Virus could be worse than AIDS, warns expert

A SARS expert yesterday warned the virus had the potential to be more devastating than the AIDS epidemic.

Dr Patrick Dixon said it was not inevitable, but there was a 25% chance of a global SARS pandemic.

Dr Dixon, who is an expert on AIDS and considered Europe’s leading futurist, predicting global trends, said the crisis needed to be taken out of the hands of health chiefs and handled by world leaders.