Concerns about rare viral diseases have been growing since studies revealed that many dangers lurked within rapidly thawing permafrost . As it turns out, some diseases were already around us — they were just lesser known.
One of these lesser-known viruses is Alaskapox, first recorded in a human in 2015, with a second case in 2020. Since 2015, there have been only six total cases of the disease. However, in 2024, the seventh case was the first recorded fatal case of Alaskapox.
Here’s what you should know about the symptoms of the Alaskapox virus, where it comes from, and how its transmitted.
A man has died in the first fatal case of the Alaskapox virus.
In a bulletin issued by Alaska health officials on Feb. 9, 2024, the state confirmed the first fatal instance of Alaskapox had occurred in late January 2024. The patient was an elderly man living in the Kenai Peninsula who first reported symptoms in September 2023.
The patient first noticed a red papule in his right armpit and consulted several physicians over six weeks. On Nov. 17, he was transferred to a hospital in Anchorage.