Health Report

Which flu strains are likely to be dominant this flu season - and what's the story with the new nasal spray vaccine? Speaking of sprays ... there's a simple saline spray that might help kids with sleep apnoea avoid surgery. And a treatment for enlarged prostate that doesn't involve going under the knife. Plus, a new review finds vaping is likely to cause certain types of cancer. References: The carcinogenicity of e-cigarettes: a qualitative risk assessment Cost-Effectiveness of Oral Immunotherapy Treatments vs No Treatment for Peanut Allergy in Children Annual Immunisation Coverage Report 2025 Vaping likely to cause cancer, new Australian review of evidence finds (ABC News) Influenza (flu) vaccine - Department of Health Influenza immunisation resources - National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance Historic 1994 influenza vaccine cohorts define breadth of antibody and B cell responses toward future influenza A and B viruses Lab Notes: Super-K flu is here … but it's not our biggest problem Intranasal Treatments for Children With Sleep-Disordered Breathing: The MIST+ Randomized Clinical Trial Prostate artery Embolisation Assessment of Safety and feasibilitY (P-EASY): a potential alternative to long-term medical therapy for benign prostate hyperplasia The ‘Prostate Embolisation AS first-line therapY compAred to meDication in treatment naïVe men with prostAte eNlargement, a randomised ControllEd trial’ (P-EASY ADVANCE): a randomised controlled trial of prostate embolisation vs medication for BPH Prostate artery EmbolisAtion Safety and efficacY: Preliminary and foLlow-Up urodynamic Studies (P-EASY PLUS)

3D printing is becoming an incredibly versatile modern tool - with scope to apply it to engineering, manufacturing, architecture and design challenges. And it's increasingly being used in ... healthcare. Plus, Kylie and Gillian had been friends for years when Kylie had a stroke in her early 30s. It turned Kylie's work-driven life upside down, and forced her and husband Chris to re-evaluate everything. This week's Health Report features stories from our archive. We'll be back with a new program next week.

There's been major buzz in recent years over ultra-processed foods and whether they may be harmful to our health. A new study out of Canada has measured what toddlers eat and how much of it is ultra-processed - and then followed up two years later to examine the behavioural outcomes of those same children. New findings on 'silent' women's health issues and where women would like the focus of healthcare research and spending to be - what the authors are saying is a call to go 'beyond the bikini line.' It takes days for the results of an STI test to come back, and that can cause all sorts of problems. A new 'point-of-care' test aims to shave that testing window down to less than an hour, with implications for sexual health treatment in regional and remote areas. Plus, sex differences after a diagnosis of cancer - men and women appear to follow separate trajectories, especially when it comes to their risk of death and adverse outcomes. References: Psilocybin or Nicotine Patch for Smoking Cessation Sex-based prognosis in industry-sponsored advanced solid tumour trials: an individual participant data meta-analysis of survival and adverse events Thanks to AI, Paul can see the culprit of his dog's cancer Meet the man who designed a cancer vaccine for his dog Ultraprocessed Food Consumption and Behavioral Outcomes in Canadian Children Multilevel predictors of ultra-processed food intake in Canadian preschoolers ‘Women deserve better’: a national mixed-methods exploration of the ‘silent’ health conditions and social issues affecting women and girls in Australia CRISPR-Cas-based diagnostics for point-of-care detection of sexually transmitted infections: a laboratory development and evaluation study

MDMA psychotherapy was approved in Australia three years ago. Who's using it and what do we know about treatment side effects? Vaccine reminders can help nudge people back on track, but how the message is framed matters. A new review of screen use and sleep in young people finds no link between the amount of use and sleep quality or duration. And a different way of looking at mental health outcomes - whether digital tools can help us forecast someone's future needs and provide better, more personalised care. References: Within-Person Association Between Daily Screen Use and Sleep in Youth Acetaminophen (Paracetamol) or Opioid Analgesia Added to Ibuprofen for Children’s Musculoskeletal Injury Effects of daily multivitamin–multimineral and cocoa extract supplementation on epigenetic aging clocks in the COSMOS randomized clinical trial Side-effects of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy: a systematic review and meta-analysis Experiences of Australian clinicians, researchers, and patients with MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder: A framework-guided qualitative analysis The AuTOMATIC trial: a multicentre digitally-automated, Bayesian, adaptive, parallel, factorial randomised controlled trial of SMS reminders for childhood vaccination The necessity of digital measurement-based care for navigating complexity in youth mental health Dynamic learning of individual-level suicidal ideation trajectories to enhance mental health care

Are Australian schoolkids eating too much salt? And does it put them at risk of high blood pressure? A new approach to breast cancer screening based on risk could reduce the number of screens needed for some women. There's been a lot of hype around brain training to protect against cognitive decline, but the results haven't always measured up. Now a new long-term study has promising results.  Plus, navigating the diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis -- when can the condition be medically managed and when should you consider surgery? References: Impact of cognitive training on claims-based diagnosed dementia over 20 years: evidence from the ACTIVE study Efficacy and safety of once-daily oral orforglipron compared with oral semaglutide in adults with type 2 diabetes (ACHIEVE-3) Risk factors for the development of food allergy in infants and children Sodium, potassium and blood pressure in Australian schoolchildren: exploring differences by sex and weight status — a cross-sectional study Risk-Based vs Annual Breast Cancer Screening: The WISDOM Randomized Clinical Trial