28th Sep 2018 Friday FivePioneering radiotherapy treatment The first patient in the UK, Barry Dolling, has been treated with the MR Linac, which simultaneously scans tumours inside the body while delivering X-ray radiation beams. The machine seamlessly combines MRI and radiotherapy without interference. This allows clinicians to adjust treatment in real time, making it highly accurate and will hopefully…
28th Sep 2018 Friday FiveGlobal TB crisis Reports suggest that there are 10 million new cases of Tuberculosis (TB) every year and unfortunately around 1.7 million people succumb to the disease. On 26 September heads of state, doctors and scientists are gathering at the UN general assembly meeting on ending TB, to discuss the failing global efforts to tackle…
28th Sep 2018 Friday FiveNHS vacancies a ‘national emergency’ Official figures show that NHS staff shortages are worsening in England, with one in 11 posts vacant. The latest figures published by NHS Improvement show that for the April to June period, 11.8% of nurse posts and 9.3% of doctor posts were vacant. Overall, there was found to be a…
28th Sep 2018 Friday FiveNHS to offer new leukaemia therapy A deal has been struck by the NHS that means hospitals can begin to offer children a cutting-edge cancer therapy within weeks. CAR-T is a novel treatment for aggressive leukaemia that has been described as the most exciting treatment advance for decades. It is personalised to the individual and…