Author: Njih Favour
The hepatitis B virus is one of several viruses that causes inflammation in the liver, and can lead to serious health issues if the infection persists. (Photo: Shutterstock) News & Features 4th June 2025 | Sue Segar When Desmond Pedro discovered a strange hardness under his ribcage, he was just 30 and preparing for a fresh start on a government skills course. Little did he know that he would soon die of liver cancer caused by undetected hepatitis B. Spotlight spent time with his family and spoke to experts to uncover how this overlooked virus continues to claim lives —…
E-cigarettes or vapes are often marketed as a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes. Their popularity has surged, especially among young people, potentially creating a new generation of smokers. This is a particular concern for a country like South Africa which has a huge youth bulge, warns Dr Sharon Nyatsanza, Deputy Director at the National Council Against Smoking. It’s estimated that 2.2% of current smokers in South Africa use e-cigarettes. A recent study which included 25,000 learners across 52 high schools in South Africa found that one in six learners are vaping. “Dual use of e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes is high…
by Tian Johnson, Founder of the Pan African health justice non-profit The African Alliance On 2 June, we observe International Sex Workers Day, a date rooted in defiance. It marks the 1975 occupation of Saint-Nizier Church in Lyon by over 100 sex workers protesting police harassment, abuse, and state neglect. Nearly five decades later, that occupation feels less like history and more like prophecy. Today, South African sex workers face the same abandonment, in the guise of data gaps, moral posturing, and political silence. The criminalisation of sex work in South Africa is not a policy gap. It is an…
The bacteria that causes gonorrhoea is constantly developing resistance to the drugs used to treat it. (Photo: Shutterstock) News & Features 2nd June 2025 | Catherine Tomlinson Two new antibiotics offer hope for people with gonorrhoea that is resistant to currently available drugs. Yet, it might be years before the people who need these medicines can get them. Spotlight unpacks why these new antibiotics are important and what needs to happen before they can be used in South Africa. Gonorrhoea is a sexually transmitted infection known for its ability to quickly mutate to evade the antibiotics used to treat it.…
by Christoforos Mallouris, Regional Adviser Equality And Rights For All, UNAIDS Support Team for Eastern and Southern Africa Communities of people living with or affected by HIV have been at the forefront of delivering HIV-related services since the beginning of the HIV epidemic. UNAIDS, under the 2gether 4 SRHR Programme, recently launched a publication highlighting the significant role of community-led and community-based service delivery in shaping the HIV response and influencing broader health outcomes with far-reaching success. These grassroots initiatives are people-centred, addressing the holistic needs of individuals, and they are reaching the most vulnerable. As a result, they are…
Official death statistics in South Africa are based on what doctors write on death certificates. (Photo: Shutterstock) Comment & Analysis 30th May 2025 | Pam Groenewald and Debbie Bradshaw Several studies have flagged problems with South Africa’s death registration processes. A critical first step to addressing it is to replace our paper-based process with an electronic one, argue Dr Pam Groenewald and Professor Debbie Bradshaw, both of the SAMRC’s Burden of Disease Research Unit. A recent report by the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) highlights the under-reporting of HIV in official mortality statistics. Official cause of death statistics are…
The Department of Employment and Labour has shut down another state-run mortuary in the Free State over unsafe and unhygienic working conditions. This week labour department inspectors visited the forensic pathology service in Phuthaditjhaba where they found a series of occupational health and safety violations including broken fridges and blocked sewage. The government mortuary in Bloemfontein was closed in October 2024 after similar working conditions were found. These included water leakages that posed a risk of electrocution and inadequate ventilation in the post-mortem room. The facility was reopened briefly in January before it was shut down again. It was, once…
This project is funded by: A former government employee at La Lucia clinic in Durban and at least one accomplice are selling antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) to members of the public. Following up on a tip-off from a source, Health-e News got in touch with the former government employee, posing as a potential buyer. In a recorded phone call the man explains how the operation works: “He [the accomplice still working at the clinic] said for a year it’s R2000 – that’s 12 containers. That’s how he takes them out. That means 6 would be R1000 — but I’ll have to ask…
There are two vaccines against shingles – an often painful and debilitating condition caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox – but neither are available in South Africa. (Photo: Frank Merino/Pexels) News & Features 27th May 2025 | Catherine Tomlinson The only shingles vaccine on the market in South Africa was discontinued last year. A newer and better vaccine is being used in some other countries, but has not yet been registered in South Africa, though it can be obtained by those with money who are willing to jump through some hoops. Shingles is a common and painful condition…
Over 1,400 cervical cancer patients in Gauteng are set to be transferred to already overstretched public hospitals following the abrupt closure of several cervical cancer screening and prevention clinics operated by the Clinical HIV Research Unit (CHRU). The closures come after the CHRU, a leading cervical cancer screening and research unit in South Africa, announced it would cease operations due to recent U.S. funding cuts under President Donald Trump’s administration, which saw the abrupt withdrawal of support from programmes like President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and National Institute of Health (NIH) backed clinical research initiatives. For the past…