Murdoch Children’s Research Institute secures $5M grant to prevent childhood disease

The Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) in Australia will receive a $5 million federal grant to launch a pioneering research team for children’s health.

The grant was announced at MCRI’s 40th anniversary gala in Melbourne on Saturday night.

"For 40 years, MCRI has been a global leader in children’s health research," Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told guests at the gala, which was attended by 300 of Australia’s most esteemed medical experts, political leaders, philanthropists and sports luminaries.

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"My government is proud to partner with MCRI, so our world-leading researchers have the best opportunities to support healthier childhoods for Australians now and into the future."

The $5 million will directly support medical research aimed at preventing numerous childhood conditions, including obesity, heart disease, mental health issues and disabilities.

Also announced at the gala, a lead donation from Sarah and Lachlan Murdoch will launch the Horizon Fund — a permanent endowment for MCRI aimed at funding long-term children’s health research and future medical breakthroughs.

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The goal is for the fund to raise between $50 million and $100 million in its first year and to reach $200 million within five years.

The fund is designed to back researchers’ immediate priorities while safeguarding long-term capital for future medical breakthroughs in children’s health.

In 2020, the Murdochs donated $5 million to establish a perpetual fellowship supporting leading researchers in fields including stem cell technology and genomic precision medicine.

Co-founded in 1986 by philanthropist and child health advocate Dame Elisabeth Murdoch and pediatrician and genetics pioneer Professor David Danks, MCRI comprises 1,800 scientists, researchers and clinicians.

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"Dame Elisabeth’s leadership, along with her values, shaped both the direction and the ethos of the Institute we were to become – for all children to live a healthy and fulfilled life," said Sarah Murdoch, who is Dame Elisabeth Murdoch’s granddaughter-in-law and MCRI’s global ambassador and board co-chair. 

"With the generosity of a remarkable group of founding donors alongside the Murdoch family – Sir Jack Brockhoff, the Miller family, and The Scobie and Claire Mackinnon Trust – the foundations were laid for an Institute designed to bring our brightest minds, to serve all children, not only in that moment, but for generations to come," Ms. Murdoch added.

"I see what is possible when foresight, science, commitment, collaboration and heartfelt generosity come together," she emphasized.

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"Because behind every breakthrough is a child — a family desperate for answers. A future changed because of the commitment by so many."

MCRI Director Kathryn North expressed appreciation at the gala to the prime minister for the $5 million grant.

"From the beginning, MCRI has been guided by a simple but powerful purpose: to give all children the opportunity to live a healthy and fulfilled life," North said.

"It reflects a belief that good health is the foundation for a full life, and that opportunity should never be limited by circumstance."

Professor North mentioned the Institute’s focus on developing therapies for previously incurable diseases.

"We are harnessing the power of human stem cell technologies to grow heart patches, functional mini kidneys, blood and immune cells … to better understand disease, and to develop regenerative therapies using a patient’s own stem cells to replace organ transplants and the risk of rejection," she said.

The Institute’s next challenge, North said, is to address chronic conditions like asthma, obesity, allergies and mental health conditions that can persist for decades.

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"These are big problems that will require significant and ongoing support," she said. "Through our work globally, we are helping communities raise their expectations to both deliver and receive the sort of healthcare we take for granted."

"Our ambition now is to translate these partnerships into population-scale solutions that improve the lives of millions of children worldwide," North added. "This is not simply the next chapter for MCRI – it is the work of building the future of children’s health."

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New pancreatic cancer pill could reshape treatment as early trial results stun researchers

A new drug for pancreatic cancer is showing promise in early testing.

Daraxonrasib is a daily pill designed to block cancer signals linked to the RAS gene. It has now finished an early-stage clinical trial — the first time it was tested in people — to evaluate both its safety and effectiveness.

The clinical trial, led by the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and published in The New England Journal of Medicine, tested the drug in 168 patients with advanced pancreatic cancer whose tumors had mutations in the RAS gene. All study participants had previously received at least one chemotherapy treatment.

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The drug is designed to block multiple active cancer signals that help tumor cells grow. This is especially important because more than 90% of pancreatic cancers carry these harmful mutations, researchers said.

Existing and older drugs that target RAS mutations only work on certain types that are uncommon in pancreatic cancer, such as KRAS mutations.

