7 days in healthcare (August 11th-17th, 2025)

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Summary

The most impactful health news of the week were:

  • Biomedicine: The rise of liver cancer must be reversed.
  • Global health: UN talks on plastics end without agreement.
  • International health policy: The suicide of science in the United States.
  • National health policy: Major waiting list crisis in Catalonia.
  • Companies: MSD and Pfizer will lead sales in the pharmaceutical sector in 2025.

Biomedicine

  • To reverse the rise of liver cancer. Let’s assume we go from 870,000 global cases of liver cancer in 2022 to 1.5 million in 2050. This is not pure speculation, but a projection by the Global Cancer Observatory. To avoid this future, we must address the causes: hepatitis B, hepatitis C, alcohol consumption, and steatosis associated with metabolic dysfunction.
  • The world needs more than drugs to fight obesity, says the former CEO of NovoNordisk. According to estimates by The Lancet, more than half of adults and one in three children will be obese by 2050, which would be a catastrophe for health and the economy. Pharmaceutical companies alone cannot solve the crisis without addressing the root causes: restrictions on junk food and an emphasis on physical exercise, among other measures.
  • Interesting article by Juan Abarca on the importance of AI for healthcare professionals. It is said that AI can handle thousands of variables in seconds, compare patterns in millions of cases, and offer an accurate diagnosis based on objective data. But there is something that, at least for now, eludes it: the interpretation of subjective factors, the reading of emotional nuances, the intuition that emerges from experience, and human interaction.

Global Health

  • UN talks on plastics end without agreement. Environmental groups accuse a group of oil-producing powers of not making progress. Plastic production will grow by 70% between 2020 and 2040.
  • Joining forces for better pandemic preparedness: a call for a Global Pandemic Risk Observatory. Since the COVID pandemic, the world has seen how ill-prepared it is to detect global risks. A Global Pandemic Risk Observatory is proposed, unifying fragmented initiatives.

International Health Policy

  • The suicide of science in the United States. The world’s most powerful scientific agencies are being dismantled by an ignorant and fanatical government, says an editorial in El País, confirming a sad reality.
  • China no longer copies medicines; it produces 39% of new drugs and overtakes Europe. In 2024, for the first time, China surpassed Europe as the creator of new active ingredients: 25 in China, compared to 17 in Europe. And although the USA continues to lead this ranking, it does so by a small margin (28 molecules in 2024).
  • Big Pharma is losing its appeal in the United Kingdom. Although it has top-tier players like AstraZeneca and GSK, it appears to be losing favor in this industry, primarily due to the prices approved for NHS drugs. AstraZeneca’s announcement of a major investment in the USA, while withdrawing from another announced in the United Kingdom, is in line with this.

National Health Policy (Spain)

  • Crisis with waiting lists in Catalonia. Six months to see a urologist and five for an orthopedic surgeon.
  • Catalonia launches the CSIR, a new model of Primary Care, with greater autonomy, new professional profiles, and digital support. They will begin with 27 pilot centers.
  • New productivity indicators in the Valencian Community. The goal is to define objectives, with their impact on variable productivity. (In favor, CESM; against, SATSE, CCOO, and UGT).

Companies

  • International
    • MSD and Pfizer will lead sales in the pharmaceutical sector in 2025, according to the consulting firm BioKnow. The order would be: MSD, Pfizer, J&J, Abbie, AstraZeneca, Roche, BMS, Lilly, and Sanofi.
  • National
    • Viamed Hospital in Tarragona opens its doors, with advanced technology and 96 individual rooms.

Biomedicine

  • An experimental vaccine targets pancreatic and colorectal cancer. This clinical trial is still in Phase I (https://gacetamedica.com/investigacion/vacuna-experimental-eficacia-cancer-pancreas-colorectal/). Access the original article in Nature Medicine: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-025-03876-4
  • A better definition of human health is needed to implement the One Health strategy. Since COVID, the goal has been to promote the One Health concept, which signifies the interrelationship between human, animal, and environmental health. To advance this goal, a modification of the WHO’s 1948 definition of health is proposed, emphasizing “complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease” (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)01015-3/fulltext).
  • Monoclonal antibodies revolutionized biomedical science and healthcare following Köhler and Milstein’s 1975 article describing a method for manufacturing antibody copies in the laboratory. At least 212 drugs have benefited from this approach (https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-02452-7).
  • To reverse the growth of liver cancer. Let’s assume the global rate of liver cancer increases from 870,000 in 2022 to 1.5 million in 2050. This is not pure speculation, but a projection from the Global Cancer Observatory. To avoid this future, we must address the causes: hepatitis B, hepatitis C, alcohol consumption, and steatosis associated with metabolic dysfunction (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)01530-2/fulltext#:~:text=is%20not%20inevitable.-,The%20Lancet%20Commission%20on%20addressing%20the%20global%20hepatocellular%20carcinoma%20burden,alcohol%20consumption%2C%20and%20metabolic%20dysfunction%2D)
  • The world needs more than drugs to fight obesity, says the former CEO of NovoNordisk. According to estimates by The Lancet, more than half of adults and one in three children will be obese by 2050, which would be a catastrophe for health and the economy. Pharmaceutical companies alone cannot solve the crisis without addressing the root causes: restrictions on junk food and an emphasis on exercise, among other measures (https://www.economist.com/by-invitation/2025/08/11/the-world-needs-more-than-drugs-to-fight-obesity-writes-novo-nordisks-ex-boss)
  • Routine AI assistance surpasses the expertise of colonoscopy experts, as shown in a study of 1,400 patients conducted in Poland (https://www.ft.com/content/74b82366-1ea1-4f90-80aa-e84a1e655d28)
  • Scientists capture the first images of an egg implanting in the uterus (https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/aug/15/scientists-capture-first-footage-of-human-embryo-implanting-in-a-uterus)
  • Scientists are developing brain implants capable of decoding internal language (words imagined in the brain, but whose paralysis prevents them from being translated as language) (https://www.ft.com/content/6bf4ef14-932b-4b2b-8d64-fac10fbfd43c)
  • Invisible cells of the immune system bring a possible cure for type 1 diabetes closer (https://www.abc.es/salud/enfermedades/celulas-invisibles-sistema-inmune-acercan-posible-cura-20250808140000-nt.html)
  • Interesting article by Juan Abarca on the importance of AI for professionals. It is said that AI can handle thousands of variables in seconds, compare patterns in millions of cases, and offer an accurate diagnosis based on objective data. But there is something that, at least for now, eludes it: the interpretation of the subjective, the reading of emotional nuances, the intuition that emerges from experience and human interaction. (https://www.elespanol.com/edicion/20250814/profesion-sanitaria-avance-imparable-inteligencia-artificial/1003743887506_12.html)

Global Health

  • Joining forces for better pandemic preparedness: a call for a Global Pandemic Risk Observatory. Since the COVID pandemic, the world has seen how ill-prepared it is to detect global risks. A Global Pandemic Risk Observatory is proposed, unifying fragmented initiatives (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)01489-8/fulltext)
  • UN talks on plastics end without agreement. Environmental groups accuse a group of oil-producing powers of failing to make progress. Plastic production is expected to grow by 70% between 2020 and 2040. (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/15/climate/plastic-pollution-treaty-talks-collapse.html)
  • Gaza faces a dire new threat of antibiotic-resistant diseases (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/12/gaza-antibiotic-resistant-disease)

International Health Policy

  • USA
    • This is Trump’s plan for the American pharmaceutical industry. The strategy includes taxing imports, putting pressure on prices, and regulatory incentives to repatriate drug production and reduce foreign dependence (https://www.consalud.es/industria/este-es-el-plan-de-trump-para-blindar-la-industria-farmaceutica-de-eeuu.html)
    • The suicide of science in the United States. The world’s most powerful scientific agencies are being dismantled by an ignorant and fanatical government, says an editorial in El País, confirming a sad reality (https://elpais.com/opinion/2025-08-11/el-suicidio-de-la-ciencia-en-ee-uu.html)
    • Kennedy’s next target: the federal vaccine court (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/11/health/kennedy-vaccine-court.html)
    • Proponents of new Medicaid cuts propose another new law, even more restrictive than Trump’s “beautiful law” (https://www.politico.com/news/2025/08/13/house-medicaid-cuts-brian-blase-00508181?utm_medium=email&utm_source=substack)
  • China
    • China no longer copies medicines, it produces 39% of new drugs, overtaking Europe. In 2024, for the first time, China surpassed Europe as a developer of new active ingredients: 25 in China, compared to 17 in Europe. And although the USA continues to lead this ranking, it does so by a narrow margin (28 molecules in 2024) (https://theobjecticom/economia/2025-08-17/china-copia-medicinas-39-nuevos-farmacos-europa/#:~:text=El%20Liberal%20%2D%20Economía-,China%20ya%20no%20copia%20medicinas%3A%20produce%20el%2039%25%20de%20los,farmacos%20y%20adelanta%20a%20Europa&text=De%20aquel%20Made%20in%20China,y%20ahora%20también%20en%20biofarmacéutica.)
  • United Kingdom
    • Big Pharma is moving away from the UK’s attraction. Although it has top-tier players like AstraZeneca and GSK, it appears to be losing favor in this industry, primarily due to the prices approved for NHS drugs. AstraZeneca’s announcement of a major investment in the USA, while withdrawing from another announced in the United Kingdom, is in line with this (https://www.ft.com/content/2566360d-f451-4f72-89b6-2290a7bf140d)
    • Vaccinations to prevent cervical cancer plummet in the United Kingdom (https://www.economist.com/britain/2025/08/13/vaccinations-to-prevent-cervical-cancer-have-plummeted-in-britain)
  • Uruguay
    • Liberal Uruguay and the right to die. The law has already been approved by the lower house and is expected to be approved by the Senate as well. It would be the first Latin American country with a law that can be enforced with guarantees. (https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2025/08/14/liberal-uruguay-and-the-right-to-die)

