Summary

The most impactful health news of the week were:

• Biomedicine: Vision is being restored using a retinal implant for people suffering from macular degeneration.
• Global health: Housing: a determinant of health and equity.
• International health policy: The transformation of mental health in Europe: from crisis to opportunity.
• National health policy: Tensions between Autonomous Communities and the Ministry of Health over the provision of information on screenings and their presence on the Interterritorial Council.
• Companies: Rovi will manufacture Roche’s new obesity drug entirely in Spain.

Biomedicine

• Vision is being restored using a retinal implant for people suffering from macular degeneration, which could reach one million in the USA alone. The treatment allows people to see enough to read.
• “Guided missiles” targeting tumor cells open a new highway for treating cancer. If half a century ago we looked to chemotherapy, and fifteen years ago to immunotherapy, now we look to “immunoconjugated drugs” (ADCs), treatments that work like a Trojan horse, delivering chemotherapy into tumor cells. This is the conclusion of the ESMO (European Congress of Oncology), held last week in Berlin.

Global Health

• Housing: a determinant of health and equity. A study by UN Habitat shows that 2.8 billion people live in inadequate housing, 1 billion live in informal accommodation, and 300 million are homeless. Housing problems are accompanied by poor health—including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, mental illness, infectious diseases, and injuries—and are one of the primary determinants of health. Climate change does not contribute to the problem.
• The rise in cancer cases in people under 50 is confirmed. A study conducted in 42 countries warns of an increase in six tumors (thyroid, kidney, breast, colorectal, endometrial, and leukemia) in adults aged 20 to 49.

International Health Policy

• The transformation of mental health in Europe: from crisis to opportunity. Approximately 17% of Europeans suffer from a mental illness, yet one in three does not receive the treatment they need. Many European countries have one psychiatrist for every 200,000 people. Children and young people are experiencing a rapid decline in mental health.
• The Nuffield Trust publishes the salaries of doctors in the NHS. According to these tables, a consultant (senior hospital specialist) would earn an average of £105,500, while a GP partner (senior primary care physician) would earn £175,000.

National Health Policy (Spain)

• Tensions between PP-backed Autonomous Communities and the Ministry of Health over the provision of screening information and their presence at the Interterritorial Council. The PP-backed autonomous communities refuse to provide the screening data requested by the Ministry, claiming they lack the computer system to receive it and that the Ministry would seek it for political purposes. Apparently, this was in agreement with Génova. They are absent from the last Interterritorial Council of the NHS. The reasons given for not providing screening information do not seem entirely consistent, as the Ministry’s coordination function requires information. Regarding the absence of PP councilors from the Interterritorial Council, the background on both sides does not seem very encouraging.
• The controversy over breast cancer screening in Andalusia and the plans of the new Andalusian Health Minister. What began as a health issue could become a serious political problem for the Andalusian government, with elections looming. The Public Prosecutor’s Office has requested information on the issue. Meanwhile, the new Andalusian Health Minister promises reforms and creates a Committee of Experts to analyze them.
• Cardiac mortality in hospitals is higher in the poorest communities. The lower the GDP per capita, the higher the mortality from heart failure in hospitals. The data, absolutely well compiled and reliable, comes from the Spanish Society of Cardiology. This highlights a serious problem in the NHS: the lack of transparency regarding results that allow for comparisons of communities, areas, hospitals, etc.

Companies

• International
  • Agreement between AstraZeneca and Microsoft to boost innovation in healthcare, to promote the development of artificial intelligence, digital health, and advanced data analytics programs

• National
  • Rovi will manufacture Roche’s new obesity drug entirely in Spain. It will have an economic impact on the country of more than 2 billion euros

