Malaria an uphill battle

2005-11-21 08:56

Dakar - In the past, scientists called the sickness by the Italian phrase "mal aria" - or "bad air" - for the supposedly disease-bearing zephyrs wafting from swamps.

These days, scientists know malaria is spread by mosquitoes. But they are describing ill winds that are buffeting their attempts to halt the spread of a malady that kills one million people a year.

"We need to stress that the situation is bad. The number of deaths are rising, infections are rising," said Pierre Druilhe, head of the biomedical unit at France's Pasteur Institute.

Scientists there say it could even take more than 10 years before their holy grail - a fully effective malaria vaccine - is approved for use.

"The next decade will be a very bad decade," said Druilhe. He is attending a conference of malaria scientists in Yaounde, Cameroon, this week.

Africa is hardest hit

While many scientists describe solid recent advancements and reason for cautious optimism, others say the news isn't good for Africa, the continent hardest hit by the disease.

Scientists estimate that more children are infected every year with the parasite, the leading cause of death for children under five. It has been all-but eradicated in rich lands, but scientists say they're hindered by twin hurdles in Africa: insecticide resistance in mosquitoes and drug resistance in the parasite.

Malaria causes wracking pain, fever and, if left untreated, sometimes death. Vaccines and treatment drugs are costly.

Malaria prevention is "in trouble," said Brian Greenwood, a world renowned malaria researcher at the London school of tropical medicine and hygiene.

For Greenwood, the main rub is increased resistance to drugs, particularly the long-time mainstay, chloroquine, which is relatively cheap to produce in mass quantities.

Medical workers are now turning to a new drug, artemisinin, derived from a herb indigenous to Asia.

Renewed interest in malaria

Drawing on lessons learnt treating Africa's other main killer, HIV/Aids, doctors are using it in tandem with other drugs. But production is slow and expensive.

"It's a plant that takes 18 months to grow. You can't just say you need 20 million doses right now," said Greenwood.

Scientists say that malaria, with over a half billion infections worldwide, is a major contributor to African poverty, cutting billions from gross domestic product and weighing on health care systems.

However, scientists say they have identified a resurgence in public and political interest in malaria over the past decade, an upsurge they ascribe to greater media coverage and increased tourist travel in malarial countries by rich northerners. Malaria "has dropped into the mainstream", according to Greenwood.

Scientists are increasingly banding together to study the problem while philanthropists such as Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, have donated huge amounts to the fight malaria.

- AP