'Let's not call it cancer'

Roughly one in six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point in their lives, but these cancers usually aren't life-threatening. Most newly diagnosed men have Grade Group 1 (GG1) prostate cancer, which can linger for years without causing significant harms.

Prostate cancer is categorized according to how far it has spread and how aggressive it looks under the microscope. Pure GG1 prostate cancer is the least risky form of the disease. It occurs frequently with age, will not metastasize to other parts of the body, and it doesn't require any immediate treatment.

So, should we even call it cancer? Many experts say no.

Dr. Matthew Cooperberg, who chairs the department of urology at the University of California, San Francisco, says men wouldn't suffer as much anxiety — and would be less inclined to pursue unneeded therapies — if their doctors stopped referring to low-grade changes in the prostate as cancer. He recently co-chaired a symposium where experts from around the world gathered to discuss the pros and cons of giving GG1 cancer another name.

Treatment discrepancies

GG1 cancer is typically revealed by PSA screening. The goal with screening is to find more aggressive prostate cancer while it's still curable, yet these efforts often detect GG1 cancer incidentally. Attendees at the symposium agreed that GG1 disease should be managed with active surveillance. With this standard practice, doctors monitor the disease with periodic PSA checks, biopsies, and imaging, and treat the disease only if it shows signs of progression.

But even as medical groups work to promote active surveillance, 40% of men with low-risk prostate cancer in the United States are treated immediately. According to Dr. Cooperberg, that's in part because the word "cancer" has such a strong emotional impact. "It resonates with people as something that spreads and kills," he says. "No matter how much we try to get the message out there that GG1 cancer is not an immediate concern, there's a lot of anxiety associated with a 'C-word' diagnosis."

A consequence is widespread overtreatment, with tens of thousands of men needlessly suffering side effects from surgery or radiation every year. A cancer diagnosis has other harmful consequences: studies reveal negative effects on relationships and employment as well as "someone's ability to get life insurance," Dr. Cooperberg says. "It can affect health insurance rates."

Debate about renaming

Experts at the symposium proposed that GG1 cancer could be referred to instead as acinar neoplasm, which is an abnormal but nonlethal growth in tissue. Skeptics expressed a concern that patients might not stick with active surveillance if they aren't told they have cancer. But should men be scared into complying with appropriate monitoring? Dr. Cooperberg argues that patients with pure GG1 "should not be burdened with a cancer diagnosis that has zero capacity to harm them."

Dr. Cooperberg does caution that since biopsies can potentially miss higher-grade cancer elsewhere in the prostate, monitoring the condition with active surveillance is crucial. Moreover, men with a strong family history of cancer, or genetic mutations such as BRCA1 and BRCA2 that put them at a higher risk of aggressive disease, should be followed more closely, he says.

Dr. Marc Garnick, the Gorman Brothers Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and editor in chief of the Harvard Medical School Guide to Prostate Diseases, agrees. Dr. Garnick emphasized that a name change for GG1 cancer needs to consider a wide spectrum of additional testing. "This decision can't simply be based on pathology," he says. "Biopsies only sample a miniscule portion of the prostate gland. Genetic and genomic tests can help us identify some low-risk cancers that might behave in a more aggressive fashion down the road."

Meanwhile, support for a name change is gaining momentum. "Younger pathologists and urologists are especially likely to think this is a good idea," Dr. Cooperberg says. "I think the name change is just a matter of time — in my view, we'll get there eventually."

Charlie Schmidt, Editor, Harvard Medical School Annual Report on Prostate Diseases, is an award-winning freelance science writer based in Portland, Maine. In addition to writing for Harvard Health Publishing, Charlie has written for Science magazine, the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Environmental Health Perspectives

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/lets-not-call-it-cancer-202501093086

Treasury Secretary Yellen's Computer Among 400 Other Systems Hacked By China

 In one last masterstroke of incompetence on her way out the door, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has had her computer hacked by China. We don't really care about the integrity of the U.S. economy, we just hope to God there's no nudes to leak.

Chinese hackers who breached the Treasury Department were focused on "sanctions, international affairs and intelligence", according to a new report from Bloomberg that detailed the breach. 

The breach reached "more than 400 laptop and desktop computers", the report says. 

Hackers accessed employee credentials and over 3,000 files from unclassified personal computers, including policy documents, travel records, organizational charts, and sensitive law enforcement data, the report revealed. While they likely stole some material, classified and email systems were not breached.

The Bloomberg report said the hackers also accessed files related to investigations by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., which assesses national security risks of certain real estate and foreign investments.

A report to Congress reveals that Chinese state-sponsored hackers, identified as Silk Typhoon or UNC5221, breached the Treasury Department through a contractor's network, prioritizing document theft and operating stealthily.

