Disease X: The Unknown Pathogen That Could Kill 50 Million People

A UK health expert has issued a warning regarding Disease X, a designation by the World Health Organization (WHO), stating that it has the potential to trigger a more devastating pandemic than Covid-19.

During an interview with the Daily Mail, Kate Bingham, who served as the chair of the UK's Vaccine Taskforce from May to December 2020, expressed concerns that this new pathogen could yield consequences reminiscent of the catastrophic Spanish Flu of 1919-1920. WHO has described Disease X as a novel agent, whether it be a virus, bacteria, or fungus, for which there are no known treatments.

Expressing her concern, Bingham said, "To put it plainly, the 1918-19 flu pandemic claimed the lives of at least 50 million people worldwide, twice the number of casualties from World War I. Today, a similar death toll could be anticipated from any of the numerous existing viruses."

Addressing the imperative of combatting Disease X, she advised, "The world must brace itself for extensive mass vaccination campaigns and swift administration of doses."

Furthermore, the expert pointed out that scientists have identified 25 virus families, but there could be over a million undiscovered variants capable of crossing species boundaries.

"We were somewhat fortunate with Covid-19, despite its global death toll exceeding 20 million. The key difference is that the majority of those infected managed to recover... Imagine Disease X being as contagious as measles while having the lethality of Ebola. Somewhere in the world, it's replicating, and inevitably, someone will start showing symptoms," Bingham cautioned as quoted by Daily Mail.

She noted that Ebola, with its roughly 67% fatality rate, as well as other diseases like bird flu and MERS, claimed numerous lives. She stressed, "We can't assume that the next pandemic will be easily contained."

Bingham also shed light on the reasons behind the increasing frequency of pandemics. She explained, "The rise in outbreaks is a consequence of the modern world we inhabit. Firstly, it's characterized by heightened global interconnectivity. Secondly, urbanisation has led to a concentration of people in cities, where close human contact is more prevalent."

Viruses are now crossing from one species to another due to deforestation, contemporary agricultural practices, and the destruction of wetlands.

The term Disease X was initially mentioned by WHO on its website in May, signifying "the potential for an international epidemic caused by a pathogen not yet identified as causing human disease."

WHO introduced this term in 2018, and just a year later, Covid-19 began its rapid spread across the world.