Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Ebola likely circulating in Congo for two months, outbreak to grow, WHO says

The Ebola outbreak linked to more than 130 deaths in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo likely started two months ago and is expected to continue to grow, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday. The outbreak of the rare Bundibugyo strain, for which there is ​no vaccine, was declared last Friday and has alarmed experts because of how long it went undetected while spreading across a densely populated area, making it difficult to trace and isolate the contacts of infected individuals.

Britain gets experimental drug from Japan to ​bolster hantavirus response

Britain has received supplies of the antiviral drug favipiravir from Japan as part of its response to a deadly hantavirus outbreak linked to the Hondius cruise liner, ‌the UK Health Security ​Agency said on Monday. UKHSA said it accepted delivery of the drug, which remains experimental for use to treat hantavirus, over the weekend and that the supplies would bolster treatment stocks, even though the risk of wider transmission in the UK remained very low.

Exclusive-US Health Secretary Kennedy backs away from some recent changes to CDC vaccine panel

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s latest effort to reconstitute a CDC vaccine advisory committee backs away from some reforms he announced just weeks ago and could complicate his efforts to alter federal immunization policy, according to a copy of the plan reviewed by Reuters. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, or ACIP, played a central role in rewriting U.S. vaccine policies under Kennedy, who has spent years sowing doubt about the safety and efficacy of vaccines contrary to scientific evidence. The advisory board recommends which shots should ‌be administered to Americans and when, and informs health insurance coverage.

Bristol Myers to deploy Anthropic's Claude AI model to speed up drug discovery

Bristol Myers Squibb said on Wednesday it is partnering with Anthropic to make its Claude AI model available to over 30,000 employees in an effort to accelerate the discovery, development and delivery of new medicines. Bristol said it will also leverage Claude Code, Anthropic's coding tool, and evaluate its use in research, drug development, manufacturing and other commercial and medical affairs.

US working with small biotech firm on experimental Ebola treatment, HHS official says

U.S. officials are working with Mapp Biopharmaceutical to make an experimental Ebola treatment available for people who may have been exposed to the virus, an HHS official said on Wednesday. The privately held biotech firm is working with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, known as BARDA, to supply the treatment for potential use in high-risk individuals as part of coordinated preparedness efforts, the official told Reuters.

India's Apollo Hospitals posts higher quarterly profit, divests fertility business

India's Apollo Hospitals Enterprise posted a rise in quarterly profit on Wednesday, driven by strong demand for complex medical procedures and growth in its pharmacy and digital health businesses. The hospital chain ‌also announced it would sell its fertility and maternity units to Kids Clinic India (Cloudnine) in a deal valued at about 15.5 billion Indian rupees ($160.09 million), while retaining a minority stake.

Nestle and Danone face fresh scrutiny over infant formula recalls

Nestle and Danone are facing fresh scrutiny over the handling of infant formula contamination after reports published on Tuesday by French, Belgian and Swiss public media questioned the speed of recalls of potentially harmful products. The investigation by Radio France, RTBF and RTS said Nestle had delayed alerting European authorities about the presence of cereulide, a ‌toxin that can cause vomiting and diarrhoea and poses particular risks for infants.

Congo's Ebola responders decry lack of medicine, masks, motorbikes

First responders fighting Democratic Republic of Congo's 17th Ebola outbreak say even basic supplies are scarce - from pain medicine, to motorbikes for contact tracing and face masks - complicating efforts to turn the tide on the disease. The rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola circulated for weeks undetected in Congo's remote northeast before the first samples tested positive last week. Aid groups are now scrambling to rush in supplies to Ituri, the conflict-hit province where the outbreak originated.

Family of US man infected with Ebola to join him in German hospital

Family members of a U.S. citizen infected with Ebola who is being treated at a Berlin hospital are being taken to the special isolation ward at the same hospital after a request from U.S. authorities, Germany's health ministry said on Wednesday. The statement did not say whether the man's wife and four children, who had also been in the Democratic Republic of Congo, were showing symptoms.

Test shortages slow fight against Ebola in Congo, WHO official says

Six tons of medical supplies to fight Ebola are set to arrive in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Tuesday, but limited testing capacity was slowing the response to the outbreak, a World Health Organization official said. There have been at least 500 suspected cases and 130 suspected deaths from Ebola, which has also spread to neighbouring ⁠Uganda, according to the WHO.

Pfizer's pneumococcal ​shot shows stronger immune response in mid-stage trial

Pfizer said on Wednesday its experimental pneumococcal vaccine showed significantly stronger immune response than its current shot, including up to ⁠15-fold higher antibody levels against a key strain, in a mid-stage study. The vaccine maker tested its 25-valent vaccine, called 25vPnC, in healthy infants in the trial.

