Liz Highleyman
@lizhighleyman.bsky.social
Freelance medical journalist. Science editor for @pozmagazine.bsky.social, Hep & CancerHealth. Words for aidsmap, Slate, Bay Area Reporter. Research beagle adopter.
With so many regulations, I’m surprised SF doesn’t require less tacky signage for Powell Street & Union Square.
November 26, 2025 at 12:47 AM
With so many regulations, I’m surprised SF doesn’t require less tacky signage for Powell Street & Union Square.
I’ll wait for more data on this. I can see tattoo ink having an effect on immune response, but if it was linked to serious health concerns, I think we’d know it by now.
New @pnas.org
"This work represents the most extensive study to
date regarding the effect of tattoo ink on the immune response and raises serious health concerns associated with the tattooing" including reduced response to Covid vaccination
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
"This work represents the most extensive study to
date regarding the effect of tattoo ink on the immune response and raises serious health concerns associated with the tattooing" including reduced response to Covid vaccination
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Tattoo ink induces inflammation in the draining lymph node and alters the immune response to vaccination | PNAS
Despite safety concerns regarding the toxicity of tattoo ink, no studies have reported
the consequences of tattooing on the immune response. In thi...
www.pnas.org
November 25, 2025 at 11:00 PM
I’ll wait for more data on this. I can see tattoo ink having an effect on immune response, but if it was linked to serious health concerns, I think we’d know it by now.
WTF?
1/ ⚠️ Breaking: At CDC, we've been told the US Government will not officially commemorate World AIDS Day this year. No explanation given.
November 25, 2025 at 6:50 PM
WTF?
I was friends with @alexvitale.bsky.social doing student activism back in the ‘80s. With so much riding on their success, I trust Mamdani’s team will go beyond performative gestures & look at what’s worked — & what hasn’t — in other cities, including SF.
I'm excited to announce that I have been asked to join the Mamdani Transition Team to work on community safety issues. A New Era for NYC.
November 25, 2025 at 3:54 PM
I was friends with @alexvitale.bsky.social doing student activism back in the ‘80s. With so much riding on their success, I trust Mamdani’s team will go beyond performative gestures & look at what’s worked — & what hasn’t — in other cities, including SF.
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
When I first met with RFK Jr. for this story, he told me his staff thought it was a bad idea. A few months later, he accused me of being a scorpion who had tricked him. But we kept talking. www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
The Most Powerful Man in Science
Why is Robert F. Kennedy Jr. so convinced he’s right?
www.theatlantic.com
November 24, 2025 at 2:09 AM
When I first met with RFK Jr. for this story, he told me his staff thought it was a bad idea. A few months later, he accused me of being a scorpion who had tricked him. But we kept talking. www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
Not too surprising — Alzheimer’s has been a hard nut to crack. But I bet incretin (GLP-1, GIP, amylin, etc) agonists with anti-inflammatory effects will prove to be good for the brain.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/24/n...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/24/n...
Novo Nordisk's semaglutide fails to slow Alzheimer's progression
Novo Nordisk's blockbuster weight loss drug semaglutide failed to slow Alzheimer's progression in trials. The studies had been seen as a long shot.
www.statnews.com
November 24, 2025 at 10:33 PM
Not too surprising — Alzheimer’s has been a hard nut to crack. But I bet incretin (GLP-1, GIP, amylin, etc) agonists with anti-inflammatory effects will prove to be good for the brain.
www.statnews.com/2025/11/24/n...
www.statnews.com/2025/11/24/n...
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
X's location "transparency" feature showing many MAGA accounts are based internationally reveals what we already knew: The world is using American social media and American politics as a slot machine and social media companies are directly incentivizing this:
www.404media.co/americas-pol...
www.404media.co/americas-pol...
America’s Polarization Has Become the World's Side Hustle
The 'psyops' revealed by X are entirely the fault of the perverse incentives created by social media monetization programs.
www.404media.co
November 24, 2025 at 6:34 PM
X's location "transparency" feature showing many MAGA accounts are based internationally reveals what we already knew: The world is using American social media and American politics as a slot machine and social media companies are directly incentivizing this:
www.404media.co/americas-pol...
www.404media.co/americas-pol...
Interesting that this has become a meme. If I’m placing it correctly, there’s a large mixed-use development with hundreds of homes planned for right across the street. You don’t need to kick out current residents & demolish existing homes to build.
November 24, 2025 at 3:15 AM
Interesting that this has become a meme. If I’m placing it correctly, there’s a large mixed-use development with hundreds of homes planned for right across the street. You don’t need to kick out current residents & demolish existing homes to build.
