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What are the symptoms of meningitis and is there a vaccine?

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What are the symptoms of meningitis and is there a vaccine?



Two people have died following an outbreak of meningitis, including one student at the University of Kent.



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Patient in Canada waits over 12 hours in hospital emergency room: ‘I’d rather pay’

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Patient in Canada waits over 12 hours in hospital emergency room: ‘I’d rather pay’


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A woman seeking emergency care for severe abdominal pain recently shared her frustration on social media with the long wait times at a Canadian hospital.

Amanda Gushue, 37, first visited her primary care physician — who sent her to the emergency department (ED) with a swollen appendix.

After waiting for two hours in triage, she was sent to the waiting room — where she was shocked to see that it could be anywhere from five to 15 hours before she could see a doctor or nurse.  

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She ultimately waited another 10 to 12 hours before she was seen.

“There were probably about 150 seats, and they were all full,” Gushue, a resident of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, told Fox News Digital. “This is what we deal with when we go to the hospital on a regular basis — you’re looking at spending a full day there.”

Amanda Gushue, 37, sought emergency care for severe abdominal pain and shared her frustration with the long wait times at a Canadian hospital. (Amanda Gushue)

Gushue shared that one elderly woman came in with a head wound, “bleeding profusely,” and had to wait for two hours before she was seen.

Gushue said she attributes the long wait times to a scarcity of doctors. “We have tons of nurses, but no doctors.”

Even after she was admitted, Gushue said she received sub-par care and was not given sufficient privacy.

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Canada has a universal healthcare system that is funded through taxes, according to the government’s website.

Eligible residents of a province or territory can apply for public health insurance to access free healthcare services, the website states.

“I would rather pay for my healthcare at this point and get treated fairly,” Gushe said.

Emergency room

After waiting two hours in triage, a patient in her late 30s was sent to the waiting room — where she was shocked to see a 15-hour wait time displayed. (iStock)

Part of the problem is that Canada is “overpopulated,” she said, expressing her point of view.

“The healthcare system is overworked right now, and these doctors are probably exhausted,” she said. “They’re working around the clock, and then after a 16- or 17-hour shift, you get a cranky doctor.”

Gushe was ultimately admitted. She had her appendix removed last week. 

She is now recovering and said she “feels great.”

“I would rather pay for my healthcare at this point and get treated fairly.”

In 2024-2025, there were more than 16.1 million unscheduled emergency department visits in Canada’s hospitals, an increase from about 15.5 million the year before, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI).

Among those patients who were admitted into the hospital from the emergency department, nine out of 10 of the ED visits were completed within 48.5 hours, the above source stated. For those who were not admitted, nine out of 10 were completed within around eight hours.

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Median wait times vary widely by province, CIHI stated.

Some of the main factors contributing to the extended wait times include staff and bed shortages, hospital flow issues (due to lack of primary care access), and overcrowding that leads to system stress, according to the Canadian Medical Association.

Hospital treatment

“The healthcare system is overworked right now, and these doctors are probably exhausted,” Gushue said. (iStock)

Dr. Warren Thirsk, an emergency room doctor in Edmonton, recently shared with the Calgary Journal that he sometimes sees more than 100 people in the waiting room of his hospital, which only has 30 chairs.

“People who can stand, stand. Some are on the ground, and we’re hoping they’re alive,” he said. “And you walk by this carnage, and then you start your day.”

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The doctor added that some patients wait all night to receive care. “What used to be a mass casualty event is now the new norm,” he said, per the report.

Another ED physician, Dr. Michael Howlett, who is president of the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians, also shared his concerns about the situation.

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“I’ve worked in emergency departments since 1987, and it’s by far the worst it’s ever been. It’s not even close,” he told CityNews, a Canadian news outlet. 

“We’ve got people dying in waiting rooms because we don’t have a place to put them,” he went on. “People being resuscitated on an ambulance stretcher or a floor. Those things have happened.”

