The 'almost entirely preventable' but life-threatening disease that's on the rise

Cases of an 'almost entirely preventable' disease continue to surge across parts of the nation - with vaccine hesitancy blamed for the recent outbreak. The latest figures show 1,603 suspected cases of measles in England and Wales were reported to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) in 2023.

That is more than double the 735 cases in 2022 and more than quadruple the 360 suspected cases reported in 2021. Cases have continued to surge into 2024, with 64 suspected cases in the first week of January alone.

Of recent cases, the West Midlands has been hit hardest, in particular Birmingham. The UKHSA says cases are 'rising every day in the West Midlands'. The most recent data shows that 27 of 64 cases reported to the UKHSA so far this month were traced to the West Midlands, the majority (22) to Birmingham.

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Between the start of last year and the end of the first week of 2024, the UKHSA received 71 notifications of suspected cases of measles in Birmingham, more than anywhere else in England and Wales. That is nearly double the number of infections in Hillingdon, London, the area with the next highest number of suspected cases (40).

These figures show the number of statutory notices that GPs are required to send to the UKHSA, alerting health authorities to outbreaks of certain infectious diseases such as measles. Unvaccinated children who come into contact with the disease are being advised to stay at home for 21 days.

The rise in cases has been blamed on vaccine hesitancy, with uptake of the MMR vaccine - which protects against measles, as well as mumps and rubella - below the 95 per cent target in England. Nationally, 92.5 per cent of children had