Health

(LONDON) — An epidemiologist from the World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday that the suspected hantavirus cluster aboard a cruise ship is not the beginning of another COVID-19 pandemic.

Eight cases are currently being reported by the WHO, including five laboratory-confirmed cases and three suspected cases. Of those eight cases, three have died.

Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, an infectious disease epidemiologist and acting director of epidemic and pandemic management at the WHO, was asked during a press conference what the difference was between this cluster and the early days of the COVID pandemic.

“I want to be unequivocal here. This is not SARS-CoV-2. This is not the start of a COVID pandemic. This is an outbreak that we see on a ship,” Van Kerkhove said.

Van Kerkhove explained that hantavirus doesn’t spread in the same way that coronaviruses do, but rather through “close, intimate contact.” Most hantaviruses don’t transmit from person to person.

“The actions that are being taken on board [the ship] are precautionary to prevent any onward spread,” she added.

There appears to be one confirmed case and two suspected cases that have not been added to the WHO’s official count yet.

Officials told ABC News a female individual, who was on a KLM flight with the Dutch female patient who later died, developed symptoms and was admitted to a hospital. Leiden University Medical Centre in the Netherlands confirmed on Thursday that the female patient has hantavirus and is receiving care.

Additionally, two Singapore residents who were on board the ship are currently being monitored. Singapore’s Communicable Diseases Agency said it was notified of the individuals on May 4 and May 5.

“They have been isolated at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases, where they are being tested for hantavirus. The risk to the general public in Singapore is currently low,” the agency said.

The agency added that test results are pending, with one resident having a runny nose and the other is asymptomatic.

Three deaths have been recorded so far, including a married Dutch couple. The 70-year-old male patient died on April 11, and his body was taken off the ship on the island of St. Helena on April 24. His 69-year-old wife disembarked on the same day, and her health rapidly deteriorated. She died at an emergency department in South Africa on April 26.

A third passenger, a German woman, presented with pneumonia symptoms starting on April 28, according to the WHO. The woman died on May 2 from causes not yet known, according to Oceanwide Expeditions, which operates the cruise ship.

The WHO said 29 people disembarked on St. Helena on the same day that the body of the Dutch male patient and his wife disembarked.

They traveled to 12 countries: Canada, Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Great Britain, St. Kitts and Nevis, Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, Sweden, Turkey and the United States.

The disembarked guests have all been contacted by Oceanwide Expeditions. In the U.S., local authorities in three states — Arizona, Georgia and California — are monitoring the disembarked passengers and are conducting contact tracing, None have shown signs of illness at this time.

Anais Legend, technical lead for viral hemorrhagic fevers at WHO, said during the press conference on Thursday that “step-by-step guidance is being developed” for the disembarked passengers and that the WHO is coordinating with national authorities.

Anyone with any signs of symptoms will be isolated while other passengers have their risk exposure evaluated. 

Public health experts said they expected a more robust response from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (DC) and the National Institutes of Health.

“The CDC would typically be asked by WHO or by a country to help in technical assistance,” Dr. Carlos del Rio, an H. Cliff Sauls distinguished professor of medicine at the Emory University School of Medicine, told reporters on Thursday.

Typically, CDC teams would be deployed to an area, he said, and the teams would perform contact tracing and interviews and conduct an outbreak investigation.

“I would envision by now, many, many days ago, we would have seen a team from CDC deployed to the area,” he added.

Dr. Jeanna Marrazzo, CEO of the IDSA, added that she would have expected a CDC press briefing, an alert from the agency’s Health Alert Network or information from the NIH on potential treatments in the pipeline that could receive emergency use authorization to help treat hantavirus patients.

Marrazzo said she is not aware that conservations about potential therpaies at NIH aren’t happening but that it “doesn’t give me a lot of assurance or reassurance that we are not hearing any of that.”

The WHO said during Thursday’s press briefing that the U.S. is coordinating with the global health agency in a technical capacity.

Because the cluster is limited and confined to a cruise ship, the “idea of sending messages across the world and panicking everyone is not required,” said Dr. Abdirahman Mahmoud, director of the WHO’s health emergency alert and response operations.

