Two die after catching TB from a cat
Two people have developed tuberculosis (TB) after contact with a cat in the first ever recorded cases of cat-to-human transmission, officials have said.
Public Health England (PHE) said two people developed tuberculosis after contact with a domestic cat infected with bacteria Mycobacterium bovis.
The bacteria causes TB in cattle (known as bovine TB) and in other animals.
Nine cases of Mycobacterium bovis infection in domestic cats in Berkshire and Hampshire were investigated by the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) and PHE last year.