Health

Experts warn bird flu virus changing rapidly in largest ever outbreak

Published

3 years ago

June 4, 2023

The virus causing record cases of avian influenza in birds across the world is changing rapidly, experts have warned, as calls increase for countries to vaccinate their poultry.

While emphasizing that the risk to humans remains low, the experts who spoke to AFP said that the surging number of bird flu cases in mammals was a cause for concern.

Since first emerging in 1996, the H5N1 avian influenza virus had previously been confined to mostly seasonal outbreaks.

But “something happened” in mid-2021 that made the group of viruses much more infectious, according to Richard Webby, the head of a World Health Organization collaborating center studying influenza in animals.

Since then, outbreaks have lasted all year round, spreading to new areas and leading to mass deaths among wild birds and tens of millions of poultry being culled, AFP reported.

Webby, who is a researcher at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the US city of Memphis, told AFP it was “absolutely” the largest outbreak of avian influenza the world had seen.

He led research, published this week in the journal Nature Communications, showing how the virus rapidly evolved as it spread from Europe into North America.

The study said the virus increased in virulence, which means it causes more dangerous disease, when it arrived in North America.

The researchers also infected a ferret with one of the new strains of bird flu.

They found an unexpectedly “huge” amount of the virus in its brain, Webby said, indicating it had caused more serious disease than previous strains.

Emphasizing that the risk in humans was still low, he said that “this virus is not being static, it’s changing”.

“That does increase the potential that even just by chance” the virus could “pick up genetic traits that allow it to be more of a human virus,” he said.

In rare cases, humans have contracted the sometimes deadly virus, usually after coming in close contact with infected birds.

The virus has also been detected in a soaring number of mammals, which Webby described as a “really, really troubling sign”.

Last week Chile said that nearly 9,000 sea lions, penguins, otters, porpoises and dolphins have died from bird flu along its north coast since the start of the year, AFP reported.

Most mammals are believed to have contracted the virus by eating an infected bird.

But Webby said that what “scares us the most” are indications from a Spanish mink farm, or among sea lions off South America, that the virus could be transmitting between mammals.

Ian Brown, virology head at the UK’s Animal and Plant Health Agency, said there has not yet been “clear evidence that this virus is easily sustaining in mammals.”

While the virus is changing to become “more efficient and more effective in birds,” it remains “unadapted to humans,” Brown told AFP.

Avian viruses bind to different receptors on the host cell than human viruses, Webby said.

It would take “two or three minor changes in one protein of the viruses” to become more adapted to humans, he said.

“That is what we’re really looking out for.”

Vaccinating poultry

One way to bring down the number of total bird flu cases, and therefore reduce the risk to humans, would be for countries to vaccinate their poultry, Webby said.

A few nations including China, Egypt and Vietnam have already held vaccination campaigns for poultry.

But many other countries have been reluctant due to import restrictions in some areas, and fears vaccinated birds that nonetheless get infected could slip through the net.

In April, the United States started testing several vaccine candidates for potential use on birds.

France recently said it hopes to start vaccinating poultry as early as autumn this year.

Christine Middlemiss, the UK’s chief veterinary officer, said that vaccinating poultry was not “a silver bullet because the virus changes constantly”.

But traditionally reluctant countries should consider vaccinating poultry more often, Middlemiss told AFP at an event at the UK’s embassy in Paris last week.

World Organisation for Animal Health director general Monique Eloit said that the issue of vaccinating poultry should be “on the table”.

After all, “everyone now knows that a pandemic is not just a fantasy — it could be a reality,” she added.

Related Topics:#BirdFlu #influenza #Poultry featured Health

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Four-day polio vaccination campaign begins across Afghanistan

Published

5 days ago

September 21, 2026

Ariana News

A nationwide polio vaccination campaign got underway across Afghanistan on Monday.

The four-day campaign aims to vaccinate around 12.77 million children under the age of five against polio.

Officials said the campaign is aimed at strengthening protection for children against polio and preventing the spread of the virus.

However, in the southern zone of the country, the polio vaccination campaign will begin one day later, on Tuesday, to ensure better implementation.

According to the information provided, Afghanistan has conducted one nationwide and two sub-national polio vaccination campaigns so far this year. The current campaign is the fourth of the year. In addition, localized campaigns and public awareness programs have also been carried out.

Officials said some environmental samples linked to the polio virus have tested positive. However, the Ministry of Public Health has not so far confirmed any human cases of polio.

According to officials, investigations into suspected cases are ongoing, and information on confirmed human cases will be shared once the assessments are completed and sufficient evidence is available.

