Sweetener Tied to Cancer; Pillow Bacteria Copious; SCOTUS Ruling ‘Bad for Medicine’

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The World Health Organization’s cancer research agency has concluded that the widely used artificial sweetener aspartame is “possibly carcinogenic to humans.” (Reuters)

Meanwhile in Florida, new roads will be built with mining waste previously linked with cancer. (The Hill)

Yet another reason to lie awake worrying at night: Unwashed pillow cases have more bacteria than a toilet seat. (New York Post)

The Supreme Court decision restricting medical schools’ ability to consider race in admissions decisions “is bad for health care, bad for medicine, and undermines the health of our nation,” according to a statement from the American Medical Association.

An estimated 100 million Americans live in areas with air quality affected by Canadian wildfires. (Reuters)

BioXcel stock went into free fall after a press release largely ignored the disclosure that a key investigator in a positive trial of the company’s Alzheimer’s drug falsified safety information about the study. (Endpoints News)

Multiple days of 100-degree heat have taken a toll on prisoners in a non-air-conditioned prison north of Houston, although the Texas Department of Criminal Justice has not reported a heat-related death at the facility since 2012. (New York Times, JAMA Network Open)

At least seven U.S. citizens have died and dozens remain at risk of potentially fatal fungal meningitis as a result of surgery with epidural anesthesia at a clinic in Matamoros, Mexico, according to an updated report from the CDC.

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, MD, MPH, officially signed off on the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines for adults 60 and up using shared clinical decision-making. (CNN)

Let’s make a deal: Georgia rolls out its plan to offer Medicaid coverage to uninsured residents who agree to go to work or school in exchange. (AP)

The first drug developed entirely from artificial intelligence is now being tested in humans. (CNBC)

A world first: Australia is offering MDMA (also known as Ecstasy or Molly) for individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder. (Washington Post)

Deaths from uterine cancer may soon exceed those from ovarian cancer, the long-time leader in deaths attributable to gynecologic cancers. (Fox News)

The FDA approved valoctocogene roxaparvovec (Roctavian) as the first gene therapy for severe hemophilia A in adults, drug developer Biomarin announced.

Pedestrian deaths surpassed 7,500 in 2022, the highest number in more than 40 years and a 77% increase since 2010. (NBC News)

The Michigan legislature has approved a ban on “conversion therapy” for LGBTQ+ minors. (ABC News)

Abortion and LGBTQ rights are included in a state-level equal rights amendment that New Yorkers will vote on in 2024. (Politico)

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