What's behind the global surge of new Covid variant XFG – and should you get vaccinated?
In the UK, the Health Security Agency has said the variant accounted for 30 per cent of cases in England in late June.
However, the true extent of the variant's spread remains uncertain, largely due to a significant reduction in Covid-19 testing compared to the peak of the global pandemic five years ago.
What do we know about the variant XFG?
XFG is a mix of earlier variants LF.7 and LP.8.1.2, with the earliest sample collected on 27 January 2025, according to the WHO.
As of 22 June 2025, there were 1648 XFG sequences detected from 38 countries, representing 22.7 per cent of the global cases that week, up from 7.4 per cent four weeks prior.
The variant has been the fastest growing in the last month compared to any other currently circulating types.
Recent reports from Southeast Asian countries have shown a simultaneous rise in cases and hospitalisations of this variant.
However WHO has designated the risk of this new variant as 'low' and commented that current data do not indicate that this variant leads to more severe illness or deaths than other variants in circulation.
Why has there been a surge in new cases?
The World Health Organization (WHO) lists Stratus as one of its 'variants under monitoring', which means they may require prioritised attention and tracking by health authorities due to their increased prevalence and potential public health implications.
The WHO has said the growth advantage this variant has over others is 'moderate', as XFG is growing substantially across all WHO regions.
Data shows from the week of 5 May to the week of 26 May, XFG has increased in proportion across main global regions, including from 10.6 per cent to 16.7 per cent in Europe and from 7.8 per cent to 26.5 per cent in the Americas (AMR).
In Southeast Asia, the XFG proportion increased from 17.3 per cent to 68.7 per cent in the Southeast Asia Region (SEAR).
'It is normal for viruses to mutate and change over time,' Dr Alex Allen, consultant epidemiologist of UKHSA said, adding that it continues to monitor all strains of Covid in the UK
What are the symptoms?
One reported symptom of Stratus is a hoarse throat, according to some experts.
'One of the most noticeable symptoms of the Stratus variant is hoarseness, which includes a scratchy or raspy voice', Dr Kaywaan Khan, Harley Street GP and founder of Hannah London Clinic, told Cosmopolitan UK
He said in general, the symptoms of Stratus tend to be 'mild to moderate'.
Healthcare experts have stressed, however, that there is no evidence that the new strain is more deadly or serious than previous variants, and that current Covid vaccines are expected to remain effective and protect anyone infected from severe illness.
Should you get vaccinated?
Under UK guidelines, people aged 75 years and older, residents in care homes for older people, and those aged 6 months and over with a weakened immune system were offered a dose of Covid-19 vaccine this spring.
Patients were offered an appointment between April and June, with those at highest risk being called in first.
If you are turning 75 years of age between April and June, you do not have to wait until your birthday; you can attend when you are called for vaccination.
For the next round of vaccinations, patients will be able to book from 1 September 2025 for vaccines to be given from 1 October, NHS England has advised health providers.
The NHS will get in touch to offer you the Covid vaccine if you are eligible.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Why thousands of women diagnosed with ADHD could really be suffering from iron deficiency - that can easily be solved by taking this simple supplement
For as long as Josie Heath-Smith can remember, she has suffered from brain fog, fatigue and an inability to concentrate. There were also the 'debilitating' periods of hyper-fixation. Josie, 44, explains: 'I'd swing from being completely unable to focus – at work I'd drift off whenever anyone tried to explain anything – to staying up all night obsessively focused on a single task. It was always something random, like putting up a shelving unit at 4am. With two kids, the cycle left me completely burnt out.'
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
More than 100 NHS doctors warn Wes Streeting to honour promise to roll out screening clinics for osteoporosis - or risk thousands of preventable deaths
More than 100 leading NHS doctors have warned Health Secretary Wes Streeting that failing to honour his pre-Election commitment to urgently rollout screening clinics for osteoporosis risks causing thousands of preventable deaths. In a letter shared exclusively with The Mail on Sunday, the medics and healthcare workers say tens of thousands of people with the bone-thinning disease are 'slipping through the net' because of a postcode lottery of care – and 2,500 may have needlessly died in the last 12 months alone – because of a failure by the Government to prioritise tackling the crisis. Mr Streeting told this newspaper that one of his first acts in Government would be to publish a plan to rollout Fracture Liaison Services, or FLS, across all parts of the country. These vital services, which require no new equipment, represent a gold standard in the early diagnosis of the condition and would mean everyone over 50 who breaks a bone could be screened for the disease and given bone-preserving drugs – potentially saving thousands of people from serious injury, disability and an early death. But a year on from that promise, the Government now says FLS will not be available everywhere until 2030. The Government reiterated its commitment to funding the clinics in its 10-Year Health Plan, published on Thursday, but the doctors say any further delay will cause 'harm' to patients – and say officials have still failed to reveal how they plan to achieve the rollout. The doctors, part of the Royal Osteoporosis Society's clinical network who are backing the charity's campaign for universal FLS, wrote: 'Late diagnosis of osteoporosis leads to avoidable fractures, loss of independence, long-term disability and, in many cases, premature death. 'A properly functioning FLS catches patients after their first fracture, enabling early diagnosis and access to proven, cost-effective treatments. They are a classic example of driving the shift from sickness to prevention. 'However, the current postcode lottery for FLS provision means tens of thousands are slipping through the net. Each year that this remains unaddressed, an estimated 2,500 more people die following hip fractures that could have been prevented. 'Any delay in implementation of this important policy will cost lives.' Shadow Health Secretary Edward Argar also called on Mr Streeting to deliver his pledge 'right away, with no more delays'. Mr Argar said: 'I'm calling on the Health Secretary to set out an action plan with a clear timetable, starting now, for the roll-out of FLS to all areas, something which will not only help thousands of people with osteoporosis but will also be saving the NHS money within a few years.' Osteoporosis affects around 3.5million people in the UK and causes bones to thin and weaken, leading to fractures. Most people are only diagnosed after breaking several bones, but in hospitals which have FLS, patients attending with fractures can be screened for osteoporosis with a bone density test called a DEXA scan. Only half of NHS Trusts in England currently have FLS, and rolling it out is estimated to cost £30million. Osteoporosis-related fractures have cost the British economy more than £142million since last July. The Mail on Sunday has been running a War on Osteoporosis campaign to make FLS universal. Craig Jones, chief executive of the Royal Osteoporosis Society, said: 'This is a preventative model that's tried and tested, ready to go, and capable of delivering savings before the middle of this Parliament. 'We welcome inclusion in the 10 Year Plan and now call for a speedy implementation plan so we can protect patients and save lives.'
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
The simple diet that's a natural Ozempic and could even help you live longer - all with ingredients from your kitchen cupboard, by nutrition expert PROFESSOR TIM SPECTOR
It's simple, affordable and deeply unglamorous – and yet, as someone who has spent their career studying the effects of diet on health, I believe fibre may be the most under-appreciated nutrient of all. Until recently, the only place you'd hear it mentioned was in adverts for unfashionable slimming clubs or printed on the back of a cereal box.