Yellen, probably thinking about debt

While no malware or long-term intelligence gathering was detected, sensitive systems remained uncompromised. Treasury reported the breach promptly and sought assistance from federal agencies. Treasury and FBI representatives declined to comment.

China has denied allegations of state-sponsored cyberattacks, dismissing claims of involvement in the Treasury hack as “groundless.”

Hackers accessed 419 computers between late September and mid-November, targeting offices dealing with foreign assets, international affairs, and intelligence, as well as senior officials and personal financial records.

A damage assessment is ongoing, and Treasury staff are set to brief the Senate Banking Committee. Treasury disconnected BeyondTrust, the compromised contractor, and is considering alternatives, though no immediate failures have been identified.

Reuters reported the hackers even breached U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's computer and computers of two of Yellen's lieutenants, Deputy Secretary Wally Adeyemo and Acting Under Secretary Brad Smith. 

"The hackers accessed fewer than 50 files on Yellen's machine," Reuters concluded. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/treasury-secretary-yellens-computer-among-400-other-treasury-department-systems-hacked

LA Fires: The 'Social Contract' Is Nonsense, And No One Is Coming to Save You

 by Ryan McMaken via The Mises Institute,

Possibly one of the most inane phrases ever uttered about modern governments is Oliver Wendell Holmes’s oft-quoted phrase stating that “taxes are what we pay for civilized society.”

This reflected the naïve view, often pushed in the eighteenth and nineteenth century, of the so-called “social contract.”

According to this idea, we pay taxes, and in return the state provides order, protection, and all the blessings of civilization. 

Presumably included among all those taxpayer-funded civilizational “services” provided by governments one can find “fire suppression.”

But, you wouldn’t know it from watching tens of thousands of residents flee their homes in southern California and Los Angeles County as fires rage. As of Wednesday at midday, five different fires in southern California are still zero-percent contained. Nor is this some hard-to-reach rural area with few roads and little infrastructure. These fires are right in the middle of suburban cities and towns. Yet, it is all apparently too much for lavishly-funded government agencies to handle. 

Indeed, government authorities in Los Angeles County and California had neglected infrastructure to the point that it became useless in many areas in terms of battling the blazes.

In the early hours of the Palisades fire, firefighters found themselves hamstrung by a lack of water from fire hydrants. In spite of years of warning about the growing threat of fires in the region, California bureaucrats couldn’t be bothered with upgrading the water system to ensure reliable water supply and pressure in case of a major fire. 

Since 2022, California firefighters have been bragging that they’ve been sending fire suppression equipement to Ukraine. This wasn’t paid for by firefighters, of course. It was funded by the taxpayers. 

Meanwhile, the mayor of the City of Los Angeles—who is paid more than $300,000 per year—is on a taxpayer-funded trip to Ghana to attend the inauguration of the new president of that west African country. What possible benefit this could bring to ordinary people in Los Angeles remains a mystery, but residents are certainly paying for what is essentially a vacation for the mayor. 

Before she left for her vacation, however, the mayor supported large budget cuts to fire suppression services, as well as to other basic services like sanitation and public works. This was necessitated by the city’s budget crisis stemming from years of waste, mismanagement, and legal settlements. In 2024, the city owes $47 million to residents who have sustained injuries from the city’s crumbling infrastructure and police incompetence.

Is all this failing infrastructure a result of cuts to taxes in the city? Of course not. Taxes in Los Angeles are among the highest in the nation. And, all of that is on top of California’s debilitating income taxes which include the highest progressive state income taxes. California has the highest tax burden in the nation. 

Moreover, it’s hard to hire sufficient fire suppression workers when unionized firefighters earn outrageously inflated government salaries. As The Daily Mail reported in 2024, the LA fire captain Jason Getchius earned $823,000 in 2023. In California is it not unusual to find government employees earning mid-six-figures by milking the government overtime system. 

The police are notorious for doing this as well. Naturally, these enormous salaries for police don’t translate into low crime rates. 

The woman in charge of water and public works in Los Angeles, Janisse Quinones, makes at least $750,000. Like most government officials, her salary does not correlate with her competence. 

This is the real reason we pay taxes: to keep the ruling class (high ranking officials) and the larger parasite class (government employees and government contractors) living lifestyles of relative opulence and ease while private sector workers toil to produce all the real wealth. If it seems worse in California it’s because the grift is at a far more advanced stage there. For example, government services like fire suppression and infrastructure are cut in order to fund lavish pensions for state employees. This is true in many states, but it’s especially bad in California. 

Dry fire hydrants. Millionaire firemen. High crime. Crumbling infrastructure. Is this that “civilization” that Oliver Wendell Holmes was talking about? Possibly. Contra the clueless Holmes, however, taxes are definitely not the price we pay for civilization. If anything, taxes destroy civilization by funneling resources to extractive state organs which work primarily to enrich themselves and the ruling oligarchy. 

