Hold your breath – coronavirus is coming!

As if we didn't have enough to worry about with terrorism, nuclear proliferation and, yes, political enemies, now we have the threat – in fact, a very real one – of what could be an international health catastrophe.

And it all goes back to China.

There's a new and apparently deadly virus circulating in that country, but what has health officials worldwide worried is that it is spreading faster than first anticipated. It started in Wuhan, China, in late December but by mid-January had spread to 13 countries.

Despite that, World Health Organization officials are reluctant to call it a Public Health Emergency.

What do we call that kind of disease spread? According to WHO officials, an "epidemic" is a disease that spreads in a smaller community, country, region or continent.

That certainly gives it wide leeway.

The next category is a "pandemic," a disease, usually a new one, that spreads worldwide with terrible numbers of deaths.

From what we are seeing now, I think we're well on our way to that situation, although health officials so far are playing it safe with their predictions.

The culprit is called a "coronavirus." It's new – never been seen before. We don't know where it came from, There is no prevention, no cure, and even treatment is limited.

What's interesting is that China has a National Biosafety Laboratory in Wuhan. It opened in January 2018, and it's dedicated to studying such viruses such as SARS and Ebola – and, yes, corona. There has been speculation that perhaps the virus got loose from the lab and that is what started it all.

Regardless, at this point, China has quarantined the entire city of Wuhan and is doing the same with at least 13 other cities, canceled Chinese New Year Celebrations; parts of The Great Wall are shut down; Disneyland in Shanghai is closed, as are many McDonald's restaurants across the country. Millions of people are affected by the crackdown on travel.

The government had ordered the immediate building of a new hospital to treat coronavirus patients because existing facilities are filled to their limits. Transportation has been limited; the military is on the streets; and in fact, it appears the country is virtually locked down.

While there hasn't been an official notice of the dangers of the massive spread of the disease, airlines and airports across the world are taking precautions. Passengers are being checked for symptoms of a cold or flu, and their temperatures are being monitored.

Screening at U.S. airports began at Kennedy in New York, in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Then Atlanta was added, as well as O'Hare in Chicago. Others are being added as suspicious cases are discovered.

A man in Seattle was diagnosed, then a woman in Chicago who'd just returned from China. Cases are being monitored in Texas involving a returning passenger from Mexico, and possible patients at Tennessee Tech and Texas A&M.

The CDC is testing 63 other cases, and it's reported there are 10 people in isolation in California for further study.

There is concern about all transportation to and from China of people and merchandise.

While there is caution in predicting the outcome of this disease spread, scientists warn that worldwide, tens of millions could die. Scientists at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Safety said 65 million could die as the disease spreads worldwide in 18 months.

As I write, coronavirus has been found in China, the U.S., Nepal, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Macau, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea, with suspicious cases in Australia, New Zealand, England, Scotland and Ireland – and at least 26 are dead. That's probably a gross understatement.

It isn't known for certain HOW people contract it – first thoughts were that it came from contact with animals, either by contact or through eating them.

Now, it's just been determined that it is possible for it to spread from person-to-person. Transmission is through saliva, which means that kissing, coughing or sneezing is a danger but eating utensils could also transmit it. Symptoms are like a cold – coughing, sneezing, sore throat, runny nose, difficulty breathing, fever and then collapse. Pneumonia then follows, then death.

We cannot cure it. It's difficult to contain. Antibiotics don't work, and anti-viral drugs and vaccines don't exist, nor will they for a long time – it does take time and costs millions. For many victims, it will be too late.

This isn't the first time the world has been hit with a massive pandemic – the Spanish Flu in 1918 killed 20-50 million, Cholera flues in the 1800s killed over 2 million, the Black Death in Europe killed upwards of 200 million and devastated the continent. More recently, there was AIDS, Zica, SARS and Ebola.

One aspect of the disease is the effect on the economy. Without doubt, travel has been affected. It's reported that shares in travel markets in China and Hong Kong dropped, but one market share has surged: companies that make surgical masks!

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