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Women's Health
FDA launches probe into lead, arsenic detected in tampons
The US Food and Drug Administration will be carrying out studies to investigate any potential harm to women from the presence of heavy metals,...
FDA alert on menopausal drug
The FDA has issued an alert warning women about menopausal medicine for hot flushes, saying fezolinetant (Veozah), a hormone-free pill, could cause rare but...
Blind women help detect possible breast cancers in India
In an extraordinary programme, blind women in India are assisting in the diagnosis of possible breast cancers, in a country where mammograms are in...
Possible secret chlamydia hiding spot found – German study
The world’s most common sexual infection may have a secret hiding spot in the body where it can avoid antibiotics, suggest researchers, after uncovering...
Fallopian tube removal in sterilisation is safe – Swedish experts
The removal of fallopian tubes during sterilisation is about as safe as sterilisation procedures that damage the tubes but leave them intact, a recent...
Easier self-tests may soon replace the dreaded Pap smear
Healthcare companies are preparing to introduce a new model for cervical cancer screening and prevention: self-collection, in which a woman swabs her vagina in...
NHS rolls out osteoporosis drug for menopausal women
A new drug that helps prevent bone fractures in women – and increases bone density by stimulating the cells that make new bones –...
Updated guidelines for IUDs acknowledge insertion pain
The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated guidelines on intrauterine contraceptive devices(IUD) insertions to include pain management.
In the first update...
Cervical cancer treatment success with heat therapy – Wits study
Researchers at Wits University have successfully enhanced the effectiveness of heat therapy to help treat cervical cancer – the second most common cancer among...
Cranberries reduce UTI risk, meta analysis confirms
Unsweetened cranberry juice is often recommended by doctors as a treatment for urinary tract infections (UTIs), and yet given a lack of solid scientific evidence, some...
Double mastectomy no guarantee against cancer – Canadian cohort study
Women who had a lumpectomy or a mastectomy and kept their other breast did just as well as women who had a double mastectomy,...
Ultrasound cancer screening less accurate in black women – US study
Experts suggest that a common screening technique used to assess the risk of endometrial cancer may be less effective in black women, and that...
US sterilisations double after Roe v Wade overturned
US doctors say that since the controversial overturning by the Supreme Court of Roe v Wade in June 2022, sterilisations in certain states have tripled, with...
Experts warn against over-prescription of testosterone for women
The prescribing of testosterone for middle-aged women is “out of control” and may have long-term implications for their health, warn experts, amid concerns over...
Toxic metals, including lead, found in tampons – US study
American researchers who investigated the presence of metals in tampons commonly used by menstruating women found several toxic metals, like cadmium, lead, and arsenic,...
Post-menopause CKD tied to tooth loss – South Korean study
There's an association between chronic kidney disease (CKD) and increased tooth loss in post-menopausal women, particularly those aged 66-79, according to a South Korean...
US launches 30-year study on black women and cancer
A long-term population study – which will track 100 000 women for three decades – has been started by the American Cancer Society (ACS),...
Male birth control gel shows promise in US trial
The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) says a combination hormonal topical gel has shown promise by suppressing sperm production in a shorter amount...
Women see GP 10 times before menopause diagnosis – UK expert
British women are having at least 10 GP visits before they get a menopause diagnosis, said an expert on the subject, who suggested almost...
Durban experts flag breast cancer genetic trends for different race groups
Precise tracking of breast cancer trends in Sub-Saharan Africa is difficult because of a lack of population-specific data, but in KwaZulu-Natal, researchers were able...
Premenstrual disorders tied to higher suicide risk – Swedish study
Women with premenstrual disorders (PMDs) have been associated with a higher risk of death from non-natural causes, a study in Sweden has suggested, with...
Weight-loss shots linked to unexpected pregnancies
With claims suggesting that weight-loss jabs may be fuelling an unexpected increase in pregnancies, experts have recommended that women pair the use of drugs...
What period blood can reveal about health
In a move highlighting the potential for future studies and findings, the FDA recently approved the first at-home diagnostic test based on period blood,...
UK inquiry hears of mothers' maternity trauma
A British parliamentary inquiry into birth trauma has called for a national plan to improve maternity care, declaring that good care is “the exception rather than the...
New breast cancer genes identified in African women
The identification of a dozen breast cancer genes only recently discovered in women of African ancestry might help improve predictions for their chances of...
Hormones safe for menopause – US study dispels old flawed findings
The benefits of hormone therapy for the treatment of menopause symptoms outweigh the risks, and what is available now is very different from two...
Depression risk ‘40% higher’ in perimenopause – UK meta-analysis
British researchers have suggested that women who are approaching menopause have a 40% higher risk of suffering from anxiety and depression than those with...
Breast cancer screenings from 40, advises US panel
Women are now advised to have a mammogram every second year from 40 until 74, according to new recommendations from the US Preventive Services...
Higher risk for second breast cancer in some women – US cohort study
A recent study suggests that younger breast cancer survivors with a germline pathogenic variant or those with an initial diagnosis of in situ vs...
Ovarian cycle regulated by circadian rhythm – French-US study
A team of reproductive researchers affiliated with several institutions in France and the US has found that the timing of monthly ovarian cycles is...
Huge IVF cost disparities between private and public sectors
As more women choose to have children later in life, and with the increase of same-sex marriages, there has been an rise in the...
Prolonged use of some hormone drugs tied to tumour risk
Researchers in France have suggested that prolonged use of certain progestogen hormone drugs might be associated with an increased risk of developing a type...
Bayer seeks approval for ‘hot flushes’ drug
German pharmaceutical company Bayer will request regulatory approval for its menopause medication after the daily pill was shown to ease hot flushes in a...
‘Useless product’ marketing campaigns target women
Corporations are co-opting feminist messages around women’s well-being to promote useless health tests and treatments, an analysis by Australian researchers has found, exposing them...
Freezing ovarian tissue could prevent menopause – Yale modelling study
Recent research by a team of biologists in the United States has explored the various possible outcomes of delaying menopause – or even preventing...
PCOS tied to cognitive decline, suggests US study
A team of American scientists has suggested that polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) – could be linked to potential cognitive dysfunction later in life.
PCOS refers...
Menopausal relief drug meets late-stage trial goal
German drugmaker Bayer said this week that its new menopausal relief drug candidate elinzanetant met the main goal in two phase 3 trials of...
UK’s new menopause guidance ‘belittling and harmful’
Britain’s new official guidance on treating menopause will harm women’s health, experts and campaigners have warned, accusing the draft guidelines of being “patronising” and “scaremongering”.
Released last...
Early ovarian cancer detection possible with Pap smears – Milan study
The early detection of ovarian cancer is becoming more feasible than ever, with the results of a recent Italian study suggesting it may be...
UK green-lights drug that could slash breast cancer risk
Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has confirmed authorisation of the hormone treatment anastrozol as a preventative treatment for post-menopausal women at...