Diseases(Page 4)

Groundbreaking research on COVID-19, cancer, diabetes, and other health concerns.

Latest in Diseases

A US postal worker delivering packages to a tan residential building, with a USPS truck parked on the street in the foreground.

How to order free COVID tests from the US government, starting today

By John Kennedy

Egyptian fruit bats on a fruit feeder at a zoo

How do bats stay cancer-free? The answer could be lifesaving for humans.

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

A doctor uses a blood pressure cuff to take a patient's blood pressure.

Treating high blood pressure can save 76 million lives in 30 years, WHO says

By Laura Baisas

Why healthcare workers are worried about possible changes to masking protocols in hospitals

Why healthcare workers are worried about possible changes to masking protocols in hospitals

By Amy Maxmen / KFF Health News

Sick person with tan skin and black hair checking fever on a thermometer

What makes a fever an infection-busting superpower

By Edmund K. LeGrand and Joe Alcock/The Conversation

A beagle running through grass.

Why your pet might need a glucose monitor

By Gwendolyn Rak

Do I need a COVID booster? And all of your other questions answered.

Do I need a COVID booster? And all of your other questions answered.

By Arthur Allen/KFF Health News

Communities struggling with opioid addiction have a new complication: climate disasters

Communities struggling with opioid addiction have a new complication: climate disasters

By Robin Buller/High Country News

Turmeric may help stomach aches, study shows

Turmeric may help stomach aches, study shows

By Sara Kiley Watson

Newborn baby sleeping in crib

Cribs filled with fluffy furnishings are photogenic—and deadly

By Colleen DeGuzman/KFF Health News

Singer Jimmy Buffet in a purple shirt by a microphone.

Why the rare skin cancer that killed Jimmy Buffett may become more common

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

Kid with blonde hair wearing a blue COVID mask holding books and a backpack on the first day of school

How to avoid getting COVID again

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

Doctor and patient in office

Should doctors and nurses discuss the dangers of heat?

By Martha Bebinger/KFF Health News

Shiny fish oil capsules laid out on a table. Fish oil contains two omega-3 fatty acids called EPA and DHA. These acids are all found in flax seeds, walnuts, and fatty fish such as salmon.

Fish oil supplements might still not be as good as the real thing

By Laura Baisas

A woman in a hospital, with a doctor touching her shoulder. Some of the health problems associated with long COVID include blood clots, diabetes, heart issues, blood clots, diabetes, neurologic complications, gastrointestinal disorders, fatigue, and difficulties with mental health.

The effects of Long COVID might rival heart disease and cancer

By Laura Baisas

Multiple tubes of virus samples in green, green, and pink labels on a shelf. On August 17, the World Health Organization designated BA.2.86, or Pirola, a “variant under monitoring.”

New COVID variant under monitoring carries slew of novel mutations

By Laura Baisas

Doxycycline antibiotic pill for STI and STD prevention on a coral background

This ‘morning after’ pill could prevent STIs from unprotected sex

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

January AI helps you keep tabs on your blood sugar all day.

January AI glucose monitor review: A pricey but effective approach to fine-tune your diet

By Jen McCaffery

Aftermath Of Tanker Fire At I-95 In Bensalem

Federal study links testicular cancer to ‘Forever Chemicals’ for the first time

By Hannah Norman and Patricia Kime/KFF Health News

Hands passing out blue medical masks.

What to know about the newly dominant ‘Eris’ COVID variant

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

A newborn baby's hand with a hospital bracelet around his or her wrist. RSV sends about 58,000 children under five to the hospital, and kills 100 to 300 infants every year in the United States.

RSV antibody shot will be available for babies in the US this fall

By Laura Baisas

Red kombucha tea in a bottle and glass on white background

Kombucha’s health benefits may go beyond our guts

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

Deer tick passing tick-borned diseases to a young person by biting back of the neck

6 tick-borne diseases you really don’t want to get

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

The general atmosphere at HBO's The HeLa Project Exhibit For the film adaptation of "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" on April 6, 2017 in New York City. Two women stand by a portrait of Lacks wearing a red dress.

Henrietta Lacks’ stolen cells changed medicine—and her family is finally getting compensated

By Laura Baisas

A woman holds an alcoholic drink in a bar.

Deaths related to excessive alcohol consumption rise in recent years—especially for women

By Laura Baisas

Side view of woman's hand feeding horseback on sunny day

Why studying horses could help humans stay healthy, too

By Jane Manfredi/The Conversation

MIT breast cancer device

MIT develops an at-home mammogram alternative that fits in a bra

By Sara Kiley Watson

Hospital equipment monitors a patient's vital signs. The Midwestern region of the United States is the only part of the country that did not record more hospitalizations last week than the one before.

COVID-19 hospitalizations and cases rise in possible summer wave

By Laura Baisas

Airplane in a clear sky.

Flying with human organs for transplant is tricky—a new law could help

By Colleen DeGuzman/KFF Health News

High fiber foods, including coconuts, Brussel sprouts, squash, and spinach on a wooden table.

Chronic constipation could be a sign of a worsening health condition

By Laura Baisas

A preterm baby in an incubator in a neonatal intensive care unit. RSV sends about 58,000 children under five to the hospital every year in the United States.