They complain about doctors providing gender-affirming interventions with limited data & they complain about research to get better data.
November 24, 2025 at 12:55 AM
They complain about doctors providing gender-affirming interventions with limited data & they complain about research to get better data.
Too bad “GLP-1s” has become a catch-all term. New meds have other targets — including GIP, glucagon, amylin — in various combinations. Looking for a better term to use for my health journalism, since “weight-loss drugs” doesn’t begin to capture everything they do.
Eloralintide, a selective amylin receptor agonist for the treatment of obesity: a 48-week phase 2, multicentre, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial
Eloralintide produced clinically meaningful, dose-dependent reductions in bodyweight
over 48 weeks and was generally well tolerated, supporting eloralintide's potential
use for obesity treatment.
www.thelancet.com
November 24, 2025 at 12:25 AM
Too bad “GLP-1s” has become a catch-all term. New meds have other targets — including GIP, glucagon, amylin — in various combinations. Looking for a better term to use for my health journalism, since “weight-loss drugs” doesn’t begin to capture everything they do.
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
Brilliant footage…International Space Station passing in front of the Moon captured at day time a rare and perfect timing.😎💙😎
November 24, 2025 at 12:03 AM
Brilliant footage…International Space Station passing in front of the Moon captured at day time a rare and perfect timing.😎💙😎
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
Don't let AI do your homework, Pope Leo tells US youth reut.rs/48tKTYY
Don't let AI do your homework, Pope Leo tells US youth
Artificial intelligence may be a useful tool for learning, but don't use it for your homework, Pope Leo told about 15,000 U.S. youth during a question-and-answer session on Friday.
reut.rs
November 21, 2025 at 9:31 PM
Don't let AI do your homework, Pope Leo tells US youth reut.rs/48tKTYY
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
thinking about how my parents escaped vietnam, where the CIA destabilized my family's home country by spreading misinformation, and they landed in the united states, which is now getting destabilized bc someone in vietnam is spreading misinformation
Twitter pays people based on engagement (views, retweets, comments, etc). It appears that many MAGA accounts are based abroad and they use AI technology to generate low-effort rage bait.
My guess is that this will get worse as AI tech improves. For instance, fake videos of minorities doing crime.
My guess is that this will get worse as AI tech improves. For instance, fake videos of minorities doing crime.
November 23, 2025 at 5:59 PM
thinking about how my parents escaped vietnam, where the CIA destabilized my family's home country by spreading misinformation, and they landed in the united states, which is now getting destabilized bc someone in vietnam is spreading misinformation
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
NEW: Bird flu patient dies, marking second U.S. fatality in 2025. Washington state resident was older adult w underlying conditions.
My story.
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
My story.
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
Bird flu patient dies, marking second U.S. fatality in 2025
The Washington state resident, an older adult with underlying conditions, was infected with a strain that has previously been reported in animals but never before in humans.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 22, 2025 at 2:36 AM
NEW: Bird flu patient dies, marking second U.S. fatality in 2025. Washington state resident was older adult w underlying conditions.
My story.
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
My story.
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
Trump likes people he views as political winners.
November 22, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Trump likes people he views as political winners.
This is concerning…
NEW: FDA review staff was excluded from voting on whether to approve first priority voucher drug. Top leaders like Vinay Prasad, George Tidmarsh, and Tracy Høeg led the vote instead. Read for the full list, and expert reaction from @hollylynchez.bsky.social: www.statnews.com/2025/11/21/t...
FDA review staff was excluded from voting on whether to approve first priority voucher drug
Top officials like Vinay Prasad and George Tidmarsh voted on the drug, a major break from the FDA's typical practice.
www.statnews.com
November 21, 2025 at 6:26 PM
This is concerning…
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
Senator Bill Cassidy is concerned that the new non-expert ACIP, appointed by the anti-vaccine Secretary he voted for, may undermine access to hepatitis B vaccines. www.cbsnews.com/news/bill-ca... via @kaiahubbard.bsky.social @cbsnews.com.web.brid.gy
Sen. Cassidy says he's "very concerned" about possible hepatitis B vaccine schedule change
Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a physician whose medical practice focused on hepatitis B, said he's "very concerned" about a potential change to the hepatitis B vaccine schedule for infant...
www.cbsnews.com
November 21, 2025 at 5:29 PM
Senator Bill Cassidy is concerned that the new non-expert ACIP, appointed by the anti-vaccine Secretary he voted for, may undermine access to hepatitis B vaccines. www.cbsnews.com/news/bill-ca... via @kaiahubbard.bsky.social @cbsnews.com.web.brid.gy
This is flying under the radar, but to deflect from concerns about his enabling RFK Jr, Cassidy is focusing on restricting abortion medication.
