Woman pushes limits as arthritis walk shines light on rising cases of autoimmune disorder
Jeanine McGuire was diagnosed at 14 with rheumatoid arthritis, something she considered to be an old person’s disease. An athlete at North Catholic High School at the time, McGuire assumed her dreams of a collegiate soccer career were dashed. “I never thought I’d get better,” said McGuire, now 37, of...
Cancer before age 50 is increasing. A new study looks at which types
Cancer before age 50 is rare, but increasing, in the United States and researchers want to know why. A new government study provides the most complete picture yet of early-onset cancers, finding that the largest increases are in breast, colorectal, kidney and uterine cancers. Scientists from the National Cancer Institute...
Donald Trump taps wellness influencer close to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for surgeon generalVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is tapping Dr. Casey Means, a wellness influencer with close ties to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., as his nominee for surgeon general after withdrawing his initial pick for the influential health post. Trump said in a social media post Wednesday...
How Utah dentists are preparing patients for 1st statewide fluoride ban
SALT LAKE CITY — With Utah’s first-in-the-nation ban on fluoride in public drinking water set to take effect Wednesday, dentists who treat children and low-income patients say they’re bracing for an increase in tooth decay among the state’s most vulnerable people. Republican Gov. Spencer Cox signed the law against the...
A community rallied to share flu shot experiences. Then the government stopped the study
WASHINGTON — Some Denver parents got texts during this winter’s brutal flu season with videos sharing why people in their neighborhoods chose flu shots for their kids, an unusual study about trust and vaccines in a historically Black community. But no one will know how it worked out: The Trump...
CDC reports 216 child deaths this flu season, the most in 15 years
NEW YORK — More U.S. children have died this flu season than at any time since the swine flu pandemic 15 years ago, according to a federal report released Friday. The 216 pediatric deaths reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eclipse the 207 reported last year. It’s...
Trump’s health agency urges therapy for transgender youth, not broader gender-affirming health care
President Donald Trump’s administration released a lengthy review of transgender health care on Thursday that advocates for a greater reliance on behavioral therapy rather than broad gender-affirming medical care for youths with gender dysphoria. The 409-page Health and Human Services report questions standards for the treatment of transgender youth issued...
Tarentum natives donate $3 million to Allegheny Health Network
Joe and Kathy Guyaux were without health insurance when their first child was born in 1972 at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison. “I paid $15 a month with no interest. I’ll always remember that,” said Joe Guyaux, a Tarentum native who now lives in Fox Chapel. “We know what it...
How bugs and beet juice could play roles in the race to replace artificial dyes in food
ST. LOUIS — As pressure grows to get artificial colors out of the U.S. food supply, the shift may well start at Abby Tampow’s laboratory desk. On an April afternoon, the scientist hovered over tiny dishes of red dye, each a slightly different ruby hue. Her task? To match the...
Texas measles outbreak nears 650 cases, but fewer than 10 actively infectious
DALLAS — Texas public health officials on Friday reported an additional 22 measles cases in the ongoing outbreak, for a total of 646 outbreak cases. The state’s Department of State Health Services estimates 1% of the total cases — or fewer than 10 cases — are actively infectious. The department...
Whooping cough cases rising again in the U.S.
Whooping cough cases are rising, and doctors are bracing for yet another tough year. There have been 8,485 cases reported in 2025, according to preliminary data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s twice as many cases as this time last year, based on the CDC’s final...
Public health officials in Pa. won’t say how they’d handle a $500M cut sought by Trump admin
This story first appeared in How We Care, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA featuring original reporting and perspectives on how we care for one another at all stages of life. Pennsylvania health officials are facing down a potential $500 million loss of federal funding, but are tight-lipped about which...
Worries about flying seem to be taking off. Here’s how to cope with in-flight anxiety
NEW YORK — Adelynn Campbell’s last plane trip ended with a panic attack that she got through largely with the help of a kind flight attendant. That was last year — before 67 people died in January when an American Airlines jet collided with a helicopter over Washington, D.C., in...
