Nipah virus outbreak has triggered screenings at the airport. After two cases were reported in India's West Bengal, concerns have sparked in many parts of Asia, and measures at airports have been tightened.

Thailand has begun screening passengers at three airports that handle flights from West Bengal. Nepal has also stepped up checks, screening arrivals at Kathmandu airport as well as at several land border crossings with India.

In West Bengal, five healthcare workers were infected earlier this month, with one reported to be in critical condition. Around 110 people who came into contact with them have since been placed under quarantine.

Nipah virus spreads from animals to humans and carries a high fatality rate, estimated to be between 40 percent and 75 percent. At present, there is no approved vaccine or specific treatment for the infection.

What Is Nipah Virus?

As per the World Health Organization (WHO), Nipah virus infection is a zoonotic illness that is transmitted to people from animals, and can also be transmitted through contaminated food or directly from person to person.

In infected people, it causes a range of illnesses from asymptomatic (subclinical) infection to acute respiratory illness and fatal encephalitis. The virus can also cause severe disease in animals such as pigs, resulting in significant economic losses for farmers.

Although Nipah virus has caused only a few known outbreaks in Asia, it infects a wide range of animals and causes severe disease and death in people.

Read: Nipah Virus Outbreak In India: How Did It All Begin?

During the first recognized outbreak in Malaysia, which also affected Singapore, most human infections resulted from direct contact with sick pigs or their contaminated tissues. Transmission is thought to have occurred via unprotected exposure to secretions from the pigs, or unprotected contact with the tissue of a sick animal.

In subsequent outbreaks in Bangladesh and India, consumption of fruits or fruit products (such as raw date palm juice) contaminated with urine or saliva from infected fruit bats was the most likely source of infection.

Human-to-human transmission of Nipah virus has also been reported among family and care givers of infected patients.

Nipah Virus Symptoms

• Fever
• Headache
• Breathing difficulties
• Cough and sore throat
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting
• Muscle pain and severe weakness

Nipah virus outbreak in India has led to nearly 100 people being quarantined. India is facing Nipah virus cases and contagion every year now. Experts are now cautioning people against the zoonotic nature of the viral infection. Rajeev Jayavedan, the former president of Indian Medical Association, Cochin, told The Independent, that infection among humans are rare and caused by the accidental spillover due to human-bat interface, which means consumption of fruits that may have been infected by bats. “This is more likely in rural and forest-adjacent areas where agricultural practices increase contact between humans and fruit bats searching for food,” he said.

Health and Me previously reported on how doctors are now advising people to be cautious while eating food. Speaking to TOI, Dr Aishwarya R, Consultant, Infectious Diseases at Aster RV Hospital advised people against eating certain food, including fruits fallen from trees, unpasteurized date palm sap and any other fruits without washing. The doctor explained that this infection can spread with infected animal who could bite fruits and spread the virus through their saliva.

Chinese officials are sounding the alarm over the outbreak of the highly fatal Nipah virus in West Bengal and demanding travel restrictions before the Lunar New Year on February 17.

Earlier this month, two hospital nurses at AIIMS, Kolkata, had tested positive for the infection and were quarantined, prompting widespread testing. As of January 24, five cases, including a doctor and a staff member, were confirmed and nearly 100 people have been quarantined.

While health officials state it is nearly impossible for the virus to transmit across countries and unlikely to cause an outbreak in China, a majority of the public remains concerned as the disease has a fatality rate of up to 75 percent and no effective treatment or vaccines are available.

Also Read: Nipah Virus Outbreak In India: How Did It All Begin?

“It’s so scary, especially with the Spring Festival coming up. I don’t want to experience another lockdown,” a Chinese citizen said online, referring to the Lunar New Year holiday. Another asked, “Can’t we temporarily shut the travel channel with India?”, according to the South China Morning Post.

As of late 2025, India has lifted major travel restrictions on Chinese nationals, with tourist e-visas, business visas and direct flights fully resumed after a five-year suspension due to the 2020 border clashes, according to the Ministry of External Affairs.

The visa regime is fully functional, allowing Chinese citizens to apply for up to 5-year, multiple-entry e-TVs.

Nipah Virus: What Is It And What Are The Symptoms?

As per the World Health Organization (WHO), Nipah virus infection is a zoonotic illness that is transmitted to people from animals and can also be transmitted through contaminated food or directly from person to person.

In infected people, it causes a range of illnesses from asymptomatic (subclinical) infection to acute respiratory illness and fatal encephalitis. The virus can also cause severe disease in animals such as pigs, resulting in significant economic losses for farmers.

Although Nipah virus has caused only a few known outbreaks in Asia, it infects a wide range of animals and causes severe disease and death in people. Some of its common symptoms include:

• Fever
• Headache
• Breathing difficulties
• Cough and sore throat
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting
• Muscle pain and severe weakness

In 2018, another outbreak occurred in Kerala, India, where 23 confirmed and suspected cases were reported. The virus spread across three hospitals, with both primary and secondary infections traced back to one initial patient.

Samples collected from the patient’s home and workplaces, including pets and partially eaten fruits dropped by bats, all tested negative for the virus, and the exact source of the infection could not be identified.

What Do Doctors Say?

Experts are now cautioning people against the zoonotic nature of the viral infection. Rajeev Jayavedan, the former president of the Indian Medical Association, Cochin, told The Independent, that infection among humans are rare and caused by the accidental spillover due to the human-bat interface, which means consumption of fruits that may have been infected by bats.

“This is more likely in rural and forest-adjacent areas where agricultural practices increase contact between humans and fruit bats searching for food,” he said.

