BRITAIN is facing an “unrelenting rise” in vaccine-preventable infections, putting immense strain on the NHS, a new report reveals.
Cases of measles, RSV, flu, whooping cough, and tuberculosis have all surged since 2022.
“It’s a big wake-up call for eligible groups to go and get vaccinated,” Dr Richard Pebody, director of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) told The Sun.
Experts blame plummeting jab rates, increased socialising, and international travel.
“We are really starting to lose ground again,” Dame Jenny Harries also from the UKHSA, said at their annual conference in Manchester.
The fresh warnings come from the body’s first infectious disease trends report, tracking data since 2022, released today.
It revealed that 20 per cent of hospital beds are taken up by infectious disease patients and they cost the NHS £6billion last year.
“Behind this data there are real people, people who are sick or at risk of becoming sick, and in some cases dying,” Dame Jenny added.
“Yet much of this harm and distress is preventable.”
This comes as UKHSA released a new list of viruses and bacteria posing the greatest pandemic threat earlier today.
The “priority pathogen” guide highlighted flu and coronaviruses as the biggest risks.
Cases of TB, dubbed the ‘world’s most infectious disease,’ are soaring, up 11 per cent in 2023 and another 13 per cent in 2024, figures show.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”‘World’s most deadly infection’ leaves man with ‘giant crusty wart’ sprouting from his hand amid ‘worrying’ UK resurgence ” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6355441352112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]For years, the UK was classified as a ‘low incidence’ nation due to its low TB rates.
But health chiefs have warned that if cases keep rising, the country could lose this status, meaning more people could be at risk of catching the disease.
Dr Pebody said the rise in TB cases in Britain is closely linked to migration from high-TB countries like India, Pakistan, and Nigeria, with 80 per cent of cases found in people born overseas.
This week, global health officials warned that rates of the deadly disease in Europe had surged, with child cases jumping by 10 per cent in just one year.
Meanwhile, measles cases surged among children under 10 in 2023/4, as MMR jab uptake remains at a shocking 15-year low.
An outbreak of whooping cough, also called the ‘100-day cough’ in 2024 saw 433 cases in children under three months, 10 of whom tragically died.
Similarly, this comes as coverage of the maternal whooping cough vaccine, which protects newborns, has dropped in recent years.
RSV and flu cases have spiked in 2024/25, with hospital admissions at post-pandemic levels.
However, a new vaccine for the elderly and pregnant women is already slashing RSV hospital admissions, with a 30 per cent per cent drop in cases among 75-79 year-olds this winter, data published today suggests.
The NHS offers vaccines for children, including those for measles, mumps, rubella, whooping cough, HPV, and flu.
Pregnant women can receive vaccines for flu and whooping cough through the NHS to protect both themselves and their babies.
If you believe you or your child has missed a vaccine, contact your GP to arrange a catch-up dose.