The Public Health – Seattle & King County issued an alert after they were notified that an adult with a confirmed case of infectious measles traveled through Seattle-Tacoma International Airport after their travels in Europe.

The confirmed infection came after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued an alert to public health officials warning that the number of U.S. measles cases this year has already matched the entirety of 2023. 

The Seattle & King County alert said that the infectious adult traveled through the international airport on May 10 and 11 and that the person’s measle vaccination status was unclear.

Health officials said the individual resided in Arizona and likely picked up the infectious disease while in Europe. The agency did not specify which country or countries the individual traveled.

CDC ISSUES MEASLES ALERT AS 2024 CASES HAVE ALREADY EQUALED ALL OF 2023

Health officials said the individual used the S Concourse (Gate S1) on May 10 between 5:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. They went through customs to the international arrivals facility baggage claim (Carousel 19).

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On May 11, between approximately 7:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., the individual was at the A Concourse (Gate A8).

Measles outbreaks in the U.S. and abroad are raising health experts’ concern about the preventable, once-common childhood virus. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

Seattle health officials said that if individuals believe they were exposed at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, they should:

• Find out if you have been vaccinated for measles or have had measles previously. Make sure you are up-to-date with the recommended number of measles (MMR) vaccinations.
• Call a healthcare provider promptly if you develop an illness with fever or with an unexplained rash. To avoid possibly spreading measles to others, do not go to a clinic or hospital without calling first to tell them you want to be checked for measles after an exposure.
• Limit contact with others, especially those without known immunity.

If you were at the locations at the times listed above and are not immune to measles, the most likely time you would become sick would be between May 17, 2024, to June 1, 2024. People who are immuno-compromised may take longer to experience symptoms.

Photo illustration shows skin of a patient afflicted with measles. (iStock)

The health scare at the international airport came after a CDC alert to public health officials said the number of U.S. measles cases this year has already matched the entirety of 2023.  

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“From January 1 to March 14, 2024, CDC has been notified of 58 confirmed U.S. cases of measles across 17 jurisdictions, including seven outbreaks in seven jurisdictions compared to 58 total cases and four outbreaks reported the entire year in 2023,” it said in the release. 

“Among the 58 cases reported in 2024, 54 (93%) were linked to international travel,” the CDC continued, adding that, “Many countries, including travel destinations such as Austria, the Philippines, Romania, and the United Kingdom, are experiencing measles outbreaks.” 

A measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) on a countertop at a pediatrics clinic in Greenbrae, California. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File)

The CDC describes measles as a “highly contagious viral illness” that “can cause severe health complications, including pneumonia, encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), and death, especially in unvaccinated persons.” 

“To prevent measles infection and reduce the risk of community transmission from importation, all U.S. residents traveling internationally, regardless of destination, should be current on their MMR vaccinations,” it said in the alert. “Healthcare providers should ensure children are current on routine immunizations, including MMR.” 

• Doctors say Lisa Pisano, who received a pig kidney transplant, is back on dialysis after surgeons removed the gradually failing organ.
• Pisano was the second person to receive a kidney from a gene-edited pig after Richard “Rick” Slayman at Massachusetts General Hospital. Slayman died in early May, about two months after his transplant. Doctors said there was no indication he died as a result of the transplant.
• NYU will further study the explanted kidney for further insight on how it reacted inside a living person.

A woman who received a pig kidney transplant is back on dialysis just 47 days later after surgeons removed the gradually failing organ.

Lisa Pisano was the second person to receive a kidney from a gene-edited pig, and NYU Langone Health announced that she is stable after an operation to remove the organ earlier this week.

The first patient to receive a pig kidney transplant, Richard “Rick” Slayman at Massachusetts General Hospital, died in early May, nearly two months after his transplant. Doctors there said there was no indication he died as a result of the experimental transplant.

MASSACHUSETTS MAN DIES 2 MONTHS AFTER BECOMING FIRST PERSON TO RECEIVE SUCCESSFUL PIG KIDNEY TRANSPLANT

Pisano’s heart and kidneys were failing when, in a dramatic pair of surgeries in April, doctors implanted a mechanical pump to keep her heart beating and then the pig kidney.

At first she seemed to be recovering well. But Dr. Robert Montgomery, who led the transplant, said there were “unique challenges” to managing both the heart pump and new kidney. Her blood pressure dropped too low multiple times for optimal blood flow to the kidney.

The kidney lost function until doctors no longer could justify keeping her on immune-suppressing medications, Montgomery said in a statement Friday.

A recent kidney biopsy showed no signs of rejection – the biggest concern in highly experimental animal-to-human transplants – but there was “significant injury” from insufficient blood flow, he said. NYU will further study the explanted kidney for further insight on how it reacted inside a living person.

Montgomery noted Pisano wasn’t a candidate for the life-prolonging heart pump while on dialysis, and her heart disease in turn barred a traditional kidney transplant.

“We are hoping to get Lisa back home to her family soon,” he said. “Her strength and bravery in the face of adversity inspires and drives us as we continue pursuing the hope and promise of xenotransplantation.”

Pisano told the Associated Press in April that she knew the pig kidney might not work but “I just took a chance. And you know, worst case scenario, if it didn’t work for me, it might have worked for someone else.”

More than 100,000 people are on the U.S. transplant waiting list, most who need a kidney, and thousands die waiting. In hopes of filling the shortage of donated organs, several biotech companies are genetically modifying pigs so their organs are more humanlike, less likely to be destroyed by people’s immune system.

Formal studies of such organs are expected to begin next year. Meanwhile, NYU and other research teams have temporarily transplanted pig kidneys and hearts into brain-dead bodies, with promising results. In addition to the Mass General pig kidney transplant, the University of Maryland transplanted pig hearts into two men who were out of other options, and both died within months.

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