The Zohar explains that all the diseases that exist today have been with us since the time of Creation. There is nothing new, no new strains, and the reason we think we have new strains of disease is only because of the inability of the immune system to confront these different, seemingly new, situations. This, according to Rav Shimon, is the Armageddon War. Today, we are facing the reality that the immune system no longer functions, not only among humans, but also among trees, animals and rocks. Everything is becoming unable to combat so many diseases that are being uncovered, and to which there are no cures.
The Zohar says that we cannot cut out negativity; it will reappear because we have not eliminated its point of origin. But, as with the Vav that is split in the word Shalom, we can transform it back into a state of wholeness. We cannot eliminate any of the energies that exist in this world. What we can do is take that same energy and transform it.