Health
Amid summer COVID surge warning from CDC, should you worry? Doctors weigh in
A summer COVID surge is underway in the U.S., warns the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — so should you be concerned?
As of June 25, 2024, the CDC estimated that COVID-19 infections are “growing or likely growing” in 44 states and territories, according to a news alert on its website.
Despite the rise in cases, hospitalizations and deaths remain low, the data shows.
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Given that the pandemic was declared officially over as of May 5, 2023, public health officials don’t collect the same amount of COVID data as they once did.
“But the data that we do have from the CDC, including from monitoring wastewater, indicates that COVID-19 infections are rising in many places in the U.S.,” Dr. Jay Varma, chief medical officer at SIGA Technologies, a pharmaceutical company in New York City, told Fox News Digital.
A summer COVID surge is underway right now in the U.S., warns the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (iStock)
Dr. Marc Siegel, physician, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Fox News medical contributor, acknowledged that there’s been an uptick in cases recently.
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“There has been an upsurge in certain areas, including California — fueled by the so-called FLiRT variants, KP.3, KP.2 and KP.1,” he told Fox News Digital.
“It could spread to more states.”
COVID-19 infections are “growing or likely growing” in 44 states and territories, according to a CDC news alert. (iStock)
CDC data shows that the KP.3 and KP.2 strains — both of which are subvariants of the highly contagious JN.1 variant — currently account for over half of all new cases.
Does COVID spread more in summer?
Since COVID-19 emerged in 2020, scientists have learned that the virus has seasonal patterns, Varma said, with predictable peaks in spring/early summer and winter.
“Winter peaks are easy to explain — more people spend time indoors, and there are changes in the climate, including relative humidity, that make it easier for infections to spread through the air,” Varma, who served as the New York City mayor’s senior adviser for public health during the COVID-19 pandemic, told Fox News Digital.
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It’s not quite as easy, however, to explain the peak during warmer weather.
“It may be because the virus evolves at a frequency that aligns with the spring/summer — or there could be other environmental factors that we do not understand well,” Varma said.
CDC data shows that the KP.3 and KP.2 strains — both of which are subvariants of the highly contagious JN.1 variant — account for more than half of all new cases this summer so far. (iStock)
Siegel, however, does not believe that COVID is seasonal.
“It is a respiratory virus, and it spreads when people huddle close together,” he told Fox News Digital.
“And like all respiratory viruses, it spreads further in low humidity.”
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“Having said that, it has not shown itself to be seasonal, meaning that it can spread in warm weather easily as well.”
COVID’s subvariants (FLiRT) are “immunoevasive,” according to Siegel, which means people can get them even if they had prior immunity.
Ways to curb the spread
To reduce the chances of catching COVID this summer, Siegel said the same advice applies year-round.
“If you are sharing indoor air, such as on an airplane or in a crowded space, wearing a high-quality mask can reduce your risk of getting infected,” one doctor advised. (iStock)
“If you are sharing indoor air, such as on an airplane or in a crowded space, wearing a high-quality mask can reduce your risk of getting infected,” he advised.
“If you have any cough or cold symptoms, including what you think are allergies, it’s a good idea to take a rapid test for COVID-19.”
A rapid test is an effective way to determine whether you’re likely to be infectious to other people, Siegel added.
Despite the rise in cases, hospitalizations and deaths remain low, data shows.
Varma agreed, noting that “being aware and using rapid testing when exposed or sick helps.”
For high-risk people who become infected, Varma also recommends the use of Paxlovid, an antiviral medication that can help prevent severe illness.
Should you get a fall vaccine?
As of June 27, the CDC recommends that all people 6 months of age and older get updated 2024-2025 COVID vaccines when they become available in fall 2024.
“I think this is the right advice,” Siegel said.
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“While we know that the flu and COVID vaccines only provide partial protection, we know these vaccines are extremely safe and that they may lead to fewer days of work or school lost, fewer days of misery, a lower risk of long COVID, and a lower risk of spreading infection to other people who may have risk of hospitalization or death,” he said.
As of June 27, the CDC recommends that all people 6 months of age and older get updated 2024-2025 COVID vaccines when they become available in fall 2024. (Julian Stratenschulte/dpa (Julian Stratenschulte/picture alliance via Getty Images))
Varma agreed, noting that the updated vaccine will target the new, prevalent subvariants.
“It will be effective and should be taken or highly considered — especially for high-risk groups and those most at risk, including the elderly,” he told Fox News Digital.
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“If COVID continues to spread, I would recommend the vaccine as one of our effective tools for adults to decrease severity and long COVID symptoms.”
He added, “For younger people, it is a matter of choice, but I continue to like the vaccine’s effectiveness at decreasing long COVID risk.”
