While the World Health Organization announced that only people exposed to major health risks are entitled to obtain activation doses of Covid-19 vaccines, given that the immunity available to the population means that its activation will have little effect; The British authorities said that, starting today (Monday), they will start giving a new booster dose to about 5 million Britons, in a vaccination program that will continue until the end of next June. Amidst evidence that the number of new infections with the new Corona virus jumped to its highest levels during the year 2023. While India decided to strengthen the capabilities of testing Covid-19, with the number of new cases rising above the level of 3 thousand infections, and it is the highest since October 3, 2022; The Brazilian government announced yesterday that the country's death toll from the Covid-19 epidemic has exceeded 700,000 since the outbreak of the Corona virus three years ago. Brazilian health experts said that the majority of those who died in the epidemic during the past days were either not vaccinated with Covid-19 vaccines, or they were suffering from incurable diseases. A guide recently issued by the World Health Organization stated that each country should assess its epidemiological situation, and its recommendation not to generalize stimulatory doses to all population groups aims to assist countries in planning in the short to medium term, and that it is subject to change at any time. The organization indicated that the first groups to enhance their immunity are older adults, young adults who suffer from incurable diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease, children from the age of six months or more, and people with weak natural immunity, such as HIV patients. , and those who underwent organ transplant surgeries, pregnant women, and health personnel who start serving patients. The guideline indicates that those priority groups for booster doses should receive the booster dose 6-12 months after their last booster dose. Healthy adults, usually between the ages of 50 and 60, and severely ill children and adolescents were rated as a medium priority. Although they may be given a single booster dose, this should not be a regular procedure, given reports that there is no worsening health crisis. The organization considers that the lowest priority group is adolescents and children from the age of 6 months to 17 years.
In London, British National Health Service officials said that April 17 will be the first available date to obtain the new stimulus dose. The British National Statistics Office indicated that about 1.5 million people in the county of England were infected with the virus during the week that ended on March 13, 2023; This is more than the 1.3 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the previous week. The director of vaccination and examinations in the National Health Service, Steve Russell, said that the British learn every day the arts of coexistence with the new Corona virus, but for many of them the virus is still capable of causing serious illness, hospitalization, and death, and therefore it is still necessary to Those most at risk apply to get the extra booster dose. in New Delhi; The Indian government said that the rate of positive examinations in the Delhi region increased by 10%, with 300 new infections per day in the Indian capital, amid evidence of weak testing capacity. And the Minister of Health in the Delhi state government, Saurabh Bhardwaj, said yesterday that he had issued instructions on the need to wear a face mask (muzzle) for anyone who feels flu-like symptoms. He added that the instructions include the need to wear a mask inside hospitals. India ranks second in the world, after the United States, in terms of the number of HIV infections; As the cumulative number of her injuries exceeded 44 million since the outbreak of the Corona virus. And the number of its deaths from the virus exceeded 530,000, making it the third country with the most deaths, after America and Brazil. Brazilian officials took advantage of the country's death toll from the virus, which has risen to more than 700,000, to launch a harsh campaign against former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who refused to take any action to confront the outbreak of the epidemic in Brazil. Health Minister Nicia Trindade said that the COVID-19 vaccine could have changed the fate of hundreds of thousands of people who died from the virus, had it not been for Bolsonaro's refusal for the country to buy enough vaccines to start immunizing the population.
Neglecting climate change is a violation of human rights!
After endeavors that lasted about six years; The European Court of Human Rights, which is based in France, has begun hearing a lawsuit filed by thousands of Swiss retirees against the Swiss government, who accused their country's government of failing to address climate change, which constitutes a violation of their human rights. The Swiss courts rejected the petition of this case twice in the past. The Swiss government argued that this claim was unfounded. I questioned whether those female retirees could be described as victims. However, the lawsuit gained additional importance after the governments of Romania, Latvia, Austria, Slovakia, Norway, Italy, Portugal and Ireland decided to join the lawsuit before the European Court in Strasbourg. The complainants' lawyers say that failure to confront climate change constitutes a violation of their human right to life. They added that the ages of the complainants place them among the categories classified by the UN Committee on Climate Change as the most likely to die due to the global warming. In the lawsuit, the lawyers point out that there is new evidence that older women are less able to adapt their body temperature to temperature changes. Including a document issued by the World Health Organization in 2014 indicating that the majority of European studies confirm that women are at greater risk of death due to the bouts of heat sweeping their continent; And that about 30% of deaths caused by heat waves in Switzerland are attributed to climate change in recent years. While the Swiss government insists that it is working to reduce gas emissions by half by 2030, and to reach zero by 2050; However, the lawyers who defend the complainants in Strasbourg describe that goal as inappropriate due to the enormity of the climate situation. They demand that the European Court of Human Rights order the taking of what is known as “general measures”, which oblige the concerned government to make a significant reduction in gas emissions within a time frame set by the court. The main complainant, the Swiss retired Marie-Yves Volkoff (85 years), says that she was forced to lock herself in her small apartment in Geneva for the past year because of three severe heat waves that swept the country. Her medical reports, attached to the petition, show that she has a heart arrhythmia. This condition worsens during extreme heat waves.
A new drug for women with cervical cancer
The National Health Service in Britain announced yesterday that hundreds of women with advanced stage of cervical cancer will be able to get pembrolizumab, also known by its trade name Keytruda, which can allow them to live an additional 8 months. This drug has been in use in British hospitals since 2014, as it is used to treat several types of cancer, such as breast, stomach, lung and skin cancers. The National Institute for Care Excellence approved giving this drug to women with cervical cancer who were not helped by other medications. Data from trials of this drug showed that if used alongside chemotherapy, it could allow a patient an additional 8 months of life. This drug is injected intravenously to stimulate the immune system to attack cancer cells, by targeting a specific protein on the surface of immune cells, which in turn move to search for cancer cells. British authorities say around 2,600 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year in the county of England. About 850 British women die each year of this malignant disease in the UK. Keytruda is the first non-treatable uterine cancer drug on the NHS in about 14 years. Cervical cancer threatens women of all ages. Many of them are young. The director of cancer treatment at the British Health Service, Sally Palmer, said that this drug allows women with cervical cancer extra months of life to enjoy their families and a better quality of life.
The Guardian newspaper reported yesterday that two women die of cervical cancer every day in Britain. Last year, the British government announced a strategy to take care of women's health, which includes placing cancer treatment at the top of the government's priorities. Cancer Research UK says cervical cancer is diagnosed in women between the ages of 30 and 34. It is expected that 400 British patients with an advanced stage of this cancer will benefit from the new drug within days. The Minister of State at the British Ministry of Health, Helen Whitley, said that the availability of this new drug represents a great victory for women. And she affirmed the commitment of the Conservative Party government to provide the best possible health care for cancer patients, by striving to make available the latest and best medicines for cancer types.
Yassin Ahmed (London) @OKAZ_online
