Friday, 21 August 2026
Postpartum care Senate inquiry, Mental healthcare access gaps, First gene therapy for GSD Ia
- 01
Senate inquiry to examine postpartum care and women’s health
A new Senate Select Committee on Women’s Health will investigate postpartum healthcare, fertility and women’s pain. Chaired by South Australian Labor Senator Marielle Smith, it will examine best-practice postpartum care, women’s physical, psychological, emotional and economic experiences after birth, reproductive health support, and responses to pain including medical misogyny. The RACGP welcomed the inquiry and said access to postpartum care can vary according to cost, location and health literacy. It is calling for a dedicated MBS-funded, GP-led postpartum care plan, a National Breastfeeding Advisory Council, and digitised Pregnancy Health Records and Baby Books.
via RACGP newsGP
- 02
Mental healthcare access remains uneven as workforce shortages worsen
Mental healthcare access remained uneven despite increased spending and service use, while workforce shortages worsened and patients continued to experience poorer outcomes. The National Mental Health Commission reported that in 2025, 14.9% of Australians aged 15 and older experienced high psychological distress and 9.2% experienced very high distress. People in major cities used Medicare mental health-related services at a significantly higher rate than the overall population, while demand for public care, long emergency department waits, GP workforce pressures and psychiatrist shortages constrained access. RACGP psychological medicine chair Dr Karen Spielman said fragmented care and increasingly complex presentations raised the risk of patients falling through gaps, while GPs often undertook unpaid clinical time. The commission said future reform must focus on prevention, service improvement, workforce growth and strong national data.
via RACGP newsGP
- 03
FDA approves first treatment for glycogen storage disease type Ia
The FDA approved Glenglycos, the first treatment for patients with glycogen storage disease type Ia. The one-time Ultragenyx gene therapy delivers a functional gene to the liver, aiming to restore the enzyme needed to stabilise blood glucose between meals and address potentially life-threatening metabolic imbalance. Accelerated approval was based on data showing patients could reduce the cornstarch intake typically required every four hours to prevent hypoglycaemia. Ultragenyx plans to make the therapy available at specialised treatment centres within 30 to 60 days, with a wholesale acquisition cost of US$2.7 million per patient. The company plans to monitor patients and a control group for 10 years, while the FDA requires two additional years of data for full approval.
via BioPharma Dive
- 04
Early FH treatment linked to lower cumulative LDL-C burden
Children with genetically confirmed familial hypercholesterolaemia who began lipid-lowering medication at a median age of 14.5 years had substantially lower cumulative LDL-C exposure by early adulthood than affected parents who started treatment later. In the Spanish SAFEHEART cohort, one of 348 children with FH experienced a cardiovascular event during follow-up, compared with 34 of 288 affected parents. A separate Bavarian program showed that childhood screening using fingertip LDL-C testing followed by genetic sequencing was feasible in routine care. Among 25,431 children screened, 1689 exceeded the LDL-C threshold and FH-causing variants were identified in 283, or 1.1% of the overall cohort. Together, the European studies linked earlier treatment with lower lifetime LDL-C burden and demonstrated a large-scale approach to childhood FH detection.
- 05
Personalised mRNA melanoma vaccine succeeds in phase 3 trial
Moderna and Merck said their personalised mRNA cancer vaccine intismeran succeeded in a phase 3 melanoma trial, although they did not disclose specific results. The trial tested intismeran with Keytruda after tumour-removal surgery, aiming to delay recurrence longer than Keytruda alone. Intismeran targets 34 tumour-specific protein markers, or neoantigens, to stimulate an immune response. Earlier mid-stage data showed the combination roughly halved the risk of relapse or death after five years, but whether the phase 3 trial replicated that result remains unclear. Detailed data are due at a future medical meeting, while trials continue in kidney, bladder and lung cancers.
via BioPharma Dive
- 06
FDA authorises first autonomous robotic blood-draw device
The US Food and Drug Administration has authorised Vitestro’s Aletta, the first autonomous robotic blood-draw device. Using imaging, robotics, artificial intelligence and multiple forms of ultrasound, Aletta identifies veins, guides needle insertion and handles the procedure from tourniquet application to bandaging. One phlebotomist can oversee up to three devices, with responsibility for checking collection tubes and responding to alerts, while a trained professional must clean the device between patients. The FDA said Aletta may help address the US phlebotomist shortage. Its de novo authorisation included special controls defining testing, performance and labelling requirements for future robotic blood-draw devices seeking US clearance through the 510(k) pathway.
via MedTech Dive
MDDR is a news digest for medical professionals. It is not medical advice and should not be relied on for clinical decision-making.