torsdag 6. februar 2020

Will the new coronavirus burn out like SARS ... or is it here to stay?

Nearly two decades after he was treated, former severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) patient Alex Lam is still haunted by his experience. "(It is) painful hearing the news again. SARS is coming back, the deadly virus is coming back," he said. SARS, of course, has not returned, but a new type of deadly virus from the same family is sweeping China, opening old wounds for some.

In 2003, SARS infected more than 8,000 people, and killed 774. Asia was hardest hit, with Hong Kong recording almost 300 deaths. Lam was treated in an isolation ward for three weeks, and considered one of the lucky ones because he was discharged with no further complications. "I was put in a big room with many other patients," he recalled. "I heard some coughing at night, crying, and that's really sad."