Health and Me previously reported on how doctors are now advising people to be cautious while eating food. Speaking to TOI, Dr Aishwarya R, Consultant, Infectious Diseases at Aster RV Hospital advised people against eating certain food, including fruits fallen from trees, unpasteurized date palm sap and any other fruits without washing. The doctor explained that this infection can spread with an infected animal which could bite fruits and spread the virus through their saliva.

Cancer screening for UK's second deadliest cancer is undergoing some changes, as NHS UK lowers the threshold of bowel cancer test. What it means is that NHS England is lowering the threshold of the amount of blood detected through a Fit or Fecal immunochemical test, needed to trigger the patient being sent for further investigation.

What Is the Fit Test?

The fecal immunochemical test is used to detect bowel cancer by spotting blood in the patient's stool. As per the new NHS guidelines, the sensitivity of the Fit test will be increase as part of an overhaul of cancer diagnosis as well as treatment.

Also Read: Nipah Virus Outbreak In India: How Did It All Begin?

As of now, it stands at 120 micrograms of blood a gram of stool, however, it will be reduced to 80 microgram by 2028. This will bring England into line with threshold that are already followed in Scotland and Wales.

“This is a major step forward in bowel cancer detection and will help save hundreds more lives from this devastating disease,” said Prof Peter Johnson, NHS England’s national clinical director for cancer. “Testing at a lower level threshold will now provide a better early warning system for bowel cancer, helping us to spot and treat cancers earlier, often picking up problems before symptoms occur," as reported by The Guardian.

Bowel Cancer In The UK

Around 44,100 people in the UK are diagnosed with bowel cancer each year, and about 17,400 die from the disease, making it the second leading cause of cancer deaths. Risk factors include processed meat consumption, excess weight and alcohol use. Cancer Research UK estimates that 54 percent of cases could be prevented. “Once fully implemented testing at the lower level threshold is expected to reduce late stage diagnoses and deaths from bowel cancer by around 6%,” NHS England said.

Read: Colorectal Cancer Is The Leading Cause Of Cancer Death In American Men Under 50

The estimate suggests that improving prevention and earlier detection could save the health service £32 million each year. The change is expected to result in around 600 additional bowel cancer diagnoses annually in England, an 11 percent rise on top of the 5,320 cases currently identified each year through the existing test.

Under the changes, the NHS is expected to carry out 35 percent more colonoscopies for patients flagged as high risk by the Fit test. Introduced in 2019, the Fit test is a home screening programme in which eligible people receive a kit by post, return a small stool sample, and have it analyzed in a laboratory.

The expansion will be detailed in the government’s new national cancer plan, set to be launched on 4 February, which cancer groups observe as World Cancer Day. In England, eligibility was widened in 2024 to include people aged 50 to 53, down from the earlier range of 54 to 74. During 2023–24, nearly seven million kits were sent out, with 68 percent returned, leading to the detection of 5,320 cancers. With the broader age criteria, an additional 1.2 million people are now being offered the test.

What Is Bowel Cancer?

The Cancer Council notes that bowel cancer is also called the colorectal cancer, colon cancer or rectal cancer, which develops in the inner lining of the bowel. It is preceded by growths called polyps, which could become invasive cancer if undetected.

Measles, a disease once eliminated is making a come back. In the US, the disease has made a full-fledged come back and now the UK has also lost its measles elimination status. The World Health Organization (WHO) announced this news based on the spread of cases in 2024, when there were 3,600 suspected cases. Elimination status means that there is no sustained transmission, this is why this decision was expected given the scale of outbreaks in 2024.

Measles In UK: Cases Have Gone Up

Even in last year, 2025, there were more than 1,000 cases. Moreover, like the US, in the UK too the rate of vaccination fell. It was reported by the BBC that vaccination rates were below 95% threshold required to achieve herd immunity. This is when enough people in a community have been vaccinated against the disease, so it is harder for the pathogen to spread.

Measles Free UK

It was in 2017, when UK, for the first time, was declared measles free. However, it lost its status two years later. However, measles spread was halted completely in 2021, gaining its measles free status back. The key to elimination was social distancing during the pandemic.

Also Read: Measles Elimination Status In The US Is ‘Not Really’ At Risk, CDC Says As Cases Surge

Measles In UK: How Did It Lose Its Status?

In late 2023, measles outbreaks were reported in the UK, which led to a surge in cases in 2024. Vaccination uptake at the end of 2024 was 92% for the first dose, however, for the second dose, it was below 82%.

Dr Vanessa Saliba, consultant epidemiologist at UKHSA said, "Infections can return quickly when childhood vaccine uptake falls - measles elimination is only possible if all eligible children receive two MMRV doses before school. The NHS is making vaccination easier, including offering the second MMRV dose earlier at a new 18-month appointment to boost uptake and support elimination goals."

She also noted that children and adults must get vaccinated as NHS also offers catch-up jabs.

Dr Baharat Pankhania, from the University of Exeter, as reported by the BBC said, "Measles is an infection that can be prevented by vaccine - and it's extremely concerning that in the UK we now have pockets of low or no vaccine uptake. We urgently need to remedy this situation." Pankhania also noted that there is a need to make the access to GPs easier, and for an effort that could immunize babies in their homes and counter wrong information around vaccine safety.

What Is Measles?

Measles, also known as rubeola, is an extremely contagious viral illness that typically causes high fever, cough, runny nose, red and watery eyes, and a characteristic rash that begins on the face and spreads downward across the body. It spreads through respiratory droplets and can lead to severe and sometimes fatal complications, including pneumonia and inflammation of the brain known as encephalitis.

Also Read: NHS England Lowers Threshold Of Bowel Cancer Screening

Although it is preventable through the safe and effective MMR vaccine, measles remains a serious threat in many regions. There is no specific cure, and treatment focuses on managing symptoms, according to the Cleveland Clinic.