Medtronic plans to buy SPR Therapeutics for $650 million to expand pain treatment options

Medical device maker Medtronic said on Wednesday it plans to acquire privately held SPR Therapeutics for about $650 million in cash, expanding its portfolio of treatments for chronic pain. The deal gives Medtronic access to SPR's SPRINT system, a 60-day therapy designed to provide pain relief without requiring a permanent implant.

Russia-China summit statement highlights meat trade risks

Moscow and Beijing will ensure safety and analyse risks when increasing Russian meat exports to China, they said in a joint declaration on Wednesday ⁠after a recent outbreak of cattle disease in Siberian regions. Data from Russia's agriculture safety watchdog showed the country's exports of meat to China, including frozen beef, increased by 19% to 254,000 metric tons last year. However, beef exports slowed in March, Chinese customs data showed.

American Ebola patient evacuated from DRC to Germany is in stable condition, CDC says

A U.S. citizen who contracted Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where an outbreak of a rare strain of the virus has killed over 130 people, is being treated in Germany and is in stable condition, the U.S. CDC said on Wednesday. Six other high-risk U.S. citizens were currently being ​moved from the DRC to Germany and the Czech Republic, Dr. Satish Pillai, the incident manager for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Ebola response, said in a briefing.

Bird flu found in polar bear in Europe for first time, on Svalbard

Bird flu has been detected in a dead polar bear in the Arctic Svalbard archipelago, the first time the virus has been found in the species in Europe, a Norwegian government agency said on Tuesday. The Norwegian Veterinary Institute said in a statement it ⁠had also detected bird flu in a dead walrus on Svalbard, which is roughly halfway between the North Pole and mainland Europe.

Health experts meet in search of Ebola Bundibugyo vaccine options

A panel of experts led by the World Health Organization meets on Tuesday to discuss whether there are any vaccine options to help tackle an Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The virtual meeting follows more than 130 suspected deaths and 500 cases linked to the outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, according to the WHO, which, along with the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has declared it a public health emergency.

London's GHO, Singapore's CBC to merge into $21 billion healthcare investor

London-based Global Healthcare Opportunities (GHO) and Singapore's CBC Group on Wednesday ⁠said they ​would merge, creating what they called the world's largest healthcare-focused investment manager with more than $21 billion in assets. The deal brings together two specialist healthcare investors as financial firms globally seek greater scale and a wider reach in private markets.

US Health Secretary Kennedy fires heads of key preventive health panel

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired the chair and vice chair of the influential task force that decides what preventive medical care should be provided at no cost to patients, according to letters sent earlier this month and seen by Reuters on Wednesday. The Preventive Services Task Force, which typically has 16 members, last met over a year ago after Kennedy canceled its regularly scheduled meetings. New members have not been named to replace the five volunteers whose terms expired in December.

Biopharmaceutical firm Parabilis Medicines files for US IPO

Parabilis Medicines on Tuesday filed for an initial public offering in the United States, according to a regulatory filing, and said it intends to use part of the proceeds to support the development of its drug pipeline. The IPO comes as investor appetite for new listings has improved following strong market debuts by companies such as ⁠AI chipmaker Cerebras Systems and geothermal energy firm Fervo Energy, underscoring robust demand for new offerings.

China bans import of pigs, wild boar from the Philippines due to swine fever

China has banned the import of pigs, wild boars and related products from the Philippines due to swine fever, a statement released by the General Administration of Customs showed.

Widely used asthma drug may improve performance of cancer immunotherapies

We also report on a potential new use for another approved medicine that helped reduce suicidal thoughts in patients with severe depression when added ⁠to the psychedelic drug ketamine.

ASTHMA DRUG MAY BOOST CANCER IMMUNOTHERAPY

US doctor in contact with Ebola patient heading to Czech hospital from Uganda

A U.S. doctor will be ⁠transferred from Uganda to a hospital in Prague on Wednesday after he came into contact with a patient infected with Ebola, Czech health officials said. The doctor was showing no symptoms of the deadly virus and would be hospitalised as a precaution following a request from the United States, Health Minister Adam Vojtech said.

Ebola deaths in eastern Congo rise to 131, WHO voices deep concern

Twenty-six more suspected Ebola deaths were recorded in 24 hours in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, authorities said on Tuesday, and the head of the World Health Organization expressed deep concern about the outbreak's spread. The new deaths brought to 131 the fatalities associated with the outbreak in eastern DRC. There have been 543 suspected cases and 33 confirmed cases in DRC, according to Congolese health authorities, and two confirmed cases in neighbouring Uganda.

US Senator Durbin urges RFK ‌Jr. to resist easing vape rules

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin urged Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on ‌Wednesday to resist an easing of rules on flavoured vapes, saying the moves were short-sighted and driven by lobbying and donations from big tobacco companies. Under pressure from the White House, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has in recent weeks softened its stance on flavoured vapes, a shift ​that contributed to the resignation of Commissioner Marty Makary, raised concerns about political influence at the agency and reignited debate over vaping.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)