Canadian flag unfurled

Canada has a universal healthcare system that is funded through taxes, according to the government’s website. (iStock)

In January, Alberta’s minister of hospitals announced an investigation into the death of a 44-year-old man who died after waiting nearly eight hours in an Edmonton emergency department with chest pain, according to local reports. 

A system review has since been completed by Acute Care Alberta, identifying emergency department overcrowding and triage challenges. The review issued multiple recommendations to prevent similar incidents, though a formal investigation into the death remains ongoing.

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The government also announced new triage liaison physician roles in major hospitals, as physicians report continued overcrowding and capacity issues.

Fox News Digital reached out to Nova Scotia Health and Canada Health requesting comment.



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Transfer rumors, news: Real Madrid plot move for Bayern’s Olise

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Transfer rumors, news: Real Madrid plot move for Bayern’s Olise


Real Madrid are plotting a deal for Bayern Munich star Michael Olise, while Chelsea want to sign Messi… just not the Inter Miami one.

Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.

Transfers home page | Men’s winter grades | Women’s grades

TRENDING RUMORS

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is planning a major move to sign Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise in the summer, but Bundesliga leaders do not plan on letting him leave, according to Sport Bild. The 24-year-old’s contract runs until 2029 and doesn’t include a release clause, so Bayern feel no obligation to offload him. Liverpool also want Olise as they look for a possible successor to Mohamed Salah, who could soon leave Anfield.

Arsenal have little intention of letting Riccardo Calafiori leave in the summer despite the defender being the topic of interest from Inter Milan, AC Milan, Juventus and Napoli, according to TEAMtalk. The Gunners are fully committed to keeping the 23-year-old, who is settled in north London and not actively looking to leave the Emirates. Interest from Chelsea has also been reported but Calafiori joining the club is seen as highly unlikely.

– Chelsea are lining up a move to sign Rayane Messi from Strasbourg, with the winger on loan at Saudi Pro League club Neom, reports TEAMtalk. Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain have also enquired about the 18-year-old but Chelsea’s owners, BlueCo, don’t want to see him leave their multi-club network. The plan had originally been for Messi to be integrated into Strasbourg’s first-team next season before heading to Stamford Bridge, but that plan is now being reviewed.

– AC Milan and Inter are among the clubs who will try to compete with Arsenal to sign Leon Goretzka as a free agent when the midfielder’s Bayern Munich contract expires in the summer, as reported by Calciomercato. Milan have already initiated contact with the 31-year-old’s entourage, while Inter are hoping to complete a move that would be similar to the ones they have previously completed for Hakan Çalhanoglu and Henrikh Mkhitaryan. Even so, Arsenal are the frontrunners to complete a deal.

Marseille want to sign Jonathan David in the summer if they qualify for the Champions League but face competition from the Premier League, as reported by Tuttosport. While David would reject any offer from Olympique Lyonnais due to Paulo Fonseca being in charge of Les Gones, the 26-year-old has always been fascinated by the idea of playing in the Premier League. Nottingham Forest, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United all made attempts to sign him in January.

EXPERT TAKE

OTHER RUMORS

play

1:37

Nicol: Max Dowman is just not normal!

Steve Nicol reacts to Max Dowman becoming the youngest goalscorer in Premier League history.

– Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal, RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund and several LaLiga clubs have been closely monitoring Newcastle United left back Lewis Hall. (Caught Offside)

– Crystal Palace and Leeds United both want Derby County and USMNT striker Patrick Agyemang. (Football Insider)

– Manchester City could sign Tottenham right back Pedro Porro for significantly less than his £70 million valuation. (Football Insider)

– Inter and AC Milan are both seriously considering a move for Manchester City defender Nathan Ake. (Caught Offside)

– Newcastle United could accelerate their plans to renew Kieran Trippier‘s contract amid fears that Tino Livramento could move to Manchester City. (Football Insider)

