France ends ban on gay and bisexual male blood donors
France passed its first ban on men who have sex with men donating blood in 1983, in the early years of the AIDS crisis.
Public health & disease
From disease eradication efforts to advances in vaccination and maternal health, this archive tracks real progress in public health. Stories here focus on what’s working — policies, interventions, and research that are improving and extending lives around the world.
Psilocybin clinical trial confirms safety of group psychedelic sessions
A new study published in the The Journal of Psychopharmacology found no detrimental effects from simultaneous administration of the drug.
Psychedelics approved for medical use in Canada
Health Canada’s change to federal regulations makes restricted drugs psilocybin and MDMA more realistic alternatives to patients suffering life-threatening mental illnesses.
Botswana achieves WHO’s “silver tier” certification for mother-to-child HIV transmission
The country was previously classified as a “high burden” country, which is defined as more than two percent of women living with HIV.
Countries with regulations against industrially produced trans fats tripled over the past year
Forty countries now have best-practice trans fat elimination policies in effect, protecting 1.4 billion people from this deadly food compound, according to new WHO report.
Researchers disable long-targeted gene behind spread of major cancers
Princeton University researchers have discovered what they call a “silver bullet” in the form of a compound that can disable the gene that allows most major cancers to metastasize in mice and human tissue.
A “functional cure” for HIV to begin human trials
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave approval to Excision Biotherapeutics to use its innovative HIV treatment in Phase I/II human trials.
Cleveland Clinic launches human trials on first-of-its-kind preventative breast cancer vaccine
After two decades of preclinical research, human trials are set to begin on a unique preventative vaccine that is designed to target a protein commonly expressed by triple-negative breast cancers.
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announces plans to regulate cancer-causing ‘forever chemicals’
A handful of states including New Jersey, Vermont, Michigan, and New York, have already moved to regulate the chemicals on their own while the EU has banned many of the chemicals outright.
Psychedelics linked to lower heart disease and diabetes risk in new study
“The findings suggest that lifetime classic psychedelic use is associated with lower odds of having had heart disease or diabetes in the past year,” lead study author and Oxford sociologist Otto Simonsson.