Tobi Thomas

1 week ago | theguardian.com | Tobi Thomas

Areas of the body most likely to develop skin cancer vary between men and women, research has found, as cases of melanoma are expected to rise this year. According to analysis by Cancer Research UK (CRUK), four in 10 melanomas in men are found on the torso, including the back, chest and stomach, the equivalent of 3,700 cases a year. More than a third – 35% – of melanomas in women are found on lower limbs, from the hips to the feet, and account for 3,200 cases every year.

2 weeks ago | theguardian.com | Tobi Thomas

The number of vape shops on high streets across England has increased by almost 1,200% over the past decade, while deprived areas have up to 25 times as many bookmakers and pawnbrokers as affluent ones, according to research. In 2014, only 33.8% of 317 local authorities in England had a vape shop, rising to 97.2% in 2024. Similarly, in 2014 less than 1% of local authorities in England had 10 or more vape shops, rising to 28% in 2024.

2 weeks ago | theguardian.com | Tobi Thomas

Children in Great Britain with serious mental health conditions are two-thirds more likely to have a limited ability to work in adulthood, according to research from a leading thinktank. The report by researchers at the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) looked at data from about 6,000 people who took part in the 1970 British Cohort Study, which is following the lives of individuals born in a single week in 1970 across Great Britain.

2 weeks ago | theguardian.com | Tobi Thomas

Sue Griffin was an active 68-year-old, retraining to become a nurse and indulging her love of horse riding, when she began to experience breathing difficulties, such as breathlessness. “She was then diagnosed with asthma, and was going to see an asthma nurse,” her daughter Kirstie Campbell recalls. But despite treatment, it soon became apparent that Griffin’s symptoms were not improving. “She was getting more and more breathless as time was progressing,” Campbell says.

3 weeks ago | theguardian.com | Tobi Thomas

Young children who are exposed to high levels of air pollution are more likely to experience poor health outcomes in later adolescence, according to new research. The study, conducted by academics at University College London, looked at data from 9,000 young people taking part in the Millennium Cohort Study between 2000 and 2002 across the UK, measuring their exposure to various types of air pollutants including PM2.5, PM10 and NO2.