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While a rise in incorrect HRT prescription charges, ADHD medication shown to reduce adverse life events and a coroner concerned over medication storage in prisons have been in the news recently, here are some other important developments.
Will ChatGPT replace pharmacists?
The government’s ten-year health plan puts a lot of hope in the potential for AI and data to improve health outcomes. But pharmacists need not fear for their jobs just yet — a US study found ChatGPT 3.5 fared worse than PharmD students in answering therapeutics questions. The AI chatbot got 44% of application-based and 45% of case-based questions right, respectively, compared with 80% that relied on factual recall.
Healthcare providers need to combat misinformation found on social media, too — “unreliable” and “poor quality” contraception advice on TikTok is putting young people at risk, researchers have warned. Around 34% of the creators expressed distrust in healthcare professionals. More than half (53%) rejected hormonal birth control, 38% discussed fertility awareness and cycle tracking, and 35% discussed the contraceptive pill, the study found.
Further reading
Can data and tech improve health inequalities?
If data and technology are going to be used improve health outcomes, it’s vital that they accurately reflect underserved populations. That’s what research funders think, backed by a commitment to include older adults in research and clinical trials. Women’s health experts agree, with a viewpoint in the Lancet arguing that menstrual cycle data should be routinely documented by healthcare professionals and researchers.
When technology isn’t accurate, it could exacerbate inequalities: a study by the London School of Economics (LSE) found that AI models used by local councils in England were downplaying women’s health needs, which could lead to gender-based disparities in service receipt.
In more positive men’s health news, a five-year population study has found that high-dose statin use was associated with decreased abdominal aortic aneurysms growth rates and lowered risk of undergoing repair, rupture and death.
Meanwhile, new research in the area of women’s health is emerging that suggests mifepristone, a selective progesterone receptor modulator, has shown potential to reduce breast epithelial proliferation — potentially playing a role in breast cancer prevention that may have previously been ignored owing to the drug’s association with medical abortion.
Further reading
Are GLP-1 headlines too good to be true?
GLP-1 weight-loss drugs have made the news once again this week, with a review study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine considering the effect of weight loss before IVF on reproductive outcomes. However, Ying Cheong, professor of reproductive medicine at the University of Southampton, said the study groups “very different approaches together” and “risks comparing apples and pears”, leaving readers “unsure which, if any, are genuinely effective before IVF”.
Community pharmacies could look to provide weight management programmes, including wraparound care, from summer 2026, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has suggested. On 12 August 2025, it announced up to £50m in government funding and £35m from Mounjaro manufacturer Lilly. At least £10m of this funding will be earmarked for pilots in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the government said.
Meanwhile, a recent study explores a new approach to treating obesity: targeting microproteins that regulate fat cell proliferation or lipid accumulation.