And why should ordinary people expect any real services in exchange for all those enormous taxes they pay, year after year? They shouldn’t. The state looks out for the state and its closest friends. It doesn’t look out for the people who pay the bills, except on occasion and by accident in pursuit of some good public relations. Instead, state organizations like the City of Los Angeles will spend endless hours and mountains of resources on rewarding politically connected interest groups and on endless meetings about micro-aggressions and diversity hires and on censoring critics. Fighting fires? That’s a mere afterthought. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/la-fires-social-contract-nonsense-and-no-one-coming-save-you

Houthis To Halt Red Sea Ship Attacks If Gaza Truce Holds

 For the first time since attacks in the Red Sea began in 2023 in response to the Israeli military onslaught in Gaza due to Oct.7, Yemen's Houthis have signaled they will stop their attacks if the new Gaza truce and hostage exchange deal holds.

Houthi leader Abdulmalik Al-Houthi in his first announcement since the impending truce, which is expected to take effect Sunday, said that his group plans to respect the agreement but that attacks on Israel and Red Sea shipping could continue.

Abdul Malik al-Houthi, image source: Al Masirah TV

"We will continue to follow the stages of implementing the agreement," Al-Houthi said in a speech Thursday. On Friday the deal was still moving past the final bureaucratic hurdles in Israel with an expected full cabinet vote.

"Any Israeli breach, massacre, or siege — we will be immediately ready to provide military support to Palestinians," he continued, strongly suggesting that if the ceasefire collapses then Houthi attacks would be back on. 

He said his movement, formally known as Ansar Allah, will "confront any aggression, whether by the Israelis, the Americans, or their allies, or any attempts to divert our country from its liberated jihadist path."

The Houthis have indeed been seeking to target American, British, and coalition warships - though it's unclear if there have been any direct strikes or damage to military vessels of late.

A Wednesday statement claimed that missiles and drones were launched against the USS Harry Truman aircraft carrier and other US warships patrolling the Red Sea. It's unknown whether if all projectiles were intercepted.

"This targeting of the carrier is the sixth since its arrival in the Red Sea," the Houthis stated. The Iran-backed group has clearly remained committed and defiant as it blocks Red Sea shipping, despite several rounds of US-UK-Israeli bombing campaigns, though it seems the only thing that may halt this is a lasting Gaza truce.

Bloomberg has meanwhile reviewed that "Most Western-linked container ships have over the past year chosen to take the much longer route around southern Africa when sailing between Asia and Europe, and kept clear of the Red Sea. That’s squeezed global shipping capacity, lifting freight rates and boosted the earnings of carriers like Mitsui OSK."

"Container-shipping giants A.P. Moller Maersk A/S and Hapag-Lloyd AG last year announced a vessel-sharing partnership for the alternative route," the report continues.

Egypt has said its taken a $7 billion hit in revenue decline from the Suez Canal for 2024, which marks about a 60% drop from prior years.

Very important for oil, LNG and container-shipped commodities (like coffee)

The Yemen-based Houthis signaled a pause in their months-long attacks on commercial ships following a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas https://t.co/H3ZfndcgzO

— Javier Blas (@JavierBlas) January 17, 2025

The Houthis have consistently demanded that for it to halt its Red Sea attacks there must be full Israeli military withdrawal from the Strip. It's anything but certain whether that will actually happen should the ceasefire reach phase two or phase three implementation.

If the Yemeni operations do persist in face of the truce, it would complicate or damage efforts to keep the peace in the Gaza Strip, as it's already sure to be an extremely delicate and fragile truce. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/houthis-halt-red-sea-ship-attacks-if-gaza-truce-holds

GOP states sue EPA over ‘methane fee’ implementation

A group of 23 Republican-led states is suing the Biden administration over its implementation of a fee for excess methane emissions imposed on the oil and gas industry. 

The fees were written into the law in 2022 as part of the Democrats’ sprawling climate, tax and health care bill. 

The law seeks to reduce methane emissions from the oil and gas sector by charging producers for methane emissions while also providing funding to help them bring their emissions down.

The lawsuit, led by Texas, goes after an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation implementing the fee. 

The suit says the EPA rule “exceeds the agency’s statutory authority and otherwise is arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and not in accordance with law.”

“Over the past four years I have opposed the Biden Administration more than 100 times to stop its radical attempts to undermine the law. I am positive this last-minute effort to harm the energy industry will be halted as well,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) said in a written statement. 

“In only four days, when President-elect Trump resumes office, America will no longer be burdened by a runaway bureaucracy intent on destroying our liberties,” he added.

The EPA estimates the program will prevent a total of 1.2 million metric tons of methane from entering the atmosphere, with climate gains equivalent to taking nearly 8 million gas-powered cars off the road for a year.

