Japan has approved over-the-counter sales of an emergency contraceptive pill, its manufacturer says, allowing women in the country to take such medication without prescription for the first time. ASKA Pharmaceutical said wider access to the pill would “empower Japanese women in the area of reproductive health”. A date for it to go on sale has […]

Fergus WalshMedical editor Sheila Irvine, who is registered blind, punches the air with joy at being able to read again A group of blind patients can now read again after being fitted with a life-changing implant at the back of the eye. A surgeon who inserted the microchips in five patients at Moorfields Eye Hospital

Uruguay has legalised euthanasia, becoming the first country in Latin America to pass a law that allows assisted suicide. The Dignified Death bill was passed in the senate on Wednesday, with 20 out of 31 legislators present voting in favour. The bill allows mentally sound adults in the terminal stage of an irreversible disease to

Available for over a year ‘There are real consequences to our physical and mental health’ Katty Kay speaks to Dr Vivek Murthy, former US Surgeon-General about the challenge posed by loneliness and isolation in the modern world. Dr. Murthy, the first person of Indian descent in the post, was appointed during the second Obama administration.

Eben Morrish-CroadSomerset Conor Ogilvie-Davidson The centre is expected to deliver a wide range of services that will contribute towards delivering care in the community A Grade-II listed building is set to open as a health and wellbeing centre next month after a £2.2m renovation project. St Dunstan’s House in Glastonbury will provide a venue for

Alex PopeNorthamptonshire Higham Ferrers Riverside Angling Association A storage container of fishing and gardening equipment was destroyed in a fire The director of an angling club has said he has been left “devastated” after a suspected arson attack destroyed about £6,000 worth of fishing and electrical equipment. Craig Parkins, 40, from Fishing for Minds, part

A blood test for more than 50 types of cancer could help speed up diagnosis according to a new study. Results of a trial in north America show that the test was able to identify a wide range of cancers, of which three quarters don’t have any form of screening programme. More than half the

Chloe HughesWest Midlands University of Worcester Third-year paramedic services student was on placement at the Worcestershire Royal Hospital Paramedic services student Elise Faragher had no idea her routine hospital placement would see her helping to deliver the baby of someone very familiar. The third-year student was at the Worcestershire Royal Hospital when her lecturer, Aaron

Michelle RobertsDigital health editor Getty Images An injection to prevent HIV is to be offered to patients on the NHS in England and Wales for the first time, bringing the policy in line with Scotland. The long-acting shot, given six times a year or every other month, is an alternative to taking daily pills to

More than £13m has been given to a town’s trust to continue its work improving the health and wellbeing of local residents. The money from Luton Rising, the Luton Borough Council company that owns London Luton Airport, has been given to Active Luton to secure investment in leisure and library services until 2030. The council