A promising student was left on the verge of death after being struck down with the virulent meningitis W, her family has revealed.
Shirali Patel, who had only just started her medicine degree at Cambridge University, was forced to restart the year because of her illness.
Her symptoms began with a sore throat before quickly escalating. Miss Patel is now barely unable to remember her ordeal, which left her critically ill.
Miss Patel spent three months fighting for her life in hospital as doctors warned her family, from Harrow, to be ‘prepared for the worst’.
Her horrific ordeal follows official figures which revealed cases of the deadly strain of meningitis have rocketed by 922 per cent in eight years.
Meningitis W, which can easily kill, has infected 225 people since July last year. In contrast, just 22 people were struck down in 2009/10.
The figure is already the highest on record, the Public Health England data shows – despite there still being six months before the final amount is calculated.
Charities are also concerned that cases are only going to soar in the coming weeks, as winter is considered peak season for the deadly infection.
The rise in cases follows the news of a promising 19-year-old student who was left on the brink of death after battling the highly virulent strain
In an interview with The Telegraph to raise awareness of the virulent strain, Miss Patel revealed that she feels ‘extremely lucky’ to still be alive.
She praised her brother, Kelan, 18, for spotting how serious her condition was when she called him for help to get out of bed last December.
Her father, Dee, 51, accused health officials of not providing enough information about the life-saving jab, which teenagers are encouraged to get.
Mr Patel, a property landlord, told the newspaper: ‘If my son hadn’t been at home that day, or if Shirali had become ill at university, I doubt she’d be here today.
‘Parents and teenagers simply aren’t aware how dangerous this disease is, and that a simple, free jab can save lives.’
Miss Patel’s terrifying ordeal has also encouraged her friends to get the Men ACWY vaccine – which offers protection against the deadly bacteria.
Her story follows a warning from the Meningitis Research Foundation last week that cases will only rise.
The charity urged every eligible person to get vaccinated against the potentially deadly infection because of winter being peak season.
Shirali Patel, who had only just started her medicine degree at Cambridge University, was forced to restart the year because of her illness
Her father, Dee, 51, accused health officials of not giving enough information about the life-saving jab (also pictured with her mother, Alvina, and brother Kelan, 18)
Seasonal illnesses, such as cold and flu, allow the harmful bacteria to invade the body through the nose and stay dormant.
Figures suggest there are around three times as many cases of bacterial meningitis in January compared with September, on average.
Mmeningitis, which can kill within a day, is a bacterial infection of the protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord.
Shirali’s symptoms began last December, when she returned to her family home in Harrow after her first term at Churchill College finished.
Her condition deteriorated over a few days and she was rushed to hospital, The Telegraph reports. Her family were told to ‘prepare for the worst’.
Mr Patel was told his critically-ill daughter may have an aggressive form of leukaemia before doctors diagnosed her with meningitis W.
She was placed in an induced coma to help her fight the bacterial infection, but her organs were quickly shutting down.
Doctors wired her up to specialist breathing apparatus to keep her alive. She was eventually discharged at the end of March this year.
Miss Patel told the newspaper: ‘I was disappointed to miss my second two terms at university and restart my course in September.
‘But compared to what might’ve happened if my brother hadn’t been at home when I deteriorated so rapidly, I feel extremely lucky’.
Her symptoms began with a sore throat before quickly escalating (pictured are her mother Alvina and father Dee)