Disease X: A hidden but inevitable creeping danger
What is Disease X?
According to the World Health
Organization (WHO), “Disease X represents the knowledge that a serious
international epidemic could be caused by a pathogen currently unknown to cause
human disease.
According to a UK health expert,
Disease X could lead to another pandemic more lethal than Covid-19 and could
claim at least 50 million lives.
In a list of diseases that the WHO
considers high priority in terms of research and development, Disease X
occupies a spot among diseases such as Ebola, Zika, and coronavirus disease
2019 (COVID-19).
Disease X is supposed to be caused
by a “pathogen X.” Such a pathogen is expected to be a zoonosis, most likely an
RNA virus, emerging from an area where the right mix of risk factors highly
promotes the risk for sustained transmission.
KEY MESSAGES
Emerging pathogens continue to pose
a serious threat to global health. More lives can be saved if medical
countermeasures are deployed in time.
Disease X will result from Pathogen
X: a pathogen that is previously unknown to cause human disease but possesses
epidemic or pandemic potential.
Pathogen X could be any pathogen
including but not limited to viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites, or prions.
Disease X virus has the potential
to result in 20 times more fatalities than Covid-19.
Pandemic emergence is assumed to be
likely to occur because of the following risk factors: human activities near
wildlife, creation of animal source foods with little monitoring of employees and a poorly understood
supply chain, insect and tick vectors, extreme population density, and
constrained surveillance and laboratory capacity.
The advent of a catastrophic outbreak involving Disease X is
likely to result from the zoonotic transmission of a highly virulent RNA virus
from an area where a convergence of risk factors and population dynamics will
result in sustained person-to-person transmission.
WHO listed priority diseases
WHO has listed several priority diseases with epidemic potential for which there are no, or insufficient, medical countermeasures.
Doctors Liked to Read More
The urgency to bolster research and development efforts
becomes paramount in the face of this unpredictable and potentially catastrophic
future disease.
Researchers must be encouraged to trial new technologies and
approaches to vaccine design, potentially leading to more effective and
efficient vaccines in the future.
The creation and distribution of vaccines will be crucial in
combating Disease X. UK
experts are working on developing prototype vaccines to tackle 'Disease X'.
Vaccines will always be needed to control infectious
diseases, but therapeutics offer an extra layer of protection.
Another strategic opportunity to accelerate development of
effective therapeutics across modalities is through development of broad and
narrow spectrum therapeutics against priority pathogen families.
World urgently need to invest in state-of-the-art systems for
international surveillance of prospective virus threats.
The world must unite in its efforts to bolster pandemic
preparedness, ensuring that the collective response is swift, comprehensive,
and grounded in science.
To prevent
the onset of the next pandemic, we need to:
Invest in Surveillance: Develop robust global surveillance systems to detect
emerging threats early.
Promote One Health: Recognize the interconnection of human, animal, and environmental
health to identify and mitigate risks.
Responsible Antibiotic Use: Implement antimicrobial stewardship to combat drug-resistant
pathogens.
Strengthen Healthcare Systems: Build capacity in healthcare systems for both pandemic
response and routine healthcare needs.
Global Cooperation: Foster international collaboration in information sharing, resource
allocation, and research efforts.
Preparedness Plans: Develop comprehensive pandemic preparedness plans, including stockpiling
essential supplies and rapid response teams.
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