Dr. Leana Wen

06/05/2026

The recent Enhanced Games in Las Vegas, where elite athletes attempted to break world records by pumping their bodies full of performance-enhancing drugs that are banned in competition, has already received plenty of criticism for perverting the spirit of sports. It was also emblematic of a broader cultural shift in the concept of wellness — away from preventing illness through exercise and nutrition and toward using supplements and potentially dangerous peptide injections to become fitter, younger and supposedly “better” versions of ourselves.

More in this week’s Washington Post:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/06/02/enhanced-games-was-wellness-culture-gone-wrong/

Athletes pumping their bodies with chemicals to maximize performance sets a terrible example for everyone else.

05/19/2026

For weeks, the media has been fixated on whether a hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship, which killed three people, could lead to the next pandemic. (The answer is almost certainly no.) Meanwhile, a far more dangerous public health situation has been festering with far less attention: Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The outbreak has already killed more than 130 people and is suspected to have infected over 500, including one confirmed case in an American doctor. Ebola is a rare but extraordinarily deadly viral disease, with an average fatality rate of 50%.

More in this Washington Post article and CNN interview:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/05/18/ebola-outbreak-congo-is-threat-world-cannot-ignore

05/11/2026

Public health officials have been clear that hantavirus is not the next coronavirus. They are right. This is not a novel disease. Human-to-human transmission is rare. This outbreak will almost certainly be limited to small clusters. But it does underscore the importance of global collaboration and of adequately funding disease surveillance and outbreak response.

More in this CNN Newsroom interview.

04/21/2026

It’s easy to dismiss Utah’s latest artificial intelligence experiment as dangerous and dystopian. The state has partnered with a company called Doctronic to empower an “AI doctor,” rather than a human clinician, to refill medication prescriptions.

But the idea deserves serious consideration. Deployed carefully, this innovation could improve access to care and reduce costs, even as it raises legitimate ethical and regulatory concerns.

My latest Washington Post column is about Utah’s pilot. It features interviews with Doctronic's cofounders as well as experts who take a more guarded approach.

For instance, Daniel Aaron, a physician and associate law professor at the University of Utah, noted that the US has long required medical devices to demonstrate safety and effectiveness before widespread use.

“To have this incredibly novel use of a medical device without FDA saying a word is quite stunning and suggests that maybe we are going to see more untested products reach the market,” he said.

More: https://wapo.st/4vEuI4M

Utah’s experiment with AI-generated prescriptions won’t be the last. It raises urgent regulatory questions that needs answers.

03/12/2026

We know ultra-processed foods are bad for health, but how, exactly, do we define them?

My Washington Post column this week explored how researchers from the University of Pennsylvania are proposing a new definition. Instead of trying to identify what qualifies as ultra-processed based on specific chemicals like dyes, preservatives and additives, define what does NOT qualify.

Take yogurt. The traditional method would involve comparing its ingredients against a long list of additives that could pose health risks. Under the alternative framework, researchers would specify what a non-ultra-processed yogurt would look like. In addition to milk and live cultures, permissible ingredients might include fruit, nuts and nutritive sweeteners such as honey. Anything besides that, such as modified food starch, dextrose or dyes, would automatically render the product ultra-processed.

The same framework could be applied across the food supply. Foods would be grouped into categories based on how they are produced and consumed, and experts would specify, for each type of food, what qualifies as non-ultra-processed. Those definitions, updated periodically as manufacturing practices evolve, could then be used to set procurement rules and school-meal standards.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/03/10/utra-processed-foods-definition-health-diet/

Identifying unhealthy food is not as easy as one might think.

02/11/2026

For decades, breast cancer screening has been synonymous with the mammogram. Women’s preventive care has centered on the annual test, and for good reason: 1 in 8 women in the US are diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetimes, and early detection is key to making sure it doesn’t spread.

Recent research challenges this long-standing approach, however. A major study published in JAMA suggests the most effective screening strategy is based not on the yearly mammogram, but genetic testing combined with an assessment of individual risk factors.

More in this week's Washington Post column:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/02/10/breast-cancer-screening-mammograms/

This test may be crucial for breast cancer screening. It’s not a mammogram.

01/07/2026

As 2026 gets underway, health policy is entering a period of consequential change that will affect who can access medical care, what it costs and how the nation approaches public health.

This week’s Washington Post column is in on the 10 issues I will be watching closely in the year ahead.

https://wapo.st/49tk1rv

The year ahead promises new health care innovations alongside major changes to public health policy.

11/13/2025

The class of medicines known as GLP-1s have transformed clinical practice and shifted public perception to view obesity as a chronic disease that merits medical management.

Growing research is demonstrating that the potential of GLP-1s extends far beyond obesity care. Some benefits are already well-established and represent extraordinary medical advances that deserve greater attention, while others remain speculative and at risk of being overly hyped. Clinicians and patients alike should focus on what is firmly supported by evidence while maintaining healthy skepticism toward uses that have not yet been proven.

More in this week’s Washington Post column: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/11/11/glp-1-weight-loss-drugs-obesity

The medications aren’t just for diabetes and obesity, but they also aren’t for every ailment.

10/14/2025

More than 1 in 3 Americans have already used chatbots to research medical concerns. While there are real risks associated with them, and they should not be used to replace care from medical professionals, AI can help patients manage their health more effectively.

My latest Washington Post column has guidance on how you can best use these tools to support your care — and when you should proceed with caution. (Featuring comments from Dsr. Eric Topol and Adam Rodman.)

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/10/14/ai-chatbots-health-care-diagnoses/

Chatbots can help patients with their health, when used with caution

08/15/2025

There is a sense of fear and futility among many American scientists. Billions of dollars in federal grants to universities have been frozen or slashed. Thousands of scientists across federal agencies have been terminated.

Against this backdrop, the Aix-Marseille University in France is welcoming America’s “scientific refugees” with open arms. The "Safe Place for Science" program is tasked with recruiting American researchers and providing them with three years of dedicated funding. In three weeks, the program received about 300 applications; in total, it has some 600 applicants, including scientists from universities such as Harvard, Columbia, Stanford and Johns Hopkins.

More in this Washington Post column:

As the Trump administration cuts science jobs and funding, this university is offering to a new home.