The Hong Kong government has planned for legislation allowing terminally ill patients to refuse life-sustaining treatment to start on July 31. In a paper submitted to the Legislative Council, authorities said that the Advance Decision on Life-sustaining Treatment Ordinance, passed in November 2024, would provide legal status to patients’ advance care planning while offering protection…
A former lawmaker and doctor who was previously imprisoned for conspiracy to commit subversion has been struck off Hong Kong’s register of medical practitioners, becoming the first national security-related disciplinary case to involve the profession. In a ruling handed down on Thursday, the Medical Council ordered that specialist urologist Dr Kwok Ka-ki, 64, be removed…
A hotel guest in central China died after the staff held on to life-saving medicine for five hours without delivering it, sparking heated online debate over the hotel’s responsibility. The 51-year-old man, surnamed Hu, was found dead in his room at a Yeste Hotel in Wuhan, Hubei province, on November 20. Hu’s death confused his…
A museum in Beijing has launched a creepy-crawly coffee brew which has ground-down cockroaches sprinkled on the surface of the drink. Aside from the insect powders, the caffeine pick-me-up is laced with dried yellow mealworms. Drinkers say it has a “burnt and slightly sour” flavour, the news outlet The Cover reported. The insect-topped coffee brew…
An 11-year-old boy who accidentally swallowed a 10-gram gold bean worth 10,000 yuan (US$1,400) by mistake was told by his mother not to relieve himself outside because it would be “too expensive”. The story has amused many people on mainland social media, where it quickly went viral. The incident unfolded in Kunshan, Jiangsu province, southeastern…
In this week’s edition of The Prototype, we look at SpaceX’s upcoming Starship test, new science heading to the international space station, a way to make older brains more youthful and more. To get The Prototype in your inbox, sign up here. On Sunday evening, SpaceX will attempt the tenth test of its Starship rocket,…
Time for a rear-ality check. Colorectal cancer rates have been rising among adults younger than 50 since the 1990s, a troubling trend that has perplexed scientists. Because of the increase in cases, an independent panel of medical experts known as the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) lowered the recommended age to start screening for…
A Texas doctor who falsely diagnosed his healthy patients to fund his lavish lifestyle with private jets and luxury sports cars as part of a $118 million health care scheme was sentenced to a decade behind bars. Rheumatologist Jorge Zamora-Quezada defrauded patients and insurance companies by purposefully diagnosing people with rheumatoid arthritis despite them not…