An estimated 820 million people went hungry in 2018, the third continuous year in a worldwide trend of rising hunger. And over one-quarter of the world’s population, or 2 billion people in all, experienced moderate or severe food insecurity, according to the The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report for 2019. […] Continue reading ->
If the fight against cancer has yielded substantial results on survival rates in high-income countries, low- and middle-income countries are lagging behind, while cancer is gaining ground, with a particularly worrying trend in children. A first-ever International Health Congress on Integrative Oncology, held 28-30 June in Geneva, presented traditional and alternative medicines as precious allies […] Continue reading ->
A new plan to improve collaboration across 12 United Nations and multilateral agencies to support UN member states to reach 2030 targets on health includes not only the ambitious aim of reducing bureaucracy and increasing efficiency, but of working better across sectors to address environmental, commercial and social factors that harm health. These factors, which […] Continue reading ->
A UN Human Rights Council resolution calling for countries to combat childhood, early and forced marriages, and supported by over 60 UN member states, ran into heavy criticism today prior to its final approval. A number of countries in the Middle East, South-East Asia and North Africa publicly disassociated themselves from clauses promoting girls access […] Continue reading ->
Kawaldip Sehmi, CEO of the International Alliance of Patients’ Organizations (IAPO), answers 5 questions on why the Essential Medicines List is important for patients. IAPO is a United Kingdom-based alliance of 276 member organisations from 71 countries representing 50 disease areas, and working in collaboration with civil society, UN agencies and the healthcare industry. Sehmi holds a […] Continue reading ->
WHO has added ten new cancer drugs, including some pricey ones, to its 2019 Essential Medicines List, which provides global guidance to countries and health systems about drugs deemed most essential to patients and public health systems. The addition of major new cancer treatments in five categories, melanoma (skin), lung, blood and prostate cancers, reflects […] Continue reading ->