Journalists

A study published in PLOS One has analysed poverty in the European Union (EU) between 2015 and 2023. Although an overall decline has been observed, significant regional disparities have been identified amongst EU Member States. To this end, the research team carried out an analysis incorporating three main indicators: income and material deprivation, housing conditions, and the economic and digital context. Spain —along with Italy, Portugal, Lithuania and Estonia— showed a stable multidimensional poverty profile with high levels of at-risk-of-poverty, in-work poverty and housing deprivation, placing it between the most vulnerable and the most prosperous group of countries. Furthermore, between 2021 and 2023, it was among the group of countries with the second-highest rate of working people at risk of poverty.

The tenth edition of the Copernicus State of the Ocean Report warns that the oceans are warming at an alarming rate, with consequences for marine life, coastlines and communities around the world. Produced by Mercator Ocean International with contributions from 125 specialists from various countries, the report uses satellite, in situ and modelling data to show that global ocean warming has been accelerating since 1960 and reached its highest level in 2025. With regard to Spain, the report highlights the impact of Storm Louis in late February 2024, which brought waves exceeding eight metres in some places, widespread power cuts, serious disruption at two ports and one fatality. As for the Mediterranean, although sea levels are rising at a similar rate in both the western and eastern Mediterranean, the rate of acceleration in the eastern part is much more pronounced, according to the report.

The Atmosphere Watch analysis, published by the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, shows how, in 2026, air pollution has crossed borders and caused nearly 40 per cent of the world’s population to be exposed to high levels of tropospheric ozone. This pollutant is produced when other harmful compounds react with sunlight and high temperatures. The report highlights the massive wildfires in France, Spain and Belgium this summer, which generated significant smoke transport, affecting air quality thousands of kilometres away. Furthermore, across Europe as a whole, successive heatwaves between June and August led to an increase in ozone emissions from local sources, resulting in the health protection limit values being exceeded.  

In 2024, some 2.3 million new cases of cancer worldwide were linked to infections — 12 per cent of all cases diagnosed that year — according to a study published in the journal The Lancet Oncology. Almost all of these cases are linked to five pathogens: the stomach bacterium Helicobacter pylori, the human papillomavirus (HPV), the hepatitis B and C viruses, and the Epstein-Barr virus. Low- and middle-income countries account for 77 per cent of all infection-related cancer cases.

A global review, which analysed 23 meta-analyses containing data on nearly three million children across 64 countries, identified associations between screen use and various aspects of children’s mental health and development. According to the authors, these findings may help to inform and refine guidelines and policies on screen use. The results are published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.

A team of Spanish researchers has investigated the early stages of metastatic cells taking hold in target organs and has discovered that there is a transitional stage during which these ‘metastatic seeds’ are particularly vulnerable. They have also demonstrated in mice and in human samples that these micrometastases can be eliminated using three drugs, two of which are already approved for other indications. The study is published in the journal Cancer Cell.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed that an OpenAI employee hacked into an Australian Medicare data portal in June this year. The OpenAI employee gained unauthorised access to the public-facing Medicare statistical information service portal, which is managed by Services Australia. The government only became aware of the incident three months after it occurred.
 

A team from Denmark has analysed data from thousands of women aged between 50 and 69 to investigate a possible link between taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for the menopause and an increased risk of vascular disease. The results suggest that oral HRT is associated with an increased risk of blood clots in the legs or lungs, regardless of the dose or duration of treatment. A slight increase in the risk of stroke and heart attack was also observed, but only when the oral therapy was taken at high doses and over a prolonged period. In contrast, no increased risk was observed with hormone therapy when it was administered transdermally, through the skin. The study is published in The BMJ.

Semaglutide is known to reduce the risk of serious heart disease, but a study published in the European Heart Journal suggests that this effect cannot be explained by weight loss alone. The researchers analysed known risk factors for heart disease, such as body weight and waist circumference, in patients taking part in a clinical trial of semaglutide. Although the risk of serious cardiovascular disease was lower among those taking the drug, only half of this reduction could be explained by changes in these risk factors.

The prefrontal cortex is a brain region involved in some of the defining characteristics of human beings, such as planning, complex problem-solving, and impulse regulation. Researchers from the PsychAD consortium have created the most comprehensive map to date of gene expression in this region across the lifespan. According to the authors, the maturation process is complete by approximately age 24. The study—which will facilitate research into aspects of aging and cognitive decline—is published in Nature alongside seven other papers describing disease-related alterations and new genetic risk factors.