Health
Bird flu surges in several US states with reports of new outbreaks: 'Getting worse'
Avian influenza A (H5N1), commonly known as bird flu, continues to make its way through the U.S., as Hawaii joins the list of affected states.
The Hawaiian Department of Agriculture (HDOA) reported last week that bird flu was confirmed in a backyard flock of various birds in Central Oahu.
At least 10 birds — including ducks, geese and a zebra dove — were reported dead on the property on Nov. 12 and were then sent for confirmatory testing.
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The department stated in a press release that highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) causes “severe illness with a high mortality rate among affected birds.”
At least 10 birds infected with bird flu were reported dead in Oahu, Hawaii. (iStock)
The presence of bird flu was detected through the National Wastewater Surveillance System, marking the first confirmed detection in Hawaii.
The HDOA has issued a quarantine order for the site of infection, requiring all birds on the property to be “depopulated and the premises cleaned and disinfected.”
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It is confirmed to be the same strain that has infected dairy cows and domestic poultry in U.S. mainland states, including California.
As of Nov. 18, California has confirmed 27 human cases of bird flu, according to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH).
The California Department of Food and Agriculture also confirmed bird flu in 335 dairy farms in Central California as of that same date.
“We can’t afford to give this virus more opportunities to spill over into humans.”
These outbreaks have affected more than one-fourth of California’s farms, per reports, boosting the national total in dairy herds to 549 in 15 states.
The CDPH confirmed on its website that the agency is monitoring bird flu in animals and people working closely with poultry and cows, and has distributed protective gear to these individuals.
Bird flu spread can occur by drinking raw milk; touching raw milk, cow or bird feces, and other contaminated surfaces; and handling sick or dead animals infected with the virus. (iStock)
Meanwhile, Arizona reported its first bird flu outbreak on Nov. 15 in poultry at a commercial farm in Pinal County.
The farmers spotted signs of illness in their poultry on Nov. 11. Officials confirmed that any eggs produced after the onset of illness have not entered the food supply.
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Experts believe the surge stems from the Pacific Flyway, where birds are heading south for winter. The potential of human infection is less of a threat, according to state agencies.
Hawaii’s Department of Agriculture reassured that Hawaiians are “unlikely to get sick” from bird flu at this time, as human illness is “uncommon.” Symptoms among humans infected in the U.S. have been mild, the agency added.
California’s Department of Public Health has warned that while human infections are rare, it can happen if the virus enters a person’s eyes, nose or mouth.
The CDPH confirmed that the agency is monitoring bird flu in animals and people who work closely with poultry and cows. (iStock)
People can also be infected by drinking raw milk; touching raw milk, cow or bird feces and other contaminated surfaces; and handling sick or dead animals carrying the virus.
Symptoms of bird flu in humans can include eye redness or discharge, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, diarrhea, vomiting, muscle or body aches, headaches, fatigue, trouble breathing, high fever, pneumonia and seizures, according to medical experts.
Expert calls for ‘decisive action’
Sam Scarpino, PhD, director of AI and life sciences at Northeastern University in Boston, said he considers the increased H5N1 influenza cases “quite concerning.”
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“From ducks and geese in Hawaii and dairy cows in California to human cases in the U.S. and a severe human infection in Canada, it’s clear that the avian influenza outbreak is getting worse, not better,” he told Fox News Digital.
“We can’t afford to give this virus more opportunities to spill over into humans — and the economic costs on the agricultural side are piling up.”
A researcher collects samples of wildlife where the H5N1 bird flu virus was detected at Chilean Antarctic territory in Antarctica. (Reuters/Instituto Antartico Chileno)
Scarpino suggested that the federal government must take “decisive action” regarding testing and serosurveillance (estimates of antibody levels) of missed infections and wastewater, as well as vaccinating dairy cows against the virus.
“We also need to ensure that farm workers are protected and should strongly consider offering them access to H5N1 vaccines,” he said.
“It’s clear that the avian influenza outbreak is getting worse, not better.”
The expert added that it will be more difficult to differentiate bird flu cases from non-bird flu cases during the seasonal influenza season.
“We need investment from the federal government to ramp up public health laboratory test capacity and educate physicians and hospitals around the need to test influenza A positive samples for H5N1,” Scarpino said.