Biomedicine

• “Guided missiles” targeting tumor cells open a new highway for treating cancer. If half a century ago we looked to chemotherapy, and fifteen years ago to immunotherapy, now we look to “immunoconjugated drugs” (ADCs), treatments that function like a Trojan horse, delivering chemotherapy to the interior of tumor cells. This is the conclusion of the ESMO (European Congress of Oncology), held last week in Berlin (https://elpais.com/salud-y-bienestar/2025-10-25/los-misiles-teledirigidos-a-las-celulas-tumorales-abren-una-nueva-autopista-para-plantar-cara-al-cancer.html)
• An unexpected bonus for the COVID-19 vaccine: it improves cancer treatment. Patients who received an mRNA COVID vaccine and are starting cancer immunotherapy are living significantly longer (https://www.science.org/content/article/surprise-bonus-covid-19-vaccines-bolstering-cancer-treatment)
• DNA identifies two deadly bacteria that attacked Napoleon’s army. Genetic material extracted from 13 teeth in a Lithuanian grave reveals infectious diseases that brought down the army during its retreat from Russia (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/24/health/dna-identifies-2-bacterial-killers-that-stalked-napoleons-army.html)
• Sugar rationing in childhood reduces heart disease by 20%. This conclusion was reached after analyzing medical records in the United Kingdom of people born before and after the end of restrictions in 1953 (https://www.ft.com/content/a39926a0-e910-4a1c-b085-3eb90cd85d93). Access the original article: https://www.bmj.com/content/391/bmj-2024-083890
• Vision is restored using a retinal implant in people suffering from macular degeneration, which may affect one million in the United States alone. The treatment allows enough vision to be read (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/20/health/retinal-implant-macular-degeneration.html). Original article in the NEJM: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2501396
• New therapies for ocular melanoma offer hope. This is a cell therapy using T lymphocytes, presented at the recent Berlin Oncology Congress (https://www.lemonde.fr/sciences/article/2025/10/20/melanome-de-l-il-l-espoir-de-nouvelles-therapies_6648267_1650684.html)
• Weight loss drugs reduce the risk of cardiovascular events by 20%. A study suggests that the protective effect is not only due to weight loss (https://elpcom/salud-y-bienestar/2025-10-22/los-farmacos-adelgazantes-reducen-en-un-20-el-riesgo-de-sufrir-eventos-cardiovasculares.html). Access the original article in The Lancet: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)01375-3/fulltext

Global Health

• Increase in cancer cases in people under 50 confirmed. A study conducted in 42 countries warns of an increase in six tumors (thyroid, kidney, breast, colorectal, endometrial, and leukemia) in adults aged 20 to 49 (https://www.elmundo.es/ciencia-y-salud/salud/2025/10/20/68f66acafc6c833d2c8b45ac.html). Access the original article in the Annals of Internal Medicine: https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/ANNALS-24-02718
• Housing: a determinant of health and equity. A UN Habitat study shows that 2.8 billion people live in inadequate housing, 1 billion live in informal dwellings, and 300 million are homeless. Housing problems are accompanied by poor health—including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, mental illness, infectious diseases, and injuries—and are one of the primary determinants of health. Climate change is not contributing to the problem (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(25)00229-4/fulltext)
• How attacks on healthcare are a new strategy of war. The number of military actions and attacks against healthcare infrastructure and personnel has increased in the last five years (https://www.bmj.com/content/391/bmj.r2153)

International Health Policy

• USA
  • Republicans are not yet negotiating the extension of Obamacare. But they are getting close. The discussion centers on how to extend key subsidies before the end of the year (https://www.politico.com/news/2025/10/21/obamacare-insurance-extension-shutdown-00616150)

• United Kingdom
  • Is the NHS ready to have zero emissions by 2040? In 2020, it was announced that the NHS would have zero direct carbon emissions by 2040 and zero indirect carbon emissions by 2045. A recent review has made it possible to assess how much progress has been made, as well as how much remains to be done (https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/insight-and-analysis/blogs/carbon-net-zero-2040-is-nhs-on-track)
  • The Nuffield Trust publishes the salaries of doctors in the NHS. According to these tables, a consultant (senior hospital specialist) would earn an average of £105,500, while a GP partner (senior primary care physician) would earn £175,000 (https://www.nuffiorg.uk/resource/exploring-the-earnings-of-nhs-doctors-in-england-2025-update).
  • The NHS faces a four-hour workday. The difficulties in attracting NHS staff are leading to the study of this formula, for which there is still no clear evidence. But it is something that is on the table (https://www.bmj.com/content/391/bmj-2025-085261).

