A clinical trial for potential treatments against the Ebola virus strain responsible for the current outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has commenced, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced. The first patient has been enrolled in the DRC.
More than 1,400 cases and 438 deaths have been confirmed in the DRC, according to WHO data. There are currently no approved vaccines or treatments for the Bundibugyo virus strain of the disease, which is highly infectious.
The trial is sponsored by the WHO and is being co-coordinated by scientists from the Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale in DRC, the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Belgium, and the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.
According to WHO data, there have been 1,406 confirmed cases of the disease in DRC, with 301 suspected cases and 438 deaths.
Speaking from the WHO headquarters in Geneva, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated, "Even without approved therapeutics, people are recovering from this disease, but of course, we could save many more lives with safe and effective therapeutics in our toolkit."