being marketed by a growing class of health and wellness companies selling a message aligned with the Make America Healthy Again movement.

Diabetes 296

Diabetes 296

STAT

JUNE 25, 2025

Recently, I prescribed estrogen to a young woman with primary ovarian insufficiency — a condition in which her body doesn’t make enough estrogen naturally. This hormone replacement is standard care, medically necessary, and entirely uncontroversial. Yet if I were to prescribe the identical medication to a transgender girl experiencing gender dysphoria, I could face felony charges in six states.

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347

STAT

JUNE 24, 2025

In one of the most substantial health tech deals of the year so far, Abridge on Tuesday announced it raised $300 million in a Series E funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz as the company hopes to capitalize on its momentum selling software that automates clinical note-writing for doctors. Abridge’s raise follows a $250 million raise announced in February and pushes the company’s valuation over $5 billion.

Medical Records 207

Medical Records Hospitals 207

STAT

JUNE 24, 2025

Want to stay on top of the science and politics driving biotech today?  Sign up  to get our biotech newsletter in your inbox. Morning! Today, we talk about the readout of Compass Pathways’ psilocybin trial for major depressive disorder, see more vaccine concern and turnover at the FDA, and report from the American Diabetes Association.

Vaccines 211

Vaccines Immunity Immunization Diabetes 211

STAT

JUNE 24, 2025

The decision by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to remove and replace all members of the government’s independent vaccine advisory committee doesn’t just change how the nation will approach vaccine policy. It could also take money out of Americans’ wallets. Right now, anyone with health insurance — adults and children alike — who wants a vaccine that is recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices can get it for free

Vaccines 302

Vaccines Immunity Immunization 302

STAT

JUNE 24, 2025

Childhood vaccination coverage has made leaps since 1980. But progress has significantly slowed in the last two decades. That is according to a study published in The Lancet Tuesday, which found stagnation and wide variation in childhood vaccination rates since 2010. The study, which estimated childhood vaccination coverage between 1980 and 2023 in 204 countries and territories, found that the Covid-19 pandemic significantly intensified existing immunization challenges.

Vaccines 338

Vaccines Immunity Immunization 338

STAT

JUNE 23, 2025

Novo Nordisk is ending a deal with telehealth company Hims & Hers, saying Monday that Hims has been engaging in “illegal mass compounding” of GLP-1 obesity treatments and “deceptive marketing.” Earlier this year, Novo launched a direct-to-consumer website that sells its obesity drug Wegovy at a lower price to patients who are paying on their own without insurance.

Compounding 237

Compounding 237

STAT

JUNE 23, 2025

WASHINGTON — Jacqueline Corrigan-Curay, the top drug regulator at the Food and Drug Administration, is retiring from the agency in July.  Corrigan-Curay, who took over as acting director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research in January, broke the news to staff in an email shared with STAT. She said she decided to leave the agency after taking a recent vacation, and thanked staff for their “unwavering support, especially during recent challenging times.

Drug Development 254

Drug Development 254

STAT

JUNE 23, 2025

WASHINGTON — A key Senate health leader is calling for this week’s meeting of the panel of vaccine advisers handpicked by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be delayed, citing their lack of experience and potential bias against some vaccines. “Although the appointees to [the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices] have scientific credentials, many do not have significant experience studying microbiology, epidemiology or immunology.

Vaccines 363

Vaccines Immunity Immunization 363

STAT

JUNE 20, 2025

Twelve people with type 1 diabetes who received an investigational off-the-shelf stem cell therapy were able to produce their own insulin and keep healthy blood glucose levels for at least one year, Vertex Pharmaceuticals said Friday. After three months, none of them suffered severe bouts of low blood sugar. After 12 months, out of the 12 participants, 10 no longer needed to inject insulin.

Diabetes 355

Diabetes 355

STAT

JUNE 16, 2025

The staff of two world-class laboratories at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that were slated to be closed in a round of cuts announced in April have been informed that their terminations have been canceled. The CDC’s sexually transmitted disease laboratory and its viral hepatitis laboratory were targets of layoffs initiated by the U.S.

