WASHINGTON, D.C. – David Lane, ONE’s President and CEO, welcomed President Bush’s announcement of a U.S. commitment of $350 million during five years as part of an international effort to fight neglected tropical diseases.  ONE pressed other G8 nations to join in this effort to fight these illnesses.

Lane’s statement follows:

“Neglected tropical diseases afflict more than a billion people each year, keeping kids out of school, parents out of work, and taking lives needlessly.  Yet not even a dollar for each afflicted person is dedicated to distributing the treatments that can stop the deaths that these diseases bring.  President Bush is shining a bright light on these preventable diseases and the resources urgently needed to combat them.  We must move these low-cost, effective solutions off the shelves and into the hands of the people who need them most.  ONE urges the rest of the world to follow America’s lead and commit to ending these very preventable, yet very deadly, diseases.

“The welcome new commitment to neglected tropical diseases is a natural complement to U.S. efforts to save lives but it is critical that this new area of focus be additional to existing efforts to improve basic maternal and child health and to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis.  Congress has, on a bipartisan basis, made a priority of fighting these preventable illnesses.  Now is the time to include neglected tropical diseases in that work.”

ONE is a grassroots advocacy organization rallying people — ONE by ONE — to fight the emergency of extreme poverty and global disease. ONE is millions of people working with more than 150 of the leading relief, humanitarian and advocacy organizations to build the political will to combat debilitating poverty and preventable diseases.  For more information, visit ONE.org.

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Background:  Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) affect more than one billion people each year, nearly all living in impoverished conditions in tropical climates. Most are parasitic diseases spread by insects, contaminated water and soil infested with the eggs of worms. Neglected diseases are grouped together because they all cause severe disability and life-long impairments and they tend to be geographically associated in areas of extreme poverty in tropical climates. Additionally, many people are infected by more than one of these diseases at a time, so linking the approach to controlling them is important. Many of these diseases can be prevented and treated with low-cost and effective interventions.

Fast Facts

§  About one billion people are affected by one or more neglected tropical disease.

§  There are 14 diseases currently listed as NTDs. Most can be prevented and cured. One of these diseases, guinea worm, is on track to be eradicated.

§  Less than one percent of the 1,393 new drugs registered between 1975 and 1999 were for tropical diseases.

§  Some NTDs can be treated with drugs costing less than two cents (U.S.) per tablet.

§  NTDs take a high social and economic toll on the populations they affect causing physical incapacitation that limits school attendance and impairs work productivity at a cost of more than $10 billion annually.

Health, Economic and Societal Impacts of Neglected Tropical Diseases

Trachoma:  Trachoma affects about 85 million people; eight million of those are visually impaired and it accounts for three percent of the world’s blindness.  It is still endemic in many of the poorest areas of Africa where in some areas 60-90 percent of preschool age children are affected by the disease.  Trachoma is transmitted by some flies and through close contact with infected patients.  In highly endemic areas, mass treatment once or twice a year can help to prevent and treat this infection.

Soil-transmitted helminthes (including hookworm, roundworm, and whipworm):  These diseases affect more than two billion people worldwide and are transmitted through contact with feces or unclean water.  Hookworm alone is estimated to affect 740 million people globally and can lead to anemia and malnutrition.  In children, hookworm has been shown to impair physical and intellectual development, reduce school performance and attendance, and adversely affect future productivity and wage-earning potential.  Being infected with this disease during pregnancy can lead to low birth weight, impaired milk production and increased risk of death for both the mother and child.

Lymphatic Filariasis (Elephantiasis):  More than 120 million people have been affected by elephantitis – 40 million of them are seriously incapacitated and disfigured by the disease.  One-third of the people affected by this disease live in Africa.  Because of its disfiguring impact, elephantiasis prevents patients from having a normal working life and causes serious economic hardship.  Additionally, the disfiguring impact of the disease creates a significant social stigma against those impacted.

Onchoceriasis (River Blindness):  River blindness is caused by a parasite transmitted by black flies.  The complications of this disease can lead to (and is a major cause of) blindness in Africa.  An estimated 500,000 people are blind due to this disease, yet it can be treated by an annual dose of ivermectine.  In the past, people were forced to abandon river valleys to higher, less fertile altitudes causing major socioeconomic impacts.  These challenges have been largely overcome by control programs focused on the most endemic areas in Africa.