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All research trendsMonthly report · October 2026

The fastest-rising topics in medicine: October 2026

Every month we count new papers in PubMed and new studies on ClinicalTrials.gov for 282 research topics in 22 specialties, over the 12 months to 9 Oct 2026, against the 12 months before. These are the topics gaining the most ground.

topics followed
282
specialties
22
data as of
10 Oct

Top 10 across medicine

Ranked by the PubDaily Trend Score (new papers, stronger evidence, new trials, new guidelines), among topics with 100+ papers the year before.

  1. 1
    Internal medicineCardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome
    +155%papers · score 98

    1,090 papers in 12 months21 new trials8 new guidelines

  2. 2
    CardiologyTirzepatide in cardiovascular disease
    +86%papers · score 91

    384 papers in 12 months41 new trials7 new guidelines

  3. 3
    Internal medicineGLP-1 drugs for obesity
    +58%papers · score 90

    3,121 papers in 12 months341 new trials18 new guidelines

  4. 4
    Internal medicineLarge language models in clinical care
    +46%papers · score 90

    7,005 papers in 12 months180 new trials11 new guidelines

  5. 5
    OncologyClaudin 18.2
    +68%papers · score 90

    284 papers in 12 months47 new trials3 new guidelines

    Key point: Zolbetuximab is recommended for patients with gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma, PD-L1 <1, and positive CLDN18.2 expression. PMID 41747202

  6. 6
    EndocrinologyTirzepatide
    +75%papers · score 89

    1,361 papers in 12 months122 new trials10 new guidelines

  7. 7
    CardiologyPulsed field ablation
    +73%papers · score 88

    967 papers in 12 months90 new trials4 new guidelines

  8. 8
    General surgeryEnhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS)
    +36%papers · score 86

    2,097 papers in 12 months179 new trials11 new guidelines

  9. 9
    PulmonologyNew treatments for sleep apnoea
    +40%papers · score 86

    250 papers in 12 months24 new trials5 new guidelines

    Key point: Pharmacological therapy is not routine OSA treatment; dual GIP/GLP-1 agonists such as tirzepatide may be considered adjunctively for obese moderate-to-severe OSA. PMID 41820035

  10. 10
    PsychiatryGLP-1 drugs, addiction and mood
    +61%papers · score 85

    373 papers in 12 months35 new trials3 new guidelines

Most new clinical trials

Studies first registered on ClinicalTrials.gov in the last 12 months.

  1. 1. Whole blood in trauma resuscitation · Emergency medicine1,561 trials
  2. 2. Frailty assessment · Internal medicine420 trials
  3. 3. Digital mental health apps · Psychiatry413 trials
  4. 4. Menopausal hormone therapy · Endocrinology400 trials
  5. 5. GLP-1 drugs for obesity · Internal medicine341 trials

Most new guidelines

Guidelines and consensus statements indexed in PubMed this year.

  1. 1. Metabolic and bariatric surgery · General surgery37 guidelines
  2. 2. MASLD and MASH · Gastroenterology22 guidelines
  3. 3. Frailty assessment · Internal medicine19 guidelines
  4. 4. Antibody-drug conjugates · Oncology19 guidelines
  5. 5. GLP-1 drugs for obesity · Internal medicine18 guidelines

Emerging topics to watch

Fewer than 100 papers the year before, too few to score, but growing fastest (30+ papers in the last 12 months).

  1. 1. New antihypertensive drugs · Cardiology+105% papers
  2. 2. GLP-1 drugs in PCOS · Obstetrics & gynecology+69% papers
  3. 3. Teleophthalmology · Ophthalmology+61% papers
  4. 4. Oral step-down for serious infections · Infectious diseases+57% papers
  5. 5. Menin inhibitors in AML · Hematology+52% papers

By specialty

The top 3 topics in each specialty this month.

