The dogs that can diagnose malaria
Sniffing out malaria Dogs have proved highly adept at detecting diseases such as prostate and thyroid cancer: new evidence suggests they could also be used to help diagnose, and stop the spread of, malaria. Even before they show the symptoms, people infected with the malaria parasite produce odours in their breath and skin that make them more attractive to mosquitoes, which then infect other people with the parasite and thus help the disease to spread. In a study funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, seemingly healthy children in Gambia, West Africa, were screened for malaria using a finger-prick test and also given nylon socks to wear overnight. After being frozen, the socks were shipped to the Medical Detection Dogs charity in Milton Keynes, where they were sniffed by dogs trained to recognise the malaria parasite. The dogs correctly identified 70% of the 30 malaria-infected socks and 90% of the 145 malaria-free ones. If they’d been able to sniff patients directly, their success rate would likely have been even higher. Progress in tackling malaria has stalled in recent years, partly because there’s no easy, non-invasive way to screen for the disease. Sniffer dogs are a potential solution – though the logistics of training enough animals for the task are formidable.
Older fathers pose a risk It’s well known that babies of older mothers are more prone to medical complications. Researchers at Stanford University who analysed 40 million births in California between 2007 and 2016 have found that babies born to older fathers are more at risk of a range of problems too. For example, men aged over 45 were 14% more likely to have a child born prematurely than men aged between a25 and 34, and 18% more likely to have a child who suffered seizures; men aged 55 or older were also 28% more likely to have a child requiring an admission to a neonatal intensive care unit. Previous research has found that the DNA of men’s sperm can become damaged with age, and the scientists suggest that this is the likeliest explanation for their findings. But other factors could be responsible: older men smoke and drink more than younger ones, and are more often obese, and it is possible that these behaviours influence newborns’ health. Dr Michael Eisenberg, the report’s senior author, said that men should no longer assume they “have an unlimited runway” – especially as average parental ages are increasing in many countries.
Ace inhibitors and lung cancer One of the most commonly prescribed blood pressure medications may increase the risk of developing lung cancer, scientists have warned. Some 2.6 million people in the UK take angiotensin-converting enzyme (Ace) inhibitors, either on their own or in combination with other drugs. To compare lung cancer risk in patients on blood pressure medications, researchers in Canada analysed the medical records of nearly a million people being treated for hypertension. After five years, those on Ace inhibitors were 14% more likely to develop lung cancer than those using angiotensin receptor blockers – a different drug; after a decade, this rose to 31%. The findings do not prove that Ace inhibitors increase the risk of lung cancer – if smoking rates for some reason varied between the two groups, for example, that would skew the outcome. But the team suspects the medication encourages the build-up in the lung of a protein called bradykinin, which may stimulate cancer growth. Those on Ace inhibitors shouldn’t panic, however. As long as they don’t smoke, their absolute risk of developing lung cancer remains tiny. Untreated high blood pressure, which can cause strokes, poses a far greater health risk.
Medical file: foreign objects Will children ever learn?, a new report published in the Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons, has revealed that NHS hospitals in England spend almost £3m each year removing foreign objects from ears and noses – mainly those of children. An average of 1,218 nasal and 2,479 aural removals occur each year. Jewellery accounts for 40% of cases; in the case of ears, pencils and cotton buds are also common. “I’ve seen green peas, googly eyes and even polystyrene balls from beanbags,” said Dr Simon Morris of the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend, one of the report’s authors.