'Disease X' | Future pandemic could be 20 times deadlier than COVID, warns WHO
WHO Director-General has called on countries to sign on to their pandemic treaty, so the world can prepare for “Disease X”
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that the next pandemic may be caused by a hypothetical “placeholder” virus named “Disease X”, adding that it might already be “on its way”.
According to scientists, Disease X could be 20 times deadlier than COVID-19. It was added to the WHO’s short list of pathogens for research in 2017 that could cause a “serious international epidemic”, according to a 2022 WHO press statement.
In view of the threat, WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus has called on countries to sign on to the health organisation’s pandemic treaty, so the world can prepare for “Disease X”.
Pandemic fund established
Addressing an event at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos recently, Ghebreyesus expressed hope that the countries would reach a pandemic agreement by May this year to address the threat.
When asked about preparation for any possible outbreak of a pandemic in the future, Ghebreyesus said, “We have already started many initiatives. We have established a pandemic fund. So, that’s basically for preparedness. And some countries have benefited from it.”
“Many high-income countries were hoarding vaccines. To address the equity problem, we established the mRNA technology transfer hub in South Africa. This is to increase the local production...,” he said.
Preparing for future
“The pandemic agreement can bring all the experience, all the challenges that we have faced and all the solutions into one. So, for our children and grandchildren’s sake, I think we have to convert all the lessons we have learned into this pandemic agreement and prepare the world for the future,” Ghebreyesus said during the discussion at the WEF.
Disease X is not a specific disease but is the name given to a potential novel infectious agent. It represents an illness which is currently unknown but could pose a serious microbial threat to humans in the future. It is necessary to be prepared because there is a vast reservoir of viruses circulating among wildlife which could become a source of a new infectious disease to which humans do not have immunity.
