Health News Roundup: Equatorial Guinea confirms six more Marburg cases; 'Era has passed' as Beijing subway drops mandatory COVID mask rule and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Equatorial Guinea confirms six more Marburg cases -WHO Six additional laboratory-confirmed cases of Marburg disease have been reported in Equatorial Guinea, bringing the total number to 15, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday. 'Era has passed' as Beijing subway drops mandatory COVID mask rule Beijing's subway has dropped mandatory mask requirements for travellers, local media reported on Sunday, days after a Chinese health expert said the threat of COVID-19 to humans is no longer at a serious level.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Equatorial Guinea confirms six more Marburg cases -WHO

Six additional laboratory-confirmed cases of Marburg disease have been reported in Equatorial Guinea, bringing the total number to 15, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Saturday.

'Era has passed' as Beijing subway drops mandatory COVID mask rule

Beijing's subway has dropped mandatory mask requirements for travellers, local media reported on Sunday, days after a Chinese health expert said the threat of COVID-19 to humans is no longer at a serious level. The mask move is in line with broader measures by China, which said last week it was now no longer mandatory to wear face masks when using public transport, according to state media.

Moderna/Merck cancer vaccine plus Keytruda delays skin cancer return

An experimental mRNA cancer vaccine developed by Moderna Inc and Merck & Co cut the risk of death or recurrence of the most deadly skin cancer by 44% compared with Merck's immunotherapy Keytruda alone, U.S. researchers reported at a medical meeting on Sunday. The findings suggest that adding a personalized cancer vaccine based on mRNA technology to Keytruda, which revs up the immune response, could prolong the time patients have without recurrence or death, said Dr. Jeffrey Weber of the NYU Langone Perlmutter Cancer Center, who presented the findings.

GSK's antibiotic drug to treat uncomplicated UTIs meets main goals

British drugmaker GSK said on Saturday its oral antibiotic drug to treat uncomplicated urinary tract infections (uUTI) in female adults and adolescents met the main goals in late-stage trials. The drug, gepotidacin, in phase III trials, met its primary goals of being on a par or better than nitrofurantoin, the current standard of care for the treatment of uUTIs, the company said.

(With inputs from agencies.)