Health Rounds: Air pollution exposure alters fetal brain development
Brain development in the womb is affected by the mother's level of exposure to air pollution, researchers have found, although it's not clear whether the brain structure differences observed will cause any issues later.
Researchers in Barcelona analyzed data collected between 2018 and 2021 from 754 mother-fetus pairs. During the third trimester of pregnancy, participants underwent transvaginal neurosonography, a specialized ultrasound that allows the analysis of fetal brain shape and structures.
Higher prenatal exposure to nitrogen dioxide, particulate matter, and black carbon in pregnant women's homes, workplaces, and commuting routes was associated with an increase in the volumes of multiple brain regions that contain cerebrospinal fluid, the researchers reported in The Lancet Planetary Health, opens new tab.
Higher exposure to black carbon was also linked with a reduction in the depth of a groove in the brain called the lateral sulcus, which the researchers said might suggest less maturation of the brain.
All measurements of brain structures were within the range considered normal, however.
'At this stage, we can only report having observed differences in the brains of fetuses with higher exposure to pollution compared to those with lower exposure,' senior study author Jordi Sunyer of the Barcelona Institute for Global Health said in a statement.
'Additional research is needed to determine whether these effects are reversible after birth or if they persist, and whether they have any implications for neurodevelopmental outcomes in later stages.'
Scientists have been wrong about how acetaminophen eases pain, a discovery that could lead to new pain management approaches, researchers reported in PNAS, opens new tab.
For decades, scientists believed that acetaminophen, the main ingredient in Tylenol - known in some countries as paracetamol - relieved pain by working only in the brain and spinal cord. But researchers have discovered the drug also works outside the brain, in the nerves that first detect pain.
After the drug is ingested, the body processes it into a metabolite called AM404. The new study found in laboratory experiments that AM404 is produced in pain-sensing nerve endings, where it shuts off specific channels that help transmit pain signals to the brain.
By blocking these sodium channels, AM404 stops the pain message before it even starts, the researchers said.
'This is the first time we've shown that AM404 works directly on the nerves outside the brain,' study leader Alexander Binshtok of Hebrew University in Israel said in a statement. 'It changes our entire understanding of how paracetamol fights pain.'
The discovery could lead to new types of painkillers that mimic the effects of AM404, the researchers suggested. Because AM404 targets only the nerves that carry pain, such drugs may avoid some of the side effects of traditional painkillers, they said.
U.S. appendix cancer rates, while still low, have been climbing dramatically in younger adults, according to a report published in Annals of Internal Medicine, opens new tab.
Appendix cancer rates were three times higher among people born between 1975 and 1985, and four times higher among those born between 1981 and 1989, than among people born in the 1940s, based on national U.S. population data.
The conclusions are drawn from the nearly 4,900 adults who were diagnosed with appendix cancer in the United States between 1975 and 2019.
The pattern of increasing cancer rates held true, to varying degrees, for all tumor types, including nonmucinous, mucinous, goblet cell, or signet ring cell carcinoma, the researchers said.
Rates of colon cancers and other gastrointestinal malignancies have also been rising in younger adults, for reasons that remain unclear, the researchers noted.
'It really struck our curiosity... Would we observe similar patterns in rare appendiceal cancers?" said study leader Dr. Andreana Holowatyj of Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. "And certainly the answer was yes,'
'The big question remains as to why is this happening,' she added. 'But what's most important is that as these higher-risk birth cohorts continue to age, it's likely these rates will continue to increase.'
