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

A mysterious new disease may be to blame for severe, unexplained inflammation in older men.