Welcome to The Run Down your bi-weekly look at reproductive health news and highlights from around the world.

USA

A federal judge in Washington temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s overhaul of the federal reproductive health care program known as Title X. The nationwide preliminary injunction has temporarily halted new regulations due to take effect on May 3. Among other changes, the changes would prohibit organisations offering or referring patients for abortion from receiving Title X funds to cover services like contraception and STD screenings which would hit low-income patients the hardest.

CARIBBEAN

Studies have revealed that women living with HIV in Latin America and the Caribbean are at a greater risk of harm due to misinformation surrounding contraceptive options and sexual and reproductive health rights which has resulted in high levels of unwanted sterilisation and abortion in the region. Compared to women not living with HIV, they have fewer contraceptive choices, more unplanned pregnancies, are at an increased risk of non consensual post-partum sterilisation and exposure to sexual and institutional violence.

EUROPE

Dave Fredrickson, executive vice president, oncology, AstraZeneca, said: “There remains a significant unmet need in the treatment of advanced ovarian cancer as 70% of women globally relapse within the first three years after their initial treatment.

GLOBAL

New research published by the British Medical Journal argues that self care interventions may be particularly appropriate for humanitarian crises when countries may lack sufficient trained health workers, have poorly maintained and unsustainable health infrastructures, and lack evidence based sexual and reproductive health practices and policies