Millennium Development Goal 5 calls for a 75% reduction in the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) between 1990 and 2015. We estimated levels and trends in maternal mortality for 183 countries to assess progress made. Based on MMR estimates for 2015, we constructed projections to show the requirements for the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of less than 70 maternal deaths per 100,000 livebirths globally by 2030.

Investments in cancer control--prevention, detection, diagnosis, surgery, other treatment, and palliative care--are increasingly needed in low-income and particularly in middle-income countries, where most of the world's cancer deaths occur without treatment or palliation. To help countries expand locally appropriate services, Cancer (the third volume of nine in Disease Control Priorities, 3rd edition) developed an essential package of potentially cost-effective measures for countries to consider and adapt. Interventions included in the package are: prevention of tobacco-related cancer and virus-related liver and cervical cancers; diagnosis and treatment of early breast cancer, cervical cancer, and selected childhood cancers; and widespread availability of palliative care, including opioids. These interventions would cost an additional US$20 billion per year worldwide, constituting 3% of total public spending on health in low-income and middle-income countries. With implementation of an appropriately tailored package, most countries could substantially reduce suffering and premature death from cancer before 2030, with even greater improvements in later decades.

Preterm pre-labour ruptured membranes close to term is associated with increased risk of neonatal infection, but immediate delivery is associated with risks of prematurity. The balance of risks is unclear. We aimed to establish whether immediate birth in singleton pregnancies with ruptured membranes close to term reduces neonatal infection without increasing other morbidity.

In the CHAMPION trial, significant reductions in admissions to hospital for heart failure were seen after 6 months of pulmonary artery pressure guided management compared with usual care. We examine the extended efficacy of this strategy over 18 months of randomised follow-up and the clinical effect of open access to pressure information for an additional 13 months in patients formerly in the control group.

Recent hypertension guidelines have reversed previous recommendations for lower blood pressure targets in high-risk patients, such as those with cardiovascular disease, renal disease, or diabetes. This change represents uncertainty about whether more intensive blood pressure-lowering strategies are associated with greater reductions in risk of major cardiovascular and renal events. We aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of intensive blood pressure-lowering strategies.

The phase 3 trial of the RTS,S/AS01 malaria vaccine candidate showed modest efficacy of the vaccine against Plasmodium falciparum malaria, but was not powered to assess mortality endpoints. Impact projections and cost-effectiveness estimates for longer timeframes than the trial follow-up and across a range of settings are needed to inform policy recommendations. We aimed to assess the public health impact and cost-effectiveness of routine use of the RTS,S/AS01 vaccine in African settings.

Mammography is the only proven method for breast cancer screening that reduces mortality, although it is inaccurate in young women or women with dense breasts. We investigated the efficacy of adjunctive ultrasonography.

REG1 is a novel anticoagulation system consisting of pegnivacogin, an RNA aptamer inhibitor of coagulation factor IXa, and anivamersen, a complementary sequence reversal oligonucleotide. We tested the hypothesis that near complete inhibition of factor IXa with pegnivacogin during percutaneous coronary intervention, followed by partial reversal with anivamersen, would reduce ischaemic events compared with bivalirudin, without increasing bleeding.