Luke Horne’s mum is happy he “has a lovely life now” since she gave him her kidney following months of gruelling dialysis.

The 23-year-old almost died from kidney failure just over a year ago.

He thinks that having three or four energy drinks a day since he was a teenager may have contributed to his condition. Now he has changed his diet and only drinks water.

After his diagnosis and a period in intensive care, he began dialysis. It lasted for five hours, three times a week, and left him physically drained and with painful headaches.

So when his mum, Elaine, found out she was a match for a kidney transplant she said it was “a great relief”.

Luke told BBC Scotland: “I thank her in my own way. We don’t talk about it, we are both like that.

“But she definitely knows I’m very thankful for it.

“It’s really good of her and I can never thank her enough. She knows that.”

Luke underwent nine months of dialysis before the operation went ahead.

Elaine, 48, who lives in East Linton, said: “It’s a hard experience and he needed to get on with his life.

“We came so close to losing him. We don’t dwell on it. I don’t think about him having my kidney inside him and he doesn’t need to say thank you.

“He has a girlfriend and has a lovely life now. He was friends with her for years but they got together during this experience.

“I think it made them realise how life can be short.”

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In December 2020 Luke had started feeling unwell and lost his sense of taste and smell. He began self-isolating at his home in North Berwick because he thought he had Covid.

But when his dad, Michael, visited to check up on him through his window, he saw that his son had turned grey and his face and feet were swollen and puffy.

He told his son to go to his GP, and blood samples showed Luke had end-stage kidney failure.

When he reached the hospital they told him he just had minutes left to live.

Luke said he had been drinking three to four energy drinks a day since he was 14 or 15.

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He said: “The doctor said it was more than likely that all the energy drinks caused me to have high blood pressure and that caused my kidney failure.

“I liked the taste of them so I didn’t think of the consequences. I was just a young, daft laddie.

“They are not good for you, I see that now. Now I only drink water.”

Luke has also changed his diet and does not eat processed foods. He will be on immunosuppressant drugs for the rest of his life.

I’ve cut out energy drinks now mum’s given me a kidney
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Swiss Health Minister Alain Berset is in a bit of a bind.

With just under two-thirds of the population fully vaccinated, the Swiss have one of the lowest vaccination rates in Western Europe.

Now, Covid-19 infections are rising exponentially, with case numbers rising by 40% to 50% each week.

So is the health minister planning new restrictions, like neighbouring Germany, or even making vaccination mandatory, like Austria?

Not a bit of it. In fact, on Sunday, Switzerland votes on getting rid of some Covid restrictions altogether.

From the start of the pandemic the Swiss government has performed a tricky balancing act, trying to introduce measures to control the spread of Covid, while still staying true to Switzerland’s system of direct democracy, in which the government has little formal power and the people have the final say.

Switzerland’s lockdowns were never as strict as its neighbours. People were allowed outside for exercise whenever they wanted and the schools only closed for a few weeks.

But last summer, with cases falling dramatically, Switzerland didn’t have a celebratory, UK-style “freedom” day either.

Instead, a Covid certificate was introduced with proof of vaccination, negative test, or immunity through having had the virus. In September it became obligatory to enter bars, cafes, restaurants, cinemas, museums, sporting events, and face-to-face university classes.

But not everyone agrees.

Vaccination has long been a sensitive issue here, especially in German-speaking Switzerland. A belief that natural immunity is best led to a drop in childhood measles vaccinations that sparked a surge in measles cases across Europe.

Meanwhile, in the alpine communities, a historic pride in their own independence rooted, some say, in the time when the mountain villages were cut off from the world each winter, means there is resistance to the government issuing orders.

And so, when the certificate was introduced and Covid tests stopped being free, life for the unvaccinated became difficult and even going out for a beer was suddenly expensive.

The government hoped the measures would encourage people to get vaccinated. Instead, many took to the streets and others gathered enough signatures to challenge the Covid certificate in Sunday’s referendum.