He added that the WHO is “informally” aware that contact tracing has been done of the U.S. passengers who disembarked last month and are back home.

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(LONDON and BELGRADE, Serbia) — The total number of suspected hantavirus cases aboard a cruise ship has risen to five as global health authorities work to contain a potentially deadly cluster of the disease.

More than 100 passengers remain on the ship and the World Health Organization (WHO) is monitoring their health. Officials said that the “overall public health risk remains low” but that there may be some person-to-person spread.

The ship, the MV Hondius, which was off the coast of Africa in Cape Verde, is now en route to the Canary Islands after officials medically evacuated three people, including two in “serious condition.”

Some passengers disembarked the ship before knowledge of the cluster and are back in their home countries. In some cases, authorities are advising those passengers to self-isolate.

In addition to the two patients who were evacuated, a third person, who is asymptomatic but a close contact of a German national who died on May 2, was also removed from the ship, WHO officials in Cape Verde told ABC News.

“WHO continues to work with the ship’s operators to closely monitor the health of passengers and crew, working with countries to support appropriate medical follow-up and evacuation where needed,” Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the WHO, said in a post on X on Wednesday, in which he confirmed the evacuations.

“Monitoring and follow-up for passengers on board and for those who have already disembarked has been initiated in collaboration with the ship’s operators and national health authorities,” he continued.

Tedros added that “the overall public health risk remains low.”

Health officials confirmed two additional cases of hantavirus among crewmembers, bringing the total confirmed cases to five.

The three previously confirmed hantavirus cases include a woman who disembarked and was on her way home from the Netherlands, a British national who is in critical but stable condition in a hospital in Johannesburg, and a passenger who traveled on the first leg of the voyage and is currently being treated at the University Hospital Zurich, according to Oceanwide Expeditions, which operates the ship. So far, three deaths have been recorded.

“Swiss authorities have confirmed a case of hantavirus identified in a passenger from the MV Hondius cruise ship,” the WHO said on X on Wednesday. “He had responded to an email from the ship’s operator informing the passengers of the health event, and presented himself to a hospital in Zurich, Switzerland, and is receiving care.”

The type of virus in this outbreak has been confirmed as Andes hantavirus by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases in South Africa and Geneva University Hospitals in Switzerland, the WHO said Wednesday. The Andes hantavirus historically has been shown to potentially transmit between people, according to the WHO.

Oceanwide Expeditions said of the three passengers who were evacuated from the ship, two are symptomatic and in serious condition and the third is asymptomatic but a close contact of a German national who died on May 2.

“In partnership with the RIVM (Dutch Institute for Public Health and Environment), Oceanwide Expeditions is expanding medical care on board with two infectious disease physicians, arriving today by plane from the Netherlands. This ensures that optimal medical care can be provided if necessary, during the next stage of this evolving situation,” the company said in a statement.

Cape Verde officials said on Tuesday that the vessel was expected to sail to the Spanish island of Tenerife, but the president of the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago off the northwestern coast of Africa, said on Wednesday that the regional government was opposed to allowing the luxury cruise ship to dock in Tenerife. 

“This decision is not based on any technical criteria, nor is there sufficient information to reassure the public or guarantee their safety,” President Fernando Clavijo told radio station COPE, according to Reuters.

Clavijo said on social media that he had requested a meeting with the Spanish prime minister to discuss the ship. He added that the Canary Islands “always acts with responsibility, but it cannot accept decisions taken behind the backs of the Canary Islands institutions and without sufficient information to the population.”

Mónica García, Spain’s minister of health, said once the ship arrives at the port of Granadilla de Abona in the Canary Islands, there will be a “joint screening and evacuation mechanism will be launched to repatriate all passengers,” according to RTVE, a Spanish national public broadcaster.

“Unless their medical condition prevents it, all foreign passengers will be repatriated through the European civil protection mechanism, about which the Interior Minister will provide further details later,” Garcia said in Spanish.

WHO officials earlier on Wednesday said the three evacuated people were to be transferred to planes bound for both the Netherlands and Tenerife, but later updated the plan so that all would be sent to the Netherlands, officials told ABC News.

