Cancer gets over 80 times more research funding per death than ageing does—even though ageing *causes* most cancer. Please share the new analysis from @thelongevityinitiative.org!

Does NIH research funding track what actually kills Americans? Building on A4LI’s new report, we ran the numbers: and ageing fares worst. Ageing causes 83% of deaths, yet receives just 1.2% of the research funding per death that cancer does—around $1 per American per year.

At least 750 cases of Ebola and 177 deaths so far in the DRC which struggling to manage due to severe cuts in aid and conflict. Researchers in Oxford are rushing to create a vaccine but won’t be ready for some time

New post: Can longevity save us from a population crisis? We tried out @ourworldindata.org’s new population projection tool to see if increasing life expectancy could save us from demographic decline:

Everyone’s talking about falling birth rates. South Koreans had 30% fewer babies than the UN predicted just a few years prior. But the UN is also very *pessimistic* on longevity. Check out our new post on whether longer lives could alter our demographic destiny:

The Ebola outbreak in the DRC has now been confirmed as the Bundibugyo strain. This is not good news, there are no licensed or candidate vaccines for this strain. No monoclonal antibodies. I am sure experimental antivirals will be tried. www.afro.who.int/countries/de...

I flew from Germany to San Francisco today, and the views of the frozen north were the best I’ve ever had. We really need to do more to protect this vast, fragile expanse. (I understand the irony of being reminded of this from a long-haul flight.)

Thank you, Simon! That means a lot. James is a fun interviewer!

Happy 100th birthday, Sir David Attenborough! For every 1,000 boys born in 1926, only 5 are still around today. He’s a national treasure *and* a statistical outlier.

This video is a rare swing and substantial miss by @kurzgesagt.org. Most importantly, they don’t engage with improving health: assuming everyone over 65 is a burden is wild when 65 was first set as Germany’s pension age in 1916—at a time when life expectancy in Germany was around 55!

Happy 100th birthday, Sir David Attenborough! For every 1,000 boys born in 1926, only 5 are still around today. He’s a national treasure *and* a statistical outlier.

This is happening far too often. Good time to set up Google Alerts for your name, if you haven't already. The journalism industry had been squeezed before AI showed up and now falling standards are cratering. It makes me sad. Good journalism is a service the public should want and should pay for.

I got a Google Alert for my name yesterday, pointing to an article for an outlet I’d never spoken to, full of quotes I’ve never said. It’s now corrected…but the editor told me ‘I asked Google to find an expert but I think it used AI.’ Isn’t it your job to check..?

An ageing population doesn’t need to mean falling living standards: both Japan and South Korea continue to see rising GDP per capita during this transition, too. The critical thing is keeping people healthy for longer, and longevity science could help with that!

It is with great sadness that we announce J. Craig Venter has died. 🧪🧬 www.jcvi.org/media-center...

I was in @thesun.co.uk at the weekend! Check out the full interview at steele.link/sun

If the UK were a US state, how would it rank? It depends entirely on what you measure! Fascinating table showing a startlingly different picture depending on the choice of metric. Source: www.linkedin.com/posts/diogo-...

Absolutely fantastic discussion from Brad Stanfield and Matt Kaeberlein of their recent rapamycin trial. Two great scientists and communicators having a really detailed, honest, knowledgeable discussion of the strengths and weaknesses. Thanks both!

I spoke with @thesun.co.uk about how science could slow (or stop?!) ageing, and whether that means we could become the Elves from Lord of the Rings…or maybe the Hobbits… #longevity 🧪

I’m in @rteone.rte.ie’s new documentary on longevity! It’s called Live Forever: The death of ageing?, and you can check it out on RTÉ Player here:

Now would be a great time to reconsider that 46% cut to NASA’s science budget for FY2027.

Anyone heading to the fundlongevity.org rallies tomorrow? I’ll be outside the German parliament here in Berlin calling for more funding for science. There are protests in 18 other cities across the world so check out the site for your local one! #longevity 🧪 Can’t make it? Then you might want to…

Artemis II just set a new record: the furthest any human has ever been from Earth. But how far is that? I made a to-scale diagram of the Earth–Moon system to try to make sense of it. 🧵

Artemis II just set a new record: the furthest any human has ever been from Earth. But how far is that? I made a to-scale diagram of the Earth–Moon system to try to make sense of it. 🧵

I downloaded the high-res version of this amazing picture from the Artemis crew and did a little edit to make it look more like what the astronauts might actually see! Enjoy the picture and then check out the thread below explaining what you’re looking at… 🧪 #artemis #artemisii #space #moon

