RECENT NEWS

Half of people in Great Britain did not know about any of the advanced types of life-saving radiotherapy treatments now available, which were listed in a Cancer Research UK poll.

Analysis of blood samples from more than 5,000 people suggests that a more sensitive version of a blood test long used to verify heart muscle damage from heart attacks could also identify people on their way to developing hypertension, before it shows up on a blood pressure machine.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published a new draft guideline to help change people’s behaviour to reduce antimicrobial resistance and stop the spread of resistant microbes. This new draft guideline complements existing NICE guidelines on antimicrobial stewardship, published in August.

Working 12+ hour shifts is linked to a heightened risk of burnout, job dissatisfaction, and intention to leave among hospital nurses in 12 European countries, according to research published in the online journal BMJ Open. The findings run counter to the perceived value among both nurses and employers of working longer shifts, which are increasingly common practice in England, Ireland, and Poland, say the researchers.

The Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) has published a new policy paper on seven-day care in the NHS. The RCS believes the risk of death is higher for some groups of patients admitted to hospital at the weekend. In many hospitals the levels of staffing and access to diagnostics are worse for all patients including those requiring emergency treatment over the weekend periods.

NHS services for diagnosing cancer are underfunded, understaffed, and key waiting time targets are being missed, according to two new reports from Cancer Research UK. The reports, which highlight the growing pressures on services for imaging and endoscopy, concluded:

NHS England Chief Executive, Simon Stevens has announced a major drive to improve and support the health and wellbeing of 1.3 million health service staff. Speaking at the Health and Innovation Expo 2015 conference in Manchester, he set out how NHS organisations will be supported to help their staff stay well.

The number of people living with diabetes in the UK has soared by nearly 60% in a decade, according to a new analysis by Diabetes UK.

For the first time, a new PHE led study published in The Lancet ranks the diseases and risk factors that cause death and disability in England compared with other high-income countries, revealing the nation’s potential to have the lowest total disease burden (years of life lost to death and lived with disability) in the world.

The latest quality standard published by NICE aims to help health professionals prevent thousands of people from becoming ill and dying prematurely from heart attacks, strokes and peripheral arterial disease. The quality standard covers identifying and assessing cardiovascular risk in adults, and, where it is necessary, using statins to reduce levels of harmful cholesterol in order to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD).

A drug which has already been in use for decades to treat liver disease could be an effective treatment to slow down progression of Parkinson’s disease, scientists from the University of Sheffield have discovered.

NHS England has announced eight new urgent and emergency care vanguards which will test the models set out in the Urgent and Emergency Care Review and transform unscheduled care across large areas of England.

NICE draft guidance has recommended the anti-blood clotting drug edoxaban (Lixiana, Daiichi Sankyo) as an option for preventing stroke and systemic embolism in adults with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) who have one or more further risk factors.

NICE has published draft diagnostics guidance recommending the MiniMed Paradigm Veo System (Medtronic) for monitoring blood glucose levels in some people with type 1 diabetes.

An analysis of video footage, taken during 20 operations, suggests that some operating theatre teams are negatively affected by background music, during surgery. Researchers suggest that the decision to play music during an operation should be made by the entire team, taking into account both the benefits and the risks.

The health service in England needs a dedicated fund to finance and drive forward essential changes to services, according to a new report launched by the Health Foundation and The King’s Fund. The report comes as the Department of Health releases its 2014/15 accounts which reinforce the financial challenges facing the NHS at this time.

Public Health England (PHE) has announced the groups eligible to receive the shingles vaccine from the start of September for the 2015 to 2016 vaccination programme. From 1 September 2015, the shingles vaccine will be offered routinely to people aged 70 years, and the catch up will extend to those aged 78 years.

Cancer Research UK scientists have, for the first time, identified that there are five distinct types of prostate cancer and found a way to distinguish between them. The findings could have important implications for how doctors treat prostate cancer in the future, by identifying tumours that are more likely to grow and spread aggressively through the body.

NICE has published its first guideline on melanoma which aims to reduce the numbers of people dying from the disease, and addresses the wide variations across the country in diagnosis and treatment.

Public Health England (PHE) has announced the start of the new MenACWY vaccination programme, which will offer teenagers protection against meningitis (inflammation of the brain) and septicaemia (blood poisoning) caused by four meningococcal strains including MenW.