• Colombia
  • The Council of State blocks Petro’s intention to pass the healthcare reform by decree. The Supreme Court finds that the president exceeded his powers by failing to pass the measure through Congress, which changed the functions of the EPS and modified Primary Care (https://elpais.com/america-colombia/2025-10-24/el-consejo-de-estado-frena-la-intención-de-petro-de-sacar-la-reforma-a-la-salud-por-decreto.html)

• WHO
  • The WHO deplores the drastic budget cuts affecting humanitarian aid globally. In 2025, the Agency received 40% of the aid it received the previous year (https://www.lemonde.fr/planete/article/2025/10/24/l-oms-deplore-des-coupes-budgetaires-drastiques-affectant-l-aide-humanitaire-mondiale_6649086_3244.html)

• European Union
  • The transformation of mental health in Europe: from crisis to opportunity. Approximately 17% of Europeans suffer from a mental illness, yet one in three does not receive the treatment they need. Many European countries have one psychiatrist for every 200,000 people. Children and young people are experiencing a rapid decline in mental health (https://www.thelacom/journals/lanepe/article/PIIS2666-7762(25)00284-4/fulltext)
  • The European Union is considering banning ethanol in hand products due to cancer fears (https://www.ft.com/content/49dd345a-1b85-4e04-bd2e-fec38ce9637c)

National Health Policy

• Central Administration Initiatives
  • ALS patients will receive up to 10,000 euros per month under the new decree. This comes one year after the law was passed, which was already long overdue. 500 million euros are allocated for this purpose (https://elpais.com/espana/2025-10-21/los-enfermos-de-ela-recibiran-hasta-10000-euros-al-mes-para-sus-cuidados-con-el-nuevo-decreto.html)
  • The Ministry of Health will promote a data exchange system for access to innovation between autonomous communities. The idea is to share data on access to medications, since, currently, this data is unknown (https://diariofarma.com/2025/10/22/sanidad-impulsara-un-sistema-de-intercambio-de-datos-de-acceso-a-innovacion-entre-ccaa)
  • Congress approves the PP bill to grant financial compensation to celiac patients. There will be a registry of patients with this condition and tax benefits will be established (https://gacetamedica.com/politica/celiacos-compensacion-economica/)

• Initiatives from the Autonomous Communities
  • The Basque Country’s regional minister returns to the CISNS and discusses a key meeting with the Ministry of Health. The discussion is on the cohesion fund, on which talks are underway (https://www.consalud.es/autonomias/pais-vasco/alberto-martinez-anuncia-una-reunion-muy-positiva-con-el-ministerio-y-vuelve-a-la-senda-de-la-colaboracion.html)
  • Galicia declares 29 special pharmaceutical zones to facilitate rural pharmacies, in collaboration with the Galician Pharmaceutical Associations (https://diariofarma.com/2025/10/20/galicia-declara-las-29-zonas-farmaceuticas-especiales-para-facilitar-la-viabilidad-de-boticas-rurales)

• Tensions between the PP-led Autonomous Communities and the Ministry of Health over the provision of information and presence in the Interterritorial Council
  • The PP-led communities will not provide data on their screenings and accuse the Ministry of Health of not creating a system to share them. The arguments are that the computer system is not ready and also that the minister will use the data against them. Andalusia distances itself from the measure (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20251020/ccaa-pp-no-pueden-dar-datos-cribados-cancer-disponen-sistema-informatico/1003743978005_0.html)
  • Genoa (National PP management) reached an agreement with the PP health councilors not to provide screening data. The arguments are that the computer system is not ready and also that the minister will use the data against them. Andalusia disassociates itself from the measure (https://elpais.com/espana/2025-10-22/genova-consensuo-con-los-gobiernos-del-pp-el-plante-a-la-peticion-de-sanidad-sobre-los-cribados-de-cancer.html)
  • The PP-led regional governments are leaving the Interterritorial Council en bloc, denouncing the government’s partisan and sectarian use of the Council (https://cadenaser.com/nacional/2025/10/24/las-comunidades-del-pp-abandonan-en-bloque-el-consejo-interterritorial-de-salud-cadena-ser/)

• The controversy over breast cancer screening in Andalusia and the plans of the new Andalusian Health Minister
  • How the mammogram crisis was concocted. It seems that at the Virgen del Rocío Hospital, it was decided not to inform women, as the computer system would do it, which did not happen (https://elpais.com/expres/2025-10-25/como-se-fraguo-la-crisis-de-las-mamografias-ordenaron-dejar-de-informar-a-las-mujeres-porque-lo-haria-un-programa-informatico-y-no-paso.html)
  • The Andalusian Prosecutor’s Office is investigating the failures in breast cancer screening. The Public Prosecutor’s Office asks the Moreno government to report on what happened (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2025-10-23/la-fiscalia-andaluza-investiga-los-fallos-en-el-cribado-de-cancer-de-mama.html)
  • The Andalusian government promises reforms, but avoids clarifying what went wrong with breast cancer screening (https://elpais.com/expres/2025-10-23/el-ejecutivo-andaluz-promete-reformas-pero-evita-aclarar-que-fallo-en-los-cribados-de-cancer-de-mama.html)
  • The new Andalusian minister begins his term with 16 proposals to improve healthcare in Andalusia. He promises a multidisciplinary committee of experts to analyze the system’s challenges and nearly 4,000 more staff, the largest structural staff expansion in recent decades (https://diariofarma.com/2025/10/22/antonio-sanz-abre-su-etapa-de-gestion-con-16-propuestas-para-mejorar-la-sanidad-en-andalucia)

