MARIA CHENG

AP Medical Writer

A mortuary worker disinfests a coffin carrying the body of a person who died of COVID-19 ahead of a funeral at Memora mortuary in Girona, Spain, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, File)

WHO member countries agree on a draft ‘pandemic treaty’ to try to avoid COVID-19 mistakes

The World Health Organization’s member countries have agreed on a draft pandemic treaty that sets guidelines for how the international community might face the next global health crisis.

Salmon poached in green salsa and topped with baked chips are displayed for a photo in Concord, N.H. (AP Photo/Matthew Mead, File)

Do you eat a meal in 20 minutes or less? It might be time to slow down

Experts tend to focus on the kinds of foods you can eat to improve your health. But the speed at which you devour your dinner matters just as much.

A faithful carries a cross in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Friday, March 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

The Pope has now been in the hospital for 3 weeks battling double pneumonia. How serious is that?

Friday marks three weeks since Pope Francis was hospitalized for bronchitis, which then led to double pneumonia.

Locals and tourists walk along a main street near St. Peter's Basilica, background, as the sun sets in Rome, Italy, Friday, March 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Pope Francis hits 3-week mark of hospitalization after giving world a sign of his frailty

Pope Francis has hit the three-week mark in his hospitalization for double pneumonia. The 88-year-old Francis spent 20 minutes in the chapel praying Friday and did some work in between rest and respiratory and physical therapy.

Candles with the pictures of Pope Francis are the laid under the statue of late Pope John Paul II outside Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome, Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalized since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Vatican authorities say the pope now has pneumonia in both lungs. How worrying is that?

Vatican officials said that Pope Francis had developed pneumonia in both lungs, further complicating the pontiff’s recovery. The 88-year-old pope was hospitalized last week after his bronchitis worsened.

Nuns sit next to a statue of Pope John Paul II in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, where Pope Francis has been hospitalized to undergo some necessary diagnostic tests and to continue his ongoing treatment for bronchitis. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Vatican says the pope has a ‘polymicrobial respiratory tract infection.’ What is that?

Vatican authorities said Monday that Pope Francis has a complex infection in his respiratory system and will require more targeted drug treatment.

Nuns sit next to a statue of Pope John Paul II in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, where Pope Francis has been hospitalized to undergo some necessary diagnostic tests and to continue his ongoing treatment for bronchitis. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Pope will remain hospitalized as doctors treat a complex respiratory tract infection, Vatican says

The Vatican says Pope Francis’ respiratory tract infection is presenting a “complex clinical picture” that will require further hospitalization.

Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International, attends the 47th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, WEF, in Davos, Switzerland, Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017. (Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP, File)

HIV infections could jump over 6 times if US support is dropped and not replaced, UNAIDS chief says

The head of the U.N. AIDS agency says the number of new HIV infections could jump more than six times by 2029 if American support of the biggest AIDS program is dropped.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), speaks to journalists during a press conference at the World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, on April 6, 2023. (Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP, File)

WHO chief asks countries to push Washington to reconsider its withdrawal

The World Health Organization chief is asking global leaders to lean on Washington to reverse President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the U.N. health agency.

President Donald Trump signs an executive order withdrawing the U.S. from the World Health Organization in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Trump wants to pull the US out of the World Health Organization again. Here’s what may happen next

President Donald Trump has used one of the flurry of executive actions that he issued on his first day back in the White House to begin the process of withdrawing the U.S. from the World Health Organization for the second time in less than five years.

In this Jan. 1, 2019, file photo a "Happy New Year" hat lies on the wet ground along with other items following the celebration in New York's Times Square. (AP Photo/Tina Fineberg, File)

Making any New Year’s resolutions? Here are some tips to help make them stick

If you’re making New Year resolutions, experts say keep them small and focused on specific goals. Psychologists recommend starting small so new changes aren’t overwhelming.

FILE - A pharmacist holds a vial of lenacapavir, the new HIV prevention injectable drug, at the Desmond Tutu Health Foundation's Masiphumelele Research Site, in Cape Town, South Africa, Tuesday, July 23, 2024, which was one of the sites for Gilead's lenacapavir drug trial. (AP Photo/Nardus Engelbrecht, File)

A twice-yearly shot could help end AIDS. But will it get to everyone who needs it?

A twice-yearly shot that prevents HIV infections will be available at low cost in 120 poor countries.

FILE - 2 year old Emile Miango, who has mpox, lies in a hospital, in Kamituga, South Kivu province, Sept. 4, 2024, which is the epicenter of the world's latest outbreak of the disease in eastern Congo. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa, file)

Mpox cases in Congo may be stabilizing. Experts say more vaccines are needed to stamp out virus

Some health officials say mpox cases in Congo appear to be “stabilizing.” It’s a possible sign that the epidemic for which the World Health Organization made a global emergency declaration in August might be on the decline.

FILE - R. Scott Turner, Professor of Neurology and Director of the Memory Disorder Center at Georgetown University Hospital, points to PET scan results that are part of a study on Alzheimer's disease at Georgetown University Hospital, in Washington, May 19, 2015. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

UK regulator approves second Alzheimer’s drug in months but government won’t pay for it

Britain’s drug regulator approved the Alzheimer’s drug Kisunla on Wednesday, but the government won’t be paying for it after an independent watchdog agency said the treatment isn’t worth the cost to taxpayers.

The Office of the Chief Coroner: Ontario is seen in Toronto on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Angie Wang)

Committee reviewing euthanasia in Canada finds some deaths driven by homelessness fears, isolation

An expert committee reviewing euthanasia deaths in Canada’s most populous province has identified several cases where patients asked to be killed in part for social reasons such as isolation and fears of homelessness.