Anesthesiology
  1. 1. Opioid-free anaesthesia+76%
  2. 2. GLP-1 drugs and perioperative aspiration+60%
  3. 3. Intraoperative hypotension+44%
Cardiology
  1. 1. Tirzepatide in cardiovascular disease+86%
  2. 2. Pulsed field ablation+73%
  3. 3. Semaglutide and cardiovascular outcomes+49%
Emergency medicine
  1. 1. Point-of-care ultrasound in the ED+24%
  2. 2. AI for ED triage+71%
  3. 3. High-sensitivity troponin pathways+23%
Endocrinology
  1. 1. Tirzepatide+75%
  2. 2. Next-generation incretin drugs+80%
  3. 3. Oral GLP-1 drugs+88%
Gastroenterology
  1. 1. MASLD and MASH+34%
  2. 2. Fecal microbiota transplantation+31%
  3. 3. IL-23 inhibitors in IBD+33%
General surgery
  1. 1. Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS)+36%
  2. 2. AI and surgical video+54%
  3. 3. Robotic general surgery+38%
Hematology
  1. 1. Bispecific antibodies in myeloma+46%
  2. 2. Measurable residual disease+40%
  3. 3. CAR-T in blood cancers+18%
Infectious diseases
  1. 1. Shorter antibiotic courses+47%
  2. 2. Long-acting HIV prevention+29%
  3. 3. Candida auris+16%
Internal medicine
  1. 1. Cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome+155%
  2. 2. GLP-1 drugs for obesity+58%
  3. 3. Large language models in clinical care+46%
Nephrology
  1. 1. GLP-1 drugs in kidney disease+49%
  2. 2. SGLT2 inhibitors in CKD+39%
  3. 3. Acute kidney injury biomarkers+26%
Neurology
  1. 1. Blood tests for Alzheimer's disease+64%
  2. 2. Focused ultrasound for tremor+28%
  3. 3. CGRP-targeted migraine treatment+17%
Obstetrics & gynecology
  1. 1. Non-hormonal treatment of hot flushes+49%
  2. 2. Maternal RSV vaccination+32%
  3. 3. Fertility preservation+23%
Oncology
  1. 1. Claudin 18.2+68%
  2. 2. Circulating tumour DNA+34%
  3. 3. Antibody-drug conjugates+37%
Ophthalmology
  1. 1. Longer-acting anti-VEGF+55%
  2. 2. Myopia control in children+20%
  3. 3. Ischaemic optic neuropathy-1%
Orthopedics
  1. 1. Disease-modifying osteoarthritis drugs+90%
  2. 2. AI fracture detection+53%
  3. 3. 3D-printed and patient-specific implants+18%
Otorhinolaryngology
  1. 1. Vestibular migraine+16%
  2. 2. Biologics for nasal polyps+27%
  3. 3. Gene therapy for hearing loss+12%
Pediatrics
  1. 1. Obesity medicines in adolescents+82%
  2. 2. Pediatric sepsis criteria+62%
  3. 3. Genomic newborn screening+26%
Plastic surgery
  1. 1. Negative pressure wound therapy+21%
  2. 2. Fat grafting+18%
  3. 3. Body contouring after weight loss+24%
Psychiatry
  1. 1. GLP-1 drugs, addiction and mood+61%
  2. 2. AI chatbots in mental health+49%
  3. 3. Digital mental health apps+21%
Pulmonology
  1. 1. New treatments for sleep apnoea+40%
  2. 2. High-flow nasal oxygen+29%
  3. 3. Biologics in COPD+70%
Rheumatology
  1. 1. CAR-T for autoimmune disease+50%
  2. 2. New lupus treatments+24%
  3. 3. Rheumatic immune-related adverse events+13%
Urology
  1. 1. Minimally invasive BPH treatments+39%
  2. 2. Antibody-drug conjugates in bladder cancer+38%
  3. 3. MRI in prostate cancer diagnosis+18%

Cite this report

Free to quote and republish with a link to this page.

PubDaily. The fastest-rising topics in medicine: October 2026. Data from PubMed and ClinicalTrials.gov, 10 Oct 2026. https://pubdaily.app/trends/report/2026-10/

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How the Trend Score works

Four signals

Growth in new papers (35%), growth in randomised trials, meta-analyses and systematic reviews (25%), new clinical trials registered (20%), and new guidelines and consensus statements (20%), each over the last 12 months against the 12 before.

A score out of 100

Each signal is ranked against every topic we follow, so a score of 90 means the topic is ahead of about 90% of them. Rising fast: 80 and above. Rising: 55 to 79. Emerging: fewer than 100 papers the year before, too few to rank.

What it does not tell you

More research on a topic is not evidence that a treatment works. Open a topic to read the papers and guidelines themselves. Counts come from PubMed and ClinicalTrials.gov.

Numbers in this report are as of 10 Oct 2026 and stay as published; each topic page shows today's counts. Counts come from PubMed and ClinicalTrials.gov searches and are approximate: a query can miss synonyms or catch unrelated papers. More research on a topic is not evidence that a treatment works.