At the 300-milligram dose — the amount that will be used in larger phase 3 trials — about 30% of patients saw a positive response, researchers noted. Overall, about 90% of patients had their cancer either shrink or stop getting worse.

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There were some side effects reported — most commonly rash, mouth inflammation, nausea and diarrhea.

Lead investigator Dr. Brian Wolpin, director of the Hale Family Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research at Dana-Farber, commented in a press release statement that this development could change the future of cancer care.

"If supported by data from future clinical trials, daraxonrasib would be a targeted therapy relevant to nearly all patients with advanced pancreatic cancer," he said.

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"This trial provides the first published data showing the safety and broad activity of a RAS(ON) multi-selective inhibitor in pancreatic cancer," Wolpin went on. "If it proves effective in larger clinical trials, it would signify a substantial shift in how this disease is treated."

In an interview with Fox News Digital, the researcher claimed that daraxonrasib represents "one of the most promising therapy advances we’ve seen in pancreatic cancer."

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This is especially significant since pancreatic cancer has had "very few effective therapies" in the past, Wolpin noted.

"The study also showed disease control in approximately 90% of patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer, which is extremely exciting," he added.

Wolpin noted that while side effects were common, most patients were able to tolerate treatment with "supportive care measures, and very few patients needed to stop therapy due to side effects."

As this was a phase 1/2 study, it does not "definitively prove" the superiority of daraxonrasib compared to chemotherapy, Wolpin added.

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"The study did not include a randomized control arm that directly compared daraxonrasib with chemotherapy," he said. "That being said, the results for daraxonrasib looked substantially better than what we have seen in prior clinical trials of chemotherapy in patients with previously treated metastatic pancreatic cancer."

It also remains unclear how the drug may perform earlier in the disease, as the trial included patients who had already received prior treatments.

For patients and families affected by pancreatic cancer, Wolpin noted that daraxonrasib signals "real momentum" toward effective treatments, but it is still investigational and is not a cure.

"Pancreatic cancer remains a challenging disease, and additional research is needed to determine how best to sequence or combine therapies to provide the most durable responses and cures," he said.

Brian Slomovitz, director of gynecologic oncology and co-chair of the Cancer Research Committee at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, applauded this development in a separate interview with Fox News Digital.

"We are anxiously awaiting the upcoming plenary presentation of RASolute 302 at the ASCO meeting later this month," said the expert, who was not involved in the study. "Greater than 90% of pancreatic cancers have activation of kRAS, which is a major factor in the development and progression of these cancers." 

"If the full dataset results that will be reported later this month confirm what was earlier released, I believe this will be one of the most important breakthroughs in all solid tumors," Slomovitz went on. "Doubling the survival time in pretreated patients is unprecedented."

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The doctor added that the "magnitude of benefit" could "reshape the treatment landscape" and "establish a new standard of care."

"We will need to evaluate the full dataset for efficacy and safety," Slomovitz added. "I am more than cautiously optimistic, and I am truly excited for our patients and their families that suffer from this dreadful disease."

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Frequent museum visits tied to reduced cellular aging, research finds

People who regularly visit museums or participate in creative activities may be aging more slowly on a biological level, according to a new study from the United Kingdom.

Researchers from University College London analyzed data from more than 3,500 adults and found that people who frequently engaged in arts and cultural activities showed signs of slower biological aging in several DNA-based measurements.

The findings were published in the journal Innovation in Aging.

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The study examined activities including painting, photography, dancing, singing, visiting museums and attending cultural events or historic sites.

Researchers compared participation in those activities with "epigenetic clocks," scientific tools that examine chemical changes in DNA over time.

Adults who participated more often, and in a wider variety of activities, tended to show slower aging scores compared to people who rarely engaged in arts or cultural experiences.

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The association appeared even stronger among adults over age 40.

Researchers also noted that the effect sizes were comparable to those linked to physical activity, one of the most widely studied behaviors associated with healthy aging.

Jessica Mack, a health and wellness expert and founder of The Functional Consulting Group who was not involved in the study, said the findings reflect a growing understanding that health is influenced by more than exercise and nutrition alone.

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"Arts and cultural engagement may be associated with slower epigenetic aging, with effects comparable in some measures to physical activity," Mack told Fox News Digital.

