Carissa Wong
@carissacwwong.bsky.social
Health reporter at New Scientist.
Email: carissa.wong#newscientist.com
She/Her 🏳🌈
Email: carissa.wong#newscientist.com
She/Her 🏳🌈
Pinned
The extraordinary influence of the lymphatic system on our health
It has remained mysterious for millennia, but we’re finally uncovering the profound role the lymphatic system plays in everything from preventing dementia to fighting cancer
www.newscientist.com
Our bodies contain a ghostly web of thread-like vessels and bean-shaped nodes, called the lymphatic system.
My latest cover story looks at how it could be a secret ingredient in treating some major health conditions from Alzheimer's disease to cancer.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
My latest cover story looks at how it could be a secret ingredient in treating some major health conditions from Alzheimer's disease to cancer.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
Pulsing ultrasound waves through the brain seems to help clear dead blood cells from the organ after a type of stroke, improving survival.
The approach could potentially help to clear toxic proteins linked to brain conditions like Alzheimer's disease.
www.newscientist.com/article/2503...
The approach could potentially help to clear toxic proteins linked to brain conditions like Alzheimer's disease.
www.newscientist.com/article/2503...
Ultrasound may boost survival after a stroke by clearing brain debris
The damage of strokes caused by brain bleeds can be mitigated by removing dead blood cells. Scientists have now found a way of doing this non-invasively, with promising results in mice
www.newscientist.com
November 11, 2025 at 11:54 AM
Pulsing ultrasound waves through the brain seems to help clear dead blood cells from the organ after a type of stroke, improving survival.
The approach could potentially help to clear toxic proteins linked to brain conditions like Alzheimer's disease.
www.newscientist.com/article/2503...
The approach could potentially help to clear toxic proteins linked to brain conditions like Alzheimer's disease.
www.newscientist.com/article/2503...
A magnetic tool for removing kidney stones that's "sort of like using a stick to fish out a snot full of stone fragments" could mean fewer surgeries, and less pain, for people with the condition.
www.newscientist.com/article/2502...
www.newscientist.com/article/2502...
Magnetic gel could remove kidney stones more effectively
Standard techniques for removing kidney stones often require repeated surgery, but a magnetic gel seems to make the process more efficient
www.newscientist.com
October 31, 2025 at 3:40 PM
A magnetic tool for removing kidney stones that's "sort of like using a stick to fish out a snot full of stone fragments" could mean fewer surgeries, and less pain, for people with the condition.
www.newscientist.com/article/2502...
www.newscientist.com/article/2502...
It can be hard to focus after a bad night's sleep...Now we may know why. It turns out that momentary lapses in attention may occur because the brain's trying to catch up with clearing out waste - something it usually does while we snooze.
www.newscientist.com/article/2501...
www.newscientist.com/article/2501...
Can't focus after a bad night's sleep? Your dirty brain is to blame
During sleep, your brain cleans itself by flushing through cerebrospinal fluid to prevent damage to brain cells. If you're lacking in sleep, this happens when you are awake – and seems to cause moment...
www.newscientist.com
October 30, 2025 at 11:56 AM
It can be hard to focus after a bad night's sleep...Now we may know why. It turns out that momentary lapses in attention may occur because the brain's trying to catch up with clearing out waste - something it usually does while we snooze.
www.newscientist.com/article/2501...
www.newscientist.com/article/2501...
Our bodies contain a ghostly web of thread-like vessels and bean-shaped nodes, called the lymphatic system.
My latest cover story looks at how it could be a secret ingredient in treating some major health conditions from Alzheimer's disease to cancer.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
My latest cover story looks at how it could be a secret ingredient in treating some major health conditions from Alzheimer's disease to cancer.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
The extraordinary influence of the lymphatic system on our health
It has remained mysterious for millennia, but we’re finally uncovering the profound role the lymphatic system plays in everything from preventing dementia to fighting cancer
www.newscientist.com
October 22, 2025 at 12:32 PM
Our bodies contain a ghostly web of thread-like vessels and bean-shaped nodes, called the lymphatic system.