ABC News’ Othon Leyva contributed to this report.

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(LONDON and BELGRADE, Serbia) — Three people have been evacuated off of the MV Hondius, a cruise ship with a suspected hantavirus cluster, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday.

WHO officials in Cape Verde told ABC News that the patients were to be transferred to ambulances waiting on the shore to receive them. The three were then to be taken to an airport, where they were expected to board a special medevac flight to the Netherlands.

“WHO continues to work with the ship’s operators to closely monitor the health of passengers and crew, working with countries to support appropriate medical follow-up and evacuation where needed,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the WHO, said on social media, where he confirmed the evacuations.

“Monitoring and follow-up for passengers on board and for those who have already disembarked has been initiated in collaboration with the ship’s operators and national health authorities,” he added.

He said that “the overall public health risk remains low.”

The WHO said on Wednesday that eight suspected cases of hantavirus were recorded among passengers on the ship, an increase from the seven reported on Tuesday. Three of the cases had been confirmed by lab testing, WHO said.

“Swiss authorities have confirmed a case of hantavirus identified in a passenger from the MV Hondius cruise ship,” the WHO said on social media on Wednesday. “He had responded to an email from the ship’s operator informing the passengers of the health event, and presented himself to a hospital in Zurich, Switzerland, and is receiving care.”

There have been three deaths among the reported cases, including a married couple from the Netherlands, one of whom was confirmed to have been infected with hantavirus, authorities said.

Cape Verde officials said on Tuesday that the vessel was expected to sail to the Spanish island of Tenerife, where Spanish health authorities were to take over further investigations, including lab testing and clinical assessments, particularly for older passengers.

The leader of the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago off the northwestern coast of Africa, said on Wednesday that the regional government was opposed to allowing the luxury cruise ship to dock at Tenerife.

“This decision is not based on any technical criteria, nor is there sufficient information to reassure the public or guarantee their safety,” Fernando Clavijo, the president of the Canary Islands told radio station COPE, according to Reuters.

Clavijo said on social media that he had requested a meeting with the Spanish prime minister to discuss the ship. He added that the Canary Islands “always acts with responsibility, but it cannot accept decisions taken behind the backs of the Canary Islands institutions and without sufficient information to the population.”

WHO officials earlier on Wednesday said the three evacuated people were to be transferred to planes bound for both the Netherlands and Tenerife, but later updated the plan so that all would be sent to the Netherlands, officials told ABC News.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(NEW YORK) — An epidemiologist at the World Health Organization (WHO) said that there may be some person-to-person spread in the suspected hantavirus outbreak aboard a cruise ship.

As of Monday, there have been seven cases reported aboard the MV Hondius, of which two are laboratory-confirmed and five are suspected. Among those seven, there have been three deaths, including a married couple from the Netherlands, one of whom has been confirmed to have been infected with hantavirus.

“We do believe that there may be some human-to-human transmission that’s happening among the really close contacts, the husband and wife, people who’ve shared cabins, [et cetera],” Maria Van Kerkhove, an infectious disease epidemiologist and director of Epidemic and Pandemic Management at the WHO, said during a press conference Tuesday.

“So again, our assumption is that has happened, and that’s why we are operating and working with the ship to make sure that anyone who is symptomatic, anyone caring for patients, is wearing full personal protective equipment,” she added.

Van Kerkhove noted that hantaviruses normally don’t transmit from person to person because it’s a “rodent infection.” Patients typically become infected when they come into contact with rodent urine, droppings or saliva, according to the WHO.

The initial patients who fell ill may have become infected before they boarded the ship, Van Kerkhove added.

Symptoms of hantavirus infections sometimes do not start until eight weeks after contact with the virus, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The WHO is working under the assumption that the strain of hantavirus in the suspected outbreak is the Andes virus, which historically has been shown to potentially transmit between people, although sequencing is still ongoing, according to Van Kerkhove.

In a post on its website, the WHO said the onset of illnesses aboard the MV Hondius occurred between April 6 and April 28, with patients experiencing fever, gastrointestinal symptoms, rapid progression to pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome and shock.