– Various clubs from England and Europe have contacted Liverpool about signing goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili permanently or on loan. (TEAMtalk)

Rocco Reitz will join RB Leipzig from Borussia Monchengladbach for €20 million plus another potential €3 million in bonuses. (Florian Plettenberg)

– Juventus and Dusan Vlahovic are rapidly moving towards agreeing a new contract, with the striker’s current deal set to expire at the end of the season. (Tuttosport)

– Feyenoord and Wolves will speak to Bournemouth about signing Max Aarons at the end of the season, while Porto are also interested in the right back on loan with Rangers. (Ekrem Konur)



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Alcohol-free beer and pet grooming used to measure inflation

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Alcohol-free beer and pet grooming used to measure inflation



Houmous and motorhomes are also added to the basket of goods and services used to chart the rising cost of living.



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‘Another internet is possible’: Norway rails against ‘enshittification’

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‘Another internet is possible’: Norway rails against ‘enshittification’


The video’s opening shot shows a man hiding under a bed snipping in a hole in someone’s sock. Seconds later, the same man uses a saw to shorten a table leg so that it wobbles during breakfast. “My job is to make things shitty,” the man explains. “The official title is enshittificator. What I do is I take things that are perfectly fine and I make them worse.”

The video, released recently by the Norwegian Consumer Council, is an absurdist take on a serious issue; it is part of a wider, global campaign aimed at fighting back against the “enshittification”, or gradual deterioration, of digital products and services.

“We wanted to show that you wouldn’t accept this in the analogue world,” said Finn Lützow-Holm Myrstad, the council’s director of digital policy. “But this is happening every day in our digital products and services, and we really think it doesn’t need to be that way.”

Coined by author Cory Doctorow, the term enshittification refers to the deliberate degradation of a service or product, particularly in the digital sphere. Examples abound, from social media feeds that have gradually become littered with adverts and scams to software updates that leave phones lagging and chatbots that supplant customer service agents.

In late February, in a campaign that is believed to be the first of its kind, the publicly funded Norwegian council joined forces with more than 70 groups and individuals across Europe and the US, including trade unions and human rights organisations.

Together they urged policymakers in 14 countries that straddle the Atlantic to take action against enshittification, arguing that it was not an inevitable process but rather the result of policy decisions. “Another internet is possible,” said Lützow-Holm Myrstad. “The status quo is not acceptable for anyone.”

In Norway, more than 20 organisations pressed officials to take action, in a push echoed by consumer councils in 12 other countries. A letter was also sent to EU institutions, while four civil society organisations in the US contacted several policymakers.

The letters called on policymakers to give consumers more power to control, adapt, repair and alter the products they already own as well as to allow people to move more easily between different services.

Policymakers were urged to double down on the enforcement of existing laws, such as those designed to protect consumers and their data, as well as work to foster greater competition in digital markets, for example through the use of public procurement processes to favour alternatives to big tech.

The Norwegian Consumer Council, which made the video, wants greater competition to be fostered in digital markets. Photograph: Forbrukerrådet/YouTube

“It’s not too late to turn the tide,” said Lützow-Holm Myrstad. “Services don’t need to be enshittified if we have real competition, if you can choose as a consumer which services you use, and if the market will better regulate all these practices.”

The global campaign is backed by an 80-page report by the council, delving into how enshittification steadily became the norm.

While the council has a long history of taking on big tech companies – in 2018 it was among the first to accuse them of deceiving users into giving up their data – Lützow-Holm Myrstad acknowledged that its efforts were akin to pitting David against Goliath.

“But in the story of David and Goliath, David won in the end, right?” Lützow-Holm Myrstad said. “This is also why this international action is so important. Groups, transatlantically, are all speaking with a common voice: it doesn’t need to be this way. We don’t want it to be this way.”

Their hopes for the campaign have swelled as they watched the video rack up millions of views across multiple platforms, with more than 9,000 comments pouring in on YouTube alone, while the report was downloaded more than 6,000 times.

