The first “bites” of the year highlight, right at the start, the benefits of a month of alcohol abstinence. Alongside this, they move from the latest findings on outcomes of proton therapy for oropharyngeal cancer through predictors of dementia all the way to prodromal dreams.
Proton Therapy in the Treatment of Advanced Oropharyngeal Cancer
Based on the results of a U.S. study published in December 2025 in The Lancet, intensity-modulated proton therapy (IMPT) has become a new standard of care for patients with oropharyngeal cancer. The search for new therapeutic alternatives was driven by the toxicity associated with the previously used intensity-modulated photon radiotherapy (IMRT).
This randomized, multicenter, open-label phase III trial compared IMPT and IMRT in 440 adult patients with stage III/IV oropharyngeal cancer and ECOG performance status 0–2. All patients received radiotherapy at a dose of 70 Gy in 33 fractions to the primary tumor and affected cervical lymph nodes. IMPT demonstrated non-inferiority in terms of progression-free survival (PFS; 3-year PFS 82.5 vs. 83.0%, 5-year PFS 81.3 vs. 76.2%), superior overall survival (5-year OS 90.9 vs. 81.0%; p = 0.045), a comparable rate of disease control, and was associated with a lower incidence of higher-grade toxicity than IMRT. The IMPT group also experienced fewer treatment-related deaths and fewer deaths due to disease progression.
Source: Frank S. J., Busse P. M., Lee J. J. et al.; University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Clinical Trial Consortium. Proton versus photon radiotherapy for patients with oropharyngeal cancer in the USA: a multicentre, randomised, open-label, non-inferiority phase 3 trial. Lancet 2025 Dec 11: S0140-6736(25)01962-2, doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(25)01962-2 [Epub ahead of print].
A prospective cohort study conducted in the UK identified a set of depressive symptoms in midlife that may represent early signs of ongoing neurodegenerative processes.
A total of 5,811 individuals with a mean age of 55.7 years (range 45–69 years) were analyzed. Over a mean follow-up of 22.6 years, dementia developed in 10.1% of participants. Increased dementia risk showed a robust association with six depressive symptoms: loss of self-confidence (hazard ratio [HR] 1.51; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.16–1.96), inability to cope with problems (HR 1.49; 95% CI 1.09–2.04), absence of feelings of warmth and affection toward others (HR 1.44; 95% CI 1.06–1.95), persistent nervousness and tension (HR 1.34; 95% CI 1.03–1.72), dissatisfaction with how tasks are carried out (HR 1.33; 95% CI 1.05–1.69), and difficulty concentrating (HR 1.29; 95% CI 1.01–1.65). This association was independent of known dementia risk factors, including APOE ε4 genetic status, cardiometabolic parameters, and lifestyle factors.
Source: Frank P., Singh-Manoux A., Pentti J. et al. Specific midlife depressive symptoms and long-term dementia risk: a 23-year UK prospective cohort study. Lancet Psychiatry 2025 Dec 15: S2215-0366(25)00331-1, doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(25)00331-1 [Epub ahead of print].
American neuroscientist Patrick McNamara from Boston University recently published an article in Frontiers of Psychiatry devoted to so-called “prodromal dreams.” He describes a provisional, as yet unvalidated model with promising evidence suggesting that dreams may predict the onset of disease before its first clinical symptoms appear.
This phenomenon is explained by peak activity of brain networks that compress, summarize, and integrate interoceptive signals during the REM phase of sleep. The brain receives a signal of a somatic error and creates an image attempting to explain the cause of this disturbance. According to the author, this image appears in dreams, typically in the form of symbolic expression or metaphor. Interpreting these dreams — particularly sudden changes in dream content in an individual — could therefore help detect developing disease at an early stage.
Source: McNamara P. Prodromal dreams. Front Psychiatry 2025 Aug 28; 16 : 1625811, doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1625811.
While the Czech Republic more commonly promotes a “month without alcohol” as “Dry February,” the United Kingdom favors “Dry January.” In this context, nephrologist and epidemiologist F. Perry Wilson from Yale University summarized for Medscape the results of studies evaluating the health impact of a month of alcohol abstinence. He notes that people who practice a “dry month” form a specific subgroup: they are more often women, have higher incomes and education levels, and consume above-average amounts of alcohol, even though they do not identify as alcoholics.
The benefits of a month without alcohol are striking. Various studies have shown a reduction in liver stiffness in 80% of abstainers (by an average of 15%), improvement in liver enzyme levels, as well as decreases in body weight (mean 1.5 kg), insulin resistance (mean 25%), blood pressure (mean 7%), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF — a biomarker associated with cancer risk — by 42%). In addition, 71% of abstainers reported improved sleep and increased energy levels.
Highly favorable data from the UK show that individuals practicing Dry January reported, even in August, a lower average number of drinking days per week (3.3 vs. 4.3), lower amounts of alcohol consumed on those days, and fewer days per month of intoxication (2.1 vs. 3.4).
Source: Wilson F. P. Can you fix your liver in a month? What science says about Dry January. Medscape, 2026 Jan 6. Available at: www.medscape.com/viewarticle/can-you-fix-your-liver-month-what-science-says-about-dry-2026a10000a2
Editorial Team, Medscope.pro
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