WHO: control of neglected tropical diseases is feasible Renewed
engagement to scale-up integrated interventions announced 14
October 2010 | Geneva - The misery and disability caused by a
group of chronic infectious diseases, found almost exclusively
in very poor populations, can now be substantially reduced,
according to a new report released today by WHO. The report
Working to overcome the global impact of neglected tropical
diseases covers 17 neglected tropical diseases1 that thrive in
impoverished settings, where housing is often substandard,
environments are contaminated with filth, and disease-spreading
insects and animals abound. "These are debilitating, sometimes
horrific diseases that are often accepted as part of the misery
of being poor," says Dr Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General.
"The strategies set out in this report are a breakthrough. If
implemented widely, they can substantially reduce the disease
burden, breaking a cycle of infection, disability and lost
opportunities that keep people in pov