CJD families give evidence to BSE Inquiry

26 October 1998

CJD families give evidence to BSE Inquiry

By FWi staff

THE families of victims who died from the human form of mad cow disease are giving evidence to the BSE Inquiry in London this morning (Monday).

Fifteen relatives of 29 people who have so far died from a new variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (nvCJD) will tell the inquiry how they watched their loved ones die.

They are expected to criticise doctors and call for better care for nvCJD victims who suffer a drawn-out death after becoming unable to walk, talk, or eat.

It is widely suspected that nvCJD can be caught from eating BSE-infected meat.

Death usually occurs about six months after the onset of the disease although experts think nvCJD could have an incubation period of up to 30 years.

Forecasts of the eventual number of nvCJD victims vary from just a handful to hundreds of thousands.