RFK Jr. plans to phase out 8 artificial dyes from U.S. food supply
WASHINGTON — U.S. health officials said they plan to phase out eight petroleum-based artificial colors from the nation’s food supply, triggering an overhaul of scores of brightly hued products on American store shelves. Details of the plan are expected to be announced Tuesday afternoon by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy...
Supreme Court appears likely to uphold Obamacare’s preventive care coverage mandate
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court seemed likely to uphold a key preventive-care provision of the Affordable Care Act in a case heard Monday. Conservative justices Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett, along with the court’s three liberals, appeared skeptical of arguments that Obamacare’s process for deciding which services must be...
Federal cuts threaten to close Allegheny County lab that certifies N95s and other respirators in June
Most Americans learned what an N95 mask was during the covid-19 pandemic. But what many still don’t know is that every one of them was certified by a single, government-run lab in Bruceton, in Pittsburgh’s South Hills. It’s called the National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory. The name N95 actually comes...
Spring allergies are back. Here’s how to check pollen levels and keep from sneezing
ATLANTA — Allergy season can be miserable for tens of millions of Americans when trees, grass, and other pollens cause runny noses, itchy eyes, coughing and sneezing. Where you live, what you’re allergic to and your lifestyle can make a big difference when it comes to the severity of your...
U.S. has 800 measles cases and outbreaks in several states. Here’s what you should know
The U.S. has 800 cases of measles nationwide as of Friday, and two more states identified outbreaks this week. Texas is driving the high numbers, with an outbreak centered in West Texas that started nearly three months ago and is up to 597 cases. Two unvaccinated elementary school-aged children died...
UnitedHealthcare killing suspect Luigi Mangione indicted on death penalty-eligible charges
NEW YORK — Luigi Mangione was indicted Thursday on a federal murder charge in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, a required step as prosecutors work to make good on the Trump administration’s order to seek the death penalty for what it called a “premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked...
Heritage Valley CEO: Sewickley hospital here to stay, even as system consolidates
The head of Heritage Valley Health System says the network’s Sewickley hospital isn’t going anywhere, despite the upcoming closure of its Kennedy counterpart. “Clearly, there is a need for a hospital in that Sewickley community,” Heritage Valley President and CEO Norm Mitry told TribLive. “We don’t foresee any negative impact...
Experts make new recommendations on RSV and meningitis vaccines, but it’s unclear what happens next
ATLANTA — A federal panel of experts on Wednesday recommended an expansion of RSV vaccinations for adults and a new combination shot as another option to protect teens against meningitis. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices also voted to recommend a shot to protect travelers from a mosquito-borne illness called...
Lawmakers seek insight at North Huntingdon business on boosting support for moms, babies
Megs Yunn spread plenty of cheer among state lawmakers who visited her North Huntingdon warehouse Wednesday. The legislators are considering help for Pennsylvania mothers and babies, possibly replicating what Yunn has accomplished through Beverly’s PGH, which has supported thousands of families in the region. “How can we expand this concept...
Measles cases in Pa. remain low amid national outbreak, but vaccine hesitancy lays groundwork for spread
This story first appeared in How We Care, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA featuring original reporting and perspectives on how we care for one another at all stages of life. This year marked the first death from measles in the United States since 2015 — and the second and...
As dementia rates increase, experts warn hospital emergency rooms are underprepared
AURORA, Ill. — At her mother’s home in Illinois, Tracy Balhan flips through photos of her dad, Bill Speer. In one picture, he’s smiling in front of a bucket of sweating beers and wearing a blue T-shirt that reads, “Pops. The man. The myth. The legend.” Balhan’s father died last...
Pfizer ends development of potential pill obesity treatment
Pfizer is ending the development of its potential once-daily pill treatment for obesity after venturing into the biggest and most expensive level of clinical testing. The drugmaker said Tuesday that it would stop studying danuglipron after a participant in one of its trials experienced a possible drug-induced liver injury that...
