In Global News: The Canadian Transplant Games, Lung Cancer Advocacy, and a Micropacemaker

Patient Care and General Interest
A 7-year-old girl who received a heart transplant as an infant is now competing in the Canadian Transplant Games, which are underway at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.
The Lung Cancer Alliance held its National Advocacy Summit in the US capitol, working to increase awareness of the disease and support for research. Thoracic surgeons in the US also join the call for increased funding for lung cancer research.
A surgical team from Dubai, UAE, performs free heart surgery for children in Mumbai, India, as part of the Nabadat initiative of the Mohamed bin Rashid Charity and Humanitarian Establishment.
England’s National Health Service has approved routine funding for percutaneous left atrial appendage occlusion for patients with atrial fibrillation who cannot take blood thinning medication.
 
Drugs and Devices
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved the next-generation MitraClip® from Abbott. The device received the CE Mark earlier this year.
 
Research, Trials, and Funding
Working in pigs, researchers have demonstrated the feasibility of a micropacemaker, a leadless pacemaker that is percutaneously inserted into the pericardial space.