A small demonstration by people advocating assisted dying hold a protest outside the Hoses of Parliament as a bill to legalise assisted dying is to be put before lawmakers in London, England, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

New UK bill aims to legalize assisted dying for people who are terminally ill

A new bill aiming to legalize assisted dying in Britain was introduced in Parliament on Wednesday, marking the first time in nearly a decade that lawmakers will debate allowing doctors to help end people’s lives after previous court challenges to change the law failed.

The Office of the Chief Coroner: Ontario is seen in Toronto on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Angie Wang)

Takeaways from AP’s report on euthanasia, doctors and ethics in Canada

Canada has arguably the world’s most permissive system of euthanasia. That’s the practice of doctors and nurse practitioners killing patients with an injection of drugs at their request.

The Toronto skyline is seen from Wards Island in Toronto on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Angie Wang)

Private forums show Canadian doctors struggle with euthanizing vulnerable patients

A homeless man refusing long-term care, a woman with severe obesity, grieving widows. Each euthanasia request sparked debate among Canadian doctors and nurses struggling with the ethics of one of the most permissive laws globally on the practice.

FILE - Brock Kehler lifts at University High in Morgantown, W.V., Aug, 1, 2024. (William Wotring/ The Dominion-Post via AP, File)

What ‘training to failure’ means and how to incorporate it into your workout

Just how much pain do you have to endure to benefit from weight training? Fitness experts say that depends on what you’re trying to accomplish.

This photo combo shows 2024 Nobel Prize winners in physiology or medicine Gary Ruvkun, American molecular biologist, left, and Victor Ambros, professor of natural science at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in Newton, Mass. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Nobel Prize in medicine honors 2 scientists for their discovery of microRNA

Two scientists have won the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for their discovery of microRNA, tiny bits of genetic material that serve as on and off switches inside cells that help control what the cells do and when they do it.

FILE - An elderly patient receives an intravenous drip while using a ventilator in the hallway of the emergency ward in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. (AP Photo/Andy Wong, File)

A new genetic analysis of animals in the Wuhan market in 2019 may help find COVID-19’s origin

Scientists searching for the origins of COVID-19 have zeroed in on a short list of animals that possibly helped spread it to people.

FILE - This undated handout issued by Cheshire Constabulary shows of nurse Lucy Letby. (Cheshire Constabulary via AP, File)

Inquiry into UK hospital where a nurse killed 7 babies will not review evidence against her

An inquiry into an English hospital where a neonatal nurse was convicted of murdering seven babies and trying to kill seven others has begun as her supporters push to clear her name.

CORRECTS NAME: Displaced infant Abdel-Rahman Abu El-Jedian, who suffers from polio, sleeps at a makeshift tent camp in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

A baby in Gaza has a strain of polio linked to mistakes in eradication campaign, experts say

The baby in Gaza who was recently paralyzed by polio was infected with a mutated strain of the virus that vaccinated people shed in their waste.

FILE - A health worker administers a polio vaccine to a child in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, Jan. 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan, File)

Wasn’t polio wiped out? Why it is still a problem in some countries

Police has been eliminated in most parts of the world, but the infectious disease is still spreading in a small number of countries.

People sit at the Don Bosco refugee camp as Red Cross officials create awareness around mpox in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, Thursday, Aug. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

Africa’s mpox outbreaks result from neglect and world’s inability to stop epidemics, experts say

A leading African scientist says the growing mpox outbreaks in Africa that triggered the World Health Organization’s emergency declaration are largely the result of decades of neglect and the global community’s inability to stop sporadic epidemics among a population with little immunity against the

FILE - A doctor points to PET scan results that are part of a study on Alzheimer's disease at Georgetown University Hospital, on Tuesday, May 19, 2015, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

UK drug regulator approves Alzheimer’s drug but government likely won’t pay for it

Britain’s drug regulator has authorized the Alzheimer’s drug Leqembi, saying that it’s the first medicine to show some impact in slowing progression of the neurodegenerative disease.

FILE - A holiday traveler looks out at a airplane at Salt Lake City International Airport, in Salt Lake City, July 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)

How to avoid the worst of jet lag and maximize your travel time

Jet lag is a problem for many travelers but there are some easy ways to adjust your body clock. It might take planning ahead and getting exposure to sunlight after you land.

FILE - This undated image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases shows a colorized transmission electron micrograph of monkeypox particles (red) found within an infected cell (blue), cultured in the laboratory that was captured and color-enhanced at the NIAID Integrated Research Facility in Fort Detrick, Md. (NIAID via AP, File)

Now that mpox is a global health emergency, will it trigger another pandemic?

The World Health Organization has declared the ongoing outbreaks of mpox in Congo and elsewhere in Africa to be a global emergency, requiring urgent action to curb the virus’ transmission.

This photo supplied by MSF (Doctors Without Borders) dated May 31, 2023, shows health workers educating children on the symptoms of the mpox disease in Goma, Congo. (Augustin Mudiayi/Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières via AP)

WHO declares mpox outbreaks in Africa a global health emergency as a new form of the virus spreads

The World Health Organization has declared the mpox outbreaks in Congo and elsewhere in Africa a global emergency. Cases are confirmed among children and adults in more than a dozen countries, and a new form of the virus is spreading.

Medical staff talk to each other at the general hospital in Goma, Democratic Republic Of Congo, Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024 after the World Health Organization declared the mpox outbreaks in Congo and elsewhere in Africa a global emergency. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

A new global health emergency: What is mpox, where are the outbreaks and will the virus spread?

The World Health Organization has declared the increasing spread of mpox in Africa a global health emergency, warning the virus might ultimately spill across international borders.