Band 7+: The graph shows the impact of vaccinations on the incidence of whooping cough, a childhood illness, between 1940 and 1990 in Britain. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The given line graph demonstrates the occurrence rate of whooping cough in the United Kingdom for seventy years from 1940 to 2010.

Overall, the disease began in 1940 and hit its peak within five years; however, starting from 1995, the number of whooping cough cases declined to a negligible number. It is obvious that once vaccination was introduced, the proportion of the disease decreased significantly, and once it was stopped the disease increased again.

The cases of whooping cough started in the UK in 1940, with around 60,000 citizens suffering from it. The number rose dramatically to nearly 1.8 million people, and it fluctuated throughout 10 years.

Vaccination was launched in 1957 to prevent the spread of whooping cough, and it covered 81% of inhabitants for ten years; consequently, the percentage of people affected by the disease dropped abruptly to approximately under 40000. Due to the reduction in vaccination between 1970 and 1980, cough cases climbed suddenly again, at about 70000 residences. In the next decades, the vaccination coverage rate reached 94% in 2010, and the disease almost disappeared.