A proposed Medicare policy threatens to reshape how ophthalmologists treat glaucoma.
At issue is the anterior segment intraocular nonbiodegradable drug-eluting system, more commonly known as iDose TR (travoprost intracameral implant, Glaukos). The policy deserves scrutiny before it becomes final.
Five Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) have published similar local coverage determinations (LCDs) that are currently in the proposal stage. Together, the LCDs raise serious limitations that are worth understanding before the comment period closes. The proposed criteria require patients to

Adults who received sonelokimab for moderate to severe hidradenitis suppurativa experienced consistent disease improvement through 1 year, according to topline data.
More than 67% of the participants who received sonelokimab (MoonLake Immunotherapeutics) in the phase 3 VELA-1 and VELA-2 clinical trials achieved Hidradenitis Suppurativa Clinical Response (HiSCR)75 by week 52 — an increase from the 62% response rate seen in the interim dataset at week 40, as Healio previously reported.
“HS is a chronic disease, so long-term data are very important,” Alexa B. Kimball, MD, MPH, president and CEO of

Gaps in cancer mortality based on race or ethnicity continue to narrow overall, but several specific populations still exhibit higher risk for developing or dying of the disease, according to a new report.
Outcomes also continue to be worse among residents of rural regions, individuals who live in counties with persistent poverty, and sexual and gender minorities, the AACR Cancer Disparities Progress Report 2026 showed.
“Incidence and mortality are critical metrics because they tell us whether the interventions we have in place in the clinic and in the community are working,” Mariana C. Stern,

In December 2021, the FDA approved the first therapy indicated to treat primary immunoglobulin A nephropathy. Since then, several novel drugs have received accelerated approval for the disease, and more are in the pipeline.
“In just the last few years, there’s been an explosion in therapies available to us,” Jackson Kim, MD, clinical assistant professor in the division of nephrology at Stanford Health Care, told Healio.
Kim, who graduated from medical school in 2017, said he was taught that immunoglobulin A (IgA) nephropathy “was not a big deal.” The disease progressed slowly, if at all, and

CHICAGO — Adults with type 2 diabetes may have lower risk for fractures if they use semaglutide compared with other medications, according to data presented at ENDO 2026.
As Healio previously reported, a retrospective cohort study found that semaglutide (Ozempic/Wegovy, Novo Nordisk) was associated with a 26% lower risk for fractures than sleeve gastrectomy for people with obesity. Sun H. Kim, MS, MD, associate professor of medicine at Stanford University Medical Center and senior author on the previous study, said researchers thought the reduced risk for fracture with semaglutide may have

Among adults with vs. without obstructive sleep apnea, skeletal muscle density/quality was reduced and skeletal muscle index/quantity was increased, according to results published in Sleep and Breathing.
“The key message for clinicians is that muscle quality matters and not just muscle size,” three researchers on the study told Healio in a statement. “In patients with sleep apnea, larger muscle mass does not necessarily reflect healthier muscle. Many of these patients may have underlying sarcopenic obesity, which can affect physical function, metabolism and clinical outcomes.”
Researchers

A one-time infusion of an in vivo gene-editing treatment vs. placebo reduced the monthly rate of hereditary angioedema attacks in patients aged 16 years and older, according to results published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
These data on investigational lonvoguran ziclumeran (lonvo-z, Intellia Therapeutics) were simultaneously presented at the 2026 European Academy of Allergy & Clinical Immunology Annual Congress.
“Hereditary angioedema (HAE) is associated with a significant burden, decreased [quality of life], productivity and absenteeism,” Danny M. Cohn, MD, PhD, principal

A 90-day course of amoxicillin-clavulanate was ineffective for pain reduction vs. placebo in patients with chronic low back pain and disc herniation, according to data published in JAMA Network Open.
“Antibiotics are currently being recommended for chronic low back pain, particularly when treatments have failed, even though the evidence for their use is conflicting,” Flavia M. Cicuttini, PhD, and colleagues wrote.
“Uncertainty about the efficacy of antibiotics for [low back pain (LBP)], combined with limited effective therapies, is driving their ongoing use, despite the