• Health Barometer
  • Confidence in public healthcare and citizen satisfaction are falling, although Primary Care is improving. Although the public system remains the preferred system, more and more people are choosing the private system (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2025-10-22/cae-la-confianza-en-la-sanidad-publica-y-la-satisfaccion-de-los-ciudadanos-cómo-mejora-la-atencion-primaria.html). Access to the Health Barometer (2nd wave, 2025, July 2025): https://www.cis.es/documents/d/cis/es3519mar

• Too many deaths at work
  • Particularly in the construction sector, which places Spain above the European average (https://elpais.com/opinion/2025-10-21/demasiadas-muertes-en-el-trabajo.html)

• Equity and cardiac mortality
  • Cardiac mortality in hospitals is higher in poorer communities. The lower the GDP per capita, the higher the mortality from heart failure in hospitals (https://elpais.com/sociedad/2025-10-23/la-mortalidad-cardiaca-en-los-hospitales-es-mayor-en-las-comunidades-mas-pobres.html)

• Healthcare spending
  • Healthcare spending continues to decline relative to GDP, reaching 9.53%. It went from 11.03% of GDP in 2020 (the year of COVID-19, due to a drop in GDP and increased healthcare spending) to 9.53% in 2023 (latest official data) (https://diariofarma.com/2025/10/21/el-gasto-sanitario-continua-su-descenso-suave-respecto-del-pib-en-2023-bajo-hasta-el-953)

• Healthcare budget
  • The Ministry of Health freezes its budget by 16%, while regional governments increase it by a further 7%. Asturias is the region with the highest budget per capita, specifically 2,436 euros (https://www.eleconomista.es/salud-bienestar/noticias/13610640/10/25/sanidad-congela-un-16-de-su-presupuesto-mientras-las-autonomias-gastan-hasta-un-7-mas.html)

• 6th FEDEA Healthcare Observatory
  • FEDEA warns that the Spanish healthcare sector lost 9,000 jobs in one year. Spain’s share of healthcare employment is similar to that of the EU (6.5% and 6.2%, respectively, by 2024) (https://theobjective.com/economia/2025-10-26/fedea-alerta-sector-sanitario-espanol-pierde-empleos/). Access the 6th FEDEA Healthcare Observatory: https://documentos.fedea.net/pubs/eee/2025/eee2025-24.pdf?utm_source=sanidad&utm_medium=enlace&utm_campaign=estudio&_gl=1*18y7r6x*_ga*NTQ0MTk3NzUwLjE3NDY1Mzg3ODY.*_ga_K71EGLC8JC*czE3NjE0NTg1ODAkbzIkZzAkdDE3NjE0NTg1ODAkajYwJGwwJGgw

Companies

• International
  • The FDA reapproves GSK’s new blood cancer drug after a new trial (https://www.ft.com/content/c6b57b2a-94d2-4e71-9b06-0da915110f11)
  • The chairman of NovoNordisk and several board members resign following disagreements with the majority shareholder, the NovoNordisk Foundation, over the composition of the board (https://www.elconfidencial.com/empresas/2025-10-21/novo-nordisk-junta-fundacion-gobernanza-1hms_4232315/)
  • AstraZeneca and Microsoft agree to boost innovation in healthcare and promote the development of artificial intelligence, digital health, and advanced data analytics programs (https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/empresas/acuerdo-astrazeneca-microsoft-impulsar-innovacion-salud.html)

• National
  • Merck strengthens its presence in Spain and invests 5 million in its biotechnology plant in Tres Cantos. This plant aims to increase growth hormone production capacity (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20251024/merck-refuerza-presencia-espana-invierte-millones-planta-biotecnologica-cantos-madrid/1003743984107_0.html)
  • Rovi will manufacture Roche’s new obesity drug entirely in Spain. It will create an economic impact on the country of more than 2 billion (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20251021/rovi-producira-farmaco-roche-elevara-ventas-negocio-fabricacion-terceros/1003743979574_0.html)

This post is also available in: Spanish