Republican lawmakers have also indicated they will try to overturn the policy via legislation — as they now control both the House and Senate and will take control of the White House next week. 

https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/5091844-republican-states-sue-epa-methane-fee/

NC governor asks FEMA for 6-month Helene extension on temporary shelters

 North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein (D) asked for an extension on funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on Thursday to support temporary shelters for residents who lost their homes due to damage from Hurricane Helene.

“The people of western North Carolina are experiencing chaos and uncertainty that is untenable,” Stein said in a statement. 

“That is why I am urging FEMA to extend its Transitional Sheltering Assistance program for six months to get folks through the winter in safe, secure shelter as they rebuild their homes.”  

The governor suggested the Transitional Sheltering Assistance Program allow for North Carolinians’ continued eligibility for short term accommodations until Sept. 30. He outlined his requests in a letter addressed to FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell.

“People in the mountains of North Carolina are facing below freezing temperatures. Next week, our state will experience another cold snap that may bring more winter weather. I know that you agree that people are entitled to pass the winter safely and securely as they rebuild their damaged or destroyed homes,” he wrote in the statement.

“The shock of the damage Hurricane Helene caused is still very real for the people of western North Carolina. They need assurance that they will have shelter during this time so long as their home is still uninhabitable. We owe them support, not fear or confusion.”

Criswell has not publicly responded to the letter but supported the state throughout the disaster. She’s currently heading response efforts for hurricanes Helene and Milton in addition to the Los Angeles wildfires.

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5091919-nc-governor-asks-fema-for-6-month-helene-extension-on-temporary-shelters/

'SoCal’s next potential threat? Floods, landslides and toxic debris flows'

As devastating wildfires continue to ravage the Los Angeles metropolitan region, local officials are warning of potential floods, landslides and toxic debris flows in the weeks and months ahead.

“The properties have been damaged beyond belief,” Mark Pestrella, director of Los Angeles County Public Works, said at a joint LA County-City press conference on Thursday.

“They are full of sediment, debris, silt and hazardous materials,” added Pestrella, referring to burn scar sites in the vicinities of the Palisades and Eaton fires.

The Palisades Fire, which has destroyed the Pacific Palisades neighborhood, is now 23,713 acres and only 31 percent contained, according to Cal Fire. The Eaton Fire, burning north of Pasadena, is 14,117 acres and 65 percent contained.

“Both areas suffered watershed damage, burned to such a significance that we expect massive debris-laden flows when it rains,” Pestrella said.

“In an event that we have major rain, we do expect that all of the street areas and all the communities will be impacted by debris flows that could be hazardous to human health,” he warned.

To address this looming threat, Pestrella said that he and his teams are developing plans to both capture and hold back debris as much as possible during a heavy precipitation event.

“We do expect the window to open for rain in the later part of this month, and so we are already pre-deploying labor forces into the area,” he added.

Asked at the press conference to address why a specific spot in Pacific Palisades had already undergone a hillside collapse, Pestrella explained that this occurrence was due to a geophysical process called “dry ravel.”

The phrase “dry ravel” refers to the rolling or sliding of particles down a slope in steep, arid landscapes, according to scientists. During wildfires, such particles can move via the collapse of sediment chunks that have amassed behind vegetation. 

“It is a landslide — debris into the streets and into properties,” Pestrella said. “Some of this material is supporting some of the structures that have remained behind.”

He also noted a certain amount of water inundation, due to the amount of the resource that was used during firefighting efforts, as well as some destruction of water and gas lines.

“A warning to all the residents, no matter where you live in LA County, if you have slopes behind your homes, or if you’re located on top of a slope, these slopes have become fragile,” he said.

“The soil that is supporting your home have all become fragile and damaged, if you will, due to the events that we’ve had, wind included,” Pestrella added, stressing that debris flow hazards exist “even when it’s not raining.”

Regarding the toxic nature of the debris flow, Pestrella noted that the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is working with local partners to clear properties of hazardous substances. 

Tara Fitzgerald, an EPA on-scene coordinator, explained that the agency has been tasked by the Federal Emergency Management Agency with conducting a “household hazardous materials removal in the burn footprint.”

That removal, which she said began on Thursday, involves eliminating “the most immediate risk to public health and workers.”

Among the targeted materials for removal are pesticides, lithium-ion and other batteries, fuel and other items that would typically be sent to a household hazardous waste management landfill, according to Fitzgerald.

“We are working quickly to ramp up and look forward to being able to support this recovery effort,” she added.

As for possible flooding in the upcoming weeks and months, Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California Los Angeles, expressed some trepidation about what might be in store at a webinar earlier this week.

While forecasts do not indicate that such a deluge is imminently on the horizon, Swain noted that major rain is “still quite possible in February or March or even April.”

And if such an event occurs, he warned that “there will be major concern regarding the potential for flash floods and debris flows in and downstream of all of these areas.”

https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/5092064-california-wildfires-floods-landslides-toxic-debris-flows/