Health

Boston researchers working on blood test for autism

Getting a diagnosis for autism is not easy, with many children having to wait to see specially trained doctors and specialists who spend hours observing the child’s behaviour before rendering a verdict. But U.S. doctors are working on an experimental blood test they believe might help detect the disorder – even before symptoms begin.

A doctor wears a lab coat and stethoscope in an exam room at a health clinic in Calgary, Alta., July 14, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Canadian Medical Association calls for more tracking of health-care funds

The Canadian Medical Association says there should be better tracking of health-care spending, following health-care agreements the federal government has signed with the provinces and territories.

Many smokers use nicotine pouches as a way to quit smoking.

Nicotine pouches scarce after federal ban restricts sales to pharmacy-only sales

It’s been just over a week since the federal government banned nicotine pouches from being sold anywhere other than a pharmacy.

Amanda Huska, 36, needed a liver transplant. (Image courtesy of Nathan Allen)

Woman who was denied a liver transplant, after review highlighted alcohol use, has died

Questions are being raised about the case of a 36-year-old Ontario woman who died of liver failure after she was rejected for a life-saving liver transplant after a medical review highlighted her prior alcohol use.

'Hopeless and helpless': Regina mother seeks help to treat rare spinal disease

Mary Grace Rico is seeking help in getting treatment for a rare spinal condition.

Quebec will authorize anticipated requests for MAID on Oct. 30, without waiting for Ottawa to amend its criminal code. (David Joles, The Canadian Press)

Quebec to authorize advance requests for medical assistance in dying as of Oct. 30

Quebec will authorize advance requests for medical assistance in dying (MAID) without waiting for Ottawa to amend its Criminal Code.

A bat is seen mid-flight in this generic image from Getty. (Source: Getty Images)

Ontario's first domestic case of human rabies since 1967 confirmed in Brant County

An Ontario resident remains in hospital after testing positive for rabies.

A family nurse practitioner prepares a syringe with the mpox vaccine for inoculating a patient at a vaccination site in the Brooklyn borough of New York, on Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Jeenah Moon

Many people at risk never got their 2nd mpox vaccine dose, public health agencies say

Public health agencies are encouraging people who received a first dose of mpox vaccine over the last two years to make sure they get a second dose.

A man suffering from mpox waits for treatment at a hospital in South Kivu, Congo on Sept. 4, 2024. (Moses Sawasawa / AP Photo)

WHO and Africa CDC launch a response plan to the mpox outbreak

The Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization launched on Friday a continent-wide response plan to the outbreak of mpox, three weeks after WHO declared outbreaks in 12 African countries a global emergency.