Category Archive

Teenagers given good health ­information, I believe, will ­always act responsibly, by and large. This is proved by ­national surveys in several countries indicating smoking among the young has ­continued to fall in recent years, ­despite a rapid growth in e-cigarette use. … Read More

A few weeks ago I answered a letter from a woman whose grandson was having ­difficulty sleeping. Since then I’ve had several more. It seems to be an almost universal problem and I thought the topic could do with further … Read More

This doesn’t sound like much – the recent discovery of another 17 genes that raise the chances of developing prostate cancer – when we already know of six that do the same thing. But it’s a British research ­breakthrough that … Read More

Of all the difficult subjects to broach with your children, having an inherited cancer gene in the family must be among the most daunting. Ever since I made a television ­documentary called Children can Cope, which was about being truthful … Read More

How would you feel if you, as a mum-to-be, and your partner, as a dad-to-be, were told you were going to be checked to see if you were having a sly cigarette? Would you think it was sneaky or an … Read More

Maybe you’re getting bored by me banging on about the ­importance of childhood vaccinations, but I have to say I’ll continue until we’ve overcome the prejudice against them. Want to know how seriously the authorities in the US are taking … Read More

Sometimes I get asked how genes cause cancer. It’s an ­extremely complex subject and one I’m not qualified in, but here goes. Macmillan Cancer Support also has a ­patient booklet on the topic. Genes are found in every cell in … Read More

Personalised medicine is one of the most promising recent developments in cancer treatment, allowing doctors to specifically target the mutations that make an individual patient’s cancer unique and often untreatable. With the latest advance in targeted therapy, the US Massachusetts General Hospital … Read More

Over several decades of trying to rein in our obesity ­problem, now at epidemic proportions, I’ve felt like throwing the towel in several times. Why? Because nothing I can do affects the growing trend to bigger and bigger sizes. It … Read More

Every year 23,000 pregnant women in Britain suffer this ­potentially deadly condition that’s notoriously difficult to ­diagnose because some symptoms – such as high blood pressure, swollen feet, headaches and nausea – are also common in normal pregnancies. Pre-eclampsia, which … Read More