News Feature in 2023

Billions of dollars are pouring into longevity biotechs, but measuring success is challenging, given how little is known about the biology of aging.

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses are used by clinicians and policymakers to synthesize medical evidence, but they can amplify falsified or poor-quality clinical trial data. In this era of contested evidence, new approaches are needed.

Artificial intelligence chatbots based on large language models can pass medical exams but their diagnoses are often inaccurate.

Nigeria’s new mental health act establishes human rights protections for patients and promotes community-based care, offering a roadmap for other countries, despite ongoing challenges.

Risk-based screening approaches can reduce over-detection, while self-testing and new diagnostics find early disease.

Researchers use artificial intelligence and bioinformatics to discover new antimicrobials, while governments pilot financial incentives for pharma.

The US Food and Drug Administration has reduced requirements for preclinical animal testing, leading to a surge of interest in organoids, tissue chips and in silico testing.

Artificial intelligence tools are beginning to upend the drug discovery pipeline, with several new compounds entering clinical trials.

Randomization and placebo groups are giving way to biomarkers, real-world data from wearables, and multi-center and adaptive trials.

They use proprietary data to understand human disease, while funding data science and brain research to support their AI ambitions

They focus on primary health and disease prevention through behavioral change, while building trust with the local community.

Several hundred community health workers offer telehealth services that put women in underserved communities in touch with doctors.

Telehealth is poised to grow into big business in Africa, with home-grown and imported start-ups offering child and maternal health education, remote diagnosis, prescription services and more.

A desire for better work conditions and real-world impact are behind the movement, which may hinder academic clinical trials while leading to beneficial collaborations.