Therapy

• Public health officials have issued an alert regarding a multistate rise in cyclosporiasis, a parasitic gastrointestinal illness, with over 450 reported cases across 18 states. • Michigan is the most heavily impacted region, accounting for more than 300 of the total cases, though officials warn the actual number is likely higher due to underreporting. • The report also highlights critical medical developments, including safety monitoring for psychedelic therapies by a Yale psychiatrist and new FDA approvals for gene, cell, and nephrology therapies.

• HCA Healthcare has announced a new study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) highlighting advancements in CRISPR-based therapies for children. • The research builds upon pioneering work at TriStar Centennial Medical Center and the Sarah Cannon Transplant and Cellular Therapy Network, which performs over 1,600 cellular therapies and transplants annually. • Dr. Frangoul, a key investigator, previously contributed to the first U.S. clinical trial for gene-editing in sickle cell disease, leading to the first FDA-approved CRISPR therapy.

• The FDA has placed psilocybin and an MDMA-like drug on an accelerated 1-to-2 month approval track, potentially making psilocybin the first FDA-approved psychedelic therapy. • This fast-track process follows a Trump executive order and the use of priority review vouchers, with full approval possible by late 2026. • The shift is supported by evolving psychiatric science, highlighted by the Chicago VA Hospital recently enrolling its first veterans in a psilocybin-assisted therapy program for PTSD.

• The FDA approved the first therapy for primary immunoglobulin A nephropathy in December 2021, marking a significant milestone for patients with this rare kidney disease. • Following this initial approval, several additional novel drugs have received accelerated FDA approval, leading to a rapid expansion of available treatment options. • This "explosion" in therapies is critical as it provides clinicians and patients with a more robust pipeline of medical interventions to manage the disease.

Prison officers’ union calls for immediate end to practice at HMYOI Wetherby over fears for child and animal welfarePet ferrets kept as therapy animals at the UK’s largest children’s prison have been co-opted by managers to kill rats, resulting in a bloody incident and concerns over child and animal welfare.The unorthodox method of vermin control was waved through last month at HMYOI Wetherby in West Yorkshire following a surge in rat numbers in prison offices and grounds. Continue reading...

Poolbeg Pharma to test the treatment in NHS hospitals and says it is also developing a GLP-1 weight loss pillA London-based startup is about to trial a drug at six NHS hospitals that could stop people on cancer immunotherapy getting a life-threatening side-effect.Poolbeg Pharma said its oral drug POLB 001 could make treatment for blood cancer safer by preventing cytokine release syndrome (CRS), when the immune system goes into overdrive and attacks the body, leading to organ damage. Continue reading...

Doctors say therapy that genetically modifies person’s T-cells could offer cure for chronic autoimmune diseaseFive lupus patients in England are in remission after being treated with a revolutionary therapy that genetically modifies their own cells, in a medical breakthrough that could offer people a cure, doctors have said.CAR (chimeric antigen receptor) T-cell therapy involves removing a type of white blood cell also called T lymphocytes, which are crucial for hunting out infected or damaged cells, and engineering them to spot and destroy disease. The T-cells are then fed back into the patient via an infusion to reset their immune system. Continue reading...