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348

STAT

JUNE 12, 2025

When House Republicans voted in the wee hours of the morning of May 22 to cut approximately $700 billion from Medicaid , they moved one step closer to rendering dangerously vulnerable the millions of Medicaid recipients struggling with mental illness and substance use disorder. Medicaid, which covers more than 72 million Americans, is the single largest payer of behavioral health services , which includes mental health and substance use disorder treatment.

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334

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JUNE 11, 2025

Europe’s comparatively cautious approach to food additives is the envy of health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the Make America Healthy Again movement. A Texas bill now before Gov. Greg Abbott aims to help close the gap by slapping warning labels on foods that contain any of 44 additives and dyes. Abbott has not said whether he intends to sign Senate Bill 25 into law.

Labelling 242

Labelling 242

STAT

JUNE 6, 2025

A monthly treatment from Otsuka reduced by more than half the levels of a toxic protein in the urine of patients with an autoimmune kidney disease. The results presented Friday achieved the interim goal of a Phase 3 study and were numerically superior to study results posted Monday by competitor Vera Therapeutics.  The Otsuka drug, called sibeprenlimab, lowered proteinuria levels by 50.2% after nine months compared to an increase of 2.1% in patients given a placebo.

Drug Development 201

Drug Development 201

STAT

JUNE 5, 2025

People with diabetes who were taking GLP-1 drugs had a low but elevated risk of an age-related eye disease that can sometimes lead to blindness, a new observational study concludes, adding to a short list of concerns about eye health in people taking the powerful medications. The research, published Thursday in JAMA Ophthalmology , found that after one year, more than twice as many people on GLP-1 drugs developed neovascular age-related macular degeneration compared to similar people who were no

Diabetes 275

Diabetes Drug Development 275

STAT

JUNE 3, 2025

Top of the morning to you, and a fine one it is. Clear blue skies and pleasant breezes are wafting across the Pharmalot campus, where the official mascots are foraging for their breakfast and rousing the neighbors. This means we are free to focus on the matters at hand — rummaging through our to-do list and making cups of stimulation. Our choice today is banana split, which is fast becoming a trusty favorite.

Drug Pricing 180

Drug Pricing Labelling 180

STAT

JUNE 2, 2025

The Make America Healthy Again commission’s recent report on children’s health has received a lot of attention for its citation errors and focus on ultra-processed foods, smartphones, and stimulant use. But the less-discussed part on “overmedicalization” of American children stood out to us. While the report mentions surgical care only briefly, it identifies two common procedures, adenotonsillectomy and tympanostomy tube (ear tube) placement, as surgeries that “

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280

STAT

JUNE 2, 2025

Ice cream, lip gloss, and sparkling water are just a few of the products that can contain neotame — an artificial sweetener that’s 7,000-13,000 times sweeter than sugar. Now researchers have found it’s also in many flavored disposable e-cigarettes, which they warn gives them extra appeal to teens and kids. The study , published Monday in JAMA, found neotame in all 11 of the popular disposable vape brands it tested, including Elf Bar, Breeze, and Mr.

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STAT

MAY 30, 2025

On May 24, the World Health Assembly, the governing body of the WHO, ratified landmark legislation that, if implemented fully, will change the future for people living with rare diseases. It calls for concrete action plans that will have far-reaching impacts across health care systems in diverse nations around the globe. It’s a historic moment in decades-long efforts to appropriately address the needs of the approximately 400 million people who suffer from rare diseases.

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225

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MAY 29, 2025

Radiologists interpret more than 40 million mammograms in the United States every year. In 2025, AI tools to help detect or diagnose possible cancer will be applied to millions of them.  As the Food and Drug Administration has cleared several AI algorithms to analyze mammograms, some imaging centers are adopting them en masse. RadNet, which owns more than 400 U.S. radiology practices, says it deploys its own AI algorithm in 600,000 mammograms every year.

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MAY 29, 2025

Misinformation spreads faster than prairie fire, often with as much destruction. Right now, state legislatures nationwide are debating bills based on erroneous beliefs that would strip away public health protections. Calls to increase vaccine exemptions in schools and daycare centers, for example, have contributed to measles outbreaks in Texas and elsewhere.

