Some Health Moments In 2022 That Were Good In A Silver-Lining Way
A personalized cancer vaccine is in the works
Melanoma, a relatively rare skin cancer that affects pigment-producing cells, is one of the most serious forms of skin cancer.
This year, pharmaceutical companies Moderna and Merck announced that some clinical trial patients with stage 3 and 4 melanoma (meaning the cancer has spread beyond the original site) had a lower risk of the cancer recurring when treated with a vaccine experimentally known as mRNA-4157/ V940.
The vaccine, which is a piece of personalized RNA using the patient’s own tumor cells, is designed to help the body detect and fight melanoma.
In the trial, the vaccine was combined with another cancer treatment called Keytruda, a therapy that builds the body’s immune system response.
Although many hurdles must be overcome before it is approved for use, the combination of the vaccine and Keytruda appears to reduce the risk of recurrence or death by 44% compared to people treated with Keytruda alone in the clinical trial.
The trial included 157 patients who were treated after undergoing surgery. About 14% of people undergoing the treatment had serious side effects in the trial, compared with 10% treated with Keytruda alone.
CVS slashes tampon prices in states that haven’t repealed the ‘pink tax’
“Pink tax” is a term used to describe the additional costs of products marketed primarily to women compared to those marketed to men.
These extra costs can make certain items like deodorant and razors 13% more expensive. In some states there are also state notes or taxes on products used only by menstruating people, also known as the “tampon tax.”
Nebraska, Colorado and Iowa ended their taxes on menstrual products in 2022. Other states, such as Virginia, will eliminate sales tax on menstrual products starting in 2023.
In response, CVS lowered prices on all CVS-brand period products in the 12 states that tax menstrual products, such as tampons, pads, cups, liners, wraps and PMS relief medications.
On October 5, CVS began covering sales tax on those products in Arkansas, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin and West Virginia.
TikTokers countered buccal fat removal trend with love for “round-faced, baby-faced girls”
Buccal liposuction is an irreversible procedure in which a plastic surgeon removes fat from the cheeks to create a more sculpted facial structure. The trend made its way onto social media, and a tweet that had more than 16,000 likes speculated that actors like Zoe Kravitz, Lea Michele and others have had the procedure, though none of these celebrities have confirmed it. Chrissy Teigen has said that she had the procedure and did not regret it.
People on social media began to oppose the procedure, instead highlighting the beauty of round face shapes. TikTokers also shared videos about their faces, calling the round faces the “universal friend face”.
“I’m really tired of our bodies being seen as fashionable or not,” said one user. “It was one of my insecurities and now it’s making me feel better about it thanks,” commented another.
