A health expert has warned that the next pandemic is ‘already on the way’ and could kill 50 million people. Kate Bingham, who served as the chair of the UK’s Vaccine Taskforce from May to December 2020, believes that the world will see a new virus far deadlier than the coronavirus that killed at least 2.5 million people. She is particularly concerned that the next pandemic could be triggered by a virus that is already known but is unidentified. She has called the hypothetical pathogen Disease X.
According to a report in Daily Mail, ‘Disease X’ represents “the knowledge that a serious international epidemic could be caused by a [non-existent] pathogen currently unknown to cause human disease.” It is a disease in the WHO’s Blueprint list, highlighting infectious diseases for which we lack effective medical countermeasures. It is widely believed that the next Disease X will be zoonotic, originating in wild or domestic animals and then spilling over to infect humans like Ebola, SARS, and COVID-19.
Scientists have identified 25 virus families that could trigger a global pandemic, but millions of viruses remain to be discovered. Dame Bingham has highlighted that globalization, over-population of cities, and deforestation have created an environment where diseases can quickly jump between species. She says scientists are working hard to create vaccines against ‘Disease X’ at the government’s high-security Porton Down laboratory complex in Wiltshire. Still, she warns that the new disease will likely differ from what we have seen before and could be even more deadly.
Dame Bingham is also furious at the UK government’s lack of interest in antibody therapeutics, which use antibodies produced by immune systems to fight infections. These drugs can be administered as injections to immunosuppressed people whose natural antibodies are depleted by long-term illness or disease such as cancer and HIV. They can also be made in labs for those who cannot get them naturally. She says she is particularly disappointed in the UK’s decision to sell its vaccine development business to a US company.
Dame Bingham has also been critical of the UK government’s reversion to an adversarial relationship with the pharmaceutical industry since her departure from the Vaccine Taskforce in late 2021. She said she was particularly frustrated by the government’s failure to fund a clinical trial for a drug that she had personally drawn up a terms sheet for and which has now been developed by AstraZeneca into a treatment that is being used in half a million immunosuppressed patients worldwide. She described this as a missed opportunity to protect people from future pandemics. Moreover, she added that the UK was now facing a potential shortage of immunosuppressants for those who require them for reasons such as cancer or organ transplants. She warned that this would have a significant impact on the ability of hospitals to treat patients. Ultimately, she is optimistic about humanity’s ability to contain the next outbreak.
