Reuters Health News Summary

Strong demand for injectable diabetes and obesity drugs of GLP-1 class has buoyed the performance of device makers such as ⁠Becton Dickinson, which makes injection pens used to administer these therapies, though analysts warn oral weight-loss pills could weigh. New hantavirus case suspected on remote island as contact tracing continues A new suspected case of hantavirus has been identified in a British man who was a passenger on the virus-hit luxury cruise ship MV Hondius and is now on the remote South Atlantic island of Tristan da Cunha, health authorities said on Friday.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Virginia monitoring traveler linked to Hantavirus-hit cruise ship, says resident is low-risk

The Virginia Department of Health said on Thursday it is monitoring a resident who recently returned from a cruise ship linked to a deadly Hantavirus outbreak. The person had been aboard the MV Hondius, a Dutch-flagged expedition cruise ship that ​is at the center of an international public-health response after multiple cases of the rare virus were identified on board.

KLM flight attendant tested negative for hantavirus infection, WHO says

The World Health Organisation on Friday said a ​Dutch KLM flight attendant who had been in contact with a woman who died from a hantavirus infection in Johannesburg had tested negative for a possible ‌infection. The woman had been ​admitted to a hospital in Amsterdam on Thursday with signs of a possible infection.

Gilead raises 2026 sales forecast, flags profit hit from acquisitions

Gilead Sciences posted a higher-than-expected first-quarter profit on Thursday and raised its outlook for 2026 sales, but projected an annual loss due to charges and financing costs related to recent acquisitions. The drugmaker raised its estimate for 2026 sales of HIV prevention drug Yeztugo, which was launched in the U.S. last year, to $1 billion from a previous $800 million. First-quarter sales of the injected drug totaled $166 million, beating the $143 million forecast by Wall Street, according to LSEG-compiled data.

Spain says it has detected suspected hantavirus case in Alicante

A woman in the southeastern Spanish province of Alicante, part of the region of Valencia, has symptoms consistent with a hantavirus infection, Secretary ‌of State for Health Javier Padilla told reporters on Friday. The suspected case involves a woman who was a passenger on the same flight as a patient who died in Johannesburg after travelling on the MV Hondius cruise ship and contracting the virus, Padilla said.

US CDC classifies hantavirus outbreak as 'level 3' emergency response, ABC News reports

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has classified the hantavirus outbreak as 'level 3' emergency response, the lowest level of emergency activation, ABC News reported on Thursday citing sources.

US CDC notifies Texas of two state residents on cruise ship with hantavirus outbreak

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has notified the Texas health department that two of the state's residents were passengers on the MV Hondius, a ship that experienced an outbreak of hantavirus while traveling in the Atlantic Ocean. Public health workers in Texas have reached the two individuals, who reported that they were not experiencing any symptoms and did not have any contact with a sick person while aboard the ship.

Singapore tests two residents for hantavirus after cruise outbreak

Singapore has isolated and ‌is testing two residents who were onboard a cruise ship linked to a deadly outbreak of hantavirus, the Communicable Diseases Agency (CDA) said on Thursday. Countries worldwide are tracking passengers on the virus-hit ship to prevent further spread of the hantavirus. Three people - a Dutch couple and a German national - have died in the outbreak on the MV Hondius, while eight people are believed to have contracted the virus.

Siemens Healthineers cuts 2026 outlook on Chinese market woes

Siemens Healthineers cut its full-year revenue growth outlook ‌for the 2026 financial year on Thursday, with the company's diagnostics division struggling in China prompting spin-off considerations. Shares of the company fell 3.3% after the results were announced.

McKesson expects 2027 profit slightly above estimates on drug distribution strength

McKesson forecast 2027 profit slightly above Wall Street expectations after beating first-quarter profit estimates on Thursday, as the U.S. drug distributor banks on strength in its oncology and specialty drug businesses. McKesson and peers, including Cardinal Health and Cencora, are capitalizing on surging demand for high-cost specialty drugs used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and cancer, helping generate strong margins.

Analysis-Novo and Lilly gain on signs weight-loss pills could expand the market

Early data from weight-loss pills are lifting shares in Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly as investors bet that easier-to-take drugs could expand the market to millions more patients and help counter pricing pressure. Denmark's Novo, which has struggled to keep pace with U.S. rival Lilly in recent years, saw its shares spike on Wednesday after saying first-quarter sales of its newly launched Wegovy pill were about twice expectations.

Researchers identify antibodies that may prevent and treat measles infections

We also report on a study that reveals why females are more prone to autoimmune diseases. HUMAN ANTIBODIES AGAINST MEASLES VIRUS IDENTIFIED

US FTC's investigation of trans youth care was 'retaliatory,' judge says

A U.S. judge on Thursday derailed an ⁠investigation by the U.S. Federal Trade ​Commission, a consumer protection agency, into two medical groups that support gender-affirming care for transgender youth. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg blocked the FTC from ⁠demanding documents like internal communications and financial records from the Endocrine Society and World Professional Association for Transgender Health.