My latest cover story looks at how it could be a secret ingredient in treating some major health conditions from Alzheimer's disease to cancer.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
My latest cover story looks at how it could be a secret ingredient in treating some major health conditions from Alzheimer's disease to cancer.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
Reposted by Carissa Wong
Awesome story from @carissacwwong.bsky.social www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
Paralysed man can feel objects through another person's hand
Keith Thomas, a man in his 40s with no sensation or movement in his hands, is able to feel and move objects by controlling another person's hand via a brain implant. The technique might one day even a...
www.newscientist.com
October 14, 2025 at 3:55 PM
Awesome story from @carissacwwong.bsky.social www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
A man with paralysis used his thoughts to move and feel sensations through another person's hand, thanks to a brain implant - the approach could be used to help people rehabilitate from spinal cord injury.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
Paralysed man can feel objects through another person's hand
Keith Thomas, a man in his 40s with no sensation or movement in his hands, is able to feel and move objects by controlling another person's hand via a brain implant. The technique might one day even a...
www.newscientist.com
October 15, 2025 at 8:37 AM
A man with paralysis used his thoughts to move and feel sensations through another person's hand, thanks to a brain implant - the approach could be used to help people rehabilitate from spinal cord injury.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
A pig's liver has been transplanted into a living person for the first time, helping us better understand how animal organs can prolong, or even save, lives.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
Pig liver transplant into a living person edges it closer to the norm
The first ever transplantation of a pig's liver into a living person helps us better understand how animal organs can be used to prolong, or even save, lives
www.newscientist.com
October 9, 2025 at 3:50 PM
A pig's liver has been transplanted into a living person for the first time, helping us better understand how animal organs can prolong, or even save, lives.
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...
Reposted by Carissa Wong
Regulatory cells in our blood play a key role in preventing our immune systems attacking us - and the discovery of these cells by Mary Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi was today rewarded with a Nobel prize 🧪
www.newscientist.com/article/2498...
www.newscientist.com/article/2498...
Nobel prize for medicine goes to trio for work on immune tolerance
The 2025 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine has gone to Mary Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi for their discoveries around how we keep our immune system under control
www.newscientist.com
October 6, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Regulatory cells in our blood play a key role in preventing our immune systems attacking us - and the discovery of these cells by Mary Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi was today rewarded with a Nobel prize 🧪
www.newscientist.com/article/2498...
www.newscientist.com/article/2498...
The vast majority of long covid research has ignored how the condition may affect the menstrual cycle. Now a study suggests it may make periods longer and heavier.
www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
Long covid may be making your periods longer and heavier
Half a decade since the arrival of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, we're still learning about its complications, with the latest research suggesting that long covid may disrupt menstrual periods
www.newscientist.com
September 19, 2025 at 3:25 PM
The vast majority of long covid research has ignored how the condition may affect the menstrual cycle. Now a study suggests it may make periods longer and heavier.
www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
Some of our immune cells fend off infections by undergoing an inflammatory form of cell death, but this may come at the cost of chronic inflammation later in life.
www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
Good immune health may come at the expense of chronic inflammation
Inflammation is a vital part of the immune response, but it seems that the system can sometimes go awry, resulting in chronic inflammation that has been linked to conditions such as cancer
www.newscientist.com
September 19, 2025 at 3:20 PM
Some of our immune cells fend off infections by undergoing an inflammatory form of cell death, but this may come at the cost of chronic inflammation later in life.
www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
Reposted by Carissa Wong
We’re spending more time on the loo 🚽because of smartphones 📱 - and that substantially increases the risk of getting piles, according to a small study 🧪
www.newscientist.com/article/2494...
www.newscientist.com/article/2494...
Smartphone scrolling on the toilet could increase risk of haemorrhoids
People seem to spend longer on the toilet if they use a smartphone while sitting there – and all that scrolling may be boosting their likelihood of getting haemorrhoids
www.newscientist.com
September 3, 2025 at 6:59 PM
We’re spending more time on the loo 🚽because of smartphones 📱 - and that substantially increases the risk of getting piles, according to a small study 🧪
www.newscientist.com/article/2494...
www.newscientist.com/article/2494...
Could psychedelics treat anxiety? A landmark trial found a single dose of the mind-altering drug LSD seems to reduce anxiety without lasting side effects.
www.newscientist.com/article/2495...
www.newscientist.com/article/2495...
A single dose of LSD seems to reduce anxiety
About half of people with generalised anxiety disorder don’t respond to common treatments with antidepressants – but psychedelics may offer relief
www.newscientist.com
September 4, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Could psychedelics treat anxiety? A landmark trial found a single dose of the mind-altering drug LSD seems to reduce anxiety without lasting side effects.
www.newscientist.com/article/2495...
www.newscientist.com/article/2495...