“The outbreak is being managed through coordinated international response, and includes in-depth investigations, case isolation and care, medical evacuation and laboratory investigations,” the WHO wrote in the post.

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Ghebreysus wrote in a post on X Tuesday that the infection risk to the global population is low and that the agency will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates.

Timeline of cases

The first suspected hantavirus case occurred in a 70-year-old male passenger from the Netherlands who developed fever, headache and mild diarrhea on April 6, according to the WHO and South African health officials.

On April 11, the passenger developed respiratory distress and died on board the ship the same day. His body was removed from the ship to the British territory of St. Helena on April 24. No microbiological tests were performed on the man, according to the WHO.

Also on April 24, the male passenger’s 69-year-old wife developed gastrointestinal symptoms, health officials said. Her health rapidly declined while on a flight to Johannesburg, South Africa, on April 25 and she died upon arrival to an emergency department the next day, the WHO said.

On Monday, May 4, laboratory testing confirmed that the wife was infected with hantavirus.

Health workers have begun working to identify anyone who may have come into contact with the couple. According to the WHO, the couple had traveled in South America, including Argentina, before they boarded the cruise ship on April 1.

During Tuesday’s press conference, Van Kerkhove said officials suspect the couple was infected with hantavirus before boarding the ship.

“The initial patients, the initial case and his wife, they joined the boat in Argentina. And with the timing of the incubation period of hantavirus, which can be anywhere from one to six weeks, our assumption is that they were infected off the ship, perhaps doing some activities there,” she said.

A British passenger started developing symptoms on April 24, including shortness of breath and signs of pneumonia, according to the WHO and South African health officials.

His condition worsened and he was medically evacuated from Ascension, another British territory, to South Africa on April 27, where he is currently hospitalized in an intensive care unit. Laboratory testing confirmed hantavirus infection over the weekend, the WHO said.

Another passenger, an adult female, began experiencing symptoms on April 28, including a general feeling of being unwell, according to the WHO. She later presented with pneumonia and died on May 2. Oceanwide Expeditions, which operates the cruise ship, previously revealed that the patient was a German national.

In addition, there are three suspected cases currently onboard the MV Hondius reporting high fever and/or gastrointestinal symptoms, the WHO said. The ship is currently off the coast of Cape Verde, where medical teams in the area are evaluating the patients and collecting additional specimens for testing, according to the WHO.

Van Kerkhove said the highest priority is to medically evacuate the symptomatic individuals onboard the ship so they receive the care they need.

“The plan now is for the ship to continue on to the Canary Islands. We’re working with Spanish authorities who will welcome the ship, have said that they will welcome the ship, to do a full investigation, a full epidemiological investigation, full disinfection of the ship, and of course to assess the risk of the passengers that are actually on board,” she said.

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(NEW YORK) — A rare rodent-borne disease may be behind an outbreak aboard a cruise ship.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says there has been one laboratory confirmed case and five suspected cases. Of those six people, three have died.

The deaths occurred between April 11 and May 2 and the variant of hantavirus identified in at least one patient who is currently in intensive care, according to the WHO.

The WHO ⁠said on Monday that investigations into the deaths and illnesses are ongoing, including further laboratory testing.

The outbreak was reported on the MV Hondius, run by Oceanwide Expeditions, which was traveling between Argentina and the Canary Islands via Cape Verde.

Currently, the ship is off the coast of Cape Verde with 149 people on board representing 23 different nationalities, Oceanwide Expeditions said in a press release on Monday.

Here’s what you need to know about the outbreak, what hantavirus is and how it spreads.

Timeline of the outbreak

South African health officials said in a statement on Monday that the first two deaths occurred in a married couple from the Netherlands. The 70-year-old male passenger became ill first with a fever, headache, abdominal pain and diarrhea. He passed away upon arriving in St. Helena, a British territory in the South Atlantic Ocean, according to the statement.

The deceased passenger’s wife, 69, collapsed at Johannesburg O.R. Tambo International Airport while trying to connect to fly home to the Netherlands, according the country’s department of health. She was taken to a medical facility in nearby Kempton Park, where she also passed away, the statement said.

Another patient, a British national, fell ill while the ship was traveling from St. Helena to Ascension, also a British territory, according to the statement.

“Despite medical treatment provided to him at Ascension, his condition did not improve and necessitated his medical evacuation to a South African private health facility in Sandton for further medical management,” the statement said.

The patient is currently in critical condition in isolation but receiving medical attention, according to health officials, who said his laboratory test results came back positive for hantavirus.

Oceanwide Expeditions said in Monday’s press release that the first death occurred on April 11 and that the company learned of the second death on April 27. The British national also fell in on April 27.

A third passenger of German nationality died on May 2 from causes not yet known, according to Oceanwide Expeditions.

Meanwhile, two crew members – one of British nationality and one of Dutch nationality – are on board the MV Hondius with acute respiratory symptoms. One has a mild illness and one has severe symptoms, with both requiring urgent medical care, Oceanwide Expeditions said, adding that no other people with symptoms have been identified.

The company said that hantavirus has not been confirmed in the two patients still on board the ship, nor has it been confirmed as the cause of the three passenger deaths.

“Strict precautionary measures are in process on board, including isolation measures, hygiene protocols and medical monitoring. All passengers have been informed and are being supported,” the company said. “We understand the considerable interest and concern and will share new information as soon as it has been verified.”

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Ghebreysus said in a post on X on Sunday that the organization is working closely with both member states and ship operators in response to the suspected hantavirus cases.

“WHO is facilitating medical evacuation of two symptomatic passengers, conducting a full risk assessment, and supporting affected people onboard,” Ghebreysus wrote.

What is hantavirus?

Hantaviruses are a family of viruses that can cause serious illnesses and death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The viruses cause two syndromes: hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS). HPS is mostly found in the Western Hemisphere, including the U.S., and HFRS is mostly found in Europe and Asia.

Surveillance for hantavirus in the U.S. began in 1993 during an outbreak in the Four Corners region, where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah meet, the CDC said. Between 1993 and the end of 2023, 890 cases of hantavirus disease have been reported in the U.S., according to the CDC.

Hantavirus became more widely known after being identified as the cause of death of the wife of actor Gene Hackman after the couple was found dead at their New Mexico home in February 2025.

How does hantavirus spread?

Hantaviruses are usually spread through rodents, including rats and mice, mostly from exposure to urine, droppings or saliva. Although the viruses can spread through a rodent bite or scratch, such infection is rare, the CDC says.

Hantaviruses may also spread from person to person but that also is rare and only suspected for one subtype from South America, according to the WHO.

What are the hantavirus symptoms?

HPS symptoms typically appear from one to eight weeks after contact with the virus, with early signs including fever, fatigue and muscle aches, according to the CDC. Half of HPS patients will experience headaches, chills, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain.

The CDC says that between four and 10 days after the initial phase of illness, the late symptoms will appear, including coughing, shortness of breath and tightness in the chest as the lungs fill with fluid.

About 38% of people who develop HPS respiratory symptoms may die from the disease, according to the CDC.

Symptoms of HFRS usually develop one to two weeks after exposure and typically include intense headaches, fever, chills, back pain, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, the CDC says.

Later symptoms may include low blood pressure, lack of blood flow, internal bleeding and acute kidney failure. Depending on the virus causing the infection, fatality among infected humans can range from less than 1% to as high as 15%, the CDC says.

What hantavirus treatments are available?

No specific treatment is available for hantavirus infection, with the CDC recommending patients receive supportive care such as rest, hydration and treatment of symptoms.

Because HPS can cause breathing difficulties, patients may need breathing support, such as intubation, the CDC says.

Because HFRS can disrupt kidney function, infected patients may need dialysis to remove toxins from the blood, according to the CDC.

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(NEW YORK) — A rare rodent-borne disease is suspected to have caused an outbreak aboard a cruise ship, leading to three deaths and several illnesses.

The deaths occurred between April 11 and May 2 with a variant of hantavirus identified in at least one patient.

The World Health Organization ⁠said on Monday that investigations are ongoing, including further laboratory testing

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates

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(NEW YORK) — The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the drug Auvelity this week for the treatment of agitation in adults with Alzheimer’s dementia.

