Migraines and acne among five more conditions pharmacists can treat
Thursday 10th September 2026
People will be able to go to their local chemist in England this autumn and get on-the-spot treatment for 12 common conditions without going to their GP first. Pharmacists can already prescribe medication for seven conditions - sore throat, earache, sinusitis, shingles, impetigo, infected bites and urinary tract infections. Five more - migraines, acne, scabies, ear infections and badly blocked noses - are now also being added to that list. NHS England said the move was to ease pressure on busy GPs and A&E departments while making sure people could get treatment quickly and conveniently. After a very hot summer and three of the busiest months on record in A&Es in England, the NHS says it wants to make it as easy as possible…
Transplanted pig kidney works in US man's body for record 271 days
Monday 7th September 2026
A kidney transplanted from a pig has worked inside a patient for 271 days – the longest on record, say US doctors. Tim Andrews said the transplant gave him "hope" and spared him months of needing to go to hospital to have his blood filtered by a dialysis machine. The team at Mass General Brigham hospital say their work shows pig organs can be used as a "bridge" until a human transplant becomes available. But the pig organ eventually failed and was removed so Andrews needed a short bout of dialysis before a donor was found. Doctors and scientists are exploring xenotransplantation – using organs from other species – due to shortages of organs for transplants.
HPV home-testing kits available for women in England who have missed cervical screening
Wednesday 26th August 2026
Women who have missed a cervical screening appointment in England are to be offered HPV self-testing kits by the NHS. Over the next year, nearly four million will receive invites on the NHS App or via text message, email or letter to order a free kit to use at home. Figures show around a third of women who are eligible cervical cancer screening have not taken up the offer recently. The self-testing kits are designed to get more women checked for high-risk HPV virus, which causes nearly all cases of cervical cancer.
Vaccine breakthrough stops cancer returning in trial
Thursday 20th August 2026
A new personalised vaccine given in combination with a drug has stopped skin cancer returning in patients during a trial, representing a potentially watershed moment in cancer treatment. The vaccine, developed by drug companies Merck & Co or MSD, and Moderna, was given to patients with high-risk melanoma, a type of skin cancer, after they had surgery. Early results show this new jab extended the length of time these patients were cancer free, but it's unclear for how long, according to an announcement by the two firms. Cancer experts say this is a breakthrough, but emphasise caution as the full results have not been released or peer-reviewed whereby independent experts examine and check the trial findings. And even after the trials process has finished,…
One dead and hundreds ill in UK salmonella outbreak
Wednesday 19th August 2026
A person has died and hundreds have fallen ill with salmonella food poisoning in an outbreak that UK experts believe is linked to eating food made with imported eggs.
England set to eliminate hepatitis C
Tuesday 11th August 2026
England is on track to become one of the first countries in the world to eliminate hepatitis C, a dangerous virus that attacks the liver, figures show. The target of treating 80% of all known cases has already been met, and deaths from the virus have fallen by 36% in the last decade, just short of what is needed by 2030. Taking antiviral tablets for 8 to 12 weeks can cure more than 95% of cases. Initiatives including A&E blood tests, GP registration testing and free at-home tests have helped to find people who were previously undiagnosed, says NHS England.
Breast cancer checks missing most women under 50 who are at risk, says study
Tuesday 4th August 2026
NHS criteria for screening women under 50 for breast cancer are too narrow and missing up to 95% of those at higher risk of developing the disease, researchers have warned. The current guidelines - set by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (Nice) - focus solely on inherited genes and not other factors such as lifestyle, they found.
Hundreds of thousands of women get morning-after pill via free pharmacy service
Wednesday 29th July 2026
Hundreds of thousands of women have used a new, free morning-after pill service at high street pharmacies in England, figures reveal. The scheme launched in October to improve access and save women from having to book a GP or sexual health clinic appointment. New NHS figures show that almost 305,000 doses were given out at pharmacies between October 2025 and March 2026. Meanwhile, the number of women asking pharmacists about going on the regular oral contraceptive pill more than doubled, from around 50,000 to more than 115,000 in the 12 months to February 2026.
'Life-changing' MS drug to help people walk now on NHS in England
Monday 27th July 2026
The first drug to help people with multiple sclerosis walk is being made available on the NHS in England. Fampridine boosts nerve signals to make it easier for some people to move and live independently.
First person gets new experimental vaccine for Ebola
Friday 24th July 2026
The first volunteer in the world - a 37-year-old UK man called Ed Hunt - has received an experimental vaccine against the Ebola virus.
What does extreme heat do to our bodies?
Monday 20th July 2026
As the body gets hotter, blood vessels open up. This lowers your blood pressure and makes your heart work harder to push the blood around the body. This process can cause mild symptoms such as an itchy heat rash or swollen feet. At the same time, sweating leads to the loss of fluids and salt and, crucially, the balance between them in the body changes. This, combined with the lowered blood pressure, can lead to heat exhaustion. Symptoms include: dizziness nausea fainting confusion muscle cramps headaches heavy sweating tiredness If blood pressure drops too far, the risk of heart attacks rises.
More than 2,700 people may have died in exceptional May and June heatwaves in England and Wales
Monday 13th July 2026
More than 2,700 people may have died from heat-related causes in England and Wales during the exceptionally hot weather in May and June, experts' estimates suggest.