This article is from the source 'independent' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/ebola-outbreak-infected-us-aid-workers-receive-experimental-drug-treatment-as-death-toll-in-west-africa-soars-to-almost-900-9648408.html
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Ebola outbreak: Infected US aid workers ‘receive experimental drug treatment’ as death toll in West Africa soars to almost 900 | Ebola outbreak: Infected US aid workers ‘receive experimental drug treatment’ as death toll in West Africa soars to almost 900 |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Two US missionaries who contracted the deadly Ebola virus while combatting the outbreak in West Africa have been treated with an experimental “cure” developed in collaboration with the American military. | Two US missionaries who contracted the deadly Ebola virus while combatting the outbreak in West Africa have been treated with an experimental “cure” developed in collaboration with the American military. |
| The conditions of both Nancy Writebol and Dr Kent Brantly are reported to be improving, though health officials stressed there was no way to confirm whether this was as a direct result of the unprecedented treatment. | The conditions of both Nancy Writebol and Dr Kent Brantly are reported to be improving, though health officials stressed there was no way to confirm whether this was as a direct result of the unprecedented treatment. |
| Deaths in West Africa as a result of the virus – some strains of which can have fatality rates up to 90 per cent – have soared in South Africa since the last World Health Organisation update, and now number 887 across Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria. More than 1,600 cases have been reported. | Deaths in West Africa as a result of the virus – some strains of which can have fatality rates up to 90 per cent – have soared in South Africa since the last World Health Organisation update, and now number 887 across Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria. More than 1,600 cases have been reported. |
| In a particularly concerning new development, three new cases have been reported in Nigeria itself. Two involve a doctor and a nurse who had helped treat Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian diplomat and US citizen who died on 25 July after travelling with the disease to Lagos via Ghana and Togo. | In a particularly concerning new development, three new cases have been reported in Nigeria itself. Two involve a doctor and a nurse who had helped treat Patrick Sawyer, the Liberian diplomat and US citizen who died on 25 July after travelling with the disease to Lagos via Ghana and Togo. |
| The WHO said another “probable” case had been reported involving a Nigerian who had travelled to Ghana, leading to growing fears the disease is set to spread there as well. | The WHO said another “probable” case had been reported involving a Nigerian who had travelled to Ghana, leading to growing fears the disease is set to spread there as well. |
| Airports around the world remain on high alert to signs of sickness among passengers arriving from West Africa, and a health scare was reported at New York’s Mount Sinai Hospital after a man arrived with a high fever and a stomach ache. He was later described as being in “good condition” and, though tests for Ebola were carried out, doctors said it was unlikely he would be proven positive. | Airports around the world remain on high alert to signs of sickness among passengers arriving from West Africa, and a health scare was reported at New York’s Mount Sinai Hospital after a man arrived with a high fever and a stomach ache. He was later described as being in “good condition” and, though tests for Ebola were carried out, doctors said it was unlikely he would be proven positive. |
| Dr Kent Brantly, pictured while working at an Ebola treatment clinic in Foya, Liberia, on 23 June 2014 Focus on the Ebola outbreak in the US has been heightened by the cases of Dr Brantly and Ms Writebol. He is currently being treated at a specialist isolation unit in Atlanta, while she was being evacuated from Liberia to join him there on Tuesday morning. | Dr Kent Brantly, pictured while working at an Ebola treatment clinic in Foya, Liberia, on 23 June 2014 Focus on the Ebola outbreak in the US has been heightened by the cases of Dr Brantly and Ms Writebol. He is currently being treated at a specialist isolation unit in Atlanta, while she was being evacuated from Liberia to join him there on Tuesday morning. |
| While there is no vaccine or specific treatment available for the Ebola disease, several are under development and there has been criticism of pharmaceutical companies from those who believe more would have been done already if the outbreaks had not historically been limited to Africa. | While there is no vaccine or specific treatment available for the Ebola disease, several are under development and there has been criticism of pharmaceutical companies from those who believe more would have been done already if the outbreaks had not historically been limited to Africa. |
| The experimental drug provided to Dr Brantly and Ms Writebol is called ZMapp, which was identified as a possible treatment in January and has been developed by a San Diego pharmaceutical company in collaboration with the US government and agencies in Canada. | The experimental drug provided to Dr Brantly and Ms Writebol is called ZMapp, which was identified as a possible treatment in January and has been developed by a San Diego pharmaceutical company in collaboration with the US government and agencies in Canada. |
| The drug has never gone through human trials or been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but the two aid workers began their treatment in Liberia where the FDA has no jurisdiction. | The drug has never gone through human trials or been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but the two aid workers began their treatment in Liberia where the FDA has no jurisdiction. |
| ZMapp is made from antibodies produced by lab animals exposed to the virus and is aimed at boosting the patient’s immune system. In a statement, Mapp Biopharmaceutical Inc said very little of the drug was available but that they were “cooperating with appropriate government agencies to increase production as quickly as possible”. | ZMapp is made from antibodies produced by lab animals exposed to the virus and is aimed at boosting the patient’s immune system. In a statement, Mapp Biopharmaceutical Inc said very little of the drug was available but that they were “cooperating with appropriate government agencies to increase production as quickly as possible”. |
| Meanwhile yesterday saw the beginning of the US-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington, attended by Barack Obama and dozens of African heads of state. American health officials held talks with the Guinean President Alpha Conde and senior officials from Liberia and Sierra Leone – whose presidents have stayed at home to deal with the ongoing outbreak. | Meanwhile yesterday saw the beginning of the US-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington, attended by Barack Obama and dozens of African heads of state. American health officials held talks with the Guinean President Alpha Conde and senior officials from Liberia and Sierra Leone – whose presidents have stayed at home to deal with the ongoing outbreak. |