The extended-release tablet is the first FDA-approved medication for this condition that is not an anti-psychotic.

Anti-psychotics carry serious risks including stroke, sedation and increased death in older adults, according to the FDA. Having a non-antipsychotic option may be safer for patients, experts say.

“We’ve needed a drug like this for decades, because agitation related to Alzheimer’s disease is one of the most challenging, disheartening symptoms that we manage,” Dr. Richard Issacson, director of research at the Institute of Neurodegenerative Diseases in Florida, told ABC News. “This new drug would be used because their tolerability profile is better.”

Auvelity was initially approved by the FDA in 2022 to treat major depressive disorder in adults. It carries a boxed warning for a higher risk of suicidal thoughts in teens and young adults taking antidepressants. 

However, two recent randomized clinical trials found that the drug improved agitation symptoms in patients with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease based on caregiver reports and survey data, and helped delay relapse compared to a placebo.

Studies show the drug works by affecting brain chemicals such as glutamate and dopamine to help calm the overactive signals in the brain linked to agitation. Reported side effects include dizziness, nausea, headache, dry mouth, sweating and diarrhea.

The FDA cautions that Auvelity can worsen or reveal suicidal thoughts and behaviors, especially when starting the medication. It may also worsen irritability or mania in some patients. It’s additionally been linked to an increased risk for seizures, especially at higher doses, and may increase blood pressure.

Clinicians should closely monitor patients when initiating this treatment and throughout the treatment course, experts advise.

As of 2026, about 7.4 million Americans aged 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. This number is expected to grow to 13.8 million by 2060. 

Studies show the drug works by affecting brain chemicals such as glutamate and dopamine to help calm the overactive signals in the brain linked to agitation. Reported side effects include dizziness, nausea, headache, dry mouth, sweating and diarrhea.

The FDA cautions that Auvelity can worsen or reveal suicidal thoughts and behaviors, especially when starting the medication. It may also worsen irritability or mania in some patients. It’s additionally been linked to an increased risk for seizures, especially at higher doses, and may increase blood pressure.

Clinicians should closely monitor patients when initiating this treatment and throughout the treatment course, experts advise.

As of 2026, about 7.4 million Americans aged 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. This number is expected to grow to 13.8 million by 2060. 

Agitation is one of the most common and burdensome symptoms for those with Alzheimer’s dementia. A JAMA Neurology study found that 50 to 60% of people with Alzheimer’s experience agitation symptoms at some point. 

Agitation is associated with a higher risk for rapid decline in cognition and death, studies have shown. It is also a leading driver of earlier nursing home placement and hospitalization, and it is significantly linked with higher caregiver burden and depression.

Issacson said there needs to be more hope for Alzheimer’s patients and their loved ones.

“We also know that it’s not just about drugs. People can exercise, live a healthy lifestyle, eat a Mediterranean style diet, and manage risk factors like blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes,” Issacson said. “People can really take control of their brain health, reduce their risk of Alzheimer’s and have better treatment outcomes. There’s hope and there’s so much education and information now online. I think we’re making a lot of progress.”

Dr. Crystal Joseph, MD, MS is an anesthesiology resident at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School and a member of the ABC News Medical Unit. 

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(NEW YORK) — A few months ago, a measles outbreak seemed poised to overwhelm the northern region of South Carolina.

More than 100 infections were being reported every week, with the total eventually surpassing that of last year’s record-setting outbreak in Texas.

However, after six months and nearly 1,000 cases, the outbreak took a dramatic turn in the right direction.

Over the weekend, the South Carolina Department of Public Health said no new cases had been confirmed for 42 days, leading to an announcement on Monday that the outbreak is officially over.

Public health experts told ABC News that the combination of a strong vaccination push, people following isolation and quarantine orders and an awareness campaign helped beat back the disease.

“Measles vaccinations [were] the most effective single containment tool,” Dr. James Harber, an internal medicine physician with Spartanburg Regional Medical Center, told ABC News. “And then to identify the index cases and their exposures and enforcing quarantine, and there’s that integrated public health and private sector collaboration. Those are the keys.”

Vaccination push

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) currently recommends people receive two doses of the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine — the first at ages 12 to 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years old.

