Health Check

It’s been another ‘milestone week’ for the fight against malaria. The archipelago island nation Cape Verde became the third country in Africa to officially eliminate the disease. Meanwhile in Cameroon, a ‘world first’ routine malaria vaccination programme has begun. A little girl called Daniella received the first vaccine in a clinic near capital city Yaoundé on Monday. BBC health reporter Philippa Roxby joins Claudia Hammond in the studio to gauge what progress we’re making against a disease which kills 600 thousand people in Africa every year.Philippa also brings brand new research from the US that shows how air pollution, particularly from forest fires, can cause more people to suffer with eczema. Figures from one study suggest that dermatology visits rose eightfold in Boston in August 2023 compared to the same period a year earlier, while wild fires raged in Canada.Mike Powell leaves an audio update on the latest in his journey to having a kidney transplant. David Mataix-Cols, Professor of Child and Adole