Residents in the area of the Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo are pinning their hopes on experimental therapies after a large