Ahmed Elbediwy
Ahmed Elbediwy brings a lab-based understanding of cancer biology and clinical biochemistry to public-facing health coverage, with a particular focus on how new drugs and wellness trends intersect with cancer risk, obesity medicine and ageing. He writes for The Conversation on topics such as weight-loss injections, cancer overdiagnosis and anti-ageing supplements, explaining the underlying mechanisms and evidence rather than the hype. His work consistently links molecular pathways and clinical research to everyday decisions about medicines and products, framing benefits alongside harms and uncertainties.
Obesity medicines and precision weight loss
Elbediwy covers the rapid rise of injectable weight-loss drugs, grounding his pieces in how GLP-1 medications like Ozempic and Wegovy work in the body. In his article on why weight-loss drugs do not work for some people, he explains what defines “non-responders” to GLP-1 treatment and explores physiological and behavioural reasons for limited benefit, including differences in gut-driven hunger, emotional eating and diet quality. He sets out how these drugs mimic gut hormones, affect insulin release, slow stomach emptying and dampen appetite signals to the brain, translating complex endocrinology into plain language.
He also writes about the need for precision obesity medicine, arguing that broad, one-size-fits-all prescribing overlooks important variations in how patients respond to these treatments. In a separate update on weight-loss jabs and cancer risk, he follows emerging research on safety concerns as more people turn to Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro, explaining what is known, what remains uncertain and how regulators and clinicians are weighing the evidence. Across these pieces he positions obesity drugs within a wider care plan, discussing where psychological support, nutrition and monitoring fit alongside prescriptions rather than treating injections as a standalone solution.
Cancer risk, screening and overdiagnosis
Elbediwy’s academic work centres on cancer signalling, and that specialist perspective is visible in his coverage of cancer risk and overdiagnosis. He co-authors an article addressing overdiagnosis in cancer, describing it as a genuine harm distinct from missed diagnoses and outlining how modern screening can detect slow-growing or clinically insignificant cancers that may never cause symptoms. In that piece he explains how overdiagnosis can lead to unnecessary treatments, anxiety and resource strain, and he walks readers through the trade-offs between early detection and the risk of finding disease that would not have impacted a person’s health.
His weight-loss jabs cancer risk update similarly anchors discussion in cancer biology, highlighting why rapid changes in hormones, metabolism and body weight prompt researchers to study long-term oncological effects. By connecting drug mechanisms, epidemiological data and screening debates, he encourages a more nuanced view of cancer risk that goes beyond simple reassurance or alarm, and he does so in accessible prose aimed at a general audience rather than specialists.
Ageing, skincare and supplement science
Beyond obesity and cancer, Elbediwy writes about anti-ageing products and cosmetic science, applying clinical biochemistry to trends that often originate in beauty marketing. In his coverage of copper peptides, co-published via The Conversation and republished by Scientific American, he explains what these molecules are, how they interact with skin and hair, and where evidence supports or contradicts claims about rejuvenation and repair. He dissects the difference between in-vitro findings, early-stage studies and robust clinical trials, helping readers distinguish promising mechanisms from proven benefits.
He also co-writes on whether supplements can reverse ageing, assessing common ingredients and longevity products against current research. That piece looks at biological markers of ageing, the limits of what supplements can realistically do and the risks of overpromising, emphasising evidence-based use rather than lifestyle branding. Across these articles he treats skincare and anti-ageing as part of health reporting, not just consumer advice, consistently bringing biochemical detail and critical appraisal to topics often dominated by anecdote and advertising.
Academic perspective and teaching
Elbediwy is an award-winning senior lecturer in cancer biology and clinical biochemistry at Kingston University, where he is described as a research-intensive academic in cancer signalling. He supervises a wide range of postgraduate research students, which keeps his teaching and public writing closely tied to current laboratory and clinical developments. His university and professional profiles highlight his commitment to student support and a “scientist-first” mindset, and he has been recognised with a higher education bioscience teaching award for his work.
That background shapes his journalism: he favours structured explainers over opinion pieces, often co-authoring with fellow senior lecturers to present both clinical and biochemical angles on a topic. His health coverage is marked by careful definition of key terms, clear separation between established knowledge and emerging research, and a repeated focus on how individual variability and precision approaches change the way we think about drugs, screening and supplements.
4 more health journalists.
Abida Tasnim
Abida Tasnim is a health writer for The Daily Star who focuses on clear, practical guidance that helps readers recognise risks early and act before everyday illnesses turn into wider public health problems. She reports on infectious disease prevention, using measles coverage to show how outbreaks start with individual decisions and behaviours, not just hospital statistics. Her work explains what happens during an outbreak and then anchors the story in simple steps people can take, such as avoiding crowded places when symptoms appear, practising good hygiene, and seeking medical advice early. She writes direct, action‑oriented health explainers that turn clinical questions about contagion and disease burden into everyday choices. Across her beat, she stresses early recognition, timely care, and prevention as the foundations of healthier communities.
Adrián Carballo Casla
Adrián Carballo Casla stands out for turning complex cohort data on ageing into clear, food‑level advice on what older adults should eat to protect brain health and slow chronic disease. He is a researcher in nutritional epidemiology focused on ageing and chronic disease prevention and a postdoctoral researcher in geriatric epidemiology at Karolinska Institutet, writing health explainers for The Conversation. He reports on how diet quality, especially Mediterranean and Mind‑style patterns, shapes dementia risk, grey matter loss and neurocognitive ageing, and how healthy versus pro‑inflammatory diets alter multimorbidity trajectories. His articles translate findings on flavonoids, polyphenols, folate, omega‑3 fats and dietary nitrates into specific food choices and small, practical changes. Much of his coverage is anchored in his own studies on multimorbidity, high‑risk older adults and tailored dietary recommendations, often syndicated to other outlets.
Amanda Sheppeard
Amanda Sheppeard is a managing editor and health journalist known for long, detailed explainers that connect complex clinical research, disability policy and political narratives with the daily realities of doctors and patients. She works at The Medical Republic across editorial leadership and commercial content while reporting widely on medicine for its specialist titles. Her real beat spans autism, disability policy, autoimmune disease, infectious threats and system pressures in primary care and hospitals. She covers subjects such as autism diagnosis and the NDIS, rheumatology’s clinical shifts, weight-loss agents in rheumatoid arthritis, infection control, antimicrobial resistance and new modalities like CAR T-cell therapy and microneedles. She reports by doing the synthesis inside the story, linking trial design, molecular targets, funding rules and policy changes to concrete decisions and workflows in clinics and hospitals.
Andie Noonan
Andie Noonan is a visual journalist at ABC who specialises in turning complex public health risks into clear, data-led, image-rich stories. They focus on how emerging infectious diseases, large-scale health threats and policy decisions translate into everyday consequences, often in Australia, using graphics, photography and social video instead of text-only reporting. Their work on Ebola and other “biblical” diseases traces links between global outbreaks, climate and environmental stress, and gaps in health preparedness, with an emphasis on risk rather than alarmism. Noonan also reports on how sport, recreation and routine consumer behaviour affect physical and psychological health, from violence in children’s community sport to “skimpflation” and changes in supermarket products. Across ABC News, they produce social video, TikTok explainers and archival-style pieces that use evidence, data and strong visuals to make epidemiological and economic issues easy to grasp.