Emergency surgeries are gnawing away at U.S. health care spending, with racial disparities fueling the bill, a new study says. Emergency surgeries cost about 33% more than planned procedures, averaging $13,645 more per patient, researchers write. And costs for these emergency procedures are even higher among Americans of color, results show. Emergency surgeries are needed…  read on >  read on >

Why does your cat purr when you pet it — or meow when dinner’s late? A new study from the Wildlife Research Center at Kyoto University in Japan suggests the answer could be in its genes. Researchers looked at the androgen receptor gene in 280 spayed or neutered mixed-breed cats.  They compared the DNA to…  read on >  read on >

Americans planning to travel outside the country should make sure they’re vaccinated against measles — no matter where they’re headed, U.S. health officials say. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its guidance last week to recommend measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) shots for all international travelers, The Associated Press reported. In the past, the…  read on >  read on >

Declining vaccination rates are making more and more U.S. children vulnerable to measles and mumps, a new study says. A national decrease in MMR (measles/mumps/rubella) vaccinations among American children has occurred since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers reported June 2 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. More than three-quarters of U.S.…  read on >  read on >

Wildfire smoke could make it harder for people with lung cancer to survive, a new study says. Californians with lung cancer who breathed smoke from wildfires had a 20% increased risk of dying from their cancer, researchers reported Saturday at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s (ASCO) annual meeting in Chicago. Wildfire smoke contains particle…  read on >  read on >