In this edition: New thinking on cancer treatment, longevity research, and a chatbot gone rogue.

Cancer Doctors Rethink Aggressive Treatments. They call the strategy de-escalation: cutting back on some therapies to improve a patient’s quality of life without hurting their odds of survival. Some patients with cervical and pancreatic cancer can do as well with less-invasive surgery. Some patients with rectal cancer or Hodgkin lymphoma can safely get less radiation. These and more studies came out at the recent American Society of Clinical Oncology conference in Chicago.  Read more.

• Treatment Breakthrough for an Intractable Brain Cancer (Read)
• Blood-Test Customers Mistakenly Told They May Have Cancer (Read)

Is Taurine the Key to Longer Life? It's an amino acid found in the body--and in supplements and energy drinks. Boosting levels of taurine made mice and worms live longer, according to new research. And middle-aged monkeys given taurine supplements became healthier. In humans, lower levels of taurine were associated with age-related problems. Read more.

Wildfire Smoke Blankets Parts of U.S. Smoke from hundreds of wildfires burning in Canada poses health risks to millions of Americans, especially those with underlying conditions in affected regions. Here's what to know. Read more.

• Smoke Boosts N95 Mask Demand (Read)

🎥 The science behind sound therapy. Proponents of sound therapy, or so-called sound baths, say these musical sessions provide mental health benefits. WSJ’s Daniela Hernandez breaks down the potential benefits. Watch.

How a mental-health chatbot went rogue. A chatbot for people seeking help from an eating-disorder group veered off script and started giving diet advice. It was programmed with generative AI without the group’s knowledge. Read more.

Bitten by a tick? What to do next. The approach of summer means warmer days, more time outside—and nagging worries about ticks. If you find one on yourself, get it off, fast. Read more.

• See How Ticks and Mosqitoes Are Bringing Diseases to More of the U.S. (Read)

Merck Challenges Medicare on Drug-Price Negotiations. A lawsuit by the drugmaker would block new rules allowing price negotiation. It may be just the opening salvo in a high-stakes battle over who controls the prices for cancer, arthritis and other drugs. Read more.

China-Made Chemo Drugs Allowed. The Food and Drug Administration is loosening the rules for importing certain chemotherapy drugs - including from China -- as a way to address cancer drug shortages. Read more.

The FDA Seeks More Power Over Lab Tests. The agency is moving to regulate more closely a widely used class of tests that labs run to measure cholesterol and look for cancer and other health issues. The proposal is likely to face opposition from the $10 billion-a-year lab industry. Read more.

This newsletter was compiled by the WSJ’s Health & Science team. Follow us on Twitter @WSJHealth and @WSJScience. Email us by replying to this newsletter.