The Lancet Voice

It’s no exaggeration to say that the past decade has revolutionized how we think about and treat obesity. Drugs like semaglutide (Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Zepbound) have dominated headlines, enabling significant weight loss at speeds once considered unthinkable. The market for innovative weight loss medications is booming, with pharmaceutical companies investing heavily in hopes of developing the next blockbuster drug.

However, amid this race for market dominance, many experts are questioning whether the amount of weight loss alone is the best measure of these drugs’ usefulness. How can the next generation of obesity treatments meaningfully improve upon the powerful options already available?

Joining The Lancet editors Callam Davidson and Miriam Sabin to discuss this question is Professor Steven Heymsfield from the Pennington Biomedical Research Center. This wide-ranging conversation covers exciting pharmaceutical advances and limitations of these treatments, including the significant disparities in access, and why these breakthroughs may have broader societal implications.

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The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com

The sustainability of our existence relies on the health of every human, every animal, and the environment we all share. Published today, "The Lancet One Health Commission: harnessing our interconnectedness for equitable, sustainable, and healthy socioecological systems" highlights challenges like climate change, food security, and antimicrobial resistance to lay out the One Health approach to informing and implementing solutions.

Senior Executive Editor at The Lancet Pam Das is joined by lead Commissioners, Andrea Winkler and John Amuasi, to explain the past, present, and future of the One Health concept.

You can read the Commission here:

https://www.thelancet.com/commissions-do/one-health?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_lancetonehealth25_lancet

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The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com

Professor Adam Kucharski joins Gavin & Jessamy to discuss the intersection of mathematics, epidemiology, and truth, off the back of his new book, Proof. How do we generate scientific knowledge? How can we communicate uncertainty? What is the impact of social media and artificial intelligence on public trust in science?

Adam also tells us about the importance of public engagement, the nuances of misinformation, the importance of transparency in policy, the future of scientific communications, the need for adaptable definitions of proof, and the value of pragmatic, transparent approaches to decision-making in health and science.

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The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com

How safe is it to use period tracking and digital contraception apps? Who is your data being shared with? What regulation actually exists in this area to protect app users?

Femtech offers women digital tools for tracking reproductive health. Gavin and Jessamy are joined by Dr. Catriona McMillan, Senior Research Fellow in Medical Law and Ethics at the University of Edinburgh, to talk about how accurate these apps actually are, significant concerns about data privacy, and what regulatory oversight exists and can be applied.

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Read all of our content at https://www.thelancet.com/?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_generic_lancet

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com

Richard, Jessamy, and Gavin reflect on developments at the 78th World Health Assembly, including the passage of the pandemic agreement and shifting dynamics in global health leadership. What's next for WHO without US engagement? How has WHA changed over the years?

We also address the importance of recommitting to adolescent health following our new Commission, and discuss a controversial recent study about the pace of scientific innovation.

You can read the second Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health & Wellbeing here:

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00503-3/fulltext?dgcid=buzzsprout_icw_podcast_lancetadolescenthealth25_lancet

This is the paper on the pace of scientific innovation discussed on the podcast:

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-01548-4

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Read all of our content at https://www.thelancet.com/?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_generic_lancet

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com

Gavin, Richard, and Jessamy return to the studio to discuss some publications that caught their eye this month, and in doing so set themselves the lofty goal of examining how meaning, purpose, optimism, and social context shape our understanding of health beyond traditional clinical measures. We also ponder the future of research and higher education in the face of funding challenges in both the US and the UK.

Articles mentioned in this episode:

The Global Flourishing Study: https://www.nature.com/articles/s44220-025-00423-5

The second Lancet Commission on adolescent health and wellbeing: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00503-3/fulltext?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_May_25_lancet

Standing up for gender justice: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00679-8/fulltext?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_May_25_lancet

How the United States became a science superpower: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-01146-4

Universities grip financial crisis – but at what cost to the nation?: https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/what-we-do/creating-voice-our-members/media-releases/universities-grip-financial-crisis-what

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Read all of our content at https://www.thelancet.com/?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_generic_lancet

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com

Gavin and Jessamy welcome Dr. Hugh Alderwick from the Health Foundation to The Lancet Voice as we explore the impact of the Labour government's health policies since coming to power in the UK. What might the anticipated 10-year plan for the NHS look like? What are the implications of dismantling NHS England? Will any government get a handle on social care?

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Read all of our content at https://www.thelancet.com/?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_generic_lancet

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com

Gavin and Jessamy welcome back Oksana Pyzik of UCL to talk about the significant impacts of Trump's actions on health infrastructure in Ukraine and broader Europe.

Oksana provides a comprehensive update on the current health situation in Ukraine, the challenges faced by healthcare systems amidst ongoing conflict, and the repercussions of halted aid on crucial programs like HIV and TB. 

We also explore the response of international institutions responsible for coordinated efforts to address pressing health issues and discuss what a tariff schedule might mean for the pharmaceutical industry.

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Read all of our content at https://www.thelancet.com/?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_generic_lancet

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com

Gavin, Richard, and Jessamy reunite for another bonus episode, covering the first three months or so of health in the US under Trump. What do the appointments tell us about the administration's agenda? How can institutions stand up to cuts and intimidation? 

We also look at gender justice in global health as laid out by the excellent new Commission in The Lancet, and highlight that the world's impressive gains on maternal and newborn mortality are slowing - what more needs to be done?

You can read "Achieving gender justice for global health equity: the Lancet Commission on gender and global health" here:

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(25)00488-X/fulltext?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_lancetgenderhealth25_lancet

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Read all of our content at https://www.thelancet.com/?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_generic_lancet

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com

Following the discovery of H5N1 influenza of avian origin in a sheep in the UK this week, Gavin is joined by Dr. Abraar Karan of Stanford University to discuss the current state of bird flu in the US, its impact on public health, and the potential for human-to-human transmission. Dr. Karan analyses the ongoing outbreaks and infections in the US, the challenges in detecting and controlling the virus, and the lessons learned from COVID-19.

We chat about the complexities of viral evolution, the importance of robust testing and surveillance, the critical need for coordinated efforts to prevent a potential epidemic, and how bird flu might end.

Send us your feedback!

Read all of our content at https://www.thelancet.com/?dgcid=buzzsprout_tlv_podcast_generic_lancet

The Lancet Voice is part of the Lancet Group podcast offering. 

Editorial team: Niall Boyce, Miriam Sabin, Jessamy Bagenal, Richard Horton, and Gavin Cleaver

Podcast editing: Matteo Simonetti

Visit https://www.thelancet.com/multimedia to learn more about our multimedia offering. 

Find the best science for better lives at thelancet.com