She said activities such as visiting museums and engaging with music or art may help reduce stress, improve emotional regulation and increase social connection.

"These are not ‘extra’ lifestyle activities," Mack said. "They may be deeply connected to how the body manages inflammation, stress hormones, mood and overall resilience."

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Mack added that people experiencing stress, social isolation, retirement or caregiving responsibilities may especially benefit from meaningful cultural engagement.

Experts cautioned, however, that the study does not prove arts engagement directly slows aging.

"This is an observational study, not an experiment," Professor Steve Horvath of UCLA, a longevity researcher and pioneer in epigenetic aging research who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.

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"So when researchers find that the people who go to museums have younger epigenetic age, we cannot tell whether the museum visits slowed their aging, or whether their slower aging is what allowed them to keep visiting museums," he said.

Horvath said both explanations may be true to some degree, though he described the research as "methodologically careful" and worthy of further study.

The findings remained consistent even after accounting for factors such as smoking, income, body weight and other lifestyle habits.

He added that regardless of whether arts engagement is directly slowing biological aging, staying socially and mentally active is still associated with healthier aging overall.

"The prescription is the same," he said. "Keep going."

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Fitness influencer says one simple habit can help anyone get back in shape

Fitness influencer and trainer Mark Langowski, known on social media as @bodybymark, hosted a pushup and plank competition in New York City this week, where he urged the public to get up and get moving.

On his platform of nearly two million Instagram followers, Langowski asks fit people to share their workout routines. He was able to meet more in-shape New Yorkers at his Washington Square Park meet-up, in partnership with Oikos yogurt on May 12.

A male and a female winner who achieved the most pushups or held a plank the longest were gifted $500 each.

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Besides the cash prize, the inspiration was to get more people moving, Langowski shared during an interview with Fox News Digital.

"[It’s] a way to encourage strength and overall fitness in New York City and all around the country," he said.

"We got together and we're doing a plank competition, pushup competition. We had a guy just do 111 pushups. We're just getting people moving."

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Langowski said the attributes of a great competitor include strength, humility and confidence.

"The people who ... did the most, they didn't say they were going to do the most," he said. "And there were other people who said they could do 150, and they did 70."

Having a bit of humility helps make a good competitor, the trainer added.

Pushups and planks mark a "good general baseline" for measuring fitness level, according to Langowski. Some other basics include pull-ups, squats and endurance challenges, like running a mile — the kind of basics included in an elementary school fitness assessment.

For those who haven't yet mastered these basics but want to get in better shape, Langowski shared some advice on how to get started.

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"Get with a trainer or someone who knows how to progress you," he advised. "A lot of people are like, 'I can't do a pushup, so I'm never going to do one.’ That's not the way."

Langowski recommends starting with pushups on your knees or against a wall, then gradually progressing to standard pushups by moving onto your toes and lowering yourself fully to the ground before pushing back up.

"You'll be surprised after you do that for a couple weeks, a couple months, a couple years – you're going to be able to do a lot," he said. "Nobody was born being able to do 111 pushups. They put in the work and they started somewhere."

The trainer noted that in addition to practicing, it's just as important to give the body rest and to support muscle growth with proper protein intake and an overall healthy diet.

But perhaps the most crucial step toward getting in shape, according to Langowski, is having the motivation to get started

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"I know that's easy for me to say – I've been in fitness and been relatively fit most of my life," he said. "And I know a lot of people are sitting on the couch and they either feel sorry for themselves or they're going through a tough time … You’ve just got to get out there."

The trainer suggested starting with a simple walk — even just around the block — with no gym equipment required.

"You don't need an expensive gym membership to get in good shape," he said. "Most of the people that I stop on the street, they don't have a gym membership at all. They do it in their living room."

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"And that's where you can do the exercises I mentioned – the squats, the lunges, the pushups," Langowski went on.

"So, I would encourage people just to start, but also to get some friends or get a trainer, someone to support you and do it safely."

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Ancient Chinese movement shows promise for reducing blood pressure at home, study says

Researchers have shed fresh light on how a simple, centuries-old Chinese practice could be almost as effective as some medications in lowering blood pressure.