Biotech firm Odyssey raises $279 million in upsized US IPO

Biopharmaceutical company Odyssey Therapeutics has raised $279 million in its upsized U.S. initial public offering, the company said on Thursday. The Boston-based company sold 15.5 million shares at $18 apiece, compared with its marketed range of $16 to $18 per share.

Entrada shares sink after Duchenne drug falls short of expectations

Entrada Therapeutics' drug for children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy fell well short of analyst expectations in an early-to-mid stage trial, sending its shares down more than 50% in premarket trading on Thursday. The company ⁠tested the drug, ENTR-601-44, in ambulatory patients aged six to 17 who have a form of Duchenne caused by a gene mutation that can be treated by skipping exon 44.

Somalia faces severe malnutrition crisis as WFP warns of aid halt

Somalia faces a severe malnutrition crisis and urgently needs more aid funding to avert a catastrophe, the United Nations World Food Programme said on Friday, warning it may be forced to halt humanitarian support from July without additional financing. A combination of multiple failed rain seasons, which have wiped out crops and livestock, and ongoing conflict and insecurity is pushing ​people in Somalia into dangerous levels of hunger at a time of radical cuts in foreign aid and aid shortages sparked by the war on Iran, the WFP said.

Countries track passengers of virus-hit cruise ship

Countries worldwide sought to prevent the further spread of the hantavirus on Thursday, after an outbreak on a cruise ship, by tracking those who had disembarked before the virus was detected and anyone who had close contact with them since. Three ⁠people - a Dutch couple and a German national - died in the outbreak on the MV Hondius.

Fake rumors, real killings: Inside Congo's deadly health misinformation crisis

In Tshopo, a northeastern Congolese province blanketed in rainforest, rumours rippled through villages late last year claiming a mysterious illness had caused men's genitals to atrophy. Within days, testimonials proliferated on social media that amplified the imaginary threat, triggering a real-life panic that turned deadly before the government could react.

UK says third British national has suspected hantavirus

Britain's health security agency said an additional suspected case of hantavirus had been identified in a British national on the South Atlantic island of Tristan da Cunha. Two British nationals have been confirmed ⁠as cases ​of hantavirus, as part of its monitoring of the deadly outbreak on a luxury cruise ship, the UK Health Security Agency said in an update on Friday.

Amazon to carry Ozempic at US kiosks, offer same-day delivery

Amazon.com said on Thursday its pharmacy will stock Novo Nordisk's Ozempic pill to treat type 2 diabetes at its kiosks and offer same-day delivery of the drug Novo's Ozempic uses the active ingredient semaglutide to control blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes, where the body either fails to produce or resists insulin, the hormone regulating blood sugar. Amazon has been stocking Novo's weight-loss drug Wegovy, which uses the same active ingredient as Ozempic, since January. It announced in April it would also stock rival Eli Lilly's Foundayo pill for weight-loss.

Louisiana presses US Supreme Court to halt abortion pill mail delivery

Louisiana urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to prevent abortion pills from being prescribed through telemedicine and distributed by mail, as the Republican-led state presses its case to overturn a 2023 federal rule that made access to the ⁠medication easier. Republican Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill's office in a filing asked the justices to deny emergency requests by two manufacturers of the abortion pill to lift a lower court's decision that narrowed access to it by blocking the regulation nationwide while the state's legal challenge continues.

Becton Dickinson raises 2026 profit forecast on drug delivery devices demand

Becton Dickinson raised annual profit forecast and beat estimates for second-quarter results on Thursday, riding strong demand for its drug-delivery devices and surgical equipment, sending its ⁠shares up more than 5%. Strong demand for injectable diabetes and obesity drugs of GLP-1 class has buoyed the performance of device makers such as ⁠Becton Dickinson, which makes injection pens used to administer these therapies, though analysts warn oral weight-loss pills could weigh.

New hantavirus case suspected on remote island as contact tracing continues

A new suspected case of hantavirus has been identified in a British man who was a passenger on the virus-hit luxury cruise ship MV Hondius and is now on the remote South Atlantic island of Tristan da Cunha, health authorities said on Friday. The UK Health Security Agency did not disclose further details of the new suspected case on the British overseas territory where the cruise ship made a stop on April 15.

Zealand unveils buyback, Roche payments; shares rise

Danish drug developer Zealand Pharma on Thursday unveiled share buyback plans and flagged expected milestone payments from Roche, easing investor ‌concern about how it will fund late-stage obesity trials. Shares in Zealand rose as much as ‌18% after the company announced a $200 million buyback and said it expected to book $700 million in milestone payments from Roche this year.

US FDA issues recall of Boston Scientific heart devices

Boston Scientific has issued an urgent recall to correct several heart devices after the U.S. ​Food and Drug Administration classified the action as its most serious recall, the regulator said on Thursday. Here are some details: