90-Second Read: Tools to fight Hantavirus show promise

Researchers on Wednesday published a hint that a drug used for an autoimmune disease may help Hantavirus patients fight off the deadliest symptoms. The Andes virus, the germ behind the cruise ship outbreak, is a particular focus of researchers because it is the only Hantavirus thought to be able to spread between people in some cases. Separately, in Chile, the Ministry of Health has confirmed 15 deaths and 42 cases of Hantavirus so far this year. They and others hope the attention that the cruise ship outbreak brought to the virus, and concern that Hantavirus infections could become more common as climate change is expected to increase contact between people and rodents, may bring new momentum to the hunt.

In the US, 35 per cent of Hantavirus cases tracked since 1993 have resulted in death, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Argentina, researchers are testing whether a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis might help fight Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a severe infection caused by both the Andes virus and the Sin Nombre virus, a type of Hantavirus found in North America. Four of five patients in an Argentinian hospital survived after receiving tocilizumab in addition to traditional supportive care for Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, the research team reported in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. Authorities in Argentina have reported 32 deaths and 102 cases since June 2025.

But because the viruses are relatively rare and do not spread easily between people, there has not been enough sustained investment by governments, global health groups or drug companies to pay for the extensive safety and efficacy testing needed to make them available. Hantaviruses usually spread when people inhale contaminated residue from rodent droppings. But there are unique species of Hantavirus found in different parts of the world, each with their own characteristics that can cause different symptoms. And while Hantavirus infections are rare, they can be extremely deadly.

Dr Paul Bollyky, an infectious disease doctor and researcher at Stanford Medical Centre in California, said attracting and sustaining the support needed to produce vaccines and treatments is extremely difficult for rare diseases like Hantavirus. Also, because Hantavirus outbreaks are so sporadic and unpredictable, the virus is much harder to study compared with common germs that regularly circulate, such as influenza. However, new vaccines are in development, including ones aimed at fighting the Andes virus.