FDA approves long-acting medication to protect babies from RSV

By Laura Baisas

Histology image of the liver in a case of cirrhosis of the liver from alcoholism.

COVID lockdown drinking habits led to a rise in deaths from alcoholic liver disease

By Phillip Reese/KFF Health News

Influenza Ward No. 4 showing Partitions thru the Ward, U.S. Army Camp Hospital Number 45, Aix-les-Bains, France, 1914-1918

How the 1918 pandemic changed what we knew about viruses

By Richard Conniff/MIT Press Reader

Sprinkle-filled birthday cake with lit multi-colored candles. Biological age is different from the chronological age measured by birthdays.

Why you might feel older than you actually are

Kidney beans black beans, corn, and tomatoes can all increase your daily fiber intake

Up your daily fiber intake for a happy microbiome

By Claire Maldarelli

A doctor points to multiple MRI's of the brain. A newly approved drug targets beta-amyloid, a brain protein that has long been believed by scientists to be one of the underlying causes of Alzheimer’s disease.

Alzheimer’s-slowing drug Leqembi gains full FDA approval

By Laura Baisas

Person making online purchase.

Facebook could be tracking your online Plan B or HIV test purchases

By Simon Fondrie-Teitler/The Markup, Darius Tahir / KFF Health News

Prescription bottles

Rural patients could suffer if the DEA restricts telehealth prescribing

By Arielle Zionts / KFF Health News

A mosquito sitting on a bright green leaf.

Rare homegrown malaria cases in the US force health advisory, but don’t panic yet

By Laura Baisas

Treating cancer in older patients poses different complications and risks

Treating cancer in older patients poses different complications and risks

By Jyoti Madhusoodanan / Undark

Lymphocyte, 3D illustration. Closeup view of T-cell.

Scientists reworked an experimental cancer therapy to treat autoimmune disease

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

Karyotype of human chromosomes including sex chromosomes XY and XX

Men lose Y chromosomes with age, and it might increase their risk of bladder cancer

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

Two small huts near clear, turquoise tropical waters in Tobacco Caye, Belize. he Central American country is the third nation this year to be certified malaria-free.

After a 70-year battle, the WHO declares Belize malaria-free

By Laura Baisas

Psychedelics and anesthetics cause unexpected chemical reactions in the brain

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

Close up of woman's hands with smartphone and unknown incoming phone call on it

FCC slaps voter suppression robocall scammers with a record-breaking fine

Why scientists have a hard time getting money to study the root causes of outbreaks

Why scientists have a hard time getting money to study the root causes of outbreaks

By Caroline Chen / ProPublica

A doctor examines a chest x-ray.

A daily pill could cut lung cancer deaths in half, new study shows

By Laura Baisas

The mpox virus. 3D illustration.

What you can do to prevent the spread of mpox

By Sandra Gutierrez G.

Hand sanitizer bottle and hands.

How to make hand sanitizer

By Sandra Gutierrez G.

HIV, seen in red budding particles, is among the deadliest viruses.

The deadliest viruses in human history, from COVID to smallpox

By Eva Botkin-Kowacki

Meningococcal bacteria under a microscope. According to the World Health Organization, meningitis caused an estimated 25,000 deaths in 2019.

Meningitis shot that fights 5 different strains shows promise in latest trial

By Laura Baisas

microscopic image of a hookworm egg

Neglected sewage systems are a public health risk for low-income communities

By Theresa E. Gildner/The Conversation

An older couple shares a kiss against a backdrop of fall trees.

Ancient Mesopotamian texts show when and why humans first kissed

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

Two doctors performing lab tests, one looking into a microscope and the other using a pipette.

A once-forgotten antibiotic could be a new weapon against drug-resistant infections

By Laura Baisas

AI isn’t ready to act as a doctors’ assistant

AI isn’t ready to act as a doctors’ assistant

By Darius Tahir / KFF Health News

The health impacts of incarceration don’t end after release

The health impacts of incarceration don’t end after release

By Fred Clasen-Kelly/KFF Health News

Box of iHealth COVID rapid tests being distributed at a school before the US COVID public health emergency ended

Your guide to COVID testing for the unforeseeable future

By Jocelyn Solis-Moreira

A koala in a leafy tree.

Wild koalas are getting vaccinated against chlamydia

By Laura Baisas

World Health Organization WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus speaks during a press briefing at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, April 6, 2023. On the eve of its 75th anniversary, the WHO marked the occasion on Thursday by calling for a renewed drive for health equity in the face of unprecedented threats.

COVID-19 is no longer a ‘global health emergency,’ says WHO

By Laura Baisas

An older woman sits on a hospital bed.

FDA approves first RSV vaccine for adults after 60 years in the making

By Laura Baisas

CDC zombie preparedness guide comic panel from 2011

That time the CDC got people hyped for a zombie apocalypse

By Matt Hongoltz-Hetling

Fluorescent dye shown crossing the blood-brain barrier into the brain via sound waves.

Scientists have developed a new way to fight a nearly untreatable brain cancer

By Laura Baisas

Ligurian plates recovered from the hospital waste dump that date back to the second half of the 16th century CE.

Renaissance-era doctors used to taste their patients’ pee

By Laura Baisas

Red cherry shaped as butt on orange and purple ombre background

A scientific exploration of big juicy butts

By Rachel Feltman