Health News
Latest health news and updates
Total: 73
Facing Down ALS: The Last Campaign of China’s Patient-Driven Researcher Cai Lei
Cai Lei, an ALS patient and research organiser in China, remains a central figure in nationwide efforts to push amyotrophic lateral sclerosis research forward despite being in the terminal stage of his illness. Through patient registries, international collaborations, and a high‑profile push for post‑mortem tissue donation, he is building infrastructure that could materially accelerate domestic ALS science even if he does not live to see a cure.
First Inhaled Gene Therapy for Lung Cancer Wins FDA Fast‑Track Nod, Raising Hopes — and Questions
An inhaled gene therapy targeting lung cancer has shown promising early clinical efficacy and received FDA RMAT designation and fast‑track status. The move accelerates regulatory review but leaves open critical questions about safety, durability, manufacturing and who will ultimately benefit.
PLA Hospital’s Surgical Team Cracks Tough Hernia and Reflux Cases, Building a New Center of Excellence
A specialist hernia and reflux surgery team at the PLA General Hospital Seventh Medical Center has developed standardized, minimally invasive and hybrid surgical solutions for very high‑risk elderly hernia patients, large recurrent incisional hernias, and refractory GERD with hiatal hernia. Rapid multidisciplinary coordination and enhanced recovery protocols have produced quick postoperative recoveries and promising short‑term outcomes, while the centre formalises a full clinical pathway from outpatient assessment to long‑term follow‑up.
Hengrui’s Oral GLP‑1/GIP Candidate Shows Promising 26‑Week Weight Loss in China — A Potential Game‑Changer for Obesity Care
Hengrui Medicine and Kailera Therapeutics reported positive top‑line results from a 166‑participant Phase II trial of ripubopetide, an oral GLP‑1/GIP dual agonist, showing up to 12.1% mean weight loss at 26 weeks and manageable vomiting rates. Hengrui will pursue Phase III studies in China while Kailera plans a global Phase II in 2026, though larger, longer trials are needed to confirm efficacy and safety.
Foreign Patients Flock to China’s Hospitals: Low Cost, High Speed and an Emerging Medical Export
China is seeing a marked rise in foreign patients attracted by faster service, advanced procedures and much lower prices. While numbers and success stories are growing, scaling inbound medical care into a robust export sector requires better branding, clearer regulation and safeguards to protect both international reputations and domestic health priorities.
China’s Aier Empire Exposed: Psychiatric Hospital Fraud Lifts the Veil on a Hidden Medical Network
Allegations of systematic medical‑insurance fraud at several psychiatric hospitals in Hubei have revealed links to Aier Medical Investment, the non‑listed vehicle controlled by Chen Bang, founder of listed Aier Eye. The case spotlights how opaque ownership layers can shield high‑risk healthcare businesses and raises the prospect of intensified regulatory and market scrutiny across China’s private medical sector.
How a Chinese City Ended Up with More Than Twenty Psychiatric Hospitals — and Why That Matters
A cluster of more than twenty psychiatric hospitals in parts of Hubei has prompted allegations that some facilities operate as profit-driven long-stay institutions, admitting people for low upfront fees and billing per bed-day while presenting routine chores as therapeutic rehabilitation. Provincial authorities have launched an investigation into hospitals in Xiangyang and Yichang, highlighting broader problems with incentives, oversight and community mental-health provision in China.
Merck’s PD‑1 Drug Pembrolizumab Wins China Approval as First‑Line Option for dMMR Advanced Endometrial Cancer
Merck’s pembrolizumab (KeRuida®) has been approved by China’s NMPA for first‑line use with carboplatin and paclitaxel, followed by pembrolizumab maintenance, in adults with dMMR advanced or recurrent endometrial cancer. The approval, based on phase III KEYNOTE‑868 (NRG‑GY018) data, shifts immunotherapy into the front line for this biomarker‑defined subgroup and raises issues of testing, reimbursement and market competition.
Beijing Cracks Down on Social‑media Misinformation Around Central Drug Procurement
China’s internet and health regulators have jointly removed and sanctioned social‑media accounts spreading false claims about the state’s centralized drug and consumable procurement programme. The initiative aims to curb panic, protect public confidence in volume‑based procurement, and signal stricter platform accountability as Beijing tightens online governance around health policy.
Fraud in China’s Psychiatric Wards: How Payment Rules and Weak Oversight Open the Door to Insurance Abuse
Chinese authorities are investigating multiple psychiatric hospitals for alleged large-scale insurance fraud, exposing systemic weaknesses in how mental health care is paid for and regulated. The combination of per‑day payment rules, limited objective documentation of care and fragmented oversight has created recurring opportunities for abuse, especially among private psychiatric providers.
Celebrity Comeback Meets Charity Crisis: Can Li Yapeng’s Viral Revival Rescue Yánrán Children’s Hospital?
A livestream-driven surge in donations and sales has given actor Li Yapeng and the Yánrán Angel Children’s Hospital a temporary reprieve from mounting debts, but the hospital’s narrow clinical focus, management gaps and legal limits on charitable funds mean deeper structural reforms are needed. The case highlights broader pressures on China’s private hospitals and the limits of celebrity philanthropy as a sustainable rescue strategy.
China’s Drug Regulator Flags 50 Batches of Unsafe Cosmetics, Orders Local Probes and Sales Bans
China’s drug regulator has identified 50 batches of cosmetics that failed 2025 national sampling tests for issues including microbial contamination, excessive acrylamide and mismatches between labelled and detected sunscreen ingredients. Provincial regulators have been ordered to investigate manufacturers and registrants, halt sales and pursue legal accountability where warranted. The move underscores Beijing’s sustained push for tighter cosmetics oversight and raises compliance, reputational and commercial stakes for domestic and foreign brands.