I downloaded the high-res version of this amazing picture from the Artemis crew and did a little edit to make it look more like what the astronauts might actually see! Enjoy the picture and then check out the thread below explaining what you’re looking at… 🧪 #artemis #artemisii #space #moon

I spoke with BBC @sciencefocus.bsky.social about peptides: “I am shocked by how bad the evidence is,” says Dr Andrew Steele, director of The Longevity Initiative, “I thought it was going to be shaky, but there is just absolutely nothing here.” 🧪 #longevity #peptides

I’m doing some research on peptides and their use for longevity. Has anyone ever seen a ‘fictional’ clinical trial record like this before?! clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT074...

New Brexit metaphor just dropped.

I don't think people fully appreciate how apocalyptic things are for US science. I haven't had any new funding since 2024, but I'm still ok since typical grants are for three years. This means next year I will be completely out of funding and will have to fire everyone in the lab. It's not great.

Enough money to add years to human lifespan through longevity science

Fascinating study, and could have implications for epigenetic reprogramming (a longevity treatment that involves ‘turning back the clock’ in adult cells, but doesn’t correct any underlying mutations) and stem cell therapies…if it turns out not to be an artefact of the nuclear transfer process!

The most important reason to invest in longevity science: by far the best value way to get more time, in good health too! (Interesting thread…and I suspect if we wait for the earlier types of consumption to plateau before doing aging biology seriously, it will be too late for many of us…)

New longevity intervention just dropped: Dose yourself up with microwaves from your phone and wifi, because mice lived longer while being zapped with high levels of this radiation, constantly!

The Human Ageing Genomic Resources are vital open-source databases on longevity genes and drugs, and animal lifespans. It would be a loss to the field if they go offline due to funding cuts. See @jpsenescence.bsky.social’s post here for more details and how to support:

Very important longevity databases need your help! This is terrible news, and staggeringly short-sighted for such an important resource that costs so little money to maintain. Read about it (and donate if you can) here:

A wonderful new phenomenon for authors: AI spam! (Eternos is the Spanish translation of Ageless, in case you’re wondering.) (There’s also another 500 words of this…)

NSF Update (Awards through 2/27/26) Directorates to follow 1/10

The audience asked, and I was very happy to team up with Prof Linda Partridge and @profbriancox.bsky.social to answer some bonus questions on ageing and longevity for the @crick.ac.uk’s A Question of Science podcast! Check it out at lnk.to/MQOSAgeingPA

“Antibodies harvested from the blood of paediatricians are up to 25 times better at protecting against the common respiratory infection RSV than existing antibody therapies, and are now being developed as preventative treatments.” [newscientist.com]

Interesting WFH variation by country

Supplements, diet plans and exercise regimes are a distraction from the big goals of longevity science, argues Andrew @statto.bsky.social Steele—which seeks to extend life without extending the period of frailty at the end, addressing the hallmarks of aging: buff.ly/iGa5dws

Fantastic paper from Joao and George covering some of the ethical questions arising from longevity science. Great to see this published and proud to have played a small part in its writing!

Important paper. Schools are high-risk environments for respiratory disease transmission MAINLY because classrooms are underventilated. This problem has a workable solution - it just needs political will. Air quality is as important as water quality for public health. MT @martinmckee.bsky.social

It’s very sad that longevity will be tainted by awful associations with Epstein. It’s not just creeps who don’t want themselves or friends and family to get cancer and Alzheimer’s…but creeps and narcissists often want to live longer, so longevity may well attract them. @1followernodad.bsky.social

Among the grotesque things revealed from Epstein & Attia’s long friendship is how cloying & sycophantic the baritone buff alpha science bro is in his private life. Any time I’ve criticised him over the last decade or so I’m met with “no way he’s a dispassionate expert driven by nothing but science”

And Peter Attia MD telling Epstein the biggest problem with being his friend is he can’t tell anyone about the life he lives. Nice.

Here is Peter Attia MD emailing Epstein’s assistant claiming he goes into “JE withdrawal” when he doesn’t see him.

Oh look, according to Peter Attia MD “pussy is low carb” something that is totally normal for a doctor to say to Epstein, who had previously been convicted of procuring a child for prostitution

Great to see this longer cut of my chat with @bigthink.com out—if you saw the first video and wished that there was a bit more detail, or if you missed it and are looking for a 20-minute intro to longevity science, check this out!