Health
An Effective Treatment for Opioid Addiction Exists. Why Isn’t It Used More?
Then, in November, with the election of Donald Trump and the Republicans’ return to power in Congress, the question of how best to respond to opioid-use disorder was confronted with new uncertainty. For the past decade, the push to expand access to treatment for opioid addiction has enjoyed bipartisan support. But during his campaign, Trump outlined a draconian vision to address the opioid problem, threatening drug dealers and smugglers with the death penalty and promising to “seal” the border. On Feb. 1, he signed an executive order to levy tariffs against China, Mexico and Canada, in part to pressure these countries to halt the flow of fentanyl into the United States. (Soon after, he gave 30-day reprieves to Canada and Mexico.)
Keith Humphreys, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford who studies the opioid crisis, says the idea that beefed-up border control could halt or greatly curtail the flow of fentanyl into the country is simply misguided. Fentanyl is so concentrated that the amount needed to supply the entire country’s demand for a year is at most 10 metric tons, he estimates. Law enforcement has to find those 10 tons — the weight of few cars — among the more than seven million trucks carrying goods that cross the border annually. To meaningfully impede the flow of fentanyl, he thinks, you would have to completely close the border, at which point the country would inflict massive economic harm on itself. And even with the border shut, drones, planes and tunnels can easily continue supplying the market. A birthday-card-size letter mailed from abroad could carry a week’s supply of the opioid for someone. “You can’t really keep fentanyl out of such a big country,” he says.
Trump’s expressed desire to slash government spending also worries proponents of medication-for-addiction treatment. Some Republicans are actively seeking ways to cut Medicaid, along with other federal programs. Trump may also try to undo or simply undermine the Affordable Care Act, a favorite target. Either development could be disastrous for the distribution of medication to treat opioid addiction, reversing the gains, however tenuous, made under the Biden administration. Medicaid covers an estimated 40 percent of non-elderly adults with opioid-use disorder in the United States, some two-thirds of whom receive treatment for their addiction through the program.
It’s also possible, however, that Trump will expand the public-health approach he embraced during his first term, which was furthered by the Biden administration, and continue to encourage efforts to roll out M.A.T. Trump signed a law during his first term that removed some requirements for doctors who wanted to prescribe buprenorphine, notes Kassandra Frederique, the executive director of Drug Policy Alliance, a nonprofit that advocates for less-punitive drug policy. And uniquely among Republican presidents, Trump supported the use of some harm-reduction practices like making clean syringes available, according to his first-term surgeon general. Frederique told me she hopes that the current administration will continue to build on the work Trump and others have done to expand access to treatment.
What’s important to remember is just how much evidence exists indicating that buprenorphine can help people with opioid addiction. Sarah Wakeman often points this out as she pushes back against what she sees as a pervasive sense of pessimism around the opioid crisis. The problem is that this medicine isn’t getting to the people who need it quickly enough. “Most people think this is a terribly recalcitrant, untreatable, insurmountable problem,” she says. “That couldn’t be further from the truth.”
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Former Attorney General Pam Bondi was diagnosed with thyroid cancer shortly after leaving the Department of Justice last month, according to a report.
Bondi, 60, who left her role at the Justice Department in early April, underwent treatment and is recovering, a source stated.
The thyroid is a gland located in the neck. It makes hormones that are then secreted into the blood, which help the body “use energy, stay warm and keep the brain, heart, muscles and other organs working as they should,” according to the American Thyroid Association.
PAM BONDI DIAGNOSED WITH THYROID CANCER WEEKS AFTER DEPARTING AS TRUMP’S ATTORNEY GENERAL: REPORT
Thyroid cancer is relatively uncommon compared to other cancers. Even so, as of 2023, more than one million people in the U.S. are living with the disease.
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) predicts that there will be an estimated 45,260 new cases in 2026.
Former Attorney General Pam Bondi was diagnosed with thyroid cancer shortly after leaving the Department of Justice last month. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Risk factors and symptoms
While more common in women, thyroid cancer can affect both sexes. Those with a family history may be more likely to develop it, as well as those between the ages of 25 and 65. Exposure to radiation is also a risk factor, according to the National Cancer Institute.
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Signs of thyroid cancer may include lumps or swelling in the neck, trouble breathing, trouble swallowing, hoarseness and pain when swallowing, per the above source. Anyone experiencing these symptoms should seek medical attention.
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If thyroid cancer is suspected, a doctor can diagnose it in several ways. A laryngoscopy is a procedure where the doctor checks the voice box with a mirror or laryngoscope — a thin, tube-like instrument with a light and lens, per NCI.
Signs of thyroid cancer may include lumps or swelling in the neck and trouble breathing. (iStock)
Blood hormone studies – where a blood sample is checked to measure hormone levels – can also reveal indicators of thyroid cancer. Ultrasounds and CAT scans are then used to check for tumors in the body.
