AT least 86 people have been admitted to hospital with E. coli linked to supermarket sandwiches. Food chiefs are "confident" a type of lettuce found in the sandwiches in behind the outbreak of the bloody diarrhoea-causing bug .
New data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) shows there have been 45 further cases of E. coli infection as of June 18. This takes the total number of confirmed cases across the UK since the outbreak began to 256.
All those who have been affected first developed symptoms before May 31. It comes as a Cheshire man was left with a "serious brain injury" after catching E. coli from £4.
99 wrap he bought in Boots - which has since been recalled John Daniels, 66, has now instructed lawyers to probe the sickness after it emerged hundreds of people had been affected by an outbreak of the bug. All the cases were caused by a strain of the bacteria called Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O145 (STEC), which can leave sufferers with severe and sometimes bloody diarrhoea, tummy pain and fever.
The UKHSA said: "Although the rate of cases has now slowed, we expect the figure to rise as NHS laboratories refer specimens to UKHSA for genomic sequencing which can link cases to this outbreak strain." Over 60 sandwiches, salads and wraps sold major UK supermarkets and chains were pulled from shelves as a "precautionary measure" over fears they might be contaminated with the bacteria. Affected retailers include Sainsbury's, Asda, Aldi, Morrisons, Co-op, and retail pharma.