New CJD may have claimed 15th victim
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A 15th person is suspected of dying from new variant Creutzfeldt- Jakob disease, the illness which has been linked with beef from cattle suffering from "mad-cow" disease.
The Department of Health yesterday said there was a "probable" new case, in addition to 14 known victims, two of whom are still alive.
However, a spokesman refused to confirm that the new case was that of 19-year-old Victoria Lowther from Carlisle, Cumbria, whose death in November last year was widely reported to have been caused by new variant CJD. This form of the disease can only be confirmed absolutely after a postmortem, although there are characteristics which distinguish it from the classic form of the degenerative brain disease which tends to occur in people over 60.
Scientists announced the discovery of new variant CJD in March last year. Their advice to the Government, that the most likely cause was bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), triggered the beef crisis.
Liz Hunt
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments