Saturday, October 10, 2009

The Leprosy Mission Canada

Leprosy - also called Hansen's Disease - is an infectious disease caused by a germ. For those at risk, exposure to sneezing and coughing by a person with leprosy can cause the disease to spread. Leprosy attacks the nerves near the cooler parts of the body. When it isn't detected soon enough, those parts lose sensation. Sensory loss often begins in the toes and fingers, the eyes, ears or nose, and leads to blindness, clawed hands, ulcers and shortened limbs. But it can be cured. The Multi-Drug Therapy is a blend of three drugs: Dapsone, Rifampicin and Clofazamine. When leprosy is detected early enough, it can be cured within 6 months to 2 years. Of course, this takes money. And those exposed are very poor. The Leprosy Mission is devoted to ensuring that those who need these drugs, can get the treatment they need. Please read their website located at www.leprosy.ca and see what life changing work a few dollars can bring.

1 comment:

Bev. Cooke said...

Teresa, thank you for this. What you and others may not know is that even though we can cure Hansen's Disease, approximately 3,000 new cases per year appear, and no one knows the cause. While it is curable, the social effects of the disease are incalculable, because in many countries, the sufferers still become outcasts. The other problem is that damage that is done before the disease is cured is permanent - loss of sensation never returns and the sufferer must always exercise extreme vigilance to ensure that the affected portions of the body are well looked after and don't suffer untreated burns, cuts or abrasions.
It's an awful thing to have, and lots more education about it needed. Thanks for helping!