Overdose deaths from fentanyl laced stimulants have risen 50-fold since 2010

New UCLA-led research has found that the proportion of US overdose deaths involving both fentanyl and stimulants has increased more than 50-fold since 2010, from 0.6% (235 deaths) in 2010 to 32.3% (34,429 deaths) in 2021. This rise in constitutes the ‘fourth wave’ in the US’s long-running opioid overdose crisis

Varenicline increases smoking cessation rates for African American smokers

Researchers at The University of Kansas Cancer Center have released the results of a clinical trial that examined the effectiveness of varenicline in African Americans. In their study published in JAMA, African American daily smokers who were given varenicline while receiving counseling had significantly greater quit rates than those who received a placebo.

During pandemic, potentially avoidable hospitalizations for non-COVID conditions fell more among whites

New research suggests that the COVID-19 crisis has exacerbated existing racial health care disparities and that during the pandemic, African Americans may have had worse access than whites to outpatient care that could have helped prevent deterioration of their non–COVID-19 health conditions

Newly diagnosed cancer patients, African Americans more at risk for COVID-19 infection

Cancer patients, especially newly diagnosed and African American patients, are significantly at risk for COVID-19 infection, hospitalization and mortality, according to a new study published in JAMA Oncology by researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Quest Diagnostics collaborate to identify the prevalence of COVID-19 in individuals with precursor to multiple myeloma

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, one of the world’s leading centers of cancer research and treatment, and Quest Diagnostics, (NYSE: DGX), the world’s leading provider of diagnostic information services, announced the start of a new research study that provides free COVID-19 antibody testing to individuals who are at high risk of developing multiple myeloma.

Culturally Relevant Programs Needed to Help End Hep B in Black Communities, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center Researchers Report

Hepatitis B disproportionately impacts U.S. Blacks, including African American and Haitian Blacks. Both communities suffer from widespread misinformation and access to care issues that might avert disease detection and prevention, according to a study published in Cancer Causes & Control by researchers at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

CHOP’s Center for Applied Genomics Receives Funding to Study Risk of Disease Specifically in African Americans

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced today that researchers from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) are among the recipients of a multi-million dollar grant that focuses on the use of genomics to improve risk assessment for diverse populations and integrate the findings into clinical care.