November 21, 2025 at 1:27 AM
This is flying under the radar, but to deflect from concerns about his enabling RFK Jr, Cassidy is focusing on restricting abortion medication.
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
Apparently RFK Jr. promised Senator Bill Cassidy that he wouldn’t remove the statement
“Vaccines do not cause autism” from the CDC website.
So what RFK Jr. did instead is spit in his face by leaving the statement there and adding this:
“Vaccines do not cause autism” from the CDC website.
So what RFK Jr. did instead is spit in his face by leaving the statement there and adding this:
November 20, 2025 at 4:53 AM
Apparently RFK Jr. promised Senator Bill Cassidy that he wouldn’t remove the statement
“Vaccines do not cause autism” from the CDC website.
So what RFK Jr. did instead is spit in his face by leaving the statement there and adding this:
“Vaccines do not cause autism” from the CDC website.
So what RFK Jr. did instead is spit in his face by leaving the statement there and adding this:
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
Weaponization of the premier public health agency in the country for personal clout and gain. The CDC website should not be trusted given the fact that it is controlled by people who will profit from spurious and false attempts to link vaccines to autism.
www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safe...
www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safe...
Autism and Vaccines
Answers to common questions about vaccine safety and autism.
www.cdc.gov
November 20, 2025 at 3:32 AM
Weaponization of the premier public health agency in the country for personal clout and gain. The CDC website should not be trusted given the fact that it is controlled by people who will profit from spurious and false attempts to link vaccines to autism.
www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safe...
www.cdc.gov/vaccine-safe...
Times are changing in SF. A few years ago, much of this story would have focused on local opposition. Here, most of the advocates are in favor with a few caveats. This is my local Safeway & I support this 💯
Exclusive: Known for steep narrow streets & storybook cottages, Bernal Heights has resisted change for decades.
Now, a plan for 370 homes at a #Safeway site on the flats below Bernal’s western slope could usher in major transformation.
#sanfrancisco #realestate @sfchronicle.com
Now, a plan for 370 homes at a #Safeway site on the flats below Bernal’s western slope could usher in major transformation.
#sanfrancisco #realestate @sfchronicle.com
Exclusive: Affluent S.F. neighborhood targeted as developer plans to turn Safeways into housing
A developer’s ongoing plan to build housing at San Francisco Safeway sites now includes adding 370 homes and a new enlarged grocery store in an affluent district where property values have soared.
www.sfchronicle.com
November 20, 2025 at 1:50 AM
Times are changing in SF. A few years ago, much of this story would have focused on local opposition. Here, most of the advocates are in favor with a few caveats. This is my local Safeway & I support this 💯
Both previous proper systematic reviews & DHHS’s review of reviews agree that evidence for youth gender medicine is limited. Whether you think this means “make it widely accessible & collect more data as we go along” or “ban it for everyone” is an ideological choice.
Opinion | What we still don’t know about pediatric medical transition
A controversial HHS report has now been updated with peer reviews and the names of its authors.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 19, 2025 at 10:28 PM
Both previous proper systematic reviews & DHHS’s review of reviews agree that evidence for youth gender medicine is limited. Whether you think this means “make it widely accessible & collect more data as we go along” or “ban it for everyone” is an ideological choice.
Simultaneous Christmas trees & basil plants doesn’t seem right…
November 19, 2025 at 1:54 AM
Simultaneous Christmas trees & basil plants doesn’t seem right…
Reposted by Liz Highleyman
An ABC News reporter asked about U.S. intelligence findings that MBS ordered the killing of Jamal Khashoggi.
Trump interrupted, attacked the reporter, then defended MBS: "He knew nothing about it. You don't have to embarrass our guest by asking something like that."
Trump interrupted, attacked the reporter, then defended MBS: "He knew nothing about it. You don't have to embarrass our guest by asking something like that."
November 18, 2025 at 5:50 PM
An ABC News reporter asked about U.S. intelligence findings that MBS ordered the killing of Jamal Khashoggi.
Trump interrupted, attacked the reporter, then defended MBS: "He knew nothing about it. You don't have to embarrass our guest by asking something like that."
Trump interrupted, attacked the reporter, then defended MBS: "He knew nothing about it. You don't have to embarrass our guest by asking something like that."