An intriguing study suggests the hepatitis B vaccine may reduce the risk of diabetes, and not just by preventing infections.
www.newscientist.com/article/2494...
www.newscientist.com/article/2494...
Hepatitis B vaccine linked with a lower risk of developing diabetes
Being vaccinated against hepatitis B may reduce chronic inflammation levels in the body, which could help ward off diabetes
www.newscientist.com
September 3, 2025 at 9:32 AM
An intriguing study suggests the hepatitis B vaccine may reduce the risk of diabetes, and not just by preventing infections.
www.newscientist.com/article/2494...
www.newscientist.com/article/2494...
Mouth-watering news...We've identified microbes that produce fine flavours in chocolate, a discovery that could lead to entirely new kinds of the delectable treat.
www.newscientist.com/article/2492...
www.newscientist.com/article/2492...
How cocoa beans' microbiomes are key to the finest chocolate flavours
Nine species of fungi and bacteria have been found in cocoa beans that produce fine chocolate, and this knowledge could help producers develop better flavours
www.newscientist.com
August 19, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Mouth-watering news...We've identified microbes that produce fine flavours in chocolate, a discovery that could lead to entirely new kinds of the delectable treat.
www.newscientist.com/article/2492...
www.newscientist.com/article/2492...
We already use cancer-killing viruses to treat a few types of tumour. But cloaking the viruses in bacteria could extend this approach to a wider range of cancers.
www.newscientist.com/article/2492...
www.newscientist.com/article/2492...
Cancer-killing virus becomes more effective when shielded by bacteria
Virus-based treatments are already approved to treat several types of cancer, and combining them with bacteria could make them even more effective
www.newscientist.com
August 15, 2025 at 12:32 PM
We already use cancer-killing viruses to treat a few types of tumour. But cloaking the viruses in bacteria could extend this approach to a wider range of cancers.
www.newscientist.com/article/2492...
www.newscientist.com/article/2492...
Some respiratory viruses may activate the growth of dormant cancer cells that have spread to the lungs from elsewhere in the body.
www.newscientist.com/article/2490...
www.newscientist.com/article/2490...
Covid-19 and flu may reawaken dormant cancer cells in the lungs
Mice with a handful of cancerous cells in their lungs experienced a 100-fold increase to this number after being infected with swine flu
www.newscientist.com
August 1, 2025 at 11:41 AM
Some respiratory viruses may activate the growth of dormant cancer cells that have spread to the lungs from elsewhere in the body.
www.newscientist.com/article/2490...
www.newscientist.com/article/2490...
Some people with irritable bowel syndrome point to gluten as a trigger. But new findings suggest that the protein, found in grains like wheat and barley, may not actually worsen symptoms in many cases.
www.newscientist.com/article/2489...
www.newscientist.com/article/2489...
Gluten may not actually trigger many irritable bowel syndrome cases
People who follow a gluten-free diet in the hope of it calming their irritable bowel syndrome may actually be able to tolerate the common dietary protein
www.newscientist.com
July 22, 2025 at 12:17 PM
Some people with irritable bowel syndrome point to gluten as a trigger. But new findings suggest that the protein, found in grains like wheat and barley, may not actually worsen symptoms in many cases.
www.newscientist.com/article/2489...
www.newscientist.com/article/2489...
Do we grow new brain cells in adulthood? Yes, according to evidence that provides a "missing link" in one of neuroscience's biggest controversies.
www.newscientist.com/article/2486...
www.newscientist.com/article/2486...
Do we grow new brain cells as adults? The answer seems to be yes
Scientists have found evidence of new brain cells sprouting in adults - a process that many thought only occurred in children
www.newscientist.com
July 4, 2025 at 8:42 AM
Do we grow new brain cells in adulthood? Yes, according to evidence that provides a "missing link" in one of neuroscience's biggest controversies.
www.newscientist.com/article/2486...
www.newscientist.com/article/2486...
A single dose of a long-lasting antiviral has shown promise in protecting against all flu strains for months - and it could even work better than vaccines in some people.
www.newscientist.com/article/2486...
www.newscientist.com/article/2486...
Single antiviral shot could offer better protection than flu vaccines
A long-lasting formulation of an antiviral drug greatly reduced people’s risk of a symptomatic flu infection in a trial, and should even be effective against new strains
www.newscientist.com
June 30, 2025 at 4:36 PM
A single dose of a long-lasting antiviral has shown promise in protecting against all flu strains for months - and it could even work better than vaccines in some people.
www.newscientist.com/article/2486...
www.newscientist.com/article/2486...
