Medical Bulletin 12/August/2026

• Pharmaceutical journalist Maryanne Demasi has uncovered significant anomalies in the trial data for mRNA vaccines. • The findings, sourced from the FDA's depository and the New England Journal of Medicine, suggest the trials relied on questionable assumptions and imprecisions.

• Donald Trump has issued orders directing the Department of Justice to target states and localities whose childhood immunization rules conflict with parental authority, religious freedom, and medical exemptions. • The orders include a call for the CDC to revise its vaccine recommendations to align with those of other developed nations and revive claims linking vaccines to autism, despite scientific refutation.

• The CDC has reported over 24,000 cases of cyclosporiasis across 47 states, linked to an outbreak caused by contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce. • The illness is caused by Cyclospora cayetanensis, a unicellular parasite that leads to an intestinal infection in humans.

• An Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has escalated, resulting in more than 2,000 deaths. • Infectious disease experts emphasize that the average American faces very little domestic risk from the virus.

• U.S. poison centers have seen a nearly fourfold increase in calls regarding liver injury between 2000 and 2024, with acetaminophen (Tylenol) identified as the primary cause. • Definium Therapeutics announced that its phase III trial for an investigational LSD pill successfully met its primary endpoint in treating generalized anxiety disorder.

• The WHO chief warns that the current Ebola outbreak in the east of DR Congo, declared on 15 May, is on track to be the deadliest ever. • The virus has already caused over 2,000 deaths, with thousands more cases reported and no approved vaccines or therapeutic drugs available for this specific strain.

• The author argues that current disease burdens are essentially policy failures, suggesting that medical progress is being unnecessarily hindered. • A primary bottleneck identified is the increasing complexity and slowing pace of clinical trials required for drug approval.

• Valion Bio is launching a shielded-mouse study this week to evaluate the efficacy of Entolimod in improving survival and gastrointestinal recovery following radiation exposure. • The study has received necessary approvals from the Armed Forces Radiobiology Information Institute (AFRRI) and the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC).

• A U.S. study highlights the high economic burden of measles outbreaks, estimating that a single event can cost millions of dollars in healthcare and public-health response. • Global health efforts are shifting toward infectious disease preparedness, including the U.S. FDA's approval of Moderna’s first mRNA influenza vaccine.

• Researchers publishing in JAMA Network Open found that noncitizens in the U.S. have lower screening rates for cervical, colorectal, and breast cancers due to socioeconomic barriers and limited healthcare access. • The FDA has declined to approve 177Lu-edotreotide, an investigational radiotherapeutic for gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, citing specific manufacturing issues.

• The AACR will host a participant training and advocate reception on September 16, followed by "Rally Hill Day" on September 17. • During the event, participants will meet with congressional offices to advocate for sustained National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding.