There’s a virus you may have never heard of before that is estimated to infect up to 90 percent of people and lurks quietly in your cells for life—but if it becomes activated, it will destroy your brain. If that’s not startling enough, researchers reported this week that there may be a new way for this virus to activate—one that affects up to 10 percent of adults worldwide.
The virus is the human ...
The narrative around the JC virus and PML is compelling because it taps into deep-seated fears of hidden, incurable threats—viruses lurking silently in our bodies, capable of sudden, catastrophic activation. The strongest version of this story highlights legitimate scientific concerns: a ubiquitous virus with a rare but devastating outcome, historically linked to immunocompromised populations, now potentially emerging in new contexts. The framing leans on the dramatic contrast between the virus’...