If you haven’t noticed by now, ‘Disease X’ is trending on X (formerly known as Twitter), and no, it has nothing to do with the platform it’s trending on.
In fact, it’s not even an actual disease, yet. Let us explain.
Disease X started trending after after the UK government decided to establish a new vaccine research centre where scientists are working on preparing for ‘Disease X’, the next potential pandemic pathogen.
This is obviously due to Covid-19 and the way it showed us how unprepared we were for a global pandemic, at that time.
Since UK’s move to ready themselves, Malaysia’s Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa shared her belief that our country is prepared to face future pandemics including the potential threat known as ‘Disease X’, which could potentially be worse than Covid-19 and can result in millions more lives lost in comparison.
But, what exactly is Disease X?
Well, it’s not anything, yet.
Disease X is the term for the next potential pandemic-causing pathogen that can spring up at any moment. It is basically a disease that may or may not exist yet and no one knows what it will be. But, it’s best to prepare.
“It is called X because we do not know what the disease is, but the Ministry is always prepared for any possibility that may occur in the future. The World Health Organisation (WHO) will alert its member countries whenever a new disease epidemic occurs,” said Dr Zaliha, according to a report by New Straits Times.
It’s better to be safe than sorry, right?
Would you be able to handle another pandemic? Do feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section.
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