Work health assessments standard - NHS Employers

Many survivors of gynecologic cancer experience treatment-related changes that affect sexual health, yet these concerns are not consistently addressed during oncology visits, according to a qualitative study published in Supportive Care in Cancer. Researchers found that clinicians frequently encountered barriers including limited time, discomfort with the topic, age-related assumptions, and uncertainty about professional roles. The results point to practical strategies that could help oncology nurses and other members of the cancer care team incorporate sexual health assessment more routinely into survivorship care. Researchers interviewed 21 gynecologic oncology clinicians, including gynecologic oncologists, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants. Sexual Health Discussions Often Occur in Survivorship CareParticipants described considerable variation in when and how sexual health concerns were addressed. Conversations were more likely to occur during postoperative, surveillance, or survivorship visits than during active treatment, when discussions about prognosis, treatment decisions, and symptom management often took priority.

HealthHealth authorities in Russia say there is “no plague case” in Siberia following reports last week that a lab technician had died of pneumonia of an unknown origin in the region, World Health Organization (WHO) officials said on Wednesday. Russian regulators told WHO on Tuesday that there was no evidence pneumonic plague played a part in her death and that no pathogens had been detected, agency chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. About 200 of her contacts have been placed in quarantine. Further requests for information have been sent to Russian authorities, he added, noting that the lab is part of an institute in Irkutsk that studies dangerous pathogens, including plague, which occurs naturally in wild animals in the area.

Bioengineer.org news storyFor people living with HIV, modern antiretroviral therapy can suppress the virus to levels below what standard laboratory tests can detect. Yet some patients on long-term treatment experience a curious phenomenon: a single test result showing a small, transient amount of virus in the blood, followed by an immediate return to undetectable levels. These events, known as viral blips, have puzzled clinicians and researchers for years, raising questions about whether they represent harmless statistical noise, brief bursts of viral production from hidden reservoirs, or early warnings of impending treatment failure. A new nationwide Swedish study, published in BMC Infectious Diseases, offers one of the most comprehensive answers to date. Drawing on the Swedish national InfCareHIV cohort, researchers analyzed data from 4,210 treatment-naïve adults who began antiretroviral therapy from 1 January 2007 onward, with follow-up data extracted through 30 September 2020. The median observation time was 5.5 years, with some individuals followed for as long as 13.7 years.

European Medical Journal news storyPeople living with HIV may experience subtle changes in heart muscle function even when conventional measures of cardiac performance remain normal, according to findings from a systematic review and meta-analysis. Researchers identified significantly impaired global longitudinal strain (GLS) among people with HIV compared with HIV-uninfected individuals, despite preserved left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) in both groups. The findings suggest that speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE) could provide additional information about early myocardial dysfunction in this population. Read the full news story here.