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Dr. Jacob Glanville, CEO of Centivax, a San Francisco biotechnology company, urged people to “stay away from any dead birds and sick birds, pigs or cows” as a preventive measure, and to keep pets away from wild animals.
“This H5N1 has proven extremely lethal in ferrets and primates, and many of the infected birds have been found dead,” Glanville told Fox News Digital. “Researchers have shown it to be capable of airborne transmission between mammals.”
“Stay away from any dead birds and sick birds, pigs or cows,” an expert cautioned. (iStock)
Among the 52 Americans who have been infected with bird flu, Glanville noted that almost all of them were farm workers who had contact with cows or birds.
“Historically, from 2003 to 2024, 261 H5N1 infections have killed about 50% of the infected, being very lethal but not easily transmissible from human to human,” he said.
“Scientists don’t understand why this current strain is causing only mild infections so far, or how many mutations it would take to make it human-human transmissible and more lethal.”
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Small fragments of plastic were found in the tumors of most prostate cancer patients, according to a new study from NYU Langone Health.
In past studies, microplastics have been found in almost every human organ and in bodily fluids, but their impact on human health still isn’t fully understood.
The researchers analyzed tissue samples from 10 patients with prostate cancer who underwent surgery to remove the entire organ.
Using visuals of both benign samples and tumor samples, as well as specialized equipment, the scientists identified plastic particles in 90% of the tumor samples and 70% of benign tissue samples, according to the study press release.
In past studies, microplastics were found in almost every single human organ along with bodily fluids, even the placenta. (iStock)
The cancerous tissue contained on average more than double the amount of plastic as healthy prostate tissue samples, the study found. This equates to about 40 micrograms of plastic per gram of tissue compared to 16 micrograms.
Researchers avoided contaminating the samples with other plastics by substituting standard tools with those made of aluminum, cotton and other non-plastic material, the release noted.
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The scientists say this is the first direct evidence linking microplastics to prostate cancer.
“By uncovering yet another potential health concern posed by plastic, our findings highlight the need for stricter regulatory measures to limit the public’s exposure to these substances, which are everywhere in the environment,” said senior study author Vittorio Albergamo, assistant professor in the department of pediatrics at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, in the release.
Using visuals of both benign samples and tumor samples, as well as specialized equipment, the scientists identified plastic particles in 90% of the tumor samples and 70% of benign tissue samples. (iStock)
The study findings were presented during the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in San Francisco on Feb. 26.
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“What is most striking is not that microplastics were detected, but that they were found embedded within tumor tissue itself,” Dr. David Sidransky, oncologist and medical advisor at SpotitEarly, a startup that offers an at-home breath-based test to detect early-stage cancer, told Fox News Digital.
“While complete avoidance is unrealistic, people can take practical steps to reduce exposure.”
“We already know microplastics are present in water, air, blood and even placental tissue. Their detection in prostate tumors suggests systemic distribution and long-term bioaccumulation,” added Maryland-based Sidransky, who was not involved in the study.
Study limitations
Albergamo cautioned that a larger sample is needed to confirm the findings. Additionally, Sidransky noted that the presence of microplastics alone does not prove they cause cancer.
“Tumors can act as ‘biologic sinks,’ meaning they may accumulate circulating particles simply because of altered vasculature and permeability,” he said.
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A key unanswered question, according to the doctor, is whether microplastics are biologically active in ways that “promote DNA damage, immune modulation or chronic inflammation within the prostate.”
About one in eight men in the U.S. will be diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point in their lifetime, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The most actionable step men can take is appropriate screening and early detection, according to doctors. (iStock)
For those concerned about microplastics, Sidransky offered some insights.
“I believe the appropriate response is curiosity, not panic, and a commitment to understand more,” he said.
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“While complete avoidance is unrealistic, people can take practical steps to reduce exposure, such as minimizing heating food in plastic containers, reducing bottled water consumption when possible, and favoring glass or stainless steel alternatives.”
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The most actionable step men can take, however, is getting appropriate screenings to help ensure early detection, according to the doctor. Screening discussions should be individualized based on age, family history and other risk factors.
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There has been a shake-up in the Make America Healthy Again movement regarding glyphosate, a widely used herbicide that has been the subject of significant controversy.
