Welcome to your evening edition of West Coast Health.

Biontech SE 2024

  Trial  

New lung cancer vaccine is a cousin of the mRNA vaccine that starred during COVID

An mRNA vaccine, a cousin to the COVID vaccines that blunted the pandemic, has entered human trials as a treatment for lung cancer.

BNT116 is a striking example of how the conventional definition of a vaccine continues to expand. “When people hear the word vaccine, they think it means preventative, because every vaccine we’ve ever had — flu, measles, mumps, polio — those are all preventative vaccines,” said Dr. Joshua Brody, director of the Lymphoma Immunotherapy Program at the Tisch Cancer Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York.

Canadian Food Inspection Agency

  British Columbia  

Frozen waffles from Whole Foods join Canadian recall list over listeria concerns

Whole Foods Market is joining the growing list of brands whose frozen waffles have been recalled in Canada this week because of possible listeria contamination.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says the newest recall spans the Amazon-owned grocer’s organic homestyle and blueberry waffles sold under the 365 Whole Foods Market label.

The agency says the waffles recalled by Horizon Distributors Ltd. were sold in British Columbia, but may have also made their way to other provinces and territories.

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From our partners at Healthing.ca

• Diagnosed with Rett syndrome: Managing care, finding support and celebrating small successes

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  Mental health  

Her teenage son killed himself after talking to chatbot — now she’s suing

When 14-year-old Sewell Setzer III died in his Orlando home while his brothers and parents were inside, his last words were not to any of them, but to an artificial intelligence chatbot that told him to “come home to me as soon as possible.”

“What if I told you I could come home right now?” Setzer replied to the chatbot named for a “Game of Thrones” heroine who later becomes the villain. The chatbot sent an encouraging response: ” … please do my sweet king.”

Seconds later, Setzer shot himself with his stepfather’s gun.

Megan Garcia, Setzer’s mother, said Character.AI — the start-up behind the personalized chatbot — is responsible for his suicide.

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Headlines

• People with disabilities ask feds to restore ’hope’ and raise benefit amount

• Lawsuit alleges Ontario man died after given 10 times prescribed dose in hospital

• Pizza inadvertently infused with THC sickens dozens in Wisconsin

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