This Week in Medicine

www.thelancet.com Vol 382 August 3, 2013 i

Data transparency Pharmaceutical trade organisations in Europe and the USA have released a set of principles committing member companies to improved sharing of clinical trial data. The proposal will apply from Jan 1, 2014, and will affect all new drugs. However, the move could be seen as an attempt to avoid more stringent requirements for data transparency.

African underspending According to WHO data, 12 years after African Governments pledged to allocate at least 15% of their yearly budgets to health, only six countries (Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Rwanda, Togo, and Zambia) have achieved this goal. Although four others are spending at least 13% of their budgets on health, a quarter of African Union countries are spending less than in 2001.

Life after cancer A report by Macmillan Cancer Support says that at least one in four people living with cancer (ie, more than 500 000 people in the UK) face long-term debilitating health disorders and disability after cancer treatment. The report warns that the National Health Service is underprepared to help the increasing number of cancer survivors.

Precaution for pilgrims Saudi Arabia is recommending restrictions for Muslims intending to perform the Hajj in Mecca this October because of the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus threat. At-risk individuals, including elderly and immunocompromised people, are advised to postpone their plans. The Hajj was attended by 3·16 million people in 2012.

Alcohol pricing protests Bulgaria, France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain have spoken out against Scotland’s minimum alcohol pricing initiative. These wine-producing nations have written to the European Commission, which has been reviewing Scotland’s appeal for an exemption from trading restrictions that stand in the way of the enactment of the Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) (Scotland) Act.

Combating cholera The fi ght against cholera might be showing a promising turnaround in West Africa. Incidence is down by almost 75% compared with this time last year, with only 1700 new cases reported since mid-June. A severe outbreak in the region in 2012 saw up to 392 deaths in Sierra Leone alone. This year, most cases are in Guinea-Bissau, Sierra Leone, and Niger.

Children’s happiness Happiness of UK children is in decline, according to a survey of 42 000 children aged 8–17 years. Wellbeing has dipped since 2008 after a period of improvement, and now one in ten children has low wellbeing, with those aged 14–15 years reporting the lowest self-satisfaction. These children are more likely than those with average-to-high wellbeing to have experienced family conflict, bullying, or other negative events.

Strike in Peru Doctors and nurses continue to strike indefi nitely in Lima. Non-urgent services have come to a standstill in the capital and elsewhere since July 16, following governmental delays in improving work conditions agreed last year with the Federación Médica Peruana after a 33 day strike in October. Wage disputes have plagued the health system for over a decade.

Securing food’s future Developmental organisations have collaborated to develop the Food Security Learning Framework, which identifi es key factors to help achieve access for all people to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food. It contains information about interventions in the agricultural, economic, and nutrition sectors; solutions will vary by country, state, and community-specifi c factors.

Menthol cigarettes The US Food and Drug Association has said that menthol cigarettes are easier to start and harder to quit than regular cigarettes, and have issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking, urging the public for its input with respect to the regulation of menthol in cigarettes. It has commissioned three studies into the issue, but has yet to limit sale.

India’s poverty decline Data released last week by India’s Planning Commission show that the proportion of Indian residents below the poverty line has fallen from 37·2% to 21·9% in the past 7 years. According to the report, Goa, Kerala, and Himachal Pradesh have the lowest proportions of impoverished residents in the country. Overall growth, farm growth, and more jobs are likely to have contributed to this decline in poverty.

Fruity prescription Two New York City hospitals are joining a programme that enables doctors to write low-income patients at risk of obesity prescriptions for fruit and vegetables. Launched by the organisation Wholesome Wave, the Fruit and Vegetable Prescription Program enables patients to use coupons to redeem fruit and vegetables at farmers’ markets once a week.

For The Lancet News podcast see http://www.thelancet.com/lancet-news-audio/

For the joint principles on clinical data transparency see http://phrma.org/sites/default/fi les/pdf/PhRMAPrinciplesFor ResponsibleClinicalTrialData Sharing.pdf

For the WHO data on health expenditure in Africa see http://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.main.75?lang=en

For Macmillan Cancer’s Cured—but at what cost? report see http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Documents/AboutUs/Newsroom/Consequences_of_Treatment_June2013.pdf

For the Saudi Arabian ministry of health’s Hajj regulations see http://www.moh.gov.sa/en/Ministry/ MediaCenter/News/Pages/ News-2013-07-12-001.aspx

For The Children’s Society’s Good Childhood Report 2013 see http://www.childrenssociety.org.uk/well-being

For the Food Security Learning Framework see http://www.ifad.org/hfs/tools/hfs/fs_frameworkpub/foodsecurity.pdf

For more on the FDA’s review of menthol cigarettes see http://www.regulations.gov/ #!documentDetail;D=FDA_FRDOC_0001-4088

For India’s 2011–12 poverty estimates see http://planningcommission.nic.in/news/pre_pov2307.pdf

For more on the fruit and vegetable prescription programme see http://wholesomewave.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/ 041213-FVRx-FactSheet.pdf

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