(To receive the full newsletter in your inbox for free sign up here)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
2 hours ago
- Telegraph
Streeting should ‘channel Thatcher' and introduce prostate screening
Wes Streeting should 'channel Margaret Thatcher ' and introduce screening for prostate cancer without delay, one of the world's leading experts has said. Prof Jonathan Waxman, the founder of the charity Prostate Cancer UK, says the Health Secretary should learn from Thatcher's decision to introduce routine mammograms for women, which he said had saved 3,000 lives a year since they were introduced in 1988. The Telegraph has launched a campaign calling for the introduction of targeted screening for prostate cancer so those at high risk are automatically offered tests. Prostate Cancer UK has submitted evidence in favour of the policy to the UK National Screening Committee (UKNSC), which is currently considering the matter, with a decision expected later this year. Writing for The Telegraph, Prof Waxman said: 'There are interesting parallels between the prostate cancer and breast cancer screening stories. 'In the 1970s, before breast cancer screening was introduced by Government dictat, the medical consensus was, and, you have guessed it, that early diagnosis through screening mammography would not save lives. 'Mrs T, regardless of the medical consensus, waved her handbag at the doctors, ignored the consensus, and launched a screening programme for breast cancer. And the result? Screening mammography, together with treatment advances, has led to a massive improvement in survival from breast cancer. 'Before screening, just 65 per cent of patients with breast cancer survived and now over 80 per cent are cured as a result of early detection and better treatment. 'And how does this improvement manifest in the real world? Around 3,000 fewer women die each year in the UK from breast cancer than before the screening programme was introduced.' The emeritus professor at Imperial College London said Prostate Cancer UK led a consortium of men's health charities to collectively inform the committee on the importance of targeted screening for those at highest risk. But he said the NHS should act now so that GPs do far more to help men at risk of prostate cancer. He urged the NHS to rewrite its guidance so that family doctors are told to proactively start conversations with men about the PSA blood tests which can detect the disease. Current guidance says that men can ask for a test, though some GPs rebuff them. For younger men, including those with a family history of disease, offering a test is down to the clinical judgment of GPs about. In both cases, the onus is on patients to seek help in the first place, with many men including those with family histories of prostate cancer unaware they are at heightened risk of the disease. Prof Waxman said the NHS should rewrite its advice so that GPs are told that they should bring up prostate cancer with all patients who might be at extra risk. He added that the guidelines should suggest that GPs start conversations with men from the age of 45 at highest risk, so those who wish to can obtain a PSA test. 'This puts the power of informed choice back in the hands of men who need it the most and is a crucial step on the path to early diagnosis,' he says. In the past, screening advisers have rejected the practice on the grounds that the tests are too unreliable, and could result in too many men undergoing needless procedures. However, in recent years the back-up diagnostics used to confirm the initial test findings have significantly improved. A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: 'This Government has been clear we would like to see screening in place, but the decision must be evidence-led. 'The UK National Screening Committee is looking at this as a priority – including reviewing the evidence for screening men with a family history of prostate cancer. 'While the review is taking place we are getting on with improving cancer treatment and prevention, as well as funding tens of millions of pounds of research – GPs should consider risk factors and use clinical judgment when considering if patients need a prostate cancer test.' Prostate cancer is a lot more than a nuisance By Jonathan Waxman Sixty years ago, around 10,000 people in the UK were diagnosed annually with prostate cancer. Currently over 50,000 men are diagnosed each year and prostate cancer has the dreadful distinction of being the commonest cancer in men. In parallel, the number of prostate cancer deaths has increased from 3,300 to over 12,000 men annually. So, what to do? We can hope that the treatment of prostate cancer will improve and improve, and cures are found. Treatment is getting better. Thankfully, in 2025, well over 80 per cent of men with prostate cancer that has not spread beyond the prostate will be cured and the duration of survival for men with cancer that has spread has doubled compared with 25 years ago. These improvements have come because of modern medicine's marvellous miracles, developing from brilliant university research and big pharma's R & D. Prostate Cancer UK has invested over £120m in research over the years. But clearly despite the gloss of shiny medical breakthroughs, prostate