Chloe Aslett BBC News, Yorkshire Anna Cieslik Beatrice, 5, was diagnosed with Batten disease at the age of 3 The mum of a five-year-old girl with a terminal genetic disorder has said her daughter’s health is likely to deteriorate quickly if the NHS removes provision of the vital drug which is “keeping her doing”. Two … Read more
James Cook Scotland editor BBC James McMillan and Lisa McCuish grew up next to each other and now they lie side by side in Pennyfuir Cemetery James McMillan grew up next door to Lisa McCuish in a neat cul-de-sac on a hillside above Oban Bay. Now they lie side by side in Pennyfuir Cemetery. The … Read more
Peter Saull Political editor, BBC East Midlands BBC Matthew Cox was born with a range of conditions, his mother said “Who will look after our children when we’re no longer here? At the moment that’s nobody.” Catherine Cox, from Keyworth in Nottinghamshire, was one of thousands of women who took the epilepsy drug, sodium valproate, … Read more
Sharon Barbour Health Correspondent, North East and Cumbria BBC Samantha Denison is at least the fourth generation of her family to have neuroferritinopathy, but her daughter has escaped it A woman who is at least the fourth generation of her family to suffer a “cruel” brain disorder, which leaves people trapped in their own bodies, … Read more
Michelle Roberts, Nat Wright and Adam Eley BBC News Kyle Some online sites are prescribing men a hair loss drug that has potentially risky side effects without consistent safety checks, the BBC has found. The side effects of finasteride can include suicidal thoughts and impotence, yet some big brand companies will send the pills in … Read more
More than 130 people used the UK’s first drug consumption clinic in the facility’s first week. The Safer Drugs Consumption Facility in Glasgow opened on 13 January, letting people take substances under supervision. Cllr Allan Casey, the city convener for addiction services, said it had been an “intense first week” for staff, with 131 users. … Read more
BBC The new drugs consumption room in the Calton area of Glasgow is called The Thistle Welcome to the Thistle – the UK’s first and only drug consumption room. After nearly a decade of deadlock and wrangling over drug laws the centre is finally ready to open. On Monday it will welcome its first clients … Read more
Getty Images It is among the most delicate and controversial challenges in modern medicine – how to determine whether the benefits of puberty blockers (or drugs that delay puberty) outweigh the potential harms. This question came to the fore in June 2023 when NHS England proposed that in the future, these drugs would only be … Read more
HANDOUT Alix Harvey started taking the weight-loss drug in May this year Weight-loss drug Mounjaro is set to be rolled out on the NHS in England from March. It is one of many weight-loss drugs that have become increasingly popular in recent years, and are sold privately by clinics and pharmacies. BBC News spoke to … Read more
A new weight-loss jab will be rolled out on the NHS in England – but it could take 12 years for everyone to receive it, the NHS drugs advisory body says. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) final draft guidance on Mounjaro has recommended it starts being given from March, alongside advice … Read more