“We’ve never experienced anything like it, it really strikes a nerve with people,” he said. “There seems to be an incredible amount of support to do something about this.”



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Referee involving himself in Chelsea team huddle was ridiculous

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Referee involving himself in Chelsea team huddle was ridiculous


It has become a ritual under Liam Rosenior for Chelsea players to gather in the center circle before kick-off.

However, the club’s pre-match huddle against Newcastle United on Saturday saw a bizarre moment when referee Paul Tierney stood in the middle of the players as captain Reece James spoke to the team.

Newcastle won at Stamford Bridge for the first time in 14 years and later Rosenior said that Tierney should have focused on his job rather than crashing Chelsea’s pre-match huddle and that he will contact PGMOL, the referees’ body, to seek clarity on why the ritual for his team was disrupted.

But who was right?


Andy Davies (@andydaviesref) is a former Select Group referee, with over 12 seasons on the elite list, working across the Premier League and Championship. With extensive experience at the elite level, he has operated within the VAR space in the Premier League and offers a unique insight into the processes, rationale and protocols that are delivered on a Premier League matchday.

A huddle in the center of the pitch is a practice that Liam Rosenior’s side have used before games in recent weeks. But this time referee Tierney was standing on the center circle and was subsequently caught in the middle of Chelsea’s huddle, holding the match ball.

The more I watch Tierney in the middle of the Chelsea team huddle, the less I am convinced by his decision to stand and hold his ground over the match ball.

Referees do their homework, Tierney would have known that the Chelsea huddle was going to happen and with Newcastle due to kick off, his mindset was to be proactive and defuse any possible issues with the opposition.

However, his decision to stand over the ball as the Chelsea players locked arms around him and not move to a more neutral position is difficult to understand and increased the profile of the situation unnecessarily.

The Chelsea players didn’t seem worried by Tierney’s presence as they continued with their pre-match ritual, in fact I would be surprised if they hadn’t been pre-warned by Tierney in the prematch meeting that he would take up this position if Newcastle had decided to start the match.

Regardless, the optics didn’t look great for the PGMOL, Premier League or Tierney.

It was a ridiculous situation that could and should have been managed differently.



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1.7m UK homes facing soaring bills as heating oil costs doubled in a week

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1.7m UK homes facing soaring bills as heating oil costs doubled in a week


Sir Keir Starmer is set to pledge a £50 million support package to help households cope with spiralling energy costs in the wake of the Iran war.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said Treasury officials have “found the money” to help the almost 2 million homes and businesses across the UK that still use heating oil, which is not protected by the energy price cap.

Ministers have agreed money will be set aside to support the poorest households, the prime minister will announce on Monday as he vows to support working people with “whatever challenges lie ahead”.

It comes after energy secretary Ed Miliband hinted the government is open to halting its plans to raise fuel duty for the first time in more than a decade.

Britain is also weighing up sending minehunting drones to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Mr Miliband said there was “a range of things” the UK and its allies could do to secure the route, which has been blocked by Iran and has led to a surge in energy prices.

What is heating oil and who uses it?

Homes and businesses in remote areas or those built decades ago often have a tank that pumps oil directly into the property when required. The oil type used in this setup is typically kerosene-28 and it is usually ordered by phone or online from a local supplier when reserves run low.

As with any commodity, prices go higher when demand outstrips supply and the global oil supply is under severe pressure, with the cost of heating oil rising from around 66p per litre on 2 March to up to 128 pence per litre on 16 March.

There is, however, a wide discrepancy in pricing due to the nature of how consumers order heating oil.

Whereas other energy sources such as gas or electricity are typically contracted through large providers, like Octopus or British Gas, heating oil is usually bought directly on an as-and-when-needed basis. That isn’t just the case for consumers, but for distributors themselves. Due to homes and businesses usually having, for example, 12-month contracts with their supplier, the big companies typically know how much usage they will have over the coming months and, with the price cap in place, how much the bills will be.

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With heating oil, it’s different. There’s no need for consumers to use the same suppliers every time if they don’t want to, and the suppliers themselves tend to be far smaller, often either family-run businesses or regional firms. There are around 120 such heating oil providers across Britain, compared to around two dozen of the larger energy firms supplying electricity and gas.

Therefore, the heating oil distributors themselves are typically buying in the product every day or several times a week, paying the current market rate in the process. It means that, while the price of Brent crude has risen, Brits won’t immediately see it on their bills – but those buying in heating oil will do.

Heating oil is mostly bought on an as-and-when-needed basis, meaning prices have gone up more quickly than gas

Heating oil is mostly bought on an as-and-when-needed basis, meaning prices have gone up more quickly than gas (Getty)

The Independent understands that some providers are telling customers they cannot give an accurate price for deliveries until the day beforehand, as the price has been increasing this past week.

‘No lag in the market’

Ken Cronin, chief executive of UKIFDA, the trade association representing heating oil distributors, told The Independent that another complication adding to the rising cost of heating oil, versus oil typically used for energy across the UK, was the amount sourced from the Middle East.

Only around 10 to 15 per cent of crude oil comes from that region into the British mix, but for heating oil – which, as a kerosene product, is closer to jet fuel than that which ends up powering cars and heating homes – it’s a 40 per cent dependency.

The eventual flip side of such rapid price climbs is that it will be the exact same process as the markets come down.

“Although there has been a rapid increase, there would be a rapid decline as well if the situation around Iran improves or supply eases,” said Mr Cronin. “There’s no lag whatsoever in this market and that’s reflected in consumer prices. As an example, post-Ukraine there was normalised pricing very quickly – whereas it’s still reflected in gas and electricity.

“During Covid, all the planes were grounded so there was a huge amount of kerosene fuel stock, so it was down to 25p per litre. Regional distributors are fighting for business so pricing is competitive and reacts fast to markets.”

As a result, UKIFDA advises customers who do not immediately need a heating oil delivery to speak to local distributors and consider waiting to see where markets go, rather than panic-buying now at elevated prices.

Last week, there were headlines about prices in Northern Ireland being particularly high. While distance is a factor in cost, that was partly also a result of such a large portion of the population having that as their main source of home energy.

Costs being felt more immediately

Just 5 per cent of homes in England use heating oil, but between 50 and 60 per cent do so in Northern Ireland. As such, cost rises are felt more keenly and immediately.

All told, around 1.7 million homes across the UK rely on heating oil, with around 520,000 of them in Northern Ireland. In addition, between 100,000 and 150,000 businesses rely on it.

“Our customer base is where the gas grid isn’t,” added Mr Cronin. “So rural Wales and England, the highlands of Scotland and Northern Ireland.”

Heating oil tanks are frequently used for homes in rural locations

Heating oil tanks are frequently used for homes in rural locations (AFP via Getty)

He added that UKIFDA data shows since July 2011, the average price band for heating oil has been 50-60p per litre, with “notable changes during Covid (down), Ukraine (up), and now (up).”

Certas Energy, one of the UK’s biggest fuel distributors, said it was balancing a surge in demand over the past week and urged people not to order more than they typically needed.

“Recent developments have created significant volatility in the oil market, with wholesale prices fluctuating daily,” said a statement. “We are currently experiencing a marked increase in heating oil orders, including larger-than-usual volumes. While we understand the desire for reassurance during uncertainty, this surge is placing additional pressure on supply.”

Boilerjuice, a platform for buying heating oil through different distributors, did not reply to a request for comment on pricing increases.



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Specialist identifies the five key bowel cancer signs you should never ignore

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Specialist identifies the five key bowel cancer signs you should never ignore


The reluctance to discuss bowel movements often persists as a societal taboo, yet candid conversations with a doctor about unusual changes are crucial for the early detection of serious health issues.

Despite bowel cancer ranking among the most common cancers in the UK, public awareness regarding its symptoms and screening procedures often falls short.

As Bowel Cancer Awareness Month approaches in April, Mr Jeremy Clark, a consultant general surgeon specialising in colorectal diseases at Nuffield Health in Brighton, has highlighted five critical warning signs for the public to recognise.

1. Blood in the stool

“Passing blood when you go to the toilet is a worrying feature that you should flag to your GP,” says Clark.

The surgeon highlights how the colour can vary from bright red to almost black in colour.

A man sitting on a toilet holding toilet paper (Alamy/PA) (PA)

“If you’re bleeding from the beginning of your colon, it has got to travel three or four feet before it comes out with your waste material, so it will turn very dark black. But if you’re bleeding from something lower down in the bowel, closer to your bottom, it will come out bright red,” he explains.

“If you see blood in the stools, particularly darker-coloured blood or blood that’s actually mixed in with the stools, just once and it’s significant, that should be reported to your doctor straight away. Don’t wait for that to keep on happening.”

Persistent bright red blood should also not be ignored.

“If you see a bit of bright red blood on the toilet paper after going to the toilet and you know you have got haemorrhoids then that’s not so worrying,” says Clark. “However, if it carries on for longer than a week then that should be reported to your doctor if it has never been investigated before.”

2. Changes in the way the bowels are working

“If your bowels go from working once a day like clockwork, and then suddenly you’re going two or three times a day and the bowels are a bit looser, that’s something that needs to be looked into,” says Clark.

“Becoming more constipated isn’t so much of a risk factor, but if it’s a sudden change and it doesn’t go back to normal, that needs to be looked at as well.

“If your bowels play up for just for a day or two and then settle, there shouldn’t be anything to worry about. But if you have a persistent change that goes on for a couple of weeks, then that should be reported.”

3. Abdominal pain

“Bowel cancers can cause abdominal pain,” highlights Clark. “This tends to be a later feature, but it can occur early on, too.”

4. Bloatedness

People often feel quite bloated if there’s something wrong going on in the bowel,” adds Clark

5. Unexplained weight loss

“Bowel cancers can cause you to lose weight by having an impact on how your digestion is working,” notes Clark.

Unexplained weight loss should also be flagged to a medical professional

Unexplained weight loss should also be flagged to a medical professional (PA)

Why do many people ignore these symptoms?

“There’s a whole host of symptoms, but the problem is that they all cross over with other less serious problems, such as haemorrhoids or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), so people often ignore or easily dismiss these symptoms,” recognises Clark.

Reporting any unusual changes or incidents as early as possible is a critical factor in improving treatment outcomes and overall prognosis.

“We don’t want people to be sitting on symptoms for a couple of months, wondering if something is going to change back to normal, because although bowel cancers usually do progress slowly, occasionally they can be more aggressive,” says Clark.

“We like people to report these things early, as we would rather investigate something and figure out that it’s nothing rather than be looking at things later on and not being able to do so much.”

What should people do if they have symptoms and are concerned?

If you have any of these symptoms, or if you’re worried about any changes that you notice, visit your GP.

“GPs will often give patients a FIT kit (Faecal Immunochemical Test), which comes with all the instructions. Basically, an at-home kit to collect a small sample of your faeces that then goes off to the laboratory to be tested,” explains Clark.

You’ll usually get a letter telling you the results within two weeks of sending your sample, according to the NHS website.

The NHS offers at-home bowel cancer screening tests

The NHS offers at-home bowel cancer screening tests (PA)

People aged between 50 to 74 are also offered FIT kits every two years, regardless of their symptoms, as part of the national bowel cancer screening programme.

“If it comes back as positive, that means there is blood in your stools which needs to be investigated,” says Clark.

“You will be referred into your local unit to have a conversation with the team about having either a colonoscopy or a CT scan to check and make sure that there is nothing going wrong in your bowel and [there are] no signs of polyps or bowel cancer. By doing that we pick things up much earlier and they become much more treatable and curable.”



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Iran war is making it harder for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates

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Iran war is making it harder for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates


Americans eager for lower borrowing costs may have a long wait ahead of them.

The Iran war is complicating the picture for the Federal Reserve, which is set to meet on March 18 for its next interest rate decision. Economists had predicted the Fed would hold its benchmark rate steady on Wednesday, but many had penciled in a cut at the central bank’s next meeting in June.

Soaring oil and gas prices, sparked by the conflict in the Middle East, now have economists tearing up their forecasts. Higher energy prices could ripple through the economy, pushing up transportation costs, food prices and utilities, according to Wall Street analysts. 

The specter of higher inflation poses a conundrum for policymakers, who face the challenge of ratcheting down inflation toward the Fed’s 2% annual target while also propping up a labor market that is showing signs of fatigue.

On March 13, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge — the Personal Consumption Expenditures index — showed that consumer prices crept higher in January, a sign that costs continued to rise even before the Iran war’s impact on the energy sector. 

What to expect on Wednesday

There’s a 99% probability that the Fed will hold its benchmark rate steady in a range of 3.5% to 3.75% on March 18, according to CME FedWatch, which bases its forecast on 30-Day Fed funds futures prices. 

There’s now a 95% probability the Fed maintains the current range at its April 30 meeting and a 77% likelihood that it will hold steady in June, CME FedWatch says. A month ago, those probabilities stood at 70% and 31%, respectively.

No cuts in 2026 — or even a hike?

Rising energy prices since the outbreak of the Iran war have led a number of forecasters to rewrite their interest rate predictions, with some economists saying there’s a chance the Fed won’t make cuts this year. 

“Given our higher headline and core PCE inflation forecast, we have revised our baseline to show only one 0.25-percentage-point rate cut in 2026, likely in December, but it is entirely plausible that the Fed won’t deliver any rate cuts this year,” EY-Parthenon chief economist Gregory Daco told investors in a report. 

A few analysts even think the Fed could boost interest rates in 2026 to counter rising prices. 

Rate hikes are the Fed’s most potent weapon against spiraling inflation. That’s because higher borrowing costs tamp down economic activity by making it more expensive for businesses and consumers to take out loans. 

“An already large headache for the Federal Reserve is going to turn into an even larger one, and it’s likely the Fed will not cut rates in 2026 and may even start talking about rate hikes later this year,” said Sonu Varghese, chief macro strategist at financial advisory firm Carson Group, in an email. 

Jobs flashing yellow

The Fed is also grappling with weaker hiring across the U.S., with employers shedding 92,000 jobs in February. That marked an unexpected downturn for the labor market as economists had expected an increase in job growth last month. 

“The job market has softened over the past few years, and inflation is running higher than the Fed would like and will pick up even more in the near term,” PNC economist Gus Faucher told clients in a research note.

He added, “This could create a dilemma for the central bank — cut the fed funds rate to support the labor market and inflation could move even higher, or keep the fed funds rate where it is and risk further weakness in the labor market.”

These crosscurrents could also complicate life for the next Fed chief. President Trump in January nominated former Fed official Kevin Warsh to succeed Jerome Powell as the central bank chair. Powell, who Mr. Trump has repeatedly admonished for what he sees as the Fed’s excessive caution in bringing down interest rates, is set to step down from his role in May.

But Warsh, who must still be confirmed by the Senate, could end up stepping in to lead the Fed amid mounting inflationary pressures, complicating his job.

“If and when Kevin Warsh is confirmed as Fed chair, he will first need to demonstrate that his policy views are grounded in economic fundamentals rather than political considerations,” EY-Parthenon’s Daco said.



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History Illustrated: How Israel, the US and Iran deploy covert ops

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History Illustrated: How Israel, the US and Iran deploy covert ops



Sometimes called sleeper cells, these anonymous agents employ deception to spy, sabotage or kill.



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