Pharmaceuticals News

January 2, 2026

Top Headlines

A Key Alzheimer’s Gene Emerges in African American Brain Study

Jan. 1, 2026 Scientists studying Alzheimer’s in African Americans have uncovered a striking genetic clue that may cut across racial lines. In brain tissue from more than 200 donors, the gene ADAMTS2 was significantly more active in people with Alzheimer’s ...

Nearly 70% of U.S. Adults Could Now Be Classified as Obese

Dec. 31, 2025 A major update to how obesity is defined could push U.S. obesity rates to nearly 70%, according to a large new study. The change comes from adding waist and body fat measurements to BMI, capturing people who were previously considered healthy. Many ...

Stanford Scientists Uncover Why MRNA COVID Vaccines Can Trigger Heart Inflammation

Dec. 27, 2025 Stanford scientists have uncovered how mRNA COVID-19 vaccines can very rarely trigger heart inflammation in young men — and how that risk might be reduced. They found that the vaccines can spark a ...

A Surprising Brain Cleanup Reduced Epileptic Seizures and Restored Memory

Dec. 25, 2025 A new study suggests temporal lobe epilepsy may be linked to early aging of certain brain cells. When researchers removed these aging cells in mice, seizures dropped, memory improved, and some animals avoided epilepsy altogether. The treatment used ...

MIT Scientists Strip Cancer of Its Sugar Shield

Dec. 23, 2025 Scientists at MIT and Stanford have unveiled a promising new way to help the immune system recognize and attack cancer cells more effectively. Their strategy targets a hidden “off switch” that tumors use to stay invisible to immune ...

A New Drug Could Stop Alzheimer’s Before Memory Loss Begins

Dec. 22, 2025 New research suggests Alzheimer’s may start far earlier than previously thought, driven by a hidden toxic protein in the brain. Scientists found that an experimental drug, NU-9, blocks this early damage in mice and reduces inflammation linked to ...

AI Detects Cancer but It’s Also Reading Who You Are

Dec. 17, 2025 AI tools designed to diagnose cancer from tissue samples are quietly learning more than just disease patterns. New research shows these systems can infer patient demographics from pathology slides, leading to biased results for certain groups. The ...

Scientists Find the Missing Links Between Genes and Disease

Dec. 16, 2025 A new genetic mapping strategy reveals how entire networks of genes work together to cause disease, filling in the missing links left by traditional genetic studies. The technique could transform how scientists identify drug targets for complex ...

Daily Multivitamins Quietly Lower Blood Pressure in Some Older Adults

Dec. 12, 2025 Emerging evidence hints that daily multivitamins might quietly help certain older adults keep their blood pressure in check—especially those with poorer diets and normal readings at the start. While the overall results showed no broad benefit, ...

Her Food Cravings Vanished on Mounjaro Then Roared Back

Dec. 8, 2025 Deep-brain recordings showed that Mounjaro and Zepbound briefly shut down the craving circuits linked to food noise in a patient with severe obesity. Her obsessive thoughts about food disappeared as the medication quieted the nucleus accumbens, the ...

New Fat-burning Diabetes Pill Protects Muscle and Appetite

Dec. 7, 2025 Researchers have developed a new oral drug that boosts metabolic activity in muscle rather than altering appetite like GLP-1 drugs. Early trials suggest it improves blood sugar control and fat metabolism while preserving muscle mass, with fewer side ...

A 70-year-old Pregnancy Drug Just Revealed a Hidden Weakness in Brain Cancer

Dec. 2, 2025 Researchers have solved the decades-old mystery behind how a common pregnancy drug lowers blood pressure. It turns out the medication blocks a fast-acting “oxygen alarm” inside cells. That same ...

Latest Headlines

updated 10:24am EST

Millions Are About to Choose the Wrong Medicare Plan

Nov. 29, 2025 Millions face Medicare decisions each year, but many don’t take advantage of tools that can save them money and stress. Insurance marketing often overshadows unbiased options like SHIP, leaving ...