One dose is 93% effective, and two doses are 97% effective against measles, according to the CDC.

In Spartanburg County — the epicenter of the outbreak in northwestern South Carolina — 88.9% of students had the required immunizations needed to attend school, among the lowest in the state, according to state health department data.

This is lower than the 95% threshold needed to achieve herd immunity.

In the wider Upstate region of South Carolina, some pockets have much lower vaccination rates. State data shows that, for the 2025-2026 school year, one elementary and middle school only had 17% of students with the required immunizations.

Of the 997 cases during the outbreak, 932 were among unvaccinated individuals who were mostly under the age of 17, state data shows. Experts told ABC News that a vaccination campaign helped play a big role in reigning in cases.

“We believe vaccination is one of the primary reasons this outbreak came to an end,” Dr. Brannon Traxler, deputy director of health promotion and services and chief medical officer at the state health department, told ABC News. “Thousands of people got vaccinated. An additional 3,788 doses of MMR were administered in Spartanburg County during the six months of the outbreak compared to the previous year.”

Traxler said that 15,000 additional doses were administered in the Upstate counties over this period competed to the year prior.

She added that January and February were record months for MMR vaccination in the state.

The health department does not track vaccine exemptions at the individual level, but Spartanburg Regional Medical Center’s Harber believes some vaccine-hesitant parents were encouraged to vaccinate their children — even those with previous exemptions on file — as the outbreak grew and their kids were exposed to the virus.

“I think the numbers … speak to the idea that that definitely happened,” he said. “Parents and/or young people who have historically requested and been granted exemptions and not been vaccinated saw what was happening within the community and then changed their minds.”

People following isolation, quarantine orders

South Carolina health authorities first confirmed the outbreak on Oct. 2, 2025, after eight cases were recorded in the Upstate region.

Most cases were recorded in Spartanburg County, with some confirmed in neighboring Anderson, Cherokee, Greenville and Pickens counties.

Only two other counties that didn’t border the epicenter saw measles cases: Lancaster County in the north central area and Sumter County in the central area.

Harber said that people generally followed health officials’ orders about quarantine and isolation, which helped keep the outbreak under control

“I think that’s probably the second most important part, the very aggressive quarantine and exposure control when index cases were identified,” he said. “They were very quickly provided with information around isolation and what they needed to do — staying away from others and to help prevent that spread.”

Harber said more than 2,000 quarantine orders were issued and almost 900 students stayed home when they tested positive across 33 schools in the Upstate region.

“That rapid identification and isolation of the suspected cases .. once they were confirmed really helped to prevent that secondary spread that is such a big problem because of how contagious [measles] really is,” he said. “So, we really had great compliance especially within families and that really helped shorten transmission window based on all the data we have.”

Awareness campaigns

Traxler said the state health department conducted wide-range outreach in Spartanburg County and surrounding areas to “educate the public about the facts regarding measles and the outbreak as well as to encourage people to consider being vaccinated to get long-term protection against the virus.”

She noted that the department communicated with schools, churches, community-based organizations, community leaders, local health care professionals and other organizations.

Traxler added that the health department offered vaccinations at mobile health units at libraries, churches and other locations, where workers also distributed educational materials.

Ukrainian and Russian-speaking communities in South Carolina were hard hit by measles during the outbreak, and so the health department translated measles fact sheets and vaccine information into Ukrainian and Russian, as well as Spanish, Traxler said.

However, just because the outbreak is over doesn’t mean the work is done, she added.

Other states are continuing to see measles cases and the U.S. is currently at risk of losing its elimination status, which it earned in 2000. Measles would once again be considered endemic or constantly circulating.

“The outbreak is over, but our work to understand and prevent measles is not. Large outbreaks of measles, and other infectious diseases, can be prevented entirely when vaccine coverage in the population is very high,” Traxler said.

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(NEW YORK) — With a busy travel season approaching, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning that additional measles cases in the U.S. can be expected over the next few months.

The agency sent the alert to state and local health departments, reminding them to report measles cases to the CDC within 24 hours and to have measles cases reported in hospitals and to public health authorities.

