Puebla has a New Medical Cluster

COVID-19 appears to be slowing down and with this, Mexico launches economic re-activation plans based on health. Globally, innovation and research find ways to best approach diseases such as cancer and HIV.

Here is the Week in Health!

New Medical Cluster in Puebla

Puebla inaugurated its medical cluster, which will be a key piece for the economic reactivation in the entity. So far, the project is made up of four hospitals (UPAEP Hospital, Puebla Hospital, Betania Hospital and Angeles Hospital), five hotels and four tour operators. The cluster was designed to attract health tourism from the US, South America and the southern part of Mexico, which may need specialized services.

BMS' Florencia Davel to Oversee 40 Countries

Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) announced the appointment of Florencia Davel, Vice President and General Manager for Latin America, as General Manager of the Distributor Markets’ Center of Excellence, expanding her current role and responsibilities. This center is responsible for BMS’ business in over 40 countries in Latin America, the Middle East, Africa and the EU.

ISSSTE’s Men’s Health Month

ISSSTE released its “February, Men’s Health Month” campaign to raise awareness about male health concerns, in particular prostate cancer. The campaign looks to destigmatize health assistance due to the taboo surrounding this topic in certain communities, explained Pedro Zenteno Santaella, Director General, ISSSTE. 

COVID-19 to Slow Down in Europe

WHO Director in Europe, Hans Kluge, said that the region could enter a long period of tranquility in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, due to factors such as low severity of the Omicron variant, high levels of immunity from the vaccine and previous exposure to the virus, as well as the arrival of warmer weather.

Lack of Safe Waste Management for Health Residue

The “Global analysis of healthcare waste in the context of COVID-19. Status, impact and recommendations” published by WHO this week highlights there is a global lack of safe waste management services for healthcare residue. The latest available data (2019) indicates that one in three healthcare facilities globally were failing to safely manage healthcare waste, with the COVID-19 pandemic only exacerbating this issue.

A New Hope for Cancer Patients

Two people who were diagnosed with leukemia in the US achieved total cancer remission during a 10-year period to an experimental therapy based on the CAR-T technique, reported El País. The process consists of extracting T lymphocytes from the immune system to genetically modify them. These new cells are returned to the patient's body, which now know how to identify cancer cells and destroy them.

New HIV Variant

An international group of scientists discovered a new variant of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), named BV, which is more contagious and virulent, according to the finding published on the journal Science. So far, 109 cases have been detected in the Netherlands, the vast majority in men. Epidemiologist Chris Wymant of the University of Oxford said finding this variant reinforces the importance of regular testing.

Experts of the Week

Do not miss our interview with co-founders of Nubix Amiel Rosales and Arturo Jain.

Be sure to check our interview with Carina Reverter, CEO and Partner, MeetingDoctors Latam.