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An accidental lab discovery has opened the door to entirely new ways of preventing the flu.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells, SWNS reported.
By targeting the specific molecules the viruses rely on, scientists found that they could block them from entering new cells and halt their replication altogether.
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Researchers say these “fundamental insights” into seasonal influenza highlight a clear path toward developing better preventive medications.
“The hope is that fundamental, curiosity-based research like this helps to pave the way for novel strategies to treat and prevent influenza infections,” principal investigator Dr. Emily Bruce, from the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine, said in the SWNS report.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells. (iStock)
While several flu strains cause illness, H1N1 and H3N2 influenza A viruses are the most common. However, current flu tests cannot differentiate between them, and clinical treatments are identical for both.
Although vaccines and antivirals are available, Bruce noted a “dire” need for better medications to stop the virus from spreading cell to xxcell.
“You don’t get sick when a virus is in one cell,” he noted. “You get sick because a virus replicates itself and goes into many more cells.”
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The study, which was published in The Journal of Virology, originally aimed to map how viral RNA segments are transported within cells to create new viral particles.
The team used H1N1 and H3N2 viruses isolated from the nasal passages of positive patients in 2022.
Clinical treatments remain identical for both primary strains of the flu virus. (iStock)
During the investigation, the team unexpectedly stumbled upon a cellular pathway that blocked the virus from entering lung cells, SWNS reported.
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The data revealed that when a specific human protein called Rab11B was depleted, H3N2 viruses failed to enter human lung cells. H1N1 viruses were completely unaffected.
Using reverse genetics, the team mapped this defect and uncovered a brand-new, H3N2-specific role for Rab11B during viral entry.
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This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way.
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“Viruses are like pirates from different countries hijacking someone’s ship,” Bruce said. “Different viruses, like different types of pirates, use different methods to get onboard.”
This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way. (iStock)
“We had previously thought that all flu viruses used the same way to get into a cell, but we discovered that this is not true,” she went on. “H1N1 and H3N2 need different proteins to get in, and if you get rid of the right protein, a specific virus can’t get in.”
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While these findings identify a critical cellular pathway for viral entry, the study was conducted using isolated cells, the researchers acknowledged.
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Further research is needed to determine whether blocking the protein is safe and effective within a live, complex human respiratory system.
Bruce and the team hope to conduct further research to determine whether this Rab11B-dependency is a fundamental property of H3N2, or if it’s a trait unique to currently circulating flu strains.
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Eating processed meat like ham, sausage and bacon may be linked to a higher risk of certain types of cancer, according to new research.
While health organizations have already confirmed that processed meat can contribute to colon cancer, this study looked closer at cancers in the upper digestive tract, where the link has historically been less clear.
To understand these connections, researchers from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), one of the world’s largest long-term nutrition and cancer cohorts, tracked the health and diets of 450,112 people across Europe for an average of 14 years.
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The study group included 131,426 men and 318,686 women, according to the study’s press release.
During the follow-up period, 876 people developed stomach cancer and 215 people developed esophageal adenocarcinoma, which is cancer of the tube connecting the mouth to the stomach.
For female participants, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk of developing the disease. (iStock)
Researchers tracked where the stomach cancers grew, separating them into the upper part of the stomach near the throat and the lower part of the stomach.
The researchers also sorted the tumors into two categories based on how the cancer cells appeared under a microscope: intestinal, which forms more organized structures, and diffuse, in which the cells are more scattered throughout the tissue.
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After adjusting for other lifestyle factors, the researchers found that for every extra 30 grams of processed meat a person ate per day, their overall risk of stomach cancer went up by 9%. Eating that same extra 30 grams a day was also linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma.
A standard single slice of regular deli-sliced ham or lunch meat averages around 28 grams, according to USDA data and nutritional tracking databases.
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken and turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach. (iStock)
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken or turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach, the researchers noted.
The study also revealed differences between men and women. For male participants, only processed meat showed a clear, statistically significant link to a higher risk of stomach cancer. For female participants, however, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk.
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These findings align with global health benchmarks, particularly those established by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer.
The agency has long classified processed meat as a known human carcinogen, primarily due to its strong, well-documented links to colorectal cancer.
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However, health organizations have also consistently pointed to a potential, yet less definitive, relationship between these meats and cancers of the stomach.
Eating 30 grams of processed meat a day, or the equivalent to one slice of ham, was linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma. (iStock)
Further scientific investigation is needed to confirm the findings and to account for other underlying risk factors, such as certain stomach infections, which could interact with dietary habits.
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A key limitation of the study is its reliance on self-reported diets, which can sometimes lead to inaccuracies in how participants recall their meat consumption over time, the researchers noted.
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The findings were published in the International Journal of Cancer.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers requesting comment.
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