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The deadly VEXAS syndrome is more common than doctors thought

The inflammatory illness may affect nearly 1 in 4,000 older men in the United States

An elderly male patient sits on a medical exam bed with his back to the camera and a medical professional holding a stethoscope to the patient's back.

Older men are more likely than women to get VEXAS syndrome, a genetic disease that arises later in life.

Thomas Barwick/Stone/Getty Images Plus

By Meghan Rosen

A mysterious new disease may be to blame for severe, unexplained inflammation in older men. Now, researchers have their first good look at who the disease strikes, and how often.

VEXAS syndrome, an illness discovered just two years ago, affects nearly 1 in 4,000 men over 50 years old, scientists estimate January 24 in JAMA.