Treatment options
Surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and hormone therapy are the main ways doctors treat thyroid cancer. A new type of therapy, immunotherapy, is being tested in clinical trials.
“Surgery is the primary therapy, followed by regular surveillance and thyroid hormone replacement,” Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst, told Fox News Digital.
Bondi, 60, who left her role at the Justice Department in early April, underwent treatment and is recovering, according to a source. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)
If the thyroid must be completely removed, patients will take hormones to replace the gland’s natural function.
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“Radioactive iodine is added in extensive or more aggressive cases,” Siegel said, but noted that it is “usually not needed.”
The thyroid gland is located in the neck. It makes hormones that are then secreted into the blood, which help the body use energy. (iStock)
Survival rates
The prognosis for thyroid cancer is generally positive and depends heavily on how the cancer responds to treatment, according to NCI.
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Some types are much milder and slower-growing than others. Doctors will also consider the stage of the cancer’s progression.
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The best-case scenario is when a surgeon can completely remove the tumor during surgery. Doctors will also factor in whether this is a brand-new diagnosis or if the cancer has returned after previous treatment.
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The American Cancer Society (ACS) has updated its guidelines for colorectal cancer screening.
The organization released the update in its flagship journal on Wednesday, noting that the new recommendations “re-affirm” that adults at average risk should be screened for colorectal cancer at age 45 and continue through 75, for those with a life expectancy greater than 10 years.
In addition to the standard colonoscopy, the ACS also recommends that patients receive a blood-based screening test in a doctor’s office, which is designed to detect tumor DNA in the blood.
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The ACS also suggested an at-home screening option that looks for hidden blood and molecular markers in stool samples.
These new guidelines reflect recent advancements in disease detection, as well as a “critical shift in public health strategy to expand screening options and lower barriers to access,” the ACS stated in a press release.
The ACS recommends blood-based testing and at-home stool sampling as options for colorectal cancer screening. (iStock)
Dr. Robert Smith, senior vice president of early cancer detection science at the American Cancer Society and senior author of the report, wrote in a statement that colorectal cancer should be emphasized as a “highly preventable disease as much as a treatable one.”
“By offering more screening tools in our guideline update, more eligible adults will be able to participate in lifesaving colorectal cancer testing, helping to close the screening gap and catch more cancers at an earlier, treatable stage,” he added.
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According to the ACS, colorectal screening “dramatically improves survival,” as studies show early-stage detection yields a five-year survival rate of more than 90% in the U.S.
About one in three American adults are eligible for colorectal cancer screening but have not been tested, although ACS research marks colorectal cancer as the top cancer killer of adults under 50.
Colorectal cancer is the top cancer killer of adults under the age of 50, according to the ACS. (iStock)
People at a high risk of colorectal cancer may need to begin screening before age 45 or be screened more often, the ACS added. Those over 85 years old should no longer be screened for colorectal cancer, per the guidelines.
Dr. William Dahut, chief scientific officer at the ACS, commented that “no matter which test you choose, what’s most important is to get screened, and that includes underserved, rural and minority populations.”
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These guideline changes follow a surge in colorectal cancer diagnoses in younger individuals. Recent ACS research revealed a 50% relative increase in diagnoses in adults aged 45 to 49 from 2021 to 2022.
Dr. Aparna Parikh, medical director of the Center for Young Adult Colorectal Cancer at the Mass General Cancer Center, who is not affiliated with the ACS, shared that experts don’t “entirely understand why” cases are on the rise.
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“But it seems to be an interplay of a person’s risk factors, overall makeup and early exposures,” she previously told Fox News Digital. “[Those] include dietary exposures, environmental exposures and possible antibiotic exposures, as well as lifestyle factors in the right host.”
Changes in bowel habits are the primary red flag that should raise the suspicion of colorectal cancer. (iStock)
Another recent ACS study found that drinking heavily and consistently over an adult’s lifetime could lead to a higher risk of colorectal cancer.
Other known risk factors include family history, obesity, smoking, a diet high in red and processed meats, inflammatory bowel disease, and a personal history or family history of polyps.
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While there may be no symptoms of colorectal cancer before diagnosis, especially in the early stages, certain symptoms should not be overlooked, experts say.
Dr. Eitan Friedman, PhD, an oncologist and founder of The Suzanne Levy-Gertner Oncogenetics Unit at the Sheba Medical Center in Israel, confirmed to Fox News Digital that changes in bowel habits are the primary red flag that should raise the suspicion of colorectal cancer.
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Other symptoms include fatigue as a result of anemia, stomach pain or abdominal discomfort, rectal bleeding or blood in the stool, weakness and unexplained weight loss.
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