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Welcome to this week’s edition of the myHSN week in health, five of the biggest and most important health stories this week, and what they mean for you.
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- Health Secretary gives out antibiotics to her friends
- Vaccine for cancer by ‘2030s’
- COVID still on the rise
- Cut ‘unnecessary red tape’ to get more doctors in GP surgeries
- Diabetes drug shortage due to TikTok trend
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Health secretary gives out antibiotics to her friends
What?
The Health Secretary, Thérèse Coffey, claims that she has often given leftover antibiotics to her friends for small matters, triggering a vicious reaction from commentators online.
Why?
This comes off the back of a proposal to allow some antibiotics to be dispensed from pharmacies without a prescription from a doctor, a move widely seen as potentially dangerous. The Health Secretary cleverly likened herself to said pharmacists, in an attempt to trivialise the removal of antibiotic stewardship tasks from doctors.
How (does it affect you)?
Antibiotics should only be used for bacterial infections. Wider and less regulated prescribing of antibiotics could lead to improper prescribing, with either the wrong type of antibiotics being prescribed and the condition going untreated, or the prescription of antibiotics for conditions that don’t require them. That would lead to widespread antibiotic resistance – a problem with ramifications far worse than any COVID or flu outbreak.
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Vaccine for cancer by ‘2030s’
What?
The founders of BioNtech, co-inventors of the PfizerBioNtech COVID vaccine, have suggested that vaccines for cancer may be available by as early as the 2030s. They say their mRNA platform is currently being translated to cancer research with a number of key breakthroughs already seen.
Why?
Although commonly misunderstood, vaccines can be given after patients have already had the disease in question. In the case of cancer, mRNA vaccines can be used as a code by the body to build proteins.
The unique markers on cancer cells can be replicated by vaccines and taught to the immune system, which can in turn then kill the cancer cells.
How (does it affect you)?
The founders, Professors Uğur Şahin and Özlem Türeci, are reluctant to say a cure is on the horizon. Trials have already seen some breakthroughs, but no cure response has been observed.
Vaccine trials to train the immune system are ongoing in the UK – if you have cancer, speak to your oncologist to see if you may be eligible for clinical trials, as an alternative to standard care.
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COVID still on the rise
What?
COVID cases are on the rise, with 1 in 37 people in the UK now testing positive, compared to 1 in 50 last week.
Why?
The COVID case trend follows previous waves and coincides with regular cold and flu outbreaks in autumn. There is no reason to suggest a more virulent strain has taken hold, but this simply may represent the virus becoming endemic (resident) in the UK.
Credit: GOV.UK
How (does it affect you)?
Continue safety measures such as staying at home when unwell, practising good hand hygiene and getting flu and COVID vaccines. These measures are scientifically proven to reduce the spread and severity of COVID, despite opposing opinions by some on social media.
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Cut ‘unnecessary red tape’ to get more Doctors in GP surgeries
What?
UK medical regulator, the GMC, has published a report claiming that many doctors are being prevented from working as GPs in the NHS due to ‘unnecessary red tape’. They say an end to this is necessary to prevent patients continuing to wait for GP appointments.
Why?
There are a number of doctors working in the NHS as employees of local hospitals, rather than health education boards like trainees. These doctors are often fully qualified, and some may have graduated in other countries and often do not plan to become consultants in this country. Due to rules dictating who can work in a GP practice, these doctors can only work in hospitals.
The GMC claims this is an untapped resource of doctors restricted by unnecessary red tape.
How (does it affect you)?
Moving doctors from hospitals to GP practices could be regarded as rearranging the deckchairs on the titanic. There are patient bottlenecks at all levels of the service, why does it matter where the doctors are?
While the above certainly seems logical, having the ability to move doctors to where they are needed more easily could introduce much needed flexibility into the system. It may also introduce less-qualified persons into GP practices, but licensing or entrance exams can act as a barrier to this issue.
This may eventually lead to quicker GP appointments, but could also jam hospitals if too many doctors leave for general practice. Another concern is that many doctors will have no experience of general practice, which is a highly skilled specialty.
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Diabetes drug shortage due to TikTok trend
What?
Global shortages of the diabetes medication semaglutide (sold under the brand name Ozempic) have been reported because of widespread publication of its weight loss capabilities on TikTok.
Why?
Ozempic is a medication for type 2 diabetes that has the added effect of weight loss. On average, patients report around 10% loss of body weight over the course of one year.
Ozempic has a number of listed side effects, but the drug is generally perceived to be safe.
How (does it affect you)?
Ozempic is a prescription-only medication and can only be received from a doctor. A number of private and NHS obesity clinics offer the drug. If you wish to trial Ozempic, you will need to speak to a doctor in the UK. It may be hard to obtain due to the Tik Tok coverage.
Do not take Ozempic without a prescription – some side effects can be life-threatening, such as pancreatitis or electrolyte disturbances.
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As always, best wishes from myHSN!
