UK death toll from vCJD rising by a third each year
A research letter published in the UK-based medical journal 'The Lancet' in the first week of August states that the incidence of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) has increased by an average of 23% each year since 1994 and that death resulting from the disease has increased by a third each year since 1995. Fourteen people have already died from vCJD in the first six months of 2000 in the UK, compared with 18 deaths for the whole of 1998. 'Given that further cases with onsets in 1999 and 2000 will probably be identified in future months, the number of onsets clearly increases each year,' writes the research team. Hester Ward, one of the investigators, comments: 'Although absolute numbers remain low, there appears to be a real increase in the incidence of vCJD in the UK, which is a cause for concern. Until it is known whether this increasing trend is maintained over time it is difficult to predict future numbers of cases.' The European Commission recently adopted a series of key health protection measures aimed to reduce the transmission and spread of CJD and certain other spongiform encephalopathies, such as BSE, which include legislation on the removal of specified risk materials from the food chain. The letter appears in 'The Lancet'. Vol. 356, Issue 9228, 5th August 2000.