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Dementia status influences end-of-life care decisions despite advance directives

People were about 19 percentage points less likely to recommend life-sustaining treatment for a seriously ill patient with dementia than for a patient without dementia, even when an advance directive requested life-sustaining care, according to new research from the University of Colorado Anschutz.

7 Oct 2026

Warning signs for chronic pelvic pain emerge during adolescence

A new McMaster University study of nearly half a million people has found that many people who go on to develop chronic pelvic pain (CPP) may have been showing warning signs years before diagnosis, offering a potential opportunity to identify people at increased risk earlier in life.

7 Oct 2026

New modeling reveals high societal value of early Alzheimer's care

New treatments that can slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease could provide significant lifetime benefits to patients and society, with even greater benefits when initiated earlier, according to new research from the USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics.

7 Oct 2026

High expression of CTDNEP1 gene linked to poorer kidney cancer survival

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common form of kidney cancer, accounting for about 90% of kidney cancers.

7 Oct 2026

Structured support may slow weight regain after stopping GLP-1 drugs

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists are effective treatments for obesity, but discontinuation is common due to cost, insurance coverage limitations, side effects, patient preference, and other factors-commonly leading to rapid weight regain.

7 Oct 2026

Study reveals link between mtDNA copy number and cancer severity

Mitochondria are small organelles within cells that play a central role in vital cellular processes, especially energy production.

7 Oct 2026

Researchers find gene expression patterns linked to severe pediatric COVID-19

Researchers have identified patterns of gene activity associated with severe COVID-19 in children that are shared with other serious respiratory infections.

7 Oct 2026

Statins may lower glaucoma risk and reduce treatment needs

Taking statins is linked to a lower risk of developing glaucoma and a reduced chance of it getting worse, suggest the findings of research published online in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

6 Oct 2026

Study links pregnancy complications to future heart and kidney disease

Women with a complication in the latest pregnancy, or in a previous pregnancy, face an elevated risk of developing cardiometabolic-renal conditions in subsequent years, suggests a UK study published online in the open access journal BMJ Medicine.

6 Oct 2026

Long-term opioid use does not improve chronic back pain outcomes

Taking opioids for years does not seem to improve pain and functioning in people with chronic back pain, according to a new Northwestern University study that compared 70 long-term opioid users to 70 similar patients not taking opioids.

6 Oct 2026

Study identifies RGS4 protein as potential target for chronic pain

Chronic pain can continue long after an initial injury. When a nerve outside the brain and spinal cord (a peripheral nerve) is damaged and does not heal properly, it keeps sending constant pain signals.

6 Oct 2026

New global definition changes how childhood obesity is identified

A new global definition of clinical obesity classifies far fewer children as obese than the widely used body mass index (BMI), according to a large international study. And the findings could lead to changes to how childhood obesity is identified and managed.

6 Oct 2026

Study uncovers link between inherited blindness and a gene causing rare metabolic disease

Researchers at the Greenwood Genetic Center (GGC) led the discovery of an unexpected connection between inherited blindness and a gene known for causing a rare metabolic disorder.

6 Oct 2026

Novel peptide approach reduces chronic neuropathic pain in mice

Understanding and treating chronic neuropathic pain has remained challenging due to its complex nature. New research from the lab of Clifford Woolf, MB, BCh, PhD, at Boston Children's Hospital's FM Kirby Neurobiology Center describes a novel approach for reducing pain by disrupting interactions within pain-sensing nerve cells called nociceptors

6 Oct 2026

Timing of brain surgery critical for certain Parkinson's patients

The timing of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) surgery is a critical factor in preserving cognitive function for Parkinson's disease patients with a specific genetic mutation, according to a new study by an international team of researchers.

6 Oct 2026

Blue light treatment kills food poisoning bacteria on raw chicken

A low-power blue light could be the key to significantly reducing food poisoning caused by raw chicken in the UK, scientists at the University of Reading have found.

6 Oct 2026

Experimental cancer drug works differently than researchers originally thought

A cancer drug currently being tested in patients may have entered clinical trials based on an incorrect understanding of how it works, according to a new study led by the University of Sydney in collaboration with Goethe University, Oxford University and the Institute of Cancer Research, London.

6 Oct 2026

New model links long-term infection costs to higher vaccination rates

New modeling led by interdisciplinary scientists at the University of British Columbia (UBC) could help public health officials better factor in the long-term impacts of infectious disease when determining optimum vaccine coverage rates.

6 Oct 2026

Skin biopsy offers less invasive diagnosis for mitochondrial disease

Researchers at Children's Hospital Colorado (Children's Colorado) and the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine have published one of the largest studies to date evaluating advanced laboratory testing for mitochondrial disease, providing new evidence that a small skin biopsy can often help diagnose these rare and complex conditions without the need for more invasive procedures.

6 Oct 2026