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IIt’s the most wonderful time of the year: STAT Summit week! I like it when my colleagues come to town, and not just because we’re more likely to get a free lunch at the office. (Today? I heard pizza!) Many great conversations await us. It’s not too late to join us, in person or virtually!
Why aren’t we doing better in the fight against cardiovascular disease?
In 2010, the American Heart Association set a 10-year goal to reduce deaths from cardiovascular disease and stroke by 20%. It didn’t happen. Cardiovascular disease is still the number one killer in the US, and the AHA called it a “disappointment” that the target was not met.
So what went wrong? It’s a big question that STAT’s Liz Cooney has asked nearly a dozen experts in cardiology, primary care, endocrinology and vascular disease in recent months. There’s no easy answer, but almost everyone she spoke to pointed to one key factor: a crisis in primary care.
“We are losing ground,” said FDA Commissioner and cardiologist Robert Califf. “I think the biggest fixable problem for us is that we don’t have a functioning primary care system in the U.S.”
Read more in a story by Liz about the role of the primary care system. Then move on to the second story in this special report, about the many additional factors that influence cardiovascular assistance. (And if you’re feeling stressed, experts in that story also discuss some trends that give them hope.)
Research into GLP-1s and suicidality in young people shows promising results
A new study found that adolescents prescribed GLP-1 medications for obesity had a 33% lower risk of suicidal thoughts or attempted suicide compared to those with obesity who were prescribed lifestyle interventions. The article, published yesterday in JAMA Pediatricsis the first to focus exclusively on the mental health effects of these medications among young people, the authors write.
Researchers analyzed electronic health records of thousands of adolescents, ages 12 to 18, with prescriptions for GLP-1 medications or a lifestyle intervention, all of whom had been diagnosed with obesity within the past year. The findings suggest the drugs are safe for adolescent mental health, the authors claim. But some experts are still concerned that we don’t know about other long-term side effects, such as whether the drugs could affect development.
Read more about the existing youth research and these blockbuster drugs from STAT’s Elaine Chen and Liz Cooney.
Grouping Asians together in health data masks major disparities in heart health
Last year, STAT’s Usha Lee McFarling wrote movingly about the danger of bringing together nearly 25 million Asian Americans—from Hmong to Laotians, and from Koreans to Indonesians—as one entity in medical and public health research. Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders are often lumped into the Asian category, she wrote, even though federal standards clearly state they should be separated. An investigation yesterday in the Annals of Internal Medicine shows how lumping Asians into one group can mask significant health disparities, in this case cardiovascular disease.
Death rates from cardiovascular disease were 1.5 times higher for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander adults over age 35 than for other Asian adults, ranking them third in the U.S. behind black and white adults, according to an analysis of 2018 through 2022. Heart disease was the most commonly reported cause on death certificates for NHPI adults at 73%, while cerebrovascular disease accounted for 19% of deaths. More than a third of cardiovascular deaths occurred before the age of 65, something the authors call potentially premature and therefore concerning.
“Collectively, these results indicate a need for targeted interventions to promote cardiovascular health and prevent CVD among the NHPI population,” they wrote. — Liz Cooney
Why are you, Rosalind?
Since the Nobel Prizes were established in 1901, only 24 women have received awards in the sciences. This year that number remained the same: all seven laureates in physics, chemistry and physiology or medicine were men. Experts say the disparity reflects the greater barriers to success that women face in science.
This year’s Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has attracted particular attention. Rosalind Lee, the wife and long-time collaborator of one of the winners, was not recognized despite being the first author of one of the studies cited by the committee. She is the second woman named Rosalind to be rejected in this way, after Rosalind Franklin, whose contributions to the discovery of the DNA double helix were initially unrecognized. Read more about the problem from STAT’s Anil Oza.
(On a lighter but similar note, this reminds me of the famous STAT story about the number of speakers named Michael being greater than the number of female speakers at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference one year.)
New study identifies potential brain cell targets for Alzheimer’s treatments
For decades, the Alzheimer’s field has largely focused on the idea that clumps of a protein fragment known as beta-amyloid cause the fatal neurodegenerative disease. Although this hypothesis has led to two approved therapies, scientists are eager to achieve goals that could lead to more effective treatments. A new study suggests that the key to this search could be focusing on cell types that are lost early in the disease.
A scientific team led by researchers from the Allen Institute analyzed 3.4 million cells from the brains of 84 deceased Alzheimer’s patients. They discovered a host of cellular changes that occur before symptoms first appear, including a dramatic loss in a population of cells known as somatostatin-expressing inhibitory neurons. These cells are lost long before beta-amyloid or tau, another disease-related protein, builds up in the brain, the authors report in Nature Neuroscience.
It is currently unclear what exactly causes the loss of these neurons. But the researchers say the findings suggest that protecting the cells could prevent a whole series of events that lead to cognitive symptoms, although more detailed follow-up studies are needed to show whether that is true. — Jonathan Wossen
Ballots for abortion rights win, but pro-abortion candidates may not
Montana is one of 10 states to give abortion rights to voters in November, the latest in a series of ballot measures since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. So far, every time Americans have voted on abortion in response to that decision, they have favored access over restrictions.
Local advocates are optimistic about the measure. But what’s still unclear is how the races for the Senate and the governor’s office will play out. Montana’s Democratic Senator Jon Tester is trailing Republican anti-abortion candidate Tim Sheehy in the polls. The Democratic candidate for governor is also trailing Republican incumbent Greg Gianforte.
Read more from STAT’s Sarah Owermohle, who traveled to Bozeman to speak with candidates and community members on the ground.
What we read
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Colorado’s naloxone fund is drying up as money for opioid settlements pours in. KFF Health News
- Few hospital websites post about LGBTQ+ services or policies, study shows, STAT
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JD Vance’s Mother Gained Healthcare Coverage Under Trump – Using Obamacare, WashingtonPost
- Occupational and environmental medicine is a crucial specialty – and it’s under threat, STAT
- A husband in the aftermath of his wife’s unfathomable act, New Yorker
- In pursuit of CAR-T, biotech finds its next gold rush in autoimmune diseases: STAT