Nov. 28, 2025 A major review across 73 countries finds that access to antiseizure medications is rising, but safe prescribing isn’t keeping pace. Valproate—linked to serious birth defects—remains widely used ...

What 96,000 Adults Taught Scientists About Preventing Constipation

Nov. 24, 2025 A massive long-term study shows that Mediterranean and plant-based diets can help prevent chronic constipation in aging adults. Surprisingly, the benefits weren’t explained by fiber alone. Western ...

New Evidence Shows Tirzepatide and Semaglutide Strongly Protect the Heart

Nov. 21, 2025 A massive real-world study comparing tirzepatide and semaglutide reveals both drugs deliver strong, early cardiovascular protection—reducing heart attack, stroke, and death in adults with type 2 ...

Blocking a Single Protein Forces Cancer Cells to Self-Destruct

Nov. 20, 2025 Researchers uncovered a powerful weakness in lung cancer by shutting down a protein that helps tumors survive stress. When this protein, FSP1, was blocked, lung tumors in mice shrank dramatically, ...

Scientists Reawaken Exhausted T Cells to Supercharge Cancer Immunity

Nov. 20, 2025 Researchers discovered a way to keep T cells from wearing out during the fight against cancer, and the approach could make immune-based treatments far more powerful. They found that tumors use a ...

Inflammation Turns Bone Marrow Into a Breeding Ground for Disease

Nov. 19, 2025 Researchers discovered that chronic inflammation fundamentally remodels the bone marrow, allowing mutated stem cell clones to quietly gain dominance with age. Reprogrammed stromal cells and ...

Tiny Implant Wipes out Bladder Cancer in 82% of Patients

Nov. 11, 2025 TAR-200, a small drug-releasing implant, wiped out tumors in most patients with high-risk bladder cancer. Its slow, consistent release of chemotherapy proved far more effective than traditional ...

New Bacterial Therapy Destroys Cancer Without the Immune System

Nov. 9, 2025 A Japanese-led research team has developed AUN, a groundbreaking immune-independent bacterial cancer therapy that uses two harmonized bacteria to destroy tumors even in patients with weakened immune ...

A Simple DNA Test Could Reveal the Right Antidepressant for You

Nov. 9, 2025 Millions struggle with depression and anxiety, often enduring long waits for effective treatment. Scientists in Sweden, Denmark, and Germany are developing a genetic test to predict which medications ...

The Hidden “Big Bang” That Decides How Bowel Cancer Grows

Nov. 7, 2025 Scientists have pinpointed a “Big Bang” moment in bowel cancer—when cells first evade the immune system. This early immune escape locks in how the cancer will behave as it grows. The discovery ...

Common Acne Drug May Protect Against Schizophrenia

Nov. 6, 2025 Scientists have discovered a surprising benefit of the acne drug doxycycline: it may lower the risk of schizophrenia. Teens prescribed the antibiotic were about one-third less likely to develop the ...

Scientists Shocked to Find E. Coli Spreads as Fast as the Swine Flu

Nov. 4, 2025 Researchers have, for the first time, estimated how quickly E. coli bacteria can spread between people — and one strain moves as fast as swine flu. Using genomic data from the UK and Norway, ...

Think Melatonin Is Safe? New Research Reveals a Hidden Heart Risk

Nov. 4, 2025 Long-term melatonin use for sleep problems may come with unexpected heart dangers. Researchers found that chronic users were almost twice as likely to die and 3.5 times more likely to be hospitalized ...

Ancient Viruses Hidden Inside Bacteria Could Help Defeat Modern Infections

Nov. 3, 2025 Penn State scientists uncovered an ancient bacterial defense where dormant viral DNA helps bacteria fight new viral threats. The enzyme PinQ flips bacterial genes to create protective proteins that ...

