Neglected Tropical Diseases

From 1975 to 1999 only 13 drugs from 1393 new chemical entities (NCE) marketed, were for neglected tropical diseases (NTD). Over the past 30 years, number of drugs for NTD are 10, 18 if you consider Malaria, and 21 if you consider TB. This represents a lamenting 1% of all the NCE (1556) launched till 2007. Today majority of the worlds population lives under poverty, struggling for basic access to health care. Diseases such as malaria, TB, HIV, Kala Azar, sleeping sickness and soil transmitted helminthiasis cause extensive morbidity and mortality destroying the very social and economic fabric of the country. But all is not lost, work from orgnaizations such as medicine sans frontier, institute of one world health and drugs for neglected diseases initiative is bringing back much needed attention to this domain. Kala Azar is one such example, where the IOWH pioneered the efforts to bring a cheap and relatively safe alternative treatment Paramomycin to India in the treatment of patients with the disease, thus giving hope to thousands of patients, especially children affected by the parasite (In India 40-60% of patients with Kala Azar have resistance to first line agent sodium stibogluconate).