Health
Doctors, advocates call for changes to breast cancer screening guidelines
News/Canada/Ottawa: Doctors and breast cancer experts say they're concerned about recently published findings that call into question a decades-old study that has informed Canada's breast cancer screening guidelines and which led to a recommendation against yearly mammograms for women in their 40s.
Canada 'grossly underutilizing' rapid tests, experts warn — even as COVID-19 cases tick up
News/Health: Across Canada, there’s patchwork access to rapid COVID-19 tests, even though the country has millions of the devices. With cases rising this winter, medical experts say more Canadians should have those tests in hand.
Illustration of Black fetus has Canadian parents, educators calling for diversity in medical resources
News/Canada/Hamilton: A Nigerian medical student's illustration of a Black fetus in utero was shared by a McMaster University assistant professor from Hamilton and has gone viral. It's also led to questions about the lack of diversity in medical drawings.
Omicron: Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine may only partially protect against new variant, study suggests
A new study led by the Africa Health Research Institute reportedly suggests that the omicron COVID-19 variant escapes antibody immunity induced by two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
Advance consent for medical aid in dying should be expanded for Quebec adults, committee says
News/Canada/Montreal: An all-party committee at Quebec's National Assembly is recommending that an adult should be able to request medical assistance in dying after being diagnosed with an incurable and incapacitating disease.
Pfizer-BioNTech pushing 3-dose COVID-19 vaccination to fight omicron variant
News/Health: Pfizer and BioNTech say a three-shot course of their COVID-19 vaccine was able to neutralize the new omicron variant in a laboratory test, and that they could deliver an omicron-based vaccine in March 2022 if needed. But the companies also note their data is "preliminary."
More surgeries may be cancelled as Manitoba ICUs face continued strain, official says
News/Canada/Manitoba: Health officials are looking at cancelling more surgeries in Manitoba to free up hospital resources as a fourth wave of COVID-19 cases continues to strain the province's intensive care units.
Firefighters puzzled by N.S. delay in expanding cancer compensation coverage
News/Canada/Nova Scotia: Successive premiers have promised to expand the list of cancers that are deemed a workplace injury for firefighters in Nova Scotia, but those changes still haven't been made. Some firefighters want to know why.
Tracking omicron: Canadian scientists race to understand new variant
News/Health: Canadian scientists are racing to understand more about the threat of the omicron variant — how fast it spreads, whether it causes more or less severe illness, and if it can escape previous immunity to COVID-19.
Mixing Pfizer and Moderna vaccines gives a better immune system response against COVID-19, study finds
British researchers set out to find whether mixing vaccines is an effective way to protect individuals against COVID-19, but they found that taking one dose of Pfizer then a second dose of Moderna nine weeks later actually produced a better immune system response than two doses of Pfizer.