Scientists Find Hidden Antibiotic 100x Stronger Against Deadly Superbugs

Oct. 29, 2025 A team of scientists discovered a hidden antibiotic 100 times stronger than existing drugs against deadly superbugs like MRSA. The molecule had been overlooked for decades in a familiar bacterium. It ...

Ozempic and Wegovy Protect the Heart, Even Without Weight Loss

Oct. 31, 2025 Semaglutide appears to safeguard the heart even when patients lose little weight. In a massive international trial, heart attack and stroke risk dropped by 20% regardless of BMI. The benefit seems ...

Scientists Discover COVID mRNA Vaccines Boost Cancer Survival

Oct. 28, 2025 Researchers found that COVID-19 mRNA vaccines significantly increased survival in lung and skin cancer patients undergoing immunotherapy. The vaccine appears to prime the immune system in a powerful, ...

This Powerful Drug Combo Cuts Prostate Cancer Deaths by 40%

Oct. 19, 2025 A new drug combo of enzalutamide and hormone therapy has been shown to extend survival for men with recurring prostate cancer, reducing death risk by over 40%. The study followed more than 1,000 ...

Cancer Patients Who Got a COVID Vaccine Lived Much Longer

Oct. 19, 2025 A groundbreaking study reveals that cancer patients who received a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine within 100 days of starting immunotherapy lived dramatically longer than those who didn’t. Researchers from ...

A Gene from 100-Year-Olds Could Help Kids Who Age Too Fast

Nov. 3, 2025 Scientists have discovered that a “longevity gene” found in people who live beyond 100 can reverse heart aging in models of Progeria, a devastating disease that causes children to age rapidly. By ...

Scientists Grow Mini Human Livers That Predict Toxic Drug Reactions

Oct. 15, 2025 A new human liver organoid microarray developed by Cincinnati Children’s and Roche recreates immune-driven liver injury in the lab. Built from patient-derived stem cells and immune cells, it ...

Exercise Might Be the Key to a Younger, Sharper Immune System

Oct. 14, 2025 Endurance exercise may train the immune system as much as the muscles. Older adults with decades of running or cycling had immune cells that functioned better and aged more slowly. Their inflammation ...

Two Common Drugs Could Reverse Fatty Liver Disease

Oct. 12, 2025 Researchers at the University of Barcelona found that combining pemafibrate and telmisartan significantly reduces liver fat and cardiovascular risks in MASLD models. The drug duo works better ...

Brain Cancer That Eats the Skull Stuns Scientists

Oct. 5, 2025 A new study shows glioblastoma isn’t confined to the brain—it erodes the skull and hijacks the immune system within skull marrow. The cancer opens channels that let inflammatory cells enter the ...

Stunning Images Reveal How Antibiotics Shatter Bacterial Defenses

Sep. 29, 2025 Researchers have revealed how polymyxins, crucial last-resort antibiotics, break down bacterial armor by forcing cells to overproduce and shed it. Astonishingly, the drugs only kill bacteria when ...

Oct. 13, 2025 Finasteride, a common hair-loss drug, has long been tied to depression and suicide, but regulators ignored the warnings. Prof. Mayer Brezis’s review exposes global data showing psychiatric harm and ...

New Inhaler Halves Childhood Asthma Attacks

Sep. 28, 2025 A groundbreaking international study has shown that a 2-in-1 budesonide-formoterol inhaler is far more effective than the standard salbutamol inhaler in children with mild asthma, cutting attacks by ...

Scientists Uncover How to Block Pain Without Side Effects

Sep. 26, 2025 Scientists have discovered a way to block pain while still allowing the body’s natural healing to take place. Current painkillers like ibuprofen and aspirin often come with harmful side effects ...

The Hidden Iron Switch That Makes Cancer Cells Self-Destruct

Sep. 29, 2025 Scientists discovered that inhibiting the enzyme STK17B forces multiple myeloma cells into iron-driven death and makes therapies more effective. Early mouse studies show strong potential for a new ...