Friday marked the 40th anniversary of the eradication of smallpox, an encouraging reminder of what can be achieved when the global health community unites behind a common cause.
For centuries, smallpox was a far deadlier disease than the novel coronavirus, killing three out of every 10 people that contracted it. Epidemiologists believe the virus killed as many as 300 and 500 million people in the 20th century alone, with the disease even traced as far back as to the body of Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesses V, who died in 1157 BC.
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California declares bird flu emergencySpeed Read The emergency came hours after the nation's first person with severe bird flu infection was hospitalized
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Bird flu one mutuation from human threat, study findsSpeed Read A Scripps Research Institute study found one genetic tweak of the virus could enable its spread among people
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Dark chocolate tied to lower diabetes riskSpeed Read The findings were based on the diets of about 192,000 US adults over 34 years
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ACA opens 2025 enrollment, enters 2024 raceSpeed Read Mike Johnson promises big changes to the Affordable Care Act if Trump wins the election
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McDonald's sued over E. coli linked to burgerSpeed Read The outbreak has sickened at least 49 people in 10 states and left one dead
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Texas dairy worker gets bird flu from infected cowSpeed Read The virus has been spreading among cattle in Texas, Kansas, Michigan and New Mexico
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Dengue hits the Americas hard and earlySpeed Read Puerto Rico has declared an epidemic as dengue cases surge
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US bans final type of asbestosSpeed Read Exposure to asbestos causes about 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year
