A yet-to-be-identified disease has claimed the lives of about 50 people in northwest Democratic Republic of the Congo, DRC. On Monday, local authorities reported that over 943 cases of fever of unknown origin have been identified in Basankusu in the DRC’s Equateur Province since February 9, with 52 fatalities.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has introduced a new platform to provide cost-free cancer medicines for thousands of children in low- and middle-income countries, aiming to improve survival rates that lag far behind those in wealthier nations. As part of the initiative’s pilot phase, the first shipments of medicines have been delivered to Mongolia and Uzbekistan, with additional deliveries planned for Ecuador, Jordan, Nepal, and Zambia. This year, the program is expected to benefit approximately 5,000 children across at least 30 hospitals in these six countries.
Dr. Sam Adegboye, a physician, has dismissed the notion that frequent sexual activity lowers the risk of prostate cancer in men. Adegboye, who serves as the Assistant Chief Medical Officer and General Practitioner at the Federal Teaching Hospital in Ido-Ekiti, Ekiti State, refuted the claim during a phone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Osogbo, the Osun State capital. He stated: "Most neurological studies do not support this claim. For instance, a review of the American Journal of Neurology revealed some biases. Research must be evidence-based, and currently, there is no concrete proof from neurologists to back this idea, although some traditional beliefs endorse it."
The National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has proposed the death penalty for drug peddlers. According to the DG of the agency Mojisola Adeyeye, only stiff penalities will deter peddlers especially when it leads to the death of the children.
The Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN) has established a fully equipped Lassa fever testing laboratory at the Infectious Disease Hospital in Akure, the capital of Ondo State. Previously, suspected Lassa fever cases in the state were sent to the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) in Owo for testing and confirmation. However, with the new facility, testing can now be done within Akure, improving response time. Since the recent outbreak, Ondo State has recorded 400 suspected cases, with over 100 confirmed infections and several fatalities.
To address the nationwide strike by the health workers in their demand for implementation of CONMESS and CONHESS for Doctors and health workers, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved an extension in the retirement age for medical doctors and other allied healthcare workers from 60 to 65 years.
