Mad cow in the blood supply
The week's news at a glance.
London
Thousands of British citizens have been banned from giving blood because of fears of transmitting mad cow disease. Health Secretary John Reid said this week that a man who died of the human variant, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, might have contracted it from a transfusion. Now, anyone who has had a blood transfusion since 1980 may not give blood. Mad cow disease, which causes a fatal degeneration of the brain, can be passed to humans through the eating of contaminated beef, particularly organ meats. At least 139 people have died of the illness in Britain since it emerged there nine years ago.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Is Donald Trump behind potential Gaza ceasefire and will it work?
Today's Big Question Israel and Hamas are 'on the brink' of a peace deal and a hostage exchange, for which the incoming president may take credit
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Chemnitz: an 'unlikely renaissance' for the 'forgotten' town
The Week Recommends The birthplace of Germany's industrial revolution is hoping to reinvent itself
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
Maha Kumbh Mela: world's largest religious festival gets under way in India
In The Spotlight Politics of Hindu nationalism has cast a shadow over event touted as biggest ever gathering of humanity
By The Week UK Published