cancer remains a fundamentally unpleasant problem, and a lot more than a nuisance. What can be done? Find it early, you say? Yes, that would seem logical. How do we do this? Well, if we want to find prostate cancer early then the obvious answer is to screen for prostate cancer. There is no UK screening programme for the early detection of prostate cancer, a cancer which is often without symptoms. The National Screening Committee is currently considering the role of screening for prostate cancer. Prostate Cancer UK has led a consortium of men's health charities to collectively inform the committee, which advises government, on the importance of targeted screening for those at highest risk. There are interesting parallels between the prostate cancer and breast cancer screening stories. In the 1970s, before breast cancer screening was introduced by Government dictat, the medical consensus was, and, you have guessed it, that early diagnosis through screening mammography would not save lives. Mrs T, regardless of the medical consensus, waved her handbag at the doctors, ignored the consensus, and launched a screening programme for breast cancer. And the result? Screening mammography together with treatment advances have led to a massive improvement in survival from breast cancer. Before screening, just 65 per cent of patients with breast cancer survived and now over 80 per cent are cured as a result of early detection and better treatment. And how does this improvement manifest in the real world? Around 3000 fewer women die in the UK from breast cancer each year than before the screening programme was introduced. To return to the debate on screening for prostate cancer. We are now at a critical inflection point in the history of prostate cancer screening. Last year, Prostate Cancer UK published research that showed prostate cancer diagnosis is safer and more accurate than ever before, and this in part is thanks to research the charity funded leading to MRI – Magnetic Resonance Imaging – being introduced into the diagnostic pathway. The National Screening Committee, under the iron baton of its excellent chair, is currently deliberating on the evidence for and against screening for prostate cancer and will issue a report this year. In heavily trailed remarks, Wes Streeting has indicated that he is in favour of screening but not for everyone, just for selective high risk groups of men. We at Prostate Cancer UK welcome this ministerial support, for it is also our view that there is a need for screening, and we believe the evidence is now there for targeted screening. We welcome his remarks at a time when we are about to launch TRANSFORM, a multi-centre screening trial using sophisticated technologies based on current diagnostic tools, an adaptive trial that is open to new screening tests. Prostate Cancer UK's trial invests £42m in a very long-term campaign to assess the survival benefits of modern screening methods. So, who are Mr Streeting's selective high risk groups of men at increased risk of prostate cancer? These are men with family histories of prostate cancer who constitute 1 to 5 per cent of all diagnosed patients, and black men, who have a one in four risk of prostate cancer, which is twice the risk of white men. What to do whilst we await the Screening Committee's conclusions? Currently GP guidelines concerning testing for prostate cancer are outdated. We urgently need these NHS guidelines updated to empower GPs to proactively start conversations about PSA testing with men from the age of 45 at highest risk. This puts the power of informed choice back in the hands of men who need it the most and is a crucial step on the path to early diagnosis. So, yes, prostate cancer is a bit of a nuisance, but let us see if we can do something about that nuisance. Prof Jonathan Waxman OBE is the founder and president of Prostate Cancer UK
Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Telegraph
We must lead AI revolution or be damned, says Muslim leader
Muslims must take charge of artificial intelligence or 'be damned' as a marginalised community, the head of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) has said in a leaked video. Dr Wajid Akhter, the general secretary of the MCB, said Muslims and their children risked missing the AI revolution in the same way as they had been left behind in the computer and social media revolutions. He added that while Muslims had historically been at the forefront of civilisation and were credited with some of the greatest scientific advances, they had ended up as the butt' of jokes in the modern world after failing to play a part in the latest technological revolutions. 'We already missed the industrial revolution. We missed the computer revolution. We missed the social media revolution. We will be damned and our children will damn us if we miss the AI revolution. We must take a lead,' said Dr Akther. Speaking at the MCB's AI and the Muslim Community conference on July 19, he added: 'AI needs Islam, it needs Muslims to step up.' Scientists 'made fun of' faith at computer launch Dr Akther recalled how at the launch of one of the world's earliest computers, the Mark II , US scientists brought out a prayer mat aligned towards Mecca. 