From salmonella spread to vaccine delivery, science doesn’t wait for the work week. Here’s what you missed while you were away from the computer this weekend:
1) Egg recall grows. Fear of salmonella has prompted a massive product recall that now covers more than half a billion — yes, that’s billion with a ‘b’ — eggs across the U.S. Early on Monday the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Margaret Hamburg, said that this recall number may yet grow higher still.
2) Breakthrough in Ebola treatment. The FDA has approved the first clinical trials of drugs to fight Ebola, the rare but extremely virulent virus that inspired the movie, Outbreak. The new drugs will first be tested in primates, before being tested during human episodes of the disease, the LA Times reports.
3) Rectal cancer on the rise? Although this disease remains highly unusual in younger adults, rates of rectal cancer appear to risen steadily among Americans under 40 during the last 20 years. Meanwhile rates of colon cancer, which has many of the same risk factors, have not changed, researchers say. The researchers have no explanation for the trends.
4) Will doping allegations taint cancer charity? Lance Armstrong survived metastasized testicular cancer to win the Tour de France a record seven times — and today his cancer charity, Livestrong, funds millions of dollars of programs to improve cancer survival. But now as Armstrong faces a federal doping investigation, the NY Times investigates whether infamy could undermine Armstrong’s charity image. The short answer: It’s not clear.
5) Flu shots available now. It may seem early to start thinking about flu season, but there’s no harm in getting your inoculation before the crowds form. Flu shots are now available in pharmacies across the U.S., including Walgreens and Rite Aid, CNN reports.