Baduanjin is a form of exercise that’s been widely practiced in China for at least 800 years. It involves a series of eight slow movements, gentle breathing and meditation — and typically takes only about 10 minutes to complete.

In a clinical trial, researchers studied 216 adults age 40 and older with Stage 1 hypertension. Over the course of a year, participants performed either baduanjin, self-directed exercise or brisk walking.

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Researchers found that participants who practiced baduanjin five times per week experienced lower blood pressure within three months. 

The results were "comparable to reductions seen with some first-line medications," they wrote in their report published by the American College of Cardiology.

Baduanjin also showed "comparable results and safety profile to brisk walking at one year," the researchers further reported.

"Given its simplicity, safety and ease at which one can maintain long-term adherence, baduanjin can be implemented as an effective, accessible and scalable lifestyle intervention for individuals trying to reduce their [blood pressure]," said the senior author of the study, Jing Li, M.D., Ph.D.

Dr. Matthew Saybolt, medical director of the Hackensack Meridian Jersey Shore University Medical Center’s Structural Heart Disease Program, said he was surprised by an aspect of the study’s results.

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"I was biased and expected that higher intensity exercise like brisk walking would have resulted in greater improvement in blood pressure than baduanjin, but the effects were the same," Saybolt told Fox News Digital. (He was not affiliated with the study.)

Dr. Antony Chu, clinical assistant professor at Brown University’s Warren Alpert School of Medicine, was born and raised in the U.S. to immigrant parents — his mother is from Hong Kong and his father is from Taiwan.

Having spent a lot of summers in Asia, Chu told Fox News he experienced "the best of both worlds" concerning Eastern and Western medicine, including exposure to the benefits of baduanjin.

"[These researchers] are taking a lot of things that have been commonplace for many, many centuries or millennia and then just applying mathematical modeling and statistical analysis to sort of give [them] some credibility," Chu said.

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"Western medicine is reactionary," Chu also said. 

He compared the philosophies to a house on fire: Eastern medicine practitioners are more invested in preventing the fire, whereas Western medicine is more focused on "all those things that it would need to do to try to put that fire out," he said, sharing his opinion.

Left untreated, high blood pressure has dangers that are "too numerous to count," Saybolt said. The risks include increased risks of stroke, heart attack, atrial fibrillation and congestive heart failure. 

Baduanjin, Chu said, is effective at reducing blood pressure, which he likened to "the water pressure and the pipes of your house," by calming the nervous system and reducing stress.

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"People are totally stressed out," Chu said. "And stress reduction is huge."

Saybolt said the study offers hope for people with hypertension — "and that hope doesn’t immediately have to include pharmaceuticals."

Saybolt added that he’s always advocated for lifestyle modifications, including healthy diet and exercise, "as key therapies for treatment of diseases and to improve longevity."

With the baduanjin data, Saybold said he is now "more optimistic than ever," as "we have evidence that a very low impact exercise with mindfulness can yield a benefit."

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Chu said that translating overwhelming medical guidelines is a big part of his job.

"It’s not to just tell somebody, ‘Hey, your blood pressure's too high, pick a pill," he said.

"Lifestyle changes" can be daunting for many people, he added.

"They always make it sound like you have to live for seven years in Tibet on a mountain somewhere, and it’s really not that."

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His simple translation for the baduanjin study is this: "Close the door in your office and just say, ‘I can't be bothered for 10 minutes,’ and just focus on breathing slowly and moving your arms or legs around."

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Rudy Giuliani reveals he had 'spiritual experience' while in pneumonia-related coma

Rudy Giuliani, 81, is recovering from a severe case of viral pneumonia that led him into a coma in early May.

The former New York City mayor returned to his online talk show "America’s Mayor Live!" on May 13 and opened up about his health status.

"I feel like I’ve recovered 100%," he said. "I’ve been home a few days and doing really, really well."

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Giuliani reflected on his time in the hospital, revealing that he had a "very significant spiritual experience" while he was in a "state of out of it."

"I would equate it to a dream of being on line headed for — I can't say headed for heaven — headed for a trial with St. Peter," he described.

"And there was a very, very significant intervention by my Peter. I have my own Peter, Peter Powers. Peter J. Powers, my friend of my lifetime."

During this dream state, Peter said some "very significant words," which Giuliani made sure to repeat and have others record when he woke up, he shared.

