An ancient disease remains

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NICK EICHER, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: World Tour.

In ancient times, many skin issues were lumped under one term that was later translated into English as: leprosy. 

Thousands of years later, scientists are still learning about it. Although it’s no longer a public health problem, it still occurs in 120 countries.

WORLD correspondent Amy Lewis has the story.

AMY LEWIS: In March, Chile became the second country in the world to eradicate leprosy.

Dr. Jarbas Barbosa is the World Health Organization’s regional director for the Americas.

JARBAS BARBOSA: Quero felicitar al governo de Chile por alcançar la eliminación de la lepra segérios internacionais de la Organización Mundial de la Salud.

TRANSLATION: I want to congratulate the government of Chile for achieving the elimination of leprosy according to international standards of the World Health Organization.

Chile has logged no local cases for more than 30 years. It joined Jordan, which earned the same designation in 2024.

But to many, the big news was not that Chile eliminated the disease, but that it still needs eliminating. 

The WHO classifies it as an NTD—a Neglected Tropical Disease—because 95 percent of the world’s population is naturally immune. 

But the battle against leprosy continues, especially for those who have it.

Eva Lee is the International Program Officer for Leprosy Mission Australia. Here she is on the Awareness! podcast.

LEE: Leprosy is actually a bacterial disease that affects the nerves as well as affects the skin.

For centuries it was thought to be a hereditary disease. Whole families were quarantined and thought to be under God’s curse. During biblical times, people with leprosy were kept from corporate worship.

In 1873, Norwegian Doctor Armauer Hansen made a discovery reenacted in this CBS production more than a century later.

HANSEN, PERISCOPE FILMS: These small rods, bacilli, must be the cause of leprosy. The discovery of the leprosy bacillus is a milestone in man’s struggle to find a remedy for ancient scourges.

It’s the first time bacteria was discovered to cause human illness. The disease was re-named Hansen’s disease. In the 1980s, the advent of multi-drug antibiotic therapy made new cases of leprosy plummet from the millions to only 200,000 globally each year. Most occur in India, Brazil, and Indonesia.

The disease is normally only mildly infectious, and not at all after a week of antibiotic therapy. 

Dr. Barbosa says a unified front helped achieve the eradication of Hansen’s disease in Chile.

BARBOSA: Destaco especialmente la integración de la atenção de la lepra em los servicios generales de salud, sim, estigmatización e com acesso universal ao diagnóstico, tratamento e reabilitação, independentemente de nacionalidade ou situação migratória.

TRANSLATION: I especially highlight the integration of leprosy care into general health services without stigmatization and with universal access to diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation, regardless of nationality or migratory status.

With proper antibiotic treatment, the disease is completely curable within six to 12 months. Between 1994 and 2014, 16 million people around the world were cured of the disease.

But symptoms mimic other skin diseases, and few doctors are trained to recognize or test for it. So cases can go undiagnosed for years until victims become disabled or disfigured.

The suffering goes beyond the physical.

Thirty-eight countries have legislation that discriminates against people with leprosy. Some countries still require them to live in leper colonies.

Doctors familiar with the disease are working to eliminate the shame associated with it. Brazil, for example, works to destigmatize it by only calling it "Hansen’s disease" instead of “lepra”—the term for leprosy.

In biblical times, Christians were some of the first to establish care for those with leprosy. Many still help those with the disease.

HYMN: Brother, sister, let me serve you. Let me be as Christ to you …

Last week, hundreds of people gathered in meetings online for a global day of prayer, led by leaders from Leprosy Mission International.

People from countries with very few cases like the Netherlands, Germany, Northern Ireland, and Australia praised God for the good news from Chile, and prayed for complete eradication.

Leprosy Mission’s Dr. Utane Bernadette Adama in Nigeria shared her experience.

DR. ADAMA: When you see these people reconnect with their families, it makes you to know that it is not just medicine or public health, but that you’re participating in something more meaningful, that is restoring humanity or dignity.

Attendees prayed with hope—for the elimination of an ancient disease, and in the Great Physician who demonstrated centuries ago that He cares for the body, mind, and soul of each person who suffers.

That’s this week’s World Tour. I’m Amy Lewis.

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