Most common childhood cancer in Russia revealed

Every day, countless events happen around the world, making it impossible to keep up with the news flow. That is why we have compiled the most important stories in this digest. Today, we summarize February 4.

Proposal to exempt women from tax after childbirth

Russian women who are self-employed would be exempt from paying the professional income tax for one year after giving birth, according to a bill submitted to the Russian government for review.

«To give mothers time to calmly enter a new stage of life, raise their child, and keep their business without losing legal status and clients. By supporting self-employed women, we support families,» Slutsky said in an interview with TASS.

Lawmakers propose adding a new article to the law «On conducting an experiment to establish a special tax regime “Professional Income Tax”». The exemption would be in effect for one year, starting from the first day of the tax period in which the tax authority decides to grant this support measure.

Apartment buyers can claim millions from developers

This year, important changes for shared-equity home buyers came into force: the moratorium on fines for developers who miss housing delivery deadlines has been lifted. This means apartment buyers can once again demand compensation for delays, and these amounts can be substantial.

According to Maria Ivatkina, an expert at the NIFI (Financial Research Institute) of the Russian Ministry of Finance project «Moifinansy.rf», the amount of recovery is calculated from three factors:

• the cost of the apartment per contract;
• the number of days of delay;
• the current key rate of the Central Bank.

«Let’s take a hypothetical apartment cost of 10,000,000 rubles (approx. $111,100 at current rates), a delay of 6 months — approximately 180 days, and the current key rate of 16%. In this case, the penalty for one day of delay would be 10,667 rubles ($119), and for six months it would accumulate to 1,920,000 rubles ($21,300),» Ivatkina said.

To receive the money, you first need to write an official letter — a claim — to the developer, clearly stating the amount you want for the delay.

If the developer refuses to pay, go to court. There you can demand not only compensation for the delay but also an additional fine — half of the awarded amount. This is punishment for the developer for not wanting to resolve the issue amicably.

Moreover, under no circumstances should you sign documents agreeing to a new completion date. If you do, you will lose the right to compensation.

Workers may get new type of sick leave

A bill on a new type of sick leave that would allow ill employees to work remotely will be submitted to the State Duma, reported State Duma deputy Yaroslav Nilov.

«There are several proposals, including one on adaptive sick leave. The initiative is planned to be submitted for consideration by the State Duma in the near future,» the deputy said in an interview with TASS.

Nilov emphasized that the essence of the initiative is a differentiated approach to issuing sick leave certificates. Workers who can continue to perform their duties if the illness does not interfere with their work can take adaptive sick leave instead of the regular one.

Internet to be available on trains across Russia

Mobile communications and internet access should become mandatory services for train passengers across Russia, said Nadezhda Shkolkina, first deputy chair of the State Duma committee on economic policy.

«In the context of widespread digitalization that has essentially covered all spheres of life, the issue of mobile communications and internet availability on long-distance trains is obvious,» the deputy said in an interview with TASS.

According to her, Russian Railways is also striving for this. She believes that stable communication and internet should become an integral part of the services provided by railways to passengers throughout the entire train journey.

Currently, mobile communications and especially internet do not work stably on all sections of the railways.

School bullies may be transferred to special institutions

Students who systematically participate in bullying should be transferred to specialized institutions, according to Armen Gasparyan, first deputy chair of the Commission on Education and Upbringing of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation, and a member of the Public Council under the Ministry of Digital Development.

«As for bullying, the situation is complicated. I think that the most difficult cases (of schoolchildren) must be transferred to special institutions,» Gasparyan said.

In his opinion, it is also important to strengthen social advertising, increase the responsibility of teachers, and form a clear understanding among students that bullying is unacceptable.

«Students must understand that this (bullying) is unacceptable. And if someone is unable to understand, then they should be made to understand in other institutions. That would be more than fair,» he concluded in an interview with RIA Novosti.

Ministry of Digital Development updates whitelist of websites

The expanded update of the whitelist of websites available in Russia during mobile internet restrictions includes bank websites, delivery services, and other resources, the Ministry of Digital Development reported.

The list includes VTB Bank, Promsvyazbank (PSB), Burger King and Detsky Mir websites, delivery services CDEK, Kuper, and Samokat, railway operator Grand Service Express, and marketplace Megamarket.

