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Oncology Expert Warns Cancer in Young People Is on the Rise
In recent years, however, early-onset cancer, meaning cancer diagnosed in adults between ages 18 and 49, is on the rise. This troubling trend means that adults should start being aware of their risks and screening for certain cancers earlier.
A recent study published by the American Cancer Society found that cancer patients in the U.S. are “increasingly shifting from older to middle-aged individuals.”
For example, cervical cancer is the second-leading cause of death in women aged 20 to 39, and colorectal and breast cancer are the leading causes of death for men and women, respectively, between ages 20 and 49.
Teenager Sues Meta Over ‘Addictive’ Instagram Features
A minor from New York on Monday filed a lawsuit seeking class-action status against Meta, alleging that the social media giant sought to keep teens hooked on Instagram while knowingly exposing them to harmful content.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, argues that Meta implemented features its leaders knew would make Instagram addicting for teens, such as displaying counts of how many “likes” posts receive, even as internal evidence grew that the service could harm their mental health. The 13-year-old girl is seeking $5 billion in damages, to be shared among eligible Instagram users if the suit is certified as a class action.
Court filings claim the teen suffered from anxiety, depression and lower grades as a result of her Instagram usage.
Meta should “stop manipulating children in ways that are harmful to them,” said lawyer David Boies, who is representing the minor for the law firm Boies Schiller Flexner, along with firms Labaton Keller Sucharow and Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman. “We have to be sure that there are rules of the road.”
“This country universally bans minor access to other addictive products, like tobacco and alcohol, because of the physical and psychological damage such products can inflict,” the suit says. “Social media is no different, and Meta’s own documents prove that it knows its products harm children.”
UCLA Health Launches Clinical Trial Using Personalized Cancer Vaccine to Tackle Aggressive Brain Tumors in Adolescents and Young Adults
In an effort to combat one of the most lethal forms of pediatric brain cancer, researchers at the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center are launching a first-of-its-kind clinical trial to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of a cancer vaccine targeting H3 G34-mutant diffuse hemispheric glioma, a highly aggressive brain tumor that is typically found in adolescents and young adults.
This type of brain tumor is primarily characterized by a particular mutation of the H3-3A gene, which encodes an important regulatory component on histone H3. This mutation leads to significant disruptions in RNA processing, with wide-ranging influences on cancer behavior and response to treatment. The vaccine, developed at UCLA, is designed to target these genetic mutations in these tumors.
The vaccine works by arming a patient’s dendritic cells, the most efficient activator of the body’s immune system, to target products of the altered RNA regulation that defines this cancer type. Once activated against these targets, the patient’s dendritic cells are then injected back into the patient.
This UCLA trial will begin with patients over 18 years old, and will then expand to include patients as young as 5 years old, who have a confirmed diagnosis of H3 G34-mutant diffuse hemispheric glioma. The clinical trial aims to improve survival rates and provide new insights into how the immune system responds to primary brain cancers, and understand whether these targets engender a lasting anti-tumor immune response.
Nation’s Heart Transplant List Is Failing Sick Kids, Study Suggests
U.S. News & World Report reported:
The U.S. heart transplant list for children isn’t accurately ranking the sickest kids highest, making it more likely they may die while waiting for a donor heart, a new study claims.
Some very sick children were categorized as category 2, the lowest of the three categories of urgency on the list, while others who were not as sick had a 1A “most urgent” status, researchers found.
“The current system is not doing a good job of capturing medical urgency, which is one of its explicit goals,” said researcher Kurt Sweat, a graduate student in economics at Stanford University.
For the study, researchers analyzed data from all 12,408 children younger than 12 listed for heart transplants between January 1999 and June 2023 in the United States.
Fentanyl Misuse During Pregnancy Can Cause Severe Birth Defects
The number of babies born with severe birth defects affecting their growth and development is rising, as researchers now have strong evidence that illicit fentanyl is causing the problems.
Hospitals have identified at least 30 newborns with what has been identified as “fetal fentanyl syndrome,” NBC News has learned. The babies were born to mothers who said they’d used street drugs, particularly fentanyl, while pregnant.
The syndrome was first identified in 10 babies last fall by geneticists at Nemours Children’s Health in Wilmington, Delaware. The infants had specific physical birth defects: cleft palate, unusually small heads, drooping eyelids, webbed toes and joints that weren’t fully developed. Some had trouble feeding.
IBS and Digestive Trouble Are in the Spotlight on Social Media. Here’s What You Should Know
Young people, especially women, are increasingly talking on social media about gastrointestinal distress, such as irritable bowel syndrome or chronic bloating. Some experts say that’s mostly a good thing, because it may help others seek help for a topic that has been taboo.
It’s not clear whether there’s a rise in digestive troubles overall. Some experts attribute the trend to an uptick in anxiety after the pandemic in an already anxious generation.
Ample research and science shows that our brain and gut are connected through nervous systems. That means when your brain is anxious or you’re feeling depressed, it can relay those signals to your gut, which can make it harder for your gastrointestinal tract to function properly.
Excessive Smartphone Use Can Negatively Impact Teen’s Mental Health, Researchers Find
Researchers have found more evidence that excessive smartphone use could impact a teen’s mental health.
Scientists refer to it as “problematic smartphone use” or PSU; in other words, behaviors around smartphone use akin to an addiction, including an inability to limit the amount of time spent on the phone, feeling panicky when the phone is out of reach, or using it when they should be doing other activities.
Researchers at King’s College London found that teens with PSU were twice as likely to have anxiety and almost three times more likely to suffer from depression compared to teens without problematic smartphone use.
Older teens also reported higher rates of insomnia. Most kids said they wanted to cut down on their phone use, and some said they needed help to do it. Some strategies that work include putting the phone in silent mode, getting rid of notifications, and placing the phone in another room at bedtime.
More U.S. Schools Are Taking Breaks for Meditation. Teachers Say It Helps Students’ Mental Health
Schools across the U.S. have been introducing yoga, meditation and mindfulness exercises to help students manage stress and emotions. As the depths of student struggles with mental health became clear in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last year endorsed schools’ use of the practices.
Research has found that school-based mindfulness programs can help, especially in low-income communities where students face high levels of stress or trauma.
Children nationwide struggled with the effects of isolation and remote learning as they returned from the pandemic school closures. The CDC in 2023 reported more than a third of students were affected by feelings of persistent sadness and hopelessness. The agency recommended schools use mindfulness practices to help students manage emotions.