Cancer cells steal mitochondria, energy-generating parts, from nerve cells. This theft seems to help cancer cells spread to distant sites - and targeting it could bring new treatments against the deadliest tumours.
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
Cancer cells steal mitochondria from nerve cells to fuel their spread
Cancer cells can acquire energy-generating structures called mitochondria from nearby nerve cells, which seems to aid their spread, a discovery that could lead to new treatments
www.newscientist.com
June 25, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Cancer cells steal mitochondria, energy-generating parts, from nerve cells. This theft seems to help cancer cells spread to distant sites - and targeting it could bring new treatments against the deadliest tumours.
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
Reposted by Carissa Wong
It's absolutely wild that US government policy is that cows should be protected against bird flu, but people shouldn't - really interesting piece from @gracewade.bsky.social www.newscientist.com/article/2484...
How a US agriculture agency became key in the fight against bird flu
Amidst an ongoing outbreak of a deadly bird flu virus in livestock, the US Department of Agriculture is doing more to prevent the spread than public health agencies are
www.newscientist.com
June 16, 2025 at 7:56 AM
It's absolutely wild that US government policy is that cows should be protected against bird flu, but people shouldn't - really interesting piece from @gracewade.bsky.social www.newscientist.com/article/2484...
Reposted by Carissa Wong
Loved @davidarobson.bsky.social's latest column for @newscientist.com. I only started feeling comfortable in a swimsuit when I began appreciating my body for what it could do rather than how it looked. I am a big fan of the body-neutrality movement! www.newscientist.com/article/mg26...
How to use psychology to feel better about how you look in a swimsuit
Recent research delves into our issues with "seasonal body image dissatisfaction", says David Robson, who has advice on how to combat it during the summer months
www.newscientist.com
June 18, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Loved @davidarobson.bsky.social's latest column for @newscientist.com. I only started feeling comfortable in a swimsuit when I began appreciating my body for what it could do rather than how it looked. I am a big fan of the body-neutrality movement! www.newscientist.com/article/mg26...
You're probably familiar with the pain and peeling that comes with spending too much time in the sun, but what exactly is sunburn (hint: inflammation)? How can we treat it? And what are the long-term dangers?
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
To understand sunburn, you need to know how UV provokes inflammation
We’ve known for nearly a century that UV radiation is linked to skin cancer, but modern advice about sunburn can be confusing. To understand what works, you need to know what UV really does to your sk...
www.newscientist.com
June 20, 2025 at 12:59 PM
You're probably familiar with the pain and peeling that comes with spending too much time in the sun, but what exactly is sunburn (hint: inflammation)? How can we treat it? And what are the long-term dangers?
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
It's costly and laborious to make the cells used in CAR T-cell therapy, a transformative treatment for some blood cancers. But a way of generating the therapy inside, rather than outside, the body could cut costs and make the treatment more accessible.
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
CAR T-cell therapy could be made in the body of someone with cancer
Treating types of cancer with CAR T-cell therapy is expensive and inconvenient, but a streamlined approach that creates the therapy within the body could make the intervention cheaper and easier
www.newscientist.com
June 20, 2025 at 12:48 PM
It's costly and laborious to make the cells used in CAR T-cell therapy, a transformative treatment for some blood cancers. But a way of generating the therapy inside, rather than outside, the body could cut costs and make the treatment more accessible.
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
www.newscientist.com/article/2485...
The herpes virus that causes cold sores starts reshaping our genome within an hour of infecting cells - targeting this process could help treat severe cases, or even lead to treatments against other viruses.
Read @newscientist.com.
www.newscientist.com/article/2484...
Read @newscientist.com.
www.newscientist.com/article/2484...
Cold sore virus immediately reshapes our genome to boost its growth
The herpes virus that commonly causes cold sores affects how tightly coiled our DNA is and makes it shrink, all to help itself grow
www.newscientist.com
June 19, 2025 at 9:10 AM
The herpes virus that causes cold sores starts reshaping our genome within an hour of infecting cells - targeting this process could help treat severe cases, or even lead to treatments against other viruses.
Read @newscientist.com.
www.newscientist.com/article/2484...
Read @newscientist.com.
www.newscientist.com/article/2484...