Man left housebound by potentially deadly meat allergy triggered by tick bites
A part-time dog walker has been left housebound after tick bites left him with a life threatening allergy to red meat.
Christopher Goldman suffers from alpha-gal syndrome, a tickborne illness that can cause anaphylaxis if he eats mammal meat such as beef, pork or lamb.
He believes any exposure, including airborne transmission, to any mammal by-product including wool, diary and leather will trigger a reaction.
Read more: What is alpha-gal and why does it cause an allergy to meat?
The 28-year-old now only wears vegan approved clothing and uses household products that are guaranteed animal free. This regime extends to everything he eats and includes all medicines.
He has to carry an epi-pen at all times, wears an emergency contact bracelet and lives in just three rooms in his home. Anything that he suspects might contain mammal products have been piled up in a room at the front of the house.
Christopher was bitten by the parasite in woods near his home in Woking in Surrey. He has since been bitten at least four times since December and has since suffered eight fainting episodes, including five on the same day.
Christopher was bitten by ticks whilst dog walking in Surrey
The most serious episode was on 28 June.
The full-time business production manager, said: “I woke up with intense itching and I was very hot. I did not want to wake up my girlfriend so I went to the bathroom.
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“My skin was crimson red and I had hives all over my body. I noticed a strange sensation in my hands, my face and my tongue began to swell. As my throat began to constrict I stood up and felt a ‘wash’ down to my feet.”
Christopher has been forced to pile anything he believes contains mammal products into one room
That was when Christopher fainted. He regained consciousness on the bathroom floor, but still unable to cry for help. He lay on his back helpless and terrified.
“I just spent the time looking up at the ceiling, just waiting to either die or see what happened to me. It was definitely the most traumatic experience ever.”
Christopher had eaten red meat a few hours before his anaphylaxis and suspected that might have been the trigger.
But he says the A&E doctors who treated him at his local hospital were unaware of any related conditions. A private blood test confirmed Christopher’s tick bites had developed into alpha-gal syndrome.
The condition is caused when a person is bitten by a tick which carries the alpha-gal molecule in its saliva, which when in the blood stream causes the immune system to make antibodies causing a reaction to red meat.
However the condition is believe to be rare, with only a few cases reported in the UK. There is also no scientific evidence to support Christopher’s belief of the risks of airborne transmission.
He says not enough research is being done, and people who raise concerns are often dismissed out of hand.
“Doctors are telling people that it is psychosomatic, that it is anxiety or stress induced, and they’re not getting help,” Christopher said.
“But what I’m here to speak up about the debilitating side of this, leaving people housebound and with my life completely torn up, more research needs to be done because we’re getting absolutely no help.”
A chance and random tick bite has had devastating consequences for Christopher, who is now resigned to staying indoors.
“If nothing does change I have to face the possibility that I won’t be leaving the house for the indefinite future,” he added.
A man has been arrested by police investigating a “significant” wildfire that triggered a major incident in Northern Ireland.
More than 100 firefighters and 15 fire appliances were deployed on Saturday to Sandbank Road, Hilltown, to tackle the blaze which is believed to have been caused deliberately, fire chiefs said.
Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) said the fire had a front of approximately two miles “including a large area of forestry close to property”.
It was extinguished at 2.53am on Sunday and the major incident status lifted, the NIFRS said.
“The cause of this fire is believed to have been deliberate,” chief fire and rescue officer Aidan Jennings said.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland said on Sunday that a 25-year-old man had been arrested “on suspicion of arson being reckless as to whether life would be endangered, and non-related driving offences”.
“He remains in custody at this time as enquiries continue into the circumstances surrounding the fire,” the force added.
The wildfire on Sandbank Road, Hilltown. Pic: Sky Watch NI
More than 100 firefighters were at the scene of the fire. Pic: Sky Watch NI
Various fires erupted across England this week amid uncharacteristically warm and dry conditions for the time of year.
On Saturday, helicopters were deployed to tackle Scotland’s fourth wildfire this week, with police saying a blaze “which started in the Newton Stewart area has spread northwards and is expected to reach the Loch Doon area of East Ayrshire around 12am on Sunday”.
Police Scotland added: “As a precautionary measure members of the public are asked to avoid the Loch Doon area and anyone who may be camping in the area is advised to leave.”
Moors Valley Country Park blackened by fires this week
Elsewhere in England, Devon and Cornwall Police said they were assisting the fire service with temporary road closures on the A30 in the Bolventor area as they tackle “a number of fires” on moorland.
In Dorset, Moors Valley Country Park was forced to close after multiple wildfires broke out there on Wednesday.
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Separate incidents were then reported at Upton Heath in Poole on Wednesday, and nearby Canford Heath in the early hours of Thursday.
Friday was officially the warmest day of the year so far – with temperatures in the south of England reaching 23C (73.4F) – the highest since 21 September last year, according to the Met Office.
The weather conditions triggered a “severe” wildfire rating for parts of the UK on Tuesday.
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