Health

Afghanistan faces cancer treatment crisis

Spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Health, said dozens of cancer treatment centers are operating across the country.

Published

2 weeks ago

September 13, 2026

Ariana News

The Afghanistan Cancer Foundation has raised concern over the rising number of cancer cases across the country, saying at least 1.5 million people are currently suffering from the disease.

According to figures released on Saturday, September 11, about 50,000 new cases are recorded annually. The figures are based on data from the Ministry of Public Health and international organizations.

Shafiq Shinwari, head of the Afghan Cancer Foundation, said in a recent interview that breast and uterine cancers are among the most common cancers in women, while lung, stomach, prostate and colon cancers are widespread among men.

He said cancer is the second-leading cause of death in Afghanistan after heart disease.

Cancer specialist Dr. Rahim Gul Darwish identified smoking and tobacco use, poor hygiene and unhealthy diets as major factors contributing to the spread of the disease.

Meanwhile, Sharafat Zaman Amarkhail, spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Health, said dozens of cancer treatment centers are operating across the country. However, he acknowledged serious shortages of modern equipment and facilities needed to provide comprehensive treatment.

The situation has been further aggravated by the departure of hundreds of medical specialists and healthcare workers since the Islamic Emirate returned to power, according to reports.

Afghan patients have also faced growing difficulties accessing treatment abroad. Many previously travelled to Pakistan for cancer care, but border closures and restrictions on Pakistani visas have made access more difficult.

Doctors say cancer patients require continuous treatment and regular specialist care, warning that shortages of facilities and restrictions on cross-border travel are increasing the risks for patients.

Health

Genetically modified pig kidney keeps man alive for record nine months

Published

3 weeks ago

September 4, 2026

Ariana News

A genetically modified pig kidney has kept a 66-year-old man with end-stage kidney disease alive without dialysis for a record nine months, marking the first time a pig kidney has successfully served as a temporary “bridge” to a human kidney transplant.

Tim Andrews, from New Hampshire, was suffering from severe kidney failure caused by type 2 diabetes. Doctors said he had only a 9% chance of receiving a human kidney within five years, while facing a more than 40% risk of dying or being removed from the transplant waiting list.

Tim Andrews preparing for surgery in January 2025

Surgeons at Mass General Brigham in Massachusetts transplanted a kidney from a genetically modified Yucatan miniature pig named Wilma into Andrews in January 2025. The kidney functioned for 271 days, allowing him to remain free of dialysis before it began to fail.

After the pig kidney was removed, Andrews spent several months back on dialysis before receiving a kidney from a deceased human donor. The human kidney was functioning well after six months of follow-up, according to findings published in the medical journal The Lancet.

The transplant represents the longest dialysis-free survival recorded following a pig kidney xenotransplant in a living person. It is also the first documented case in which a patient successfully moved from a pig kidney transplant to a human kidney transplant.

Before the procedure, Wilma’s genome underwent 69 genetic modifications. Some changes were intended to reduce the risk of viruses being transmitted to humans, while others were designed to make the pig kidney more compatible with the human immune system and reduce the risk of rejection.

Andrews described the procedure as a “miracle”, saying it allowed him to return to everyday activities. He said he was able to cook, vacuum and take long walks with his dog.

The development could offer a potential solution to the severe shortage of human organs available for transplantation. Kidney transplantation provides the best survival prospects and quality of life for patients with end-stage kidney disease, but the global demand for donor kidneys far exceeds the supply.

Dr Leonardo Riella of Mass General Brigham said the shortage of organs remains “the greatest crisis” in transplantation. He said genetically modified animal organs could initially be used to help patients avoid dialysis while they wait for a human donor kidney and could eventually become a long-term treatment option if their safety and durability are established.

The pig kidney began showing damage to its blood vessels after about six months, eventually leading to organ failure and its removal nine months after transplantation.

Doctors found no new antibodies against human tissue following the procedure, suggesting the pig kidney did not make Andrews’ subsequent human transplant more difficult. No pig viruses or other pig pathogens were detected at any point.

The researchers cautioned that the result is based on a single patient with no comparison group. They said the outcome also depended on careful patient selection and intensive specialist care that may not be available in all settings.

Further clinical trials will be needed to determine whether genetically modified pig kidneys can safely and reliably be used as a bridge for other patients facing long waits for human organs.

The researchers said the case nevertheless provides new evidence that pig kidney transplantation could help address the global organ shortage and potentially offer patients a way to remain off dialysis while waiting for a human kidney.