The CDC has encouraged public health departments to conduct contact tracing for exposed individuals as well as perform outreach to under-vaccinated communities. 

“With continued measles transmission in areas across North America and expected increases in international and domestic travel and large events during spring and summer, additional measles cases are anticipated in the coming months,” the alert reads.

Parents should ensure they and their loved ones are protected against measles before traveling, the CDC says. This includes getting vaccinated against measles at least two weeks before leaving.

The measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is typically given in two doses, the first at 12 to 15 months old and the second between ages four and six. One dose is 93% effective and two doses are 97% effective against measles, according to the CDC.

Those traveling to or living in an outbreak area may be eligible for an earlier vaccine between 6 and 11 months old, the CDC says. This additional shot would be followed by the typical two doses for a total of three doses.

After returning home from travel from an area with measles, travelers should look out for measles symptoms for three weeks and contact their doctor if they experience symptoms or think they may have been exposed, the CDC advises.

The alert comes as cases continue to be recorded across the U.S. So far this year, there have been 1,782 cases nationwide, according to CDC data.

Cases have been reported in 36 states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

About 92% of cases are among people who are unvaccinated or whose vaccination status is unknown, CDC data shows.

Meanwhile, 4% of cases are among those who have received just one dose of the MMR vaccine and 4% of cases are among those who received the recommended two doses, according to the CDC.

Last year, the U.S. recorded 2,288 measles cases, which is the highest number of national cases in 33 years, according to the CDC.

It also marked the first U.S. deaths recorded from measles in a decade, two among school-aged unvaccinated children in Texas and a third of an unvaccinated adult in New Mexico.

More than a year ago, health officials confirmed that cases of measles were cropping up in a small town in western Texas. It’s unclear if those cases are linked to those reported in other states; if so, it would mean the U.S. has seen a year of continuous transmission.

If it’s determined that the U.S. has experienced 12 months of continuous measles transmission, it could lead to a loss of the country’s elimination status that was earned in 2000. Measles would once again be considered endemic or constantly circulating.

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(NEW YORK) — As heart, kidney and metabolic problems progress to more advanced stages, a person’s risk of developing several cancers also rises sharply, a new study finds.

Cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) syndrome is a disorder that occurs when heart disease, kidney problems and metabolic issues including obesity and diabetes all happen together, according to the American Heart Association.

About one in three U.S. adults have at least three risk factors for CKM syndrome, the AHA says.

Researchers used a claims database in Japan that included individuals with available health check-up data and insurance claims between April 2014 and August 2023.

People diagnosed with stage 3 CKM syndrome at the start of the study were 25% more likely to be diagnosed with one of 16 different cancers four years later in comparison to those with early CKM syndrome, according to the study published Monday in the journal Circulation.

Those who were diagnosed with stage 4 CKM syndrome had a 30% increased likelihood of having a cancer diagnosis four years later. Those diagnosed with stage 1 or stage 2 of the condition had a less than 5% chance of cancer diagnosis in four years.

“The study findings suggest that it is important to consider not only cardiovascular disease risk, but also cancer risk in people with CKM syndrome,” Dr. Hidehiro Kaneko, the study’s lead author and associate professor in the department of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Tokyo in Japan, said in a press release.

The study results accounted for age, gender and lifestyle factors including smoking, alcohol use and weight.

Individual symptoms such as high blood pressure are often used to determine certain cancer risks, but this study used a more patient-centered classification such as CKM syndrome staging as a predictor for certain cancers, according to the authors.

“CKM syndrome represents a complex interplay among the cardiovascular, kidney and metabolic systems, where dysfunction in one area may trigger or exacerbate dysfunction in others,” Kaneko said.

“Dysfunction in each of these systems is independently associated with cancer risk due to shared risk factors,” he continued. “This study suggests that the accumulation of risk factors within the framework of CKM syndrome may contribute to the development of various types of cancer.”

Because the study is a retrospective observational study, meaning it analyzes existing data, it can only speak to association between CKM syndrome and certain cancers, not causality.

Additionally, because the study was conducted in Japan, which has a very homogenous population, further research would be needed to replicate the results among the U.S. population, which is more diverse.

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