Scientiss fear CWD will spread to humans (Image: GETTY)
Zombie deer disease, also know as cachexia or Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), has not yet been detected in humans - but scientists believe this could change in the coming years. The neurological disease has been found in animals in 24 American states as well as Canada, Norway, Finland and South Korea and there are concerns it could become the new mad-cow-disease - as it belongs to the same family. The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organisation have both recommended against eating CWD-infected meat.
The disease could be spread via bodily fluids even after the animal has died (Image: GETTY)
Michael Osterholm, director of the centre for infectious disease research and policy at the University of Minnesota, told lawmakers recently that CWD should be treated as a public health issue, the Pioneer Press reported.
He said: "It is probable that human cases of CWD associated with the consumption of contaminated meat will be documented in the years ahead.
"It is possible that the number of human cases will be substantial and will not be isolated events.”
He was speaking at a hearing last week at the
