In today's world, there is so much to live for and fight against, so much to enjoy in life and nothing to die.
Turning our gaze away from philosophy to medicine, it is believed the world is better equipped now than any other time in history to combat infectious and potentially fatal diseases.
Despite the progress made in modern day medicine, this hasn't prevented new dangerous plagues from emerging at an accelerating pace.
According to medical experts, discoveries have been made into the molecular cause of about 4,000 diseases but treatments are available for only 250 of them and many wonder what’s taking so long to find a cure?
The world is at a stage where systematic drug discovery is
imperative, even for rare and complex
diseases.
Is it time to teach old drugs new tricks? Are humans winning the fight against infectious diseases?
Many say significant progress have been made against the three biggest killers - AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.
However, a number of chronic diseases are a “slow-motion” disaster and continue to be a threat.
When it come to the volume of diseases per continent, Africa is the most affected. It has been this way for decades for a continent with great potentials, big brains, but hardly learn a thing to solve its problems.
Asia learnt lessons from the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in Hong Kong and southern China.
Between 2002/2003, the disease was estimated to have cost the Asian economy about $30 billion dollars.
When it comes to fighting diseases, the whole world is in it together (as we are made to believe) and while some diseases are easily associated with region (Africa) and social status(the poor), some know no boundaries.
Take cancer for instance, most Americans thought a cure for cancer would be discovered within five years but more than 40 years later,
few experts talk of a handful of cure for the 200 known types of cancer.
The belief is that curing cancer is certainly more complicated
than landing on the moon.
All around the world, Pharmaceuticals and research companies play a big role in drug production, vaccine development and disease treatment and in the midst of the good work they do, they are not excluded from the conspiracy theory of being against a world where diseases are eradicated.
Perhaps, its all in the multi billion-dollar investment that the business of finding a cure to diseases have become and the cartel behind it all.
Again, let's turn our attention to Africa where it seems disease control and medical research is not a top priority.
Over-population, poor sanitation, climate change and the constant mutation of organisms are reasons for disease outbreaks in Africa.
Yesterday, it was the fight against malaria and HIV/AIDS, today its the deadly Ebola virus.
Since Ebola broke out in February/March this year in Guinea, the virus has kept on going beyond borders.
From Sierra Leone, to Liberia and then unfortunately Nigeria, no one is sure where the next case of the disease would be recorded.
Sensitization efforts has increased with health workers caught in the middle of Ebola's worst outbreak in world history.
But has Africa been through this road before?
Is the continent at any point prepared to fight any outbreak, even the slightest advanced form of headache for instance?
What are national institutes of medical research in various African countries doing?
How long will affected countries stare from the edge of the Atlantic waiting for a few shipments of Ebola vaccines?
What has happened to Africa's natural healing remedies?
What is policy on healthcare and the budgetary priority placed on medical research in Africa?
Let's assume Ebola is air borne and can be transferred by mosquitoes. assume scientists are excluding that fact. Will Africa do something?
For now, Africa is on a long thing and nothing on Ebola is news anymore until one head of state dies of the disease.
No comments:
Post a Comment