The scandal of how people with severe ME have been neglected and stigmatised by the medical establishment has finally been laid bare.

The inquest of Maeve Boothby O’Neill, who died of the disease, aged 27, heard how there is little or no training about how to deal with it in the NHS and that the amount of research into the disease was “woefully inadequate”.

Maeve’s father, Sean O'Neill, who had to fight the NHS for answers regarding his daughter, said: “Maeve didn’t just fall through the cracks; she fell into a huge hole in the health and social care system. There is no specialist care for severe ME. None of the professionals had any education or training and few had any knowledge at all.”

In our latest Insights long read, the co-lead of the world’s largest ever genetic study into ME explains how victims have been routinely ignored and blamed and calls for radical change.

Today we also find out what scientists found when they examined thousands of people’s toothbrushes and shower heads (it’s “absolutely wild”, they said). We discover how Black record shops shaped the sound of the UK. And do try to find time to listen to part three of Know Your Place: what happened to class in British politics, the brilliant podcast series from The Conversation Documentaries.

Academic subscribers can still enter The Conversation prize for writers in partnership with Curtis Brown and Faber. We’re looking for the best longform article and nonfiction book idea aimed at a general audience. The prize is £1,000, online publication of your article on our website, and mentorship for developing a nonfiction book from a literary agent and book publishing editor. Find out more on how to enter.