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"As soon as I could, I wrote it out so that I wouldn't forget it, and it's meant a lot to me, and I've been reflecting on it quite a bit," he added.

Giuliani was able to discuss his experience with a priest — and plans to share more at a different time.

"I don't want to embellish it," he said. "I don't want to deny what was there."

Powers and Giuliani reportedly became friends in high school. Powers later served as Giuliani’s campaign manager and his first deputy mayor. He died in 2016 at 72 years old from complications with lung cancer, according to multiple news outlets.

Giuliani was hospitalized in critical but stable condition on Sunday, May 3, due to severe breathing issues.

Giuliani's doctor, Maria Ryan, told Fox News correspondent Danamarie McNicholl that the former mayor began feeling ill after returning from a trip to Paris, with his breathing deteriorating to the point that he was placed on a ventilator.

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Ryan said his condition turned critical, prompting a priest to be called to his bedside to perform last rites. But by Tuesday, Giuliani's condition had improved enough for doctors to remove him from the ventilator.

According to political strategist Ted Goodman, Giuliani's response and exposure to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks later led to a diagnosis of restrictive airway disease.

Although Giuliani and his doctors have not confirmed that he had a "near-death experience," similar encounters are often reported by people emerging from critical medical situations.

In a 2023 review published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, researchers analyzed more than four decades of reports of near-death experiences, involving more than 2,000 studies and nearly 500 individuals.

Near-death events were categorized into four types of experiences: emotional, cognitive, spiritual/religious and supernatural.

The research identified common traits in these reports – especially having out-of-body experiences, passing through a tunnel, having heightened senses, seeing deceased people or religious figures, encountering a bright light and reviewing life events.

Although these experiences can differ by interpretation, the researchers concluded that the heightened senses and improved consciousness indicate that "these experiences are neither dreams nor sleep, nor the disorders caused."

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"This phenomenon is medically inexplicable," they wrote, adding that the research points to a consistent pattern that "supports the clarity and authenticity of near-death experiences."

Fox News Digital’s Landon Mion contributed reporting. 

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Possible hantavirus case under investigation in upstate New York; no connection to deadly cruise ship outbreak

A "suspected" hantavirus case in upstate New York is being investigated, according to the Ontario County Public Health Department (OCPHD) based in Canandaigua.

The department announced in a Facebook post Thursday that it is currently "investigating a suspected locally acquired hantavirus case."

"There is NO connection to the cruise ship outbreak, and there is no risk to the general public," OCPHD officials wrote.

The investigation comes as global health officials continue monitoring a rare hantavirus outbreak tied to the MV Hondius luxury cruise ship that has sickened multiple passengers and crew members and left three people dead.

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As of May 13, the World Health Organization (WHO) said 11 hantavirus cases had been identified in connection with the cruise outbreak, including eight confirmed cases, two probable cases and one inconclusive case. Three deaths have also been linked to the outbreak.

Health officials have emphasized that hantavirus infections remain rare and that the risk to the general public is low.

Human-to-human transmission of hantavirus is considered extremely rare and has only been suspected in certain strains, including the Andes hantavirus strain linked to the cruise ship outbreak.

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"Hantavirus infections are rare in New York," the OCPHD said. "The virus is spread through mouse and rodent droppings, especially when urine, feces, or nesting materials become aerosolized during cleaning."

The OCPHD urged residents to take precautions when cleaning enclosed spaces where rodents may be present, including wearing gloves and masks when opening or cleaning attics, cabins, sheds and garages.

The OCPHD and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

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The cruise ship outbreak has prompted heightened precautions internationally.

In the Netherlands, Radboud University Medical Center quarantined 12 staff members after officials said a hantavirus patient’s blood and urine were not handled under the strictest international protocols required for the specific virus strain.

Hospital officials said the risk of infection to staff remained low but called the quarantine a precautionary measure.

The outbreak aboard the MV Hondius began after a Dutch cruise ship carrying 147 passengers and crew departed Argentina on April 1 for a South Atlantic voyage.

According to the WHO, investigators believe the initial infection may have stemmed from rodent exposure during birdwatching excursions before boarding the ship.

Fox News Digital's Bonny Chu contributed to this report.

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