'They were making fun of all religions because they felt that they had now achieved the age of reason and science and technology and we don't need that superstition any more,' he said. 'And so to show that they had achieved mastery over religion, they decided to make fun and they chose our faith. 'How did we go from a people who gave the world the most beautiful buildings, science, technology, medicine, arts to being a joke? 'I'll tell you one thing – the next time that the world is going through a revolution, the next time they go to flip that switch, they will also pull out a prayer mat and they will also line it towards the Qibla [the direction towards Mecca] and they will also pray, but this time, not to make fun of us, they will do so because they are us.' Government eases stance on MCB Dr Akther also told his audience: 'We lost each other. And ever since we lost each other, we've been falling. We've been falling ever since. We are people now who are forced, we are forced by Allah to watch the genocide of our brothers and sisters in Gaza. 'This is a punishment for us if we know it. We are people who are forced to beg the ones who are doing the killing to stop it. We are people who are two billion strong but cannot even get one bottle of water into Gaza.' Dr Akhter said Gaza had 'woken' Muslims up and showed they needed to unite. 'We will continue to fall until the day we realise that only when we are united will we be able to reverse this. Until the day we realise that we need to sacrifice for this unity,' he added. British governments have maintained a policy of 'non-engagement' with the MCB since 2009 based on claims, disputed by the council, that some of its officials have previously made extremist comments. However, Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister, is drawing up a new official definition of Islamophobia, and last week it emerged the consultation has been thrown open to all groups including the MCB. Earlier this year, Sir Stephen Timms, a minister in the Department for Work and Pensions, was one of four Labour MPs to attend an MCB event.
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Sir Chris Hoy explains why he feels 'lucky' after cancer diagnosis granted him 'the time to really appreciate life'
Sir Chris Hoy says his terminal cancer diagnosis has given him something many others never get: time to reflect, reset priorities and truly appreciate life. The Olympic legend, who revealed in October that he has stage four prostate cancer, has become a powerful voice for early detection and a living example that serious illness need not mean the end of meaningful living. Speaking to The Telegraph, Hoy reflected on friends who died suddenly, without the chance to say goodbye. He said: 'What would they have given for that? And therefore, for me, I think: "Well, aren't I lucky?" Look at the privilege I've got, the time to really appreciate life.' Hoy had no symptoms before his diagnosis. Then a sore shoulder led to a scan, which revealed a tumour. Further tests confirmed the cancer had spread to his bones. He was 47. Since then, Hoy, now 49, has thrown himself into raising awareness — particularly for men over 45 or those with risk factors like a family history. His own father was diagnosed with prostate cancer shortly before the London 2012 Olympics, but made a full recovery thanks to early detection. Hoy has also seen the impact of speaking out. NHS data shows a sharp rise in urological cancer referrals since his announcement, while Prostate Cancer UK has reported a major spike in risk assessments among men. He's not one to seek praise — in fact, he draws inspiration from others who spoke publicly about their diagnoses, including Rob Burrow and Doddie Weir. 'They stood up and they smiled and they used humour and they recognised that they could make a difference. I don't really see myself in the same vein as those two, but if I could have any impact at all…' Hoy is currently training for his September event, the Tour de 4, a mass-participation charity ride with routes for all abilities. He'll be tackling the toughest 56-mile route and says the goal is to challenge public perceptions of what living with stage four cancer can look like. He's also clear-eyed about the emotional toll of his diagnosis — including the fear, panic and difficult conversations with his children. But he credits his family, his support network, and the simple power of staying in the present for getting him through. 'It's the fear of the future that causes anxiety and stress for most people,' he said. 'So it's not allowing yourself to fast forward and try and predict what's going to happen because you never know.' Hoy's wife Sarra was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis just weeks after his own news. The couple have faced both challenges side by side, and Sarra is now training for Tour de 4 too. Between workouts, Hoy has returned to motor racing, recently driving at Le Mans with Top Gear's Chris Harris. But he insists the everyday moments matter most — time with his children, a good film, a shared laugh. He hopes his public platform will help others facing cancer feel less alone, and inspire men to get checked before it's too late. 'If my legacy is that less men are dying from prostate cancer, that would be incredible,' he concluded.