Covid: Swiss vote on ending restrictions while cases surge
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Covid – The US will restrict travel from South Africa and seven other southern African countries to try to contain a new coronavirus variant spreading there.

From Monday, only US citizens and residents will be allowed to travel from the region.

This follows a similar flight ban imposed by the EU and the UK. Canada is also introducing travel restrictions.

The World Health Organization (WHO) earlier declared the new variant to be “of concern”, naming it Omicron.

US officials said flights from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi will be blocked, mirroring earlier moves taken by the EU. The ban will come into effect on Monday.

In a statement, President Joe Biden called the move a “precautionary measure” taken until more is known about the variant.

Canada is also shutting its borders to foreign travellers who have recently been to South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Botswana, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Foreign citizens will be banned from Canada if they have been to the seven nations in the past 14 days.

The Omicron variant was first reported to the WHO from South Africa on 24 November and has since been identified in other countries.

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South Africa’s health ministry has criticised the rush to impose new travel restrictions, calling them “draconian”, and contrary to WHO guidance.

Scientists say they still have much to learn about the virus’s new mutations, and the WHO has said it will take a few weeks to understand the impact of the new variant, as experts work to determine how transmissible it is.

The WHO on Friday said preliminary evidence suggested the new variant carried a higher risk of reinfection than other variants.

Scientists have said it is the most heavily mutated version yet, which means Covid vaccines, which were designed using the original strain from Wuhan, China, may not be as effective.

The WHO says so far fewer than 100 sample sequences have been reported. Cases have mainly been confirmed in South Africa, but have also been detected in Hong Kong, Israel, Botswana and Belgium.

Most of the cases in South Africa have been from its most populated province, Gauteng, of which Johannesburg is the capital city.

The WHO has warned against countries hastily imposing travel restrictions, saying they should look to a “risk-based and scientific approach”.

Source – https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-59427770

Covid: US joins EU in restricting flights from southern Africa
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Covid – The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a new coronavirus variant to be “of concern” and named it Omicron.

It had a large number of mutations, and early evidence suggested an increased reinfection risk, the WHO said.

It was first reported to the WHO from South Africa on 24 November, and has also been identified in Botswana, Belgium, Hong Kong and Israel.

A number of countries around the world have now decided to ban or restrict travel to and from southern Africa.

Travellers from South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho and Eswatini will not be able to enter the UK unless they are UK or Irish nationals, or UK residents.

US officials said flights from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi would be blocked, mirroring earlier moves taken by the EU. It will come into effect on Monday.

Brazil and Australia also introduced travel restrictions.

‘Bad news – but not doomsday’

On Friday, the WHO said the number of cases of this variant, initially named B.1.1.529, appeared to be increasing in almost all of South Africa’s provinces. 

“This variant has a large number of mutations, some of which are concerning,” the UN public health body said in a statement.

It said “the first known confirmed B.1.1.529 infection was from a specimen collected on 9 November”.

The WHO said it would take a few weeks to understand the impact of the new variant, as scientists worked to determine how transmissible it was.

A top UK health official warned that vaccines would “almost certainly” be less effective against the new variant.

But Professor James Naismith, a structural biologist from the University of Oxford, added: “It is bad news but it’s not doomsday.”

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He said mutations in the variant suggested it may spread more quickly – but transmissibility “is not just as simple as ‘this amino acid does this'” and was determined by how mutations worked together.

Only about 24% of South Africa’s population is fully vaccinated, which could spur a rapid spread of cases there, Dr Mike Tildesley, a member of the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Modelling group (Spi-M), told the BBC on Friday.

Meanwhile, US infectious disease chief Dr Anthony Fauci said that while the reports on the new variant threw up a “red flag”, it was possible that vaccines might still work to prevent serious illness.

“Until it’s properly tested… we don’t know whether or not it evades the antibodies that protect you against the virus”, Dr Fauci told CNN.