The list is also expanded with several Federal Tax Service services for taxpayers and several regional services and websites of regional authorities.

Among media outlets, VGTRK, TV channels Zvezda, Vmeste-RF, and Match TV were included, as well as Kommersant and others.

Amid restrictions and blocklists, some social media users are convinced that in the future the «whitelist» will include everything necessary, and Russians will be completely isolated from the global internet. However, lead analyst at Mobile Research Group Eldar Murtazin does not believe in such a scenario.

According to him, creating and maintaining «whitelists» is a complex technical task that places a heavy burden on operators.

The expert stressed that there are «loopholes» in the services through which access to any resources can be obtained.

«The operator sees these gateways, goes to the service, and says, “You have a hole in your app, you need to close it, or we will disconnect you.” For operators, this is an unusual function; they spend effort and money, so it is impossible to expand the “whitelists” indefinitely,» he shared in an interview with MSK1.RU.

Member of Pesnyary and director of singer Natalia Shturm dies

Natalia Shturm, known as the performer of the 1990s hit «School Romance», reported the death of Georgy Portnoy, a musician, singer, and showman who worked with the groups Pesnyary and Zhenya Osin.

«Georgy Portnoy, my concert director and also director of the groups Pesnyary and Zhenya Osin, died suddenly. A heart attack on a Moscow street, he could not be saved,» the singer said.

She expressed condolences to Portnoy«s family and said that a farewell would take place on February 5 at the Savelovsky Funeral Service Center.

It is known that Portnoy not only served as concert director but also actively participated in stage activities. As part of Pesnyary, he performed as a keyboardist and backing vocalist.

Queen of the Netherlands conscripted at age 54

Queen Máxima of the Netherlands will soon begin military service as a reservist in the country«s armed forces, reported RTL Nieuws, citing sources in the Ministry of Defense.

According to them, Máxima will undergo a training program that includes theoretical and practical sessions. She will learn weapon handling, target shooting, tactical training, and basic map navigation. The training process will be adapted to her schedule, with regular class attendance.

«The queen is expected to undergo a military training program that includes theoretical and physical exercises. Among other things, she will learn to shoot and read maps,» the TV channel quoted sources.

The Dutch Ministry of Defense hopes that the queen«s participation in military service will increase citizens» interest in a military career and reserve service.

Rospotrebnadzor announces new vaccine against dangerous virus

A vaccine against rotavirus has been developed in Russia and is planned to be released soon, reported Rospotrebnadzor head Anna Popova at a plenary session of the Federation Council.

Rotavirus is a small virus from the Reoviridae family that causes acute intestinal infection. The disease it triggers is often called rotavirus infection or rotavirus gastroenteritis. This infection can be transmitted through food (usually dairy products), contact (dirty hands and household items), airborne droplets, and water (drinking water contaminated with viruses).

«A vaccine against rotavirus has been developed and is being prepared for release,» Popova said at the plenary session of the Federation Council.

Rotavirus is especially dangerous for young children as it causes dehydration, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and fever. Cases are recorded year-round.

Immunization reduces the number of patients and hospitalizations. Therefore, Rospotrebnadzor proposes vaccination with special drops containing weak or inactive viruses. These drops teach the body to fight the infection.

Oncologist names most common childhood cancer in Russia

In Russia and the world, the most common type of cancer among children is acute leukemia. Details about the dangerous disease were provided by Alexander Rumyantsev, president of the Dmitry Rogachev National Medical Research Center for Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Immunology, and an academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

«This is a group of diseases of the hematopoietic immune system, accounting for about 50% of all oncological diseases in children,» Rumyantsev said.

On the second place in prevalence among children are tumors of the central nervous system, accounting for about 25%. In adults, according to Rumyantsev, the structure of cancer incidence is completely different.

«And approximately 25% are so-called germ cell tumors. These are tumors that arise from anlages of aberrant tissues, etc. So they all have a genetic, hereditary nature as a rule. These are non-acquired disorders because they usually form in utero. This is also a serious difference from oncological diseases in adults,» Rumyantsev clarified in an interview with RIA Novosti.

Children with this group of diseases have developmental defects, biochemical, biological, and other disorders that cause this type of cancer to develop.