Health News Roundup: India develops its first cervical cancer vaccine; Hong Kong COVID cases hit 10,586 amid concerns over tighter restrictions and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

India develops its first cervical cancer vaccine

The Serum Institute of India (SII), the world's biggest vaccine maker, has developed the country's first cervical cancer shot that will hit the market soon, the company and the government said on Thursday. Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women globally, with an estimated 604,000 new cases and 342,000 deaths in 2020, according to the World Health Organization. About 90% of the new cases and deaths worldwide occurred in low- and middle-income countries that year.

Hong Kong COVID cases hit 10,586 amid concerns over tighter restrictions

Hong Kong reported 10,586 new COVID-19 infections on Thursday as a rise in daily cases triggers concerns that authorities will tighten COVID-19 restrictions just as the government has gradually relaxed some of the world's most stringent measures. Government advisers have said the recent rise in infections was expected and dismissed the need for tighter restrictions, according to local media.

Chengdu locks down 21.2 million as Chinese cities battle COVID

The southwestern Chinese metropolis of Chengdu announced a lockdown of its 21.2 million residents as it launched four days of citywide COVID-19 testing, as some of the country's most populous and economically important cities battle outbreaks. Residents of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, were ordered to stay home from 6 p.m. on Thursday, with households allowed to send one person per day to shop for necessities, the city government said in a statement.

Novartis taps Merck executive Marshall to replace Bradner as research head

Novartis said on Thursday it appointed Merck executive Fiona Marshall as president of the Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research to replace Jay Bradner, who is stepping down after seven years as research head at the Swiss drugmaker. The drugmaker said the appointment of Marshall, currently senior vice president and global head of discovery sciences, preclinical development and translational medicine at Merck & Co, takes effect on Nov. 1.

Macau plans to gradually reopen the city to foreign travelers

Macau is planning to gradually reopen the city to foreign travellers from certain countries who meet its COVID-19 criteria, its government said on Thursday.

U.S. CDC advisers expected to recommend Omicron specific vaccine boosters

Vaccine experts will meet on Thursday to discuss updated COVID-19 boosters and make recommendations to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on who should receive the shots, one of the last steps before they are rolled out as soon as this weekend. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday authorized the updated shots from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna that target the dominant BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants as well as the original virus.

Explainer-Updated COVID vaccines are coming in the U.S. Should you get one?

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized updated COVID-19 boosters from Pfizer Inc with German partner BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc retooled to target Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants as well as the original virus. They could start rolling out in the next few days following recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which is holding a meeting of its expert advisers on Thursday. Here is what you need to know:

EU regulator backs Omicron-adapted COVID shots

The EU's drug regulator on Thursday backed two separate COVID-19 vaccine boosters updated to target the Omicron variant and developed by rivals Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech, as the region readies to roll out shots to ward off infections in the winter. The new so-called bivalent shots combat the BA.1 version of Omicron and the original virus first detected in China.

U.S. life expectancy fell further in 2021 due to COVID

Life expectancy fell in the United States in 2021 to its lowest since 1996, the second year of a historic retreat due to COVID-19 deaths, provisional government data showed on Wednesday. The nearly one-year decline from 2020 to 76.1 years marked the largest two-year drop in life expectancy at birth in close to a century, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found.

J&J to pay $40.5 million to settle New Hampshire opioid lawsuit

Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay $40.5 million to settle New Hampshire's claims over the company's role in the opioid epidemic. New Hampshire said the settlement averted a trial that had been scheduled to begin on Sept. 7 in Merrimack County Superior Court.