The terrifying zombie deer disease ‘may have jumped to humans’, US government scientists have warned

A ‘zombie deer disease’ that is fatal to any animal it infects could soon spread to humans – if it hasn’t already, according to an alarming new report.

Experts have warned for years that the nearly 100 percent fatal chronic wasting disease (CWD) — which leaves deer confused, drooling and unafraid of humans — could jump from animals to humans.

The disease has now been found in feral pigs eating contaminated meat, with researchers warning that spread to domestic pigs – and then to humans – is just a stone’s throw away.

Dr. Michael Osterholm, a top infectious disease researcher at the University of Minnesotawarned: ‘We now have some limited data to suggest that feral pigs may be infected.

‘If they can become infected, surely it is possible that domestic pigs also become infected? What would that do to the pig market? What would that do to the livestock market? These are huge problems.’

In the report, funded by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, experts also warn that the disease could spread to people through infected deer captured by hunters.

Both pork and venison are normally cooked before consumption, but researchers say this won’t stop someone from contracting CWD – because cooking only concentrates the misfolded proteins behind the disease.

CWD is incurable and there are no vaccines or treatments available for humans. A person can contract the disease through contact with the saliva, feces or blood of an infected animal.

The map above shows all counties where CWD has been found in deer through August 2024

Speak with local news in Minnesota, Dr. Osterholm added, “We know that people are exposed (to CWD) through consumption (of meat) containing prions.

‘What we don’t yet understand is what it takes for that prion to actually infect humans through ingestion.’

Dr. Osterholm made the statements to raise awareness about the disease and the potential risk it poses to humans.

In the report, experts – who worked on the project for two years – called for more funding for efforts to halt the spread of the disease.

They also warned that new strains of the disease could emerge, likely to infect humans.

It is estimated that approximately 6 million deer are killed by hunters in the US each year, while 1.5 billion hogs are also consumed annually.

It’s not clear how many cases of CWD are discovered each year, but the disease has now been found in at least 33 states — including Wyoming, Wisconsin, Colorado and parts of Pennsylvania.

In April last year, concerns were raised that the disease had already spread to humans and that Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) had been diagnosed.

But researchers later backtracked, saying their work did not prove the patients had actually contracted CWD.

The CDC says no cases of CWD have been detected in humans to date, but adds that could be a possibility in the future.

CWD occurs when proteins normally found in the brain and nervous system – called prions – misfold and cause other proteins to misfold, creating a cascade effect that disrupts communication between cells and causes the disease.

Research shows that the proteins can be transferred between animals via saliva, blood, urine or feces of infected animals.

And some suggest it is possible to become infected through contaminated drinking water or soil.

There is currently no treatment or vaccine for CWD, and the mortality rate in deer is almost 100 percent.

Researchers generally worry about diseases that infect pigs. They say these animals have similar cells to humans, which increases the risk of them transmitting a disease to humans.

Dr. Osterholm has also previously raised concerns about the bird flu outbreak that has gripped the animal world, warning that if it spreads to pigs – and starts to spread between them – it is also more likely to spread to humans spreads.