Ahead of the upcoming WHO Executive Board meeting 3-8 February, WHO has launched a series of informal consultations this week with member state representatives on key issues that will be coming before the governing body – and ultimately the May meeting of the World Health Assembly (WHA). The detailed consultation agenda, published on the WHO […] Continue reading ->
For the first time in two decades, tobacco use is projected to decline among men in 2020, according to a new World Health Organization report on trends in global tobacco use. However, the new report does not consider trends in e-cigarette use, where use may in fact be increasing. “For many years now we had […] Continue reading ->
Novartis has relinquished a patent granted by the European Patent Office for Kymriah, a promising new gene therapy for certain forms of leukemia, claiming the patent was no longer essential to the development and marketing of the treatment. The decision followed the moves by the Swiss-based NGO, Public Eye and the French-based Doctors of the […] Continue reading ->
More than one-third of low- and middle-income countries worldwide are facing significant rates of obesity alongside continued pockets of undernutrition, according to a major new study published on Monday in The Lancet. The four-part series The Double Burden of Malnutrition, led by the World Health Organization in collaboration with a number of universities and researchers […] Continue reading ->
From clearing the air of hookah smoke in Amman, Jordan to bike lanes in Fortaleza, Brazil and salt-free menu options in the restaurants of Montevideo, Uruguay, the Partnership for Healthy Cities has been seeding small grants to cities across the globe – backed by a big ambition. The aim is to build a network of […] Continue reading ->
On 22 November, the Norwegian government broke new ground for the non-communicable disease response. The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs launched the first international development strategy to focus on combatting NCDs in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The NCD Alliance, the Norwegian Cancer Society and other civil society partners around the world have heralded this […] Continue reading ->
Make the ¨healthiest choices the easiest choices¨ to prevent many non-communicable diseases. This was a key message from an Independent High-Level Commission report on Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), released Tuesday at a WHO Global Meeting to Accelerate Progress NCDs and Mental Health in Muscat, Oman. The report, ¨It´s Time to Walk the Talk¨, released on the […] Continue reading ->
Madrid, Spain – India’s Environment Secretary has said that he does not deny the link between air pollution and its health impacts – and affirmed that India needs to act on the issue because “even a single death” from poor air quality would be too much. “Nobody denies that poor air quality causes morbidity and […] Continue reading ->
For the first time ever, leading cancer organizations across Latin America have signed onto a joint declaration pledging to intensify action against millions of avoidable cancer deaths on the continent. The Bogota Statement on Leading BOLD Cancer Prevention into the Future was signed by leaders of cancer organizations and foundations from 8 Latin American countries, […] Continue reading ->
A global campaign focusing on the issue of rape as a form of violence against women is being launched Monday on International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. The annual sixteen-day campaign, which is set to end on 10 December, Human Rights Day, will bring together activism against gender-based violence under this year’s […] Continue reading ->