I first started to write this post in the immediate aftermath of the UK Parliament descending into a pantomime-like farce; with fewer than 100 days ‘til the UK is destined to leave the EU, our elected representatives chose to spend their last days before the Christmas 2018 recess shouting abuse at each other. Let’s hope in the 71 days remaining before Brexit day, almost enough time for Phileas Fogg to go around the world, that UK politicians spend the time less shambolically but also that they suffer no more intimidation from mobs intent on blurring the lines between populism and extremism.

Recent studies that demonstrate a striking impact of microbiome composition on the efficacy of certain cancer therapies shed a new light on the the role of the microbiome in cancer development and treatment .