The following will be published in the May 17 issue of The Lancet:

“Through a groundbreaking partnership between USAID and DFID, this programme will ensure that all Cambodians…have access to the products and information they need to make informed decisions about their health and wellbeing.”

Erin Soto, mission director of USAID Cambodia, on the launch of the US$27 million programme to reduce the rate of new HIV infections

Burma update The number of people thought to be affected by the cyclone in Burma has soared as aid agencies try desperately to supply resources to the country. The Burmese Government reports that more than 20 000 people have died and almost 40 000 are missing, but the media predict that the death toll will be substantially higher and that many more will be affected by the ensuing public-health crisis.

Heparin scare A US company, Medtronic, has recalled some dis­posable devices for cardiac bypass surgery after finding traces of contaminated heparin on them. The discovery was made after the US Food and Drug Administration recom­mended that all medical devices that use heparin be assessed for contam­ination, after 81 deaths in the USA were attributed to contaminated heparin products.

Deadly earthquake China was shaken by an earthquake of magnitude 7·9 last Monday. The epicentre was 90 km from Chengdu, Sichuan, and tremors spread as far as Thailand and Taiwan. Media re­port that at least 8500 people have died, making it the deadliest earth­quake since 1976, and many have been trapped under collapsed buildings.

HIV meeting The second European and Central Asia AIDS conference was held in Moscow, Russia, last week to discuss the spread of HIV in the region. Participants raised serious concerns including the failure of prevention programmes to reach vulnerable groups, stigma against infected individuals, and the growing number of children who are vulnerable to infection through mother-to-child transmission.

Internal communication In-body and on-body Bluetooth sensors could moni­­tor people at risk of heart attack or collapse and automatically alert medi­cal services, according to the UK communi­cations regulator, Ofcom. The wire­less technology could also remind people to take medicine, scan food for allergy information, or contact emer­gency ser­vices in the event of road accidents.

Tropical disease campaign Niger has announced a campaign of free medi­cine and treatment to fight tropical dis­eases in poor areas along the Niger River. Employing 20 000 health workers, the action could bene­fit 8·5 million people at a cost of €40·5 million.

Benefits of bed A US report from the CDC has revealed that people who sleep for fewer than 6 hours, or more than 9 hours, each night have a greater likelihood of being obese. It also showed a correlation between light sleepers and higher smoking rates, higher alcohol intake, and less physical activity.

Child health The Philippines and Peru have topped a list that ranks 55 devel­oping countries on their effect­iveness in delivering basic health care to the poorest children. The report by the charity Save the Children found that almost 69% of children had access to health care in the Philippines.

Class B cannabis The UK Home Secre­tary has announced that the effects of cannabis are sufficiently damaging to merit its reclassification from a class C to a class B drug, partly because skunk, a much stronger variety, has become dominant on the UK market. If approval is gained, the reclassi­fica­tion will take effect from early 2009.

Health Assembly Health ministers from WHO’s 193 member states will converge at the UN agency’s headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, next week (May 19–24) for the 61st World Health Assembly. Topics for discussion include pandemic influenza preparedness, a global strategy to prevent non-communicable diseases, and primary health care.

Screening trial 38 000 people are diag­nosed with lung cancer every year, but late-stage diagnosis means that only 7% of these people are alive 5 years later. Cancer Research UK is funding a trial that aims to improve early detection of lung cancer in long-term smokers with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease using two tests—a spiral CT scan and fluorescence bronch­os­copy.

To boldly grow Scientists in China believe they have the solution to the world food crisis—space vegetables. Seeds sent into space are apparently affected by microgravity and radiation and have been cultivated and selectively bred to produce crops of huge vegetables. It might seem an alien concept, but specimens have already been sold to Japan, Thailand, and Singapore.

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