# What is pneumonic plague and how does it spread?

https://mins.news/en/item/89137

- BBC News, 2026-10-06 15:35 UTC
- Health
- Original: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cxdd8035jzn3o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

> The death of a worker at a Siberian Russian laboratory researching plague has prompted questions about pneumonic plague. It is a severe lung infection that can spread through droplets from an infected person’s cough, usually after close contact, or through infected fleas and animals. The disease can become fatal very quickly without early diagnosis and antibiotics, but it is treatable when therapy starts promptly.

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