Residents in eastern Congo cling to hope as a new Ebola treatment trial begins
The study will track survival for 28 days as researchers test remdesivir and MBP134 against a strain with no licensed vaccine or cure.
- On Thursday, researchers launched a clinical trial at the Evangelical Medical Center in Bunia, DRC, testing whether the experimental antibody treatment MBP134 improves survival among patients infected with Bundibugyo Ebola.
- Unlike the Zaire strain, for which vaccines exist, no licensed treatment is currently available for the Bundibugyo Ebola species, driving health officials to pursue experimental options as the outbreak has already caused more than 1,400 diagnoses.
- Community mistrust, overcrowded facilities, and insecurity hinder the outbreak response, with incident manager Pierre Akilimali reporting that nearly three out of four Ebola deaths occur outside health centers.
- Survivor Gladys Munguro, discharged two weeks ago, told The Associated Press the experimental phase is "necessary" to improve survival chances, while resident Audrey Tengetenge called the trials a "light at the end of the tunnel."
- Professor Placide Mbala, coordinator of laboratory activities, said the research could continue for between three and six months, with a second phase eventually including healthcare workers and high-risk individuals depending on outbreak evolution.
23 Articles
23 Articles
‘End this very dangerous disease’: Ebola treatment trial begins in Congo
Residents at the epicentre of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC’s) Ebola outbreak are pinning their hopes on experimental treatments after researchers began a highly anticipated study in early July of two possible Ebola treatments in hopes of fighting the still-growing outbreak. At the Ebola treatment centre inside Bunia’s Evangelical Medical Centre, in eastern Congo’s Ituri province, the launch of the research was marked by urgency rather…
Q&A: ‘Still Hope’ for Ebola Treatment – DRC’s Muyembe
By Maghene Deba [KINSHASA, SciDev.Net] As the number of Bundibugyo Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) pushes past 1,000, doctors continue to fight the disease without a vaccine or cure. But the country’s top Ebola scientist tells SciDev.Net “there is still hope for this epidemic”. The outbreak detected in early May has spread rapidly across the provinces of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu in Eastern DRC, and into neighbourin…
New Ebola treatment trial brings hope to Congo as outbreak death toll rises
Bunia, Congo: Residents in the epicentre of Congo’s Ebola outbreak are placing their hopes in experimental treatments after researchers launched a highly anticipated clinical trial in early July to evaluate two potential therapies against the virus.At the Ebola treatment centre within Bunia’s Evangelical Medical Centre in Ituri Province, the start of the study was marked by urgency rather than ceremony.As ambulances continued to arrive and healt…
Santa Maria Times
Independent EspañolBUNIA, Democratic Republic of the Congo (AP) — The population at the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is placing their hopes on experimental treatments after researchers started a long-awaited study at the beginning of...
The Ebola epidemic continues to spread in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with a new case confirmed in Kisangani. The National Institute of Public Health (INSP) has recorded a total of 438 deaths and 1,406 cases to date. In an effort to develop a treatment and contain the epidemic, the World Health Organization announced on Thursday the start of a clinical trial.
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