Health
What happens when coronavirus mutates?
Mutations arise as the virus replicates and new, slightly imperfect, copies are made of the genetic material
Is the Lancet becoming too political?
Playing politics makes it easy for critics to question your intentions
In praise of French doctors
Thirty-five years ago, my nurse had competed against an English team who played rugby with a violence that was incredible
The drugs that can help us defeat COVID-19
Anti-virals and anti-inflammatories are potential strategies
Why hasn’t the second COVID surge led to more deaths?
There are four possibilities
How to work out the real COVID death toll
Figuring out the real infection rate is very difficult. Probably the best way is through antibody tests
The joy of Xanax
Back in her examination room, I presented her with my sample
Is the second wave of COVID coming?
Six states are showing a worrying spike in COVID-19 infections
Is this why Germany has escaped lightly from coronavirus?
It is hard to explain different death rates simply by the different approaches taken by governments
Immunity to coronavirus may be far more widespread than thought
If some of the population have a degree of resistance thanks to previous infection with other coronaviruses then the numbers change
The way ‘COVID deaths’ are being counted is a scandal
We have no idea how many lives have really been lost to the disease
How sewage tests could save us from COVID-19
Human body waste could prove to be an extremely useful ‘leading indicator’, Yale study finds
Three reasons why a coronavirus vaccine might not be possible
Although it is important to mitigate loss of life wherever possible, we can never reduce risk to zero
‘Herd immunity’ is impossible without a vaccine
The trouble with coronaviruses is that they have evolved to keep re-infecting us
Stanford study suggests coronavirus might not be as deadly as flu
All their estimates for IFR are markedly lower than the figures thrown about a couple of months ago
Pelosi goes full Trump
This one might give the President a bellyache
Will a vaccine really be ready by September?
Things work differently in a crisis. There is a desperation to get things done
The growing evidence on vitamin D and COVID
Vitamin D deficiency may or may not help to prevent you catching the virus, but it does affect whether you get very sick from it
Could having a cold protect against COVID?
Immunity from other influenza viruses helped protect the population during the outbreak of swine flu
A generation unmasked
The furor over the maskless VE celebration highlights the forces driving this moment of national fear and submission
Shrieks, shots and broken china: a visit to my rural French doctor
As we all sat in the waiting room, we wondered what social enormity the doctor might commit next
COVID-19 is a terrible snob
Survival of the richest
Why can’t we celebrate Adele’s dramatic weight loss?
19, 21, 25...and now 6/10
We know everything — and nothing — about COVID
It is data, not modeling, that we need now
Have we been fighting a very different disease to China?
New research on mutations of the virus suggests so
