MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL

NYU Langone Health transplanted a genetically modified pig kidney into a 53-year-old woman, Towana Looney, for the third time. Looney, who had been on dialysis for over eight years, was discharged from the hospital and is recovering well. The kidney came from a pig with 10 DNA alterations, including removal of immune-triggering genes. This follows two previous pig kidney transplants, one of which failed due to inadequate blood flow. Xenotransplantation remains experimental and is only available to critically ill patients under the FDA's compassionate use program.

Taletrectinib, a next-gen ROS1 TKI, shows superior efficacy, CNS penetration, and safety in ROS1+ NSCLC, with TRUST-I trial data revealing 90.6% ORR in TKI-naive patients and 51.5% in crizotinib-pretreated. TRUST-II global trial supports consistent activity and safety, with pooled analysis confirming taletrectinib's benefit as a first-line option.

NeuroKaire, a biotech company specializing in precision medicine for psychiatry and neurology, secured $10 million in funding led by GreyBird Ventures to advance its clinical test for identifying personalized drug efficacy in depression. The test, based on a blood draw, provides insights into brain function and drug response, helping clinicians choose the optimal antidepressant. NeuroKaire aims to improve patient outcomes and accelerate drug development through precision medicine.

A study in the BMJ found taxi and ambulance drivers have lower Alzheimer’s mortality rates, possibly due to real-time spatial and navigational processing. Researchers suggest neurological changes in the hippocampus may account for this, though the study is observational and not conclusive.

A study led by Massachusetts General Hospital found that combining anti-CXCR4 and anti-PD1 therapies improves treatment outcomes for hepatocellular carcinoma by increasing dendritic cell activity and immune response. This approach transforms the 'cold' tumor environment into a 'hot' one, enhancing anti-cancer effects compared to anti-PD1 alone.

2024 saw breakthroughs in weight-loss jabs, HIV drugs, cancer vaccines, and dementia drugs, but also setbacks like rising cancer cases and childhood disease outbreaks.

Empagliflozin associated with 22% lower risk of diabetic retinopathy progression in type 2 diabetes patients with early-stage DR, per study in JAMA Ophthalmology.

A study in 'Nature' suggests complete blood count (CBC) tests could help identify or predict diseases like heart problems, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, and kidney disease. CBC measures red and white blood cells and platelets, providing timely health info. Researchers found individual 'set points' for blood makeup, enabling early disease diagnosis in seemingly healthy people. Associations include lower hemoglobin with heart risks, increased white blood cells with diabetes, red blood cell size with osteoporosis, and red blood cell percentage with kidney disease. CBC also predicts overall death risk.