On This Day: COVID-19 patient zero reportedly diagnosed in China in 2019 – The Jerusalem Post

November 17, 2021, marks two years since the first human case of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) was detected, essentially kicking off the pandemic that has spread worldwide and claimed millions of lives, according to local media reports.

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The origin of the pandemic is still hotly contested around the world by researchers and politicians. Indeed, the November 17 diagnosis has yet to be independently confirmed. However, a November-October origin seems likely, according to academic articles studying the SARS-CoV-2's sequenced cases.

Exactly how the virus spread and where it originated remains unclear, though it is widely accepted that it is a zoonotic disease originally found in bats, as are many coronaviruses.

A common belief of how the virus began spreading into humans was that it was the result of the Wuhan wet market, which sells live, exotic animals. Others have accused the Wuhan Institute of Virology of having been involved, though any concrete evidence supporting this claim has yet to be conclusively found.

What is clear is that by late December 2019, COVID-19 began spreading rapidly throughout China. Soon, it spread worldwide and was declared a global pandemic.

Two years later, the pandemic continues to circulate throughout the world, and has even mutated into several variants. A number of treatments and vaccines have been proposed, with some, like the Pfizer vaccine, seeing widespread use worldwide.

Over 254 million people have reportedly been infected with COVID-19, and the disease has also claimed over five million lives.

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On This Day: COVID-19 patient zero reportedly diagnosed in China in 2019 - The Jerusalem Post