• Question: how many people have your desease

    Asked by iluminati confirmed to Craig, Devon, Marta, Natalie, Nicholas on 8 Mar 2017.
    • Photo: Nicholas Younger

      Nicholas Younger answered on 8 Mar 2017:

      I study a rare disease, so only about 2 in every 100,000 people which really isn’t a lot. But anyone can get it, and there isn’t a cure at all, so even though it’s rare it’s still worth paying attention to. Plus…more and more people are getting it every year and no one knows why…I think it’s because of the diet in the UK. Too much fat and salt!

    • Photo: Marta Varela

      Marta Varela answered on 8 Mar 2017:

      Lots. The disease I study is called atrial fibrillation, AF. It is a problem with the electrical circuits of the upper chambers of the heart, which are called the atria. About 60 million people in the world have AF (1 in every 1000 in the UK only).

    • Photo: Craig O'Hare

      Craig O'Hare answered on 9 Mar 2017:

      Most people have had an infection with a DNA virus, they probably just haven’t realised it was a DNA virus!

      You’ve probably had chicken pox, this is caused by the Varicella zoster virus. Maybe you’ve had a cold sore, this is caused by the Herpes Simplex-1 Virus. Some surveys show as many as 70% of people have been exposed to HSV1 and gotten cold sores in the UK. While these diseases aren’t usually life threatening they’re very unpleasant and are more dangerous for individuals with compromised immune systems, like cancer patients or babies.

      My research would hopefully allow us to eventually make vaccines to these infections so that one day we can wipe them out.

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