Vaccines 279

Vaccines 279

STAT

MAY 28, 2025

Hello, everyone, and how are you today? We are doing just fine, thank you, especially since the middle of the week is already upon us. After all, we have made it this far so we have decided to hang on for another couple of days. And why not? Given the likely alternatives, this seems to be a reasonable decision. To make the time fly, we are firing up the trusted coffee kettle and brewing another cup of stimulation.

Drug Development 192

Drug Development 192

STAT

MAY 28, 2025

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s unilateral decision that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would no longer recommend Covid-19 boosters for healthy people during childhood or pregnancy represents a bulldozing of safeguards intended to keep public health officials honest and their decisions transparent. It also tramples on individuals’ ability to make their own decisions about medical evidence.

Vaccines 360

Vaccines 360

STAT

MAY 28, 2025

Strolling past the sleek, blue-lit pop-up stores and lounges that began peppering the city of Austin, Texas, this spring, passersby might pause to wonder about what trendy new tech product goes by the name of “IQOS.” Perhaps a smartwatch or a set of noise-canceling wireless earbuds? The chicly futuristic branding of IQOS, a heated tobacco product owned by Philip Morris International, is one of several things worrying researchers and anti-tobacco advocates.

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246

STAT

MAY 27, 2025

It’s easy to feel as though you’re doing something wrong these days if you don’t know your VO 2 -Max and how many hours of REM sleep you get each night, or if you’re not taking a dozen different supplements and scrutinizing every morsel of food that makes its way into your mouth. “Biohackers” and other longevity seekers — with their many podcasts, YouTube channels, and X accounts — would have you believe that if you diligently measure your

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297

STAT

MAY 24, 2025

Florida has just banned fluoride in public water , becoming the second state to do so. It’s part of decadeslong battle that has heated up in recent years. Local governments debate whether it belongs in the water supply. Parents question safety. Pseudoscience clouds public perception. Often, the conversation is framed as a domestic ideological battle between personal liberty and public health mandates.

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363

STAT

MAY 20, 2025

Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester has written a stinging letter to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. demanding that he clarify whether the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has an acting director. In her three-page missive, Blunt Rochester suggested that Matthew Buzzelli, the person Kennedy said was the CDC’s acting director, cannot hold the role because he isn’t qualified under the federal Vacancies Act.

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183

STAT

MAY 20, 2025

Of the seven health tech companies that met with the government’s most powerful health official on Monday, all but one had something in common: Financial backing from one of Silicon Valley’s top venture capital firms. In a post on the social media platform X, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that health secretary Robert F.

212

212

STAT

MAY 20, 2025

A new framework for Covid-19 vaccines announced by Food and Drug Administration leaders Tuesday suggests the agency will no longer approve new Covid vaccines for healthy individuals under 65, including babies, without data from new randomized clinical trials showing their benefit.  The plan — described in a commentary in the New England Journal of Medicine, followed by a live stream on YouTube — created confusion among physicians about what it means for young children.

Vaccines 359

Vaccines 359

STAT

MAY 20, 2025

In a notable development, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed a bill that will allow a state board to extend its mandate for lowering prescription drug costs to all residents, not just those employed by government agencies. The move was hailed by consumer advocates who hope the Prescription Drug Affordability Board, which is designed to function much like a state utility commission, will usher in era of lower medicine prices for everyone who lives in Maryland.

Drug Pricing 239

Drug Pricing 239

STAT

MAY 20, 2025

Developers of digital mental health treatments now have fresh economic data to help make the case for broader coverage of their apps. Companies selling Food and Drug Administration-cleared apps for the treatment of psychiatric and other conditions have long struggled with adoption by patients, providers, and payers for many reasons. Clinical evidence supporting these prescription digital therapeutics has gradually improved , but policymakers and insurers have been hesitant to open the path to re

205

205

STAT

MAY 20, 2025

For decades, mainstream nutrition guidelines have recommended that Americans replace animal fats like butter or lard with polyunsaturated fats, especially seed oils such as soybean, corn, and sunflower oils. These oils are rich in omega-6 fatty acids and now make up a significant portion of the fat consumed in the standard American diet. But recently, the conversation has shifted.

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