National Health Policy

  • Central Administration Initiatives
    • Prison healthcare in crisis: 72% of medical positions in Spanish prisons are unfilled (https://www.elespanol.com/invertia/observatorios/sanidad/20250814/sanidad-penitenciaria-crisis-plazas-medicos-carceles-espanolas-sin-cubierta/1003743886697_0.html#:~:text=En%20concreto%2C%20el%2072%2C5,puestos%20ofertados%20se%20quedan%20vacíos.)
  • Autonomous Community Initiatives
    • Surgical collapse in Catalonia: deaths on waiting lists have soared by 80% in ten years (https://theobjective.com/sanidad/2025-08-11/colapso-quirurgico-cataluna-muertes-lista-espera-se-disparan/)
    • Six months to see a urologist and five for trauma: waiting lists are increasing in Catalonia (https://elpais.com/espana/catalunya/2025-08-15/seis-meses-para-ver-al-urologo-y-cinco-para-el-trauma-las-listas-de-espera-suben-en-cataluna.html)
    • Catalonia launches the CSIRs, a new Primary Care model with greater autonomy, new professional profiles, and digital support. They will begin with 27 pilot centers (https://www.consalud.es/politica/cataluna-hace-balance-del-primer-ano-de-pane-al-frente-de-salut-con-el-deficit-de-medicos-como-telon-de-fondo.html)
    • The Department of Health of Catalonia creates the General Directorate of Research and Innovation (https://www.redaccionmedica.com/autonomias/cataluna/pane-impulsa-la-reforma-del-sistema-y-hospitales-en-el-primer-ano-de-govern-5647)
    • New productivity indicators in the Valencian Community. The goal is to define objectives and their impact on variable productivity. (In favor, CESM; against, SATSE, CCOO, and UGT) (https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/politica/comunidad-valenciana-nuevo-modelo-productividad-indicadores-innegociables.html)
  • Measles
    • Measles increase in Spain by 43% in the first six months of 2025 (https://www.elespanol.com/ciencia/salud/20250814/sarampion-crece-espana-primeros-meses-van-producir-brotes/1003743885608_0.html)

Companies

  • International
    • Lilly increases the price of obesity medications by 170% in the United Kingdom. The goal is to match the price with other European countries and responds to Trump’s pressure to equalize drug prices across all markets (https://www.ft.com/content/b71a1c59-2735-4ec8-b895-59c562edeeac)
    • MSD and Pfizer will lead sales in the pharmaceutical sector by 2025, according to the consulting firm BioKnow. The order would be: MSD, Pfizer, J&J, Abbie, AstraZeneca, Roche, BMS, Lilly, and Sanofi (https://www.eleconomista.es/salud-bienestar/noticias/13499575/08/25/msd-y-pfizer-encabezaran-las-ventas-del-sector-farmaceutico-en-2025.html)
  • National
    • Viamed Hospital in Tarragona opens its doors, with advanced technology and 96 individual rooms (https://www.diariomedico.com/medicina/empresas/hospital-viamed-tarragona-abre-puertas.html)
    • Quirón, Ribera, and Vithas, leaders in the private hospital world. They increased their turnover by 6% last year, with 57% of it coming from insurance companies (https://www.expansion.com/empresas/2025/08/14/689cf766e5fdeab5718b4583.html)
    • Skin Test (an aesthetic medicine and cosmetics laboratory) is targeting significant growth thanks to the British fund Charterhouse (https://www.expansion.com/catalunya/2025/08/15/689f7693e5fdea943d8b45b2.html).

This post is also available in: Spanish