The WHO has warned against countries hastily imposing travel restrictions, saying they should look to a “risk-based and scientific approach”.

However, in addition to the UK, and the US and the EU, a host of other countries have also announced restrictions:

• Australia announced on Saturday that flights from South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini, the Seychelles, Malawi, and Mozambique would be suspended for 14 days. Non-Australians who have been in those countries in the past two weeks are now banned from entering Australia
• Japan has announced that from Saturday, travellers from much of southern Africa will need to quarantine for 10 days and take a total of four tests during that time
• India has ordered more rigorous screening and testing for travellers arriving from South Africa, Botswana and Hong Kong
• Iran will ban travellers from six southern African countries, including South Africa. Iranians arriving from the region will be admitted after testing negative twice, state TV says
• Brazil also said it was restricting travel to the region from six countries in Africa

Source – https://www.bbc.co.uk/

Covid: New variant classed ‘of concern’ and named Omicron
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Grindr – A man from north London who raped two men he met on a dating app has been jailed for 14 years.

Aaron Goodey, 23, met his victims on Grindr before going to their houses and raping them.

He then took them to a cashpoint and forced them to withdraw cash while threatening further violence.

Both attacks took place in the Enfield area.

Further enquiries resulted in Goodey being linked to a third offence that occurred in Lambeth in January 2020 where a man was assaulted and forced to withdraw money by a man who he had met for consensual sex.

Forensic evidence taken from the victim of the first offence led to scientists identifying Goodey as a potential suspect. Officers carried out further enquiries, including reviewing CCTV footage and phone work, which linked him to the three incidents.

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Goodey was arrested and interviewed about the attacks. He denied any involvement, but the evidence collected by scientists and officers was overwhelming and led to the Crown Prosecution Service authorising charges against him.

Goodey was found guilty of three counts of rape, two counts of robbery and one count of blackmail.

He was sentenced at Wood Green Crown Court on Friday, 17 September.

Detective Superintendent Seb Adjei-Addoh, from the local policing team in Enfield, said:“Aaron Goodey is a dangerous sexual attacker and posed a significant risk to men across London.

“He gained access to the victim’s houses before subjecting them to significant sexual attacks, while using and threatening further violence, to extort money.

“This sentence sends a clear message that sexual violence towards any person will not be tolerated in London and I acknowledge the bravery shown by the victims in this case who provided crucial evidence to ensure Goodey cannot offend again.

“I would urge anyone who had been the victim of such an offence to contact police immediately on 101. Any reports will be dealt with sensitively and your identity will be kept confidential. Always call 999 in an emergency.”

Source – https://www.standard.co.uk/

Londoner jailed for raping two men he met on Grindr
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Sajid Javid, Health Secretary has been criticised for saying people should no longer “cower” from coronavirus.

He made the comments after tweeting that he had made a “full recovery” from Covid, a week after testing positive.

“Please – if you haven’t yet – get your jab, as we learn to live with, rather than cower from, this virus,” he wrote.

But Labour accused him of denigrating those who followed the rules, while a victims’ group founder said his comments were “deeply insensitive”.

Cower is defined by the Cambridge Dictionary as meaning to bend down or move backwards with your head down because you are frightened.

Shadow justice secretary David Lammy questioned his use of the word.

“129,000 Brits have died from Covid under your government’s watch,” Mr Lammy wrote. “Don’t denigrate people for trying to keep themselves and their families safe.”

Lib Dem health spokeswoman Munira Wilson said Mr Javid’s tweet was “outrageous” while thousands remain in hospital with Covid-19.

“His careless words have insulted every man, woman and child who has followed the rules and stayed at home to protect others,” she said.

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“He owes them all, especially the millions who are shielding, an apology.”

Co-founder of Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Jo Goodman said Mr Javid’s comments were “deeply insensitive on a number of levels”.

