A devastated mum has recalled the last words her son said to her before he died from dengue fever.
Jayne Toulson-Burke's son Bob from Stockport picked up the disease while travelling in Asia. He succumbed to dengue fever at a Thailand hospital on December 7, 2016.
His final conversation with his mum was held on the phone whilst being rushed to the hospital, where he voiced out, "I've got to go now. I can't breathe and they are putting a tube down my throat."
An emotional Jayne shared, "That's the last time I ever heard from him. He went into a coma and never regained consciousness."
She recalled her son being 'worried' and roughly a week later, losing his life in a Phuket hospital. Falling ill on a flight from Laos to Thailand, he and his pals first sought medical attention in Pa Tong, where he was initially diagnosed with 'just a flu', reports the Manchester Evening News.
Despite his transfer to Phuket for further treatment, he never recovered.
Jayne, 59, a teaching assistant from Davenport in Stockport, reflecting on whether her son's fate could have been different with better knowledge about the virus, stated: "I have got absolutely no doubt in that. He's a sensible boy. He's not going to be foolish. He doesn't even like heights. He's a sensible lad. Had he known, had I known, the outcome I'm sure would have been completely different because when he was ill the first time he would have gone and demanded a test."
She emphasised the importance for travellers to recognize the symptoms of dengue fever and to insist on a blood test at hospitals to confirm the virus and begin treatment.
The World Health Organization highlights that around four billion people across 130 countries are vulnerable to dengue a mosquito-borne virus prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas globally, including some European regions. Travel Health Pro, part of the Foreign Office, issued warnings that dengue is encroaching into areas previously considered disease-free.
Since the start of 2024, there have been more than five million reported cases of dengue and more than 2,000 deaths linked to the virus as of April 2024.
Dengue fever has surged worldwide, with Asia, Central and South America, and the Caribbean taking the brunt. While it's not endemic in Europe, Travel Health Pro warned that if the environment encourages mosquito populations - the primary carriers of dengue - travel-related spread could result in local outbreaks in parts of Europe where these insects thrive.
Several countries including France, Italy, and Spain saw local cases in 2023, according to the Foreign Office subsidiary.
Amidst this backdrop, Jayne was at Liverpool's passport office sorting out a replacement for her expired document so she could jet off to Asia. It was then that the gut-wrenching news about her son's passing reached her ears from another son, Mark, who had dashed to Thailand to be with his dying brother Bob.
Channelling her grief into an awareness drive against dengue, Jayne shared: "You might think this is only in the tropics or in Asia. It's not. It's in Europe now. If Bob had known, if I had known more about this, he would have had more of a chance. People think it won't affect them, but it may affect them if they travel."