Medical Bulletin 26/January/2024

Here are the top medical news of the day:

Non-COVID-19 deaths among people with diabetes spiked during pandemic

Non-COVID-19-related deaths among people with diabetes increased during the pandemic, as did the diabetes complication of sight loss, according to a global study review led by a University of Massachusetts Amherst public health researcher that examined the impacts of pandemic-related disruptions on this vulnerable population.

The review, commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO) and published Jan. 23 in The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology, looked at 138 studies comparing pre-pandemic to during pandemic periods in North America (39), Western Europe (39), Asia (17), Eastern Europe (14), South America (four), Egypt (one), Australia (one) and multiple regions (33).

Reference: Non-COVID-19 deaths among people with diabetes jumped during pandemic; The Lancet

Walking fitness to help predict fracture risk in older people

The ability to walk one kilometre comfortably can help predict fracture risk, according to researchers at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research. The findings, published today in JAMA Network Open, suggest that simply asking a patient about walking limitation could allow clinicians to identify those in need of further bone health screening and prescribe interventions that could prevent fractures from occurring.

Reference: Walking fitness can predict fracture risk in older adults; JAMA Network Open; DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.52675

Two drugs better than one for treating prostate cancer finds study

Combining testosterone-blocking drugs in patients with prostate cancer relapse prevents the spread of cancer better than treatment with a single drug, a multi-institution, Phase 3 clinical trial led by UC San Francisco researchers has found.

Prostate cancer affects 1 in 8 men and causes 34,000 deaths each year in the United States. It is usually treated with one of several testosterone-lowering drugs for a set period of time.

“This adds to a growing body of evidence in favor of more intensive testosterone-blocking therapy in patients with higher-risk prostate cancer,” said Rahul Aggarwal, MD, professor in the UCSF School of Medicine and lead author of the paper.

The researchers’ findings were published on Jan. 23, 2024, in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. They were first announced in September 2022 at the annual meeting of the European Society for Medical Oncology.

Reference: Could two drugs be better than one for treating prostate cancer?; Journal of Clinical Oncology