The debate follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump that ensures an adequate supply of elemental phosphorus and glyphosate-based herbicides related to national defense.
MAHA supporters have previously pushed a pesticide-free agenda, warning of potential health harms caused by glyphosate.
Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst, said he believes there is sufficient evidence linking glyphosate to neurodegenerative diseases, including ALS, Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis, to warrant limiting exposure.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order that ensures an adequate supply of elemental phosphorus and glyphosate-based herbicides related to national defense. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
“With Parkinson’s, this association appears to be due to the gut, vagus nerve and brain axis, where the exposure affects the microbiome in the gut, which then ascends slowly up to the brain, causing the neurodegenerative disease years later,” Siegel told Fox News Digital.
“There is also a growing association being found between high-dose glyphosate or occupational exposure and metabolic disorders, liver disease and some cancers, specifically lymphoma.”
He added, “Growing research backs this. I favor limiting it.”
“When we apply them across millions of acres and allow them into our food system, we put Americans at risk.”
Studies have shown that glyphosate, which is used in products such as Roundup, owned by Monsanto, could raise cancer risk.
In one University of Washington study published in the journal Mutation Research, researchers found that exposure to it increased the risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma by 41%.
The nonprofit Investigate Midwest, which analyzed data from both the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Cancer Institute, also recently found that pesticides may contribute to cancer rates.
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Among the top 500 counties for per-square-mile pesticide use, more than 60% had cancer rates above the national average of 460 cases per 100,000 people, according to the report.
Investigate Midwest, which is based in Illinois, interviewed more than 100 farmers, environmentalists, lawmakers and scientists as part of a partnership with the Pulitzer Center’s StoryReach U.S. Fellowship.
Among the top 500 counties for per-square-mile pesticide use, more than 60% had cancer rates above the national average of 460 cases per 100,000 people, according to one study. (iStock)
Iowa, which used 53 million pounds of pesticides last year, holds the nation’s title for second-highest cancer rate.
Bill Billings, a resident of Red Oak, Iowa, was diagnosed with cancer in 2014.
“The cancer specialist said, very directly, (my) cancer is a result of being exposed to chemicals,” Billings said in the report.
Kelly Ryerson, founder of Glyphosate Facts and owner of the Instagram account @glyphosategirl, told Fox News Digital her journey researching the herbicide began with her own health struggles.
Ryerson, who is based in California, previously struggled with chronic illness and autoimmune issues, which she said improved when she stopped eating gluten.
Iowa, which used 53 million pounds of pesticides last year, holds the nation’s title for second-highest cancer rate. (iStock)
After attending a medical conference at Columbia University’s Celiac Disease Center, Ryerson began to question modern farming practices rather than the gluten itself.
“A lot of times, farmers are spraying Roundup on our grains right before harvest to facilitate an easier harvest,” she said. “After that easier harvest, because everything’s dry at the same time, those crops go directly to the mill and may end up in our food supply, at alarmingly high levels.”
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In 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), part of the World Health Organization framework, classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans.”
The classification was based on limited evidence of cancer in humans (notably non-Hodgkin lymphoma in some studies) and sufficient evidence in experimental animals.
“President Trump’s executive order reinforces the critical need for U.S. farmers to have access to essential, domestically produced crop protection tools, such as glyphosate,” a Monsanto spokesperson said. (Wolf von Dewitz/picture alliance via Getty Images)
A spokesperson for Monsanto told Fox News Digital it will comply with Trump’s order to produce glyphosate and elemental phosphorus.
“President Trump’s executive order reinforces the critical need for U.S. farmers to have access to essential, domestically produced crop protection tools, such as glyphosate,” the spokesperson said.
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HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has long been a vocal critic of Roundup, working with his legal team in 2018 to award $289 million to a man who alleged the weed killer caused his non-Hodgkin lymphoma, according to reports.
Following backlash to Trump’s executive order, Kennedy said he supports the order but acknowledged that “pesticides and herbicides are toxic by design, engineered to kill living organisms.”
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“When we apply them across millions of acres and allow them into our food system, we put Americans at risk,” he posted on X. “Chemical manufacturers have paid tens of billions of dollars to settle cancer claims linked to their products, and many agricultural communities report elevated cancer rates and chronic disease.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment.
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