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'Mad cow disease' and CJD

In 1996 the UK government said there was a link between BSE in cattle and the debilitating and ultimately fatal CJD in humans.

In 1996 the UK government said there was a link between BSE in cattle and Variant CJD in humans. It's believed that more than 100 people contracted the debilitating and ultimately fatal disease after eating infected beef during an outbreak in the 1980s and 1990s. Initially scientists had no idea what was causing their strange symptoms, until a link was found that traced CJD back to BSE or 'mad cow disease', as it became known, in cattle. Millions of cows were destroyed and feeding practices were changed to contain the outbreak. Roger Tomkins and Sarah Shadbolt both lost family members to Variant CJD and share their stories with Rebecca Kesby.

Photo: Cows. 大象传媒.

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9 minutes

Last on

Thu 30 Sep 2021 02:50GMT

Broadcasts

  • Wed 29 Sep 2021 07:50GMT
  • Wed 29 Sep 2021 11:50GMT
  • Wed 29 Sep 2021 17:50GMT
  • Thu 30 Sep 2021 02:50GMT

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