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Michael Head

Senior Research Fellow in Global Health, University of Southampton
Dr Michael Head is a Senior Research Fellow in Global Health, based in the Clinical Informatics Research Unit at the University of Southampton, UK. He has a background in public health research and infectious disease epidemiology, with research links in Ghana, Togo, Ethiopia and Brazil. His main research interests are pneumonia and also Neglected Tropical Diseases, including scabies and onchocerciasis. Michael also analyses portfolios of research, to review levels of funding for different diseases and to provide insight into research strength, knowledge gaps, and future priorities. He has communicated extensively with the written and TV media throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Europe faces worst measles outbreak since 1997 – new data

Mar 18, 2025 15:08 pm UTC| Insights & Views Health

Europe has had the highest number of measles cases since 1997, according to a new report from the World Health Organization (WHO). There were 127,350 cases in 2024 about double the number from 2023. Measles is back, and...

Why is whooping cough surging in the UK? Falling vaccination rates may be answer

May 15, 2024 07:27 am UTC| Health

A large outbreak of pertussis (more commonly known as whooping cough) has been ongoing in the UK since the beginning of 2024. There have been 2,793 confirmed cases so far this year. Sadly, five infant deaths due to...

AstraZeneca’s COVID vaccine withdrawn – right to the end it was the victim of misinformation

May 09, 2024 07:10 am UTC| Insights & Views Health

The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine was a critical part of the COVID-19 pandemic response. However, on May 7 2024, the European Commission announced the vaccine is no longer authorised for use. This EU announcement was...

Food prices will climb everywhere as temperatures rise due to climate change – new research

Mar 25, 2024 05:09 am UTC| Insights & Views Life Economy

Climate change, and specifically rising temperatures, may cause food prices to increase by 3.2% per year, according to a new study by researchers in Germany. As climate change continues to worsen, this price inflation will...

Scabies: UK facing unusually large outbreaks – and treatment shortages appear mostly to blame

Jan 08, 2024 22:24 pm UTC| Health

Scabies is an unpleasant skin infection thats common all around the world. Outbreaks happen regularly with an estimated 450 million cases occurring globally each year. But since the start of winter, outbreaks in the UK...

Billions is spent on cancer research globally – but is it money well spent?

Jun 03, 2023 03:27 am UTC| Insights & Views Business

In 2020, 19 million people around the world received a cancer diagnosis. By 2040, that number is expected to reach 28 million. Poorer countries will be especially hard hit, with an increasing number of cases and more...

Leprosy, scabies and yaws - Togo's neglected tropical skin diseases need attention

Mar 28, 2023 14:17 pm UTC| Health

Neglected tropical diseases are a group of 20 diseases found mostly in tropical regions that are strongly associated with poverty. Among them are skin diseases like scabies, leprosy and yaws. They are caused by some...

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Economy

Philippines Posts $2 Billion BOP Deficit in March Amid Economic Headwinds

The Philippines recorded a $2 billion balance of payments (BOP) deficit in March 2025, reversing a $3.1 billion surplus in February, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). This shift pushed the countrys...

Indonesia’s March Exports Beat Expectations with $23.25B Surge

Indonesias exports rose by 3.16% year-on-year in March 2025, reaching $23.25 billion, according to data released by Statistics Indonesia on Monday. This performance exceeded market expectations, which had forecast a 3.40%...

EU May Soften Methane Rules to Boost U.S. LNG Imports Amid Trade Tensions

The European Union is considering easing the application of its methane emissions regulations to help U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports comply with its new climate rules, sources told Reuters. The move comes as the...

Japan Core Inflation Accelerates in March, Complicating BoJ Rate Outlook

Japans core consumer inflation rose in March, fueled by persistent food price hikes, adding complexity to the Bank of Japans (BoJ) rate trajectory amid ongoing U.S. tariff tensions. According to official data released...

Dollar Plunges to Three-Year Low Amid Fed Shake-Up Fears and Trade Uncertainty

The U.S. dollar fell sharply on Monday, hitting multi-year lows against major currencies as fears mounted over the independence of the Federal Reserve and escalating trade tensions. Investor sentiment weakened after...

