Vaping likely to cause lung and oral cancer, Australian researchers find in new review of evidence

Vaping is likely to cause lung and oral cancer, researchers have found, as they urged regulators to act now rather than wait decades for a definitive level of risk.Cancer researchers led by the University of New South Wales in Sydney analysed reviews of evidence from animal studies, human case reports and laboratory research published between 2017 and 2025, in one of the most detailed assessments to date of whether nicotine e-cigarettes could cause cancer.There are early warning signs in the body strongly linked to cancer risk, including DNA damage and inflammation, co-author Adjunct Prof Bernard Stewart said. The review, published in the journal Carcinogenesis on Tuesday, found vaping is associated with these pre-carcinogenic changes.“There is no doubt that the cells and tissues of the oral cavity, the mouth and the lungs are altered by inhalation from e-cigarettes,” Stewart said

Court of appeal says it cannot rule on which identical twin fathered a child

A woman who had sex with identical twins within four days of each other is unable to ensure one of them takes parental responsibility because it is “not possible” to know which is the father, the court of appeal has said.One of the twins was registered as the father on the birth certificate of the child, referred to as P. His identical twin, along with the mother, sought to take over parental responsibility by asking the court of appeal to overturn a previous family court decision.Sir Andrew McFarlane, sitting with Lady Justice King and Lord Justice Stuart-Smith, said that while DNA testing has revealed that either of the twins could be the father, it cannot distinguish between them so there is a 50% chance of the correct father being already on the birth certificate.He said the twin on the birth register will no longer have parental responsibility until the court hears further arguments

Polio virus detected in London days before ministers cut global eradication funding

The polio virus was detected in London sewage for the second time this year, days before ministers withdrew funding for global polio eradication efforts.Its detection reveals the spending cuts to be “shortsighted and self-defeating”, campaigners said. Polio is an extremely infectious viral disease, which typically affects young children under five. It can cause paralysis by damaging nerves in the spine and base of the brain, and can be life-threatening if it affects muscles used for breathing.UK health officials take weekly samples of wastewater from sewage plants around England to check for the presence of polio and will typically pick up a handful of cases a year

More than 6m vapes and pods discarded weekly in UK despite single-use ban, study finds

More than 6m vapes and vape pods are still being discarded every week in the UK, with waste management companies warning the sheer volume continues to strain recycling systems despite the ban on disposable e-cigarettes.According to research by the recycling campaign group Material Focus, the 6.3m vapes and pods thrown away each week in 2025 represented a 23% reduction from the previous year.This suggests the ban on sales of single-use vapes that came into effect on 1 June 2025 has had an impact on levels of waste, alongside a 31% drop in the number of vapes bought each week.However, the volume of waste is still creating problems

UK government must urgently apologise for forced adoption, MPs say

The UK government must urgently issue a formal apology for the state’s role in forced adoption as many victims are nearing the end of their lives, a cross-party group of MPs has said.A report from the education select committee said ministers should provide an initial commitment to an apology and begin working with survivor groups as quickly as possible on its wording.It said a formal and public apology was essential to correct the public record and reduce the burdens felt by many mothers and adoptees.Between 1949 and 1976, an estimated 185,000 babies were taken from unmarried mothers and placed for adoption in England and Wales owing to a culture of shame surrounding pregnancy outside marriage. Religious organisations ran most of the mother and baby homes where pregnant women were sent to give birth, while charities and local authorities were also involved in funding the placements and finding adoptive parents

Keir Starmer gives resident doctors 48 hours to call off strike or lose training offer

Keir Starmer has threatened to withdraw an offer of thousands of extra NHS training posts if resident doctors in England do not call off a six-day strike after Easter.The prime minister has given the doctors’ union, the British Medical Association, 48 hours to ditch its plans for industrial action or the government will pull the current offer from the table.Last week, the BMA resident doctors’ committee rejected an offer that would have given doctors a pay rise of up to 7.1% this year, without putting it to members for a vote.Writing in the Times, Starmer labelled the BMA’s rejection of the deal “reckless” and said it “benefits no one”