Health News Roundup: J&J working on vaccine for deadly coronavirus and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Fruits, vegetables, tea consumption linked with lower Alzheimer's risk

Elderly people with diets rich in flavonols - a group of antioxidants found in fruits, vegetables, and tea - may be less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease, a new study suggests. Researchers followed 921 people without dementia for about six years, starting when they 81 years old, on average. During the study, 220 people were diagnosed with probable Alzheimer's disease.

CT screening cuts lung cancer deaths in European men and women

A large study of smokers and ex-smokers in the Netherlands and Belgium is confirming that widespread screening using low-dose CT scans can dramatically lower the lung cancer death rate. After 10 years, the mortality rate for men who received regular screening was reduced by 24% compared to men who got no screening. Although women were under-represented in the study, the research team found that screening lowered their risk of dying from lung cancer by 33%. A total of 15,792 people volunteered for the study.

More Japanese evacuated from China virus epicenter as death toll climbs

A plane of Japanese evacuees from the virus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan arrived in Tokyo on Thursday as the total number of confirmed deaths from the newly identified pathogen in the country rose by 38 to 170 and infections also jumped. Chinese health authorities said there were 7,711 confirmed cases of infection as of the end of Wednesday, mostly in Hubei province where the death toll rose by 37 to 162.

U.S. House passes bill to extend temporary ban on fentanyl look-alikes for 15 months

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill on Wednesday that would temporarily extend the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) class-wide ban on all variants of the powerful synthetic drug fentanyl, which has helped fuel the opioid crisis in the United States. The bill, which was identical to a version approved in the Republican-led U.S. Senate earlier this month, will now make its way to President Donald Trump's desk for his signature just before the DEA's temporary powers on fentanyl analogs expire on Feb. 6.

UNICEF sends six tonnes of masks and other gear to help fight China virus

A six-tonne shipment of respiratory masks and protective suits for health care workers landed in China on Wednesday for distribution in Wuhan, the epicenter of a spreading coronavirus outbreak, the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) said. The United States and Japan flew citizens out of the central Chinese city as the death toll rose to 133 and the first case appeared in the Middle East. There have been 5,974 confirmed cases in China.[ nL4N29Y18Z]

Antibiotic therapy cuts stomach cancer rate by more than half in high-risk population

Eradicating the bacteria that cause stomach ulcers can slash the odds of stomach cancer by more than half among people who have had a family member develop the tumor, according to the results of a new clinical trial. Having a family history of gastric cancer can double or triple the risk of stomach cancer. The odds are also elevated among people infected with Helicobacter pylori, or H. pylori, bacteria, which linger in the gut of about half the world's population, the study team notes in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Many soldiers thinking about suicide show no signs

Nearly half of deployed soldiers thinking about suicide show no obvious signs that would help mental health professionals identify them, a new study finds. Researchers poring through data on almost 4,000 soldiers serving in Afghanistan in 2012 found that 40% of those who said they had contemplated suicide in the past 30 days had not been diagnosed with a major mental health problem and did not show any other signs that would help health providers to identify them as being at risk, according to the report in JAMA Network Open.

U.S. evacuees from China placed on 72-hour 'hold' at California military base for medical evaluation

Nearly 200 Americans airlifted from China in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak arrived on Wednesday at a U.S. military base in California, where they will remain isolated for at least 72 hours of medical evaluation, public health officials said. The group, mostly U.S. diplomats and their families, were evacuated from Wuhan at the epicenter of the outbreak aboard a U.S. government-chartered cargo jet that stopped to refuel in Alaska on Tuesday night before flying on to March Air Reserve Base, about 60 miles (97 km) east of Los Angeles.

Johnson & Johnson working on vaccine for deadly coronavirus

Johnson & Johnson on Wednesday became the latest drugmaker to begin work on developing a vaccine for a new coronavirus that has already killed more than 100 people in China, as health authorities race to contain the outbreak. J&J said its vaccine program would utilize the same technologies used to make its experimental Ebola vaccine, which is currently being administered in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda.

CVS offers option for diabetes drugs with no out-of-pocket cost

CVS Health Corp said on Wednesday it is launching a prescription drug coverage plan in which patients would have no out-of-pocket costs for insulin and other expensive diabetes treatments. CVS manages pharmacy benefits for employers and health insurers and negotiates prices on their behalf with drug manufacturers. It designs how prescription drug coverage will work for the members, setting the co-pay levels and how easy it is for a patient to get a medicine.