Politics

China Imposes Sanctions on U.S. Officials Over Hong Kong Dispute

BEIJING China has announced sanctions targeting several U.S. lawmakers, government officials, and heads of non-governmental organizations in retaliation for what it described as egregious behavior concerning Hong Kong....

JD Vance Visits India Amid U.S.-India Trade Talks and Growing Diplomatic Ties

U.S. Vice President JD Vance began a four-day visit to India on Monday, aiming to strengthen diplomatic and trade relations as both countries work toward a potential trade deal. Vance is scheduled to meet Prime Minister...

Trump Threatens to Cut $1B in Health Research Funds to Harvard Amid Campus Protest Tensions

U.S. President Donald Trump is escalating his administrations conflict with elite universities, threatening to cut an additional $1 billion in federal health research funding to Harvard University, according to the Wall...

China Warns Against Trade Deals That Undermine Its Interests

China has issued a strong warning against any economic or trade agreements made at its expense, responding to reports that the U.S. is pressuring other nations to curb trade with China in exchange for tariff exemptions. In...

Pentagon Leak Probe Sparks Backlash After Advisor Ouster

Dan Caldwell, a former top adviser to U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, has spoken out following his sudden removal from the Pentagon amid a controversial leak investigation. In a joint statement with fellow ousted...

Science

Kennedy Sets September Deadline to Uncover Autism Causes Amid Controversy

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a bold plan to identify the cause of autism by September 2025. Speaking at a cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump, Kennedy declared a global...

AstraZeneca’s Imfinzi Gets US Approval for Bladder Cancer Treatment

AstraZenecas drug Imfinzi (NASDAQ: AZN) has received U.S. approval to treat adult patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, a significant advancement in cancer therapy. The approval allows Imfinzi to be used in...

Sanofi’s New Hemophilia Drug Qfitlia Gains FDA Approval with Breakthrough Bimonthly Dosing

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Qfitlia, a groundbreaking hemophilia treatment by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY). Designed for patients aged 12 and older with hemophilia A or B,...

FDA Vaccine Chief Peter Marks Resigns Amid Controversy Over Transparency

Peter Marks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) top vaccine official, has resigned after reportedly being forced out by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to The Wall Street Journal....

Museums have tons of data, and AI could make it more accessible − but standardizing and organizing it across fields won’t be easy

Ice cores in freezers, dinosaurs on display, fish in jars, birds in boxes, human remains and ancient artifacts from long gone civilizations that few people ever see museum collections are filled with all this and more....

Technology

Nintendo Faces Tariff Hurdles Ahead of Switch 2 Launch

Nintendo is preparing to launch the highly anticipated Switch 2 on June 5, marking eight years since the original Switch debuted. The console, which sold over 150 million units globally, became a pandemic-era favorite....

Apple iPhone Sales Drop 9% in China as Xiaomi Surges 40%

Apples iPhone shipments in China dropped 9% year-over-year in Q1 2025, making it the only major smartphone brand to report a decline, according to IDC. The U.S. tech giant shipped 9.8 million iPhones during the quarter,...

Nvidia Faces $5.5B Hit as U.S. Restricts H20 AI Chip Exports to China

Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) announced it will incur $5.5 billion in charges after the U.S. government indefinitely restricted exports of its H20 AI chip to China, a critical market for its data center products. The H20 chip,...

Intel Restructures Leadership Under New CEO to Boost AI and Engineering Focus

Intels new CEO, Lip-Bu Tan, has initiated a major leadership shakeup aimed at streamlining operations and reviving the chipmakers competitive edge. In a recent internal memo obtained by Reuters, Tan announced a flatter...

TSMC Q1 Profit Surges 60% on Booming AI Chip Demand

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the worlds largest contract chipmaker, reported a 60% year-over-year surge in first-quarter net profit, driven by skyrocketing demand for chips powering artificial intelligence...