“Words matter and the flippancy and carelessness of this comment has caused deep hurt and further muddied the waters of the government’s dangerously mixed messaging.”

Mr Javid replaced Mr Hancock as health secretary last month after his predecessor stood down.

He has been seen as more strongly in favour of lifting coronavirus restrictions, previously describing the move as “irreversible”.

On Saturday, cases fell for the fourth day in a row, with 31,795 infections recorded. However, the seven-day average for deaths is up by 57.4%, with 86 deaths reported on Saturday.

The vaccination programme has reduced hospital admissions and deaths in this current, third wave of the pandemic.

Modelling produced last month by Public Health and the MRC Biostatistics Unit estimates that vaccines had prevented 7.2 million infections and 27,000 deaths in England alone.

Source – https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-57958538

Sajid Javid criticised for ‘cower’ Covid remark
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Covid-19 – Germany’s health agency said on Monday it would lift a ban on most travellers from the UK, India and three other countries hit by the Delta variant of Covid-19.

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) said India, Nepal, Russia, Portugal and the UK, currently listed as so-called Covid-19 virus variant countries, would be reclassified from Wednesday as “high-incidence areas”.

The change eases a ban on entry for travellers who are not German residents or citizens, instead of meaning anyone will be able to enter as long as they observe quarantine and testing rules.

Germany introduced its “virus variant country” travel category in a bid to stop new coronavirus variants that have not yet spread widely on home soil.

But Health Minister Jens Spahn said last week that the Delta variant was fast becoming dominant in Germany, meaning that bans on most travellers from countries hit by that variant may be lifted.

Given the increasing spread of Delta, which was first detected in India, and research suggesting vaccines are effective against it, “we will look at the situation in the next few days”, Spahn said.

Chancellor Angela Merkel also hinted at a potential softening in Germany’s stance towards travellers from Britain during a visit to London on Friday.

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Last month, Merkel had called for tough restrictions, including longer quarantine, for people travelling from Britain, where the Delta variant has caused a surge in cases.

But she indicated that the stance could soften as travel advice was reviewed.

“We think that in the foreseeable future, those who have received double jabs will… be able to travel again, without having to go into quarantine,” she said.

Only citizens and residents of Germany are permitted to enter from a variant country and are subject to a two-week quarantine, regardless of whether they are fully vaccinated or can provide a negative Covid-19 test.

By contrast, anyone can enter from a high-incidence country as long as they provide a negative test on arrival. They must in principle enter a 10-day quarantine but can end it after five days with another negative test.

Travellers from high-incidence areas are also exempt from quarantine if they have been fully vaccinated.

Countries where variants other than Delta are circulating, such as Brazil and South Africa, remain in the Covid-19 variant category.

Despite the rising share of the Delta variant, the overall incidence in Germany has been steadily declining in recent weeks.

Source – https://www.ndtv.com/

Covid-19: Germany lifts ban on tourists from UK and Portugal
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Breast Cancer – A twice-daily pill can dramatically reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence in women who are genetically prone to the disease, researchers report.

The pill — olaparib (Lynparza) — works by blocking a natural enzyme called PARP that normally fixes DNA damage in healthy cells, but in these women actually promotes the growth of cancerous cells.

Early high-risk breast cancer patients taking olaparib for a year had a 42% reduced risk of cancer recurrence or death compared to those given a placebo, said lead researcher Dr. Andrew Tutt, director of the Breast Cancer Now Toby Robins Research Centre at the Institute of Cancer Research in London.

“Patients who received olaparib after surgery and chemotherapy were more likely to be alive without cancer and avoid metastasis than the patients who received placebo,” he said.

These results were presented Thursday at an online meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Findings presented at meetings should be considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

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Olaparib already is approved to treat patients with metastatic breast cancer who have mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes. These genes typically suppress cancer, but mutations actually increase cancer risk for some people.

About 5% of breast cancers are associated with BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations, Tutt noted.

Breast cancers that occur due to BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutations rely on the PARP enzyme to remain alive, grow and divide. Drugs called PARP inhibitors take advantage of this fact to block the enzyme and prevent the cancer from coming back.

In this clinical trial, more than 1,800 patients with stage 2 to 3 breast cancers treated with surgery and chemotherapy were randomly assigned to take either 300 milligrams of olaparib or a placebo twice a day for a year.

Patients on olaparib had a three-year invasive disease-free survival rate — no recurring breast cancer or other new cancers — of about 86%, compared with 77% for those taking a placebo, the findings showed.

Source – https://www.newsmax.com/

Breast Cancer – Drug Helps Fight Early-Stage
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Radiation Drugs – Doctors are reporting improved survival in men with advanced prostate cancer from an experimental drug that delivers radiation directly to tumor cells.

Few such drugs are approved now, but the approach may become a new way to treat patients with other hard-to-reach or inoperable cancers.

The study tested an emerging class of medicine called radiopharmaceuticals, drugs that deliver radiation directly to cancer cells. The drug in this case is a molecule that contains two parts: a tracker and a cancer-killing payload.

Trillions of these molecules hunt down cancer cells, latching onto protein receptors on the cell membrane. The payload emits radiation, which hits the tumor cells within its range.

“You can treat tumors that you cannot see. Anywhere the drug can go, the drug can reach tumor cells,” said Dr. Frank Lin, who had no role in the study but heads a division at the National Cancer Institute that helps develop such medicine.

Results were released Thursday by the American Society of Clinical Oncology ahead of its annual meeting this weekend. The study was funded by Novartis, the drug’s maker, which plans to seek approvals in the United States and Europe later this year.

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When cancer is confined to the prostate, radiation can be beamed onto the body or implanted in pellets.

But those methods don’t work well in more advanced prostate cancer. About 43,000 men in the United States each year are diagnosed with prostate cancer that has spread and is no longer responding to hormone-blocking treatment.

The study tested a new way to get radiation treatment to such patients.

It involved 831 men with advanced prostate cancer. Two-thirds were given the radiation drug and the rest served as a comparison group. Patients got the drug through an IV every six weeks, up to six times.

Source – https://www.newsmax.com/

Radiation Drugs Track and Kill Cancer Cells
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vaccinated – The prospect of care home workers being required to get vaccinated against Covid-19 has moved a step closer, with a crucial endorsement from the UK’s human rights watchdog.

Ministers are considering changing the law to make vaccination a condition of deployment for people in some professions that come into regular close contact with elderly and vulnerable people at high risk from the coronavirus.

In a report to the government seen by the Guardian, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) admitted that making vaccines compulsory for care home staff would be a “significant departure from current public health policy”.

But they judged that ministers were “right to prioritise protection of the right to life for residents and staff” and said it would be reasonable for care home workers to need a jab “in order to work directly with older and disabled people, subject to some important safeguards”.

The EHRC is also likely to make a similar recommendation about healthcare workers, after the vaccines minister, Nadhim Zahawi, suggested over the weekend that NHS staff could face mandatory jabs, too, as some patients were “being infected in hospital”.

Zahawi said no decisions had been made yet, and stressed there was a precedent: surgeons were required to be vaccinated against hepatitis B. He added: “It would be incumbent on any responsible government to have the debate, to do the thinking about how we go about protecting the most vulnerable by making sure that those who look after them are vaccinated.”

A government source said: “We think it would save lives.”

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There is nervousness in Whitehall about making moves to force anyone to have a coronavirus injection, given the fear that this could make people who are already vaccine hesitant even more resistant.

However, now that care workers had been eligible for vaccines for months due to their high position on the priority list, the EHRC said some demographic groups that were less likely to get vaccinated were “disproportionately represented in the adult social care sector workforce”.

Source – https://www.theguardian.com/

Vaccinated – UK rights watchdog endorses compulsory Covid jabs
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