Breaking News

Home / Unlabelled / The CDC is switching back to ‘monkeypox’

The CDC is switching back to ‘monkeypox’

September 30, 2025
September 30, 2025
theresa-g-avatar-small - light bg
Morning Rounds Writer and Reporter
Good morning. As Rose Broderick once wisely said in this newsletter, there are STAT stories everywhere for those with eyes to see them. But in this case, it's a story in The Guardian, about Florence Welch's experience with an ectopic pregnancy. Wishing all the best for one of my favorite artists. 

politics

Anthony Letai sworn in as NCI director

Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. swore in Anthony Letai as director of the National Cancer Institute yesterday. STAT reporters heard last week that Letai was a front-runner for the role, which has been vacant since the last director resigned at the start of the Trump administration. 

"It's an excellent choice, especially considering everything right now," said Diana Azzam, a cancer researcher and board member of the Society for Functional Precision Medicine where Letai serves as president. "He's very direct and open about his position and where he stands. I think that's an important quality we need in a leader at NCI." Revisit the story by Matthew Herper and Angus Chen for more on the new director.

policy

CDC website switches back to 'monkeypox'

In late 2022, the WHO announced that it would phase out the disease name "monkeypox," replacing it with "mpox" — something it has the authority to do under the International Classification of Diseases, which STAT's Helen Branswell has called "the global bible of diseases." The name was seen by scientists across the globe as discriminatory and stigmatizing. But now, if you look at the CDC's website, it appears that the Trump administration is in the midst of transitioning back to the old name.

"Monkeypox is the name of the viral disease caused by the monkeypox virus," an HHS spokesperson said over email. The rep did not answer follow-up questions why the agency made the switch or how else the website text may be changing. It's the same statement the agency provided to NPR earlier this month. "This is a simple provocation," physician and infectious disease professor Joseph Cherabie said to NPR. "It just falls in line with the playbook of this administration to go back to controversial terms."

one big number

99%

That's the percentage of people who have suffered a heart attack, heart failure, or stroke who had at least one of four risk factors for cardiovascular disease beforehand. Even more simply put: These types of serious cardiovascular events don't come out of nowhere. That's according to a prospective cohort study published yesterday in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. STAT's Liz Cooney has more details. 

research

Cannabis drug works for chronic lower back pain, per study

A cannabis extract containing 5% THC called VER-01 is safe and effective to improve chronic lower back pain without risk of dependence or withdrawal symptoms, according to a phase three randomized controlled trial published yesterday in Nature Medicine. The study included 820 adults, about half of whom took the drug while the other half took a placebo. On a 10-point pain scale, patients who took the drug saw a nearly 2-point reduction in pain levels after three months of treatment, as compared to a 0.6 point reduction for the placebo patients. 

Patients who took the drug did not show signs of abuse or dependence. Still, about 83% experienced some sort of adverse event as opposed to 67% of the placebo group. Dizziness, fatigue, nausea, dry mouth, and drowsiness were most common for the cannabis group, and 17% of participants in that group ultimately discontinued the study due to those symptoms, as opposed to 3.5% in the placebo group. 

Still, the authors found the pain reduction meaningful, and believe that the cannabis extract could become a key alternative to NSAIDs and opioids. Another trial directly comparing the drug to opioids has already been completed and will be published separately.

first opinion

A former CDC director on the major threats to America's health

After the last meeting of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, it's clear that ending universal hepatitis B birth-dose vaccination is on the table in the U.S. In a new First Opinion essay, former CDC director Tom Frieden argues that this is just the latest example of a troubling trend: "Retreat from proven, lifesaving interventions not because they failed, but because they succeed," as he puts it. 

In his new book, published today, Frieden outlines three key steps in a formula to improve understanding and combat threats to public and personal health. "See what's invisible, believe change is possible, and create solutions that work at scale," he writes. Read more. 

More around STAT
Check out more exclusive coverage with a STAT+ subscription
Read premium in-depth biotech, pharma, policy, and life science coverage and analysis with all of our STAT+ articles.

What we're reading

  • Shutdown fight over Obamacare highlights drawback of health care law, Washington Post

  • First Opinion: What is the price of saving a single child's life? STAT
  • DOJ sues over pro-Palestinian protest, using law on abortion clinic access, Reuters
  • As investor for AHA, 'Venture Valkyrie' argues 'good medicine is good business,' STAT

Thanks for reading! More next time,

Enjoying Morning Rounds? Tell us about your experience
Continue reading the latest health & science news with the STAT app
Download on the App Store or get it on Google Play
STAT
STAT, 1 Exchange Place, Boston, MA
©2025, All Rights Reserved.
Update Newsletter Preferences     •    Contact Us     •    Advertise with Us     •    View in Browser

No comments

Subscribe to: Post Comments ( Atom )