News digest – standardised cigarette packs, cholesterol, ageing cells and more

• The Government has given the strongest indication yet that it’s on the way to introducing plain, standardised tobacco packaging. The Guardian was one of many papers that covered this fantastic news, and we looked back over the key milestones leading to this announcement and what lies ahead.
• Celebrity endorsements and social media are attracting young people to use e-cigarettes, according to a new report we commissioned. The Mail Online covered the report and our press release has more info.
• New research from our scientists found that some cancers that occur later in life could be caused by faults in how our cells age. See our press release for more details.
• Our researchers also reported how a molecule released into urine could help distinguish between aggressive and less aggressive bladder cancers. Our press release has more info.
• An interesting US study found that a by-product of cholesterol could help ‘fuel’ certain types of breast cancer. The BBC covered this and our news story has more detail.
• Nearly half of lung cancer patients say they’ve experienced delays in their care, according to a survey published this week. Take a look at our news story to find out more.
• The BBC covered a new scanning technique that could protect children with liver cancer from exposure to unnecessary radiation.
• We were concerned to hear reports that the Cancer Drugs Fund – which provides patients in England with access to life-extending drugs not yet routinely available on the NHS – has spent more than its allocated budget. The Mail Online has more details.
• The Guardian reported that the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine could be given to boys as well as girls.
• The journal Nature had this thought-provoking “cautionary tale” about the cancer drug development process and the era of personalised medicine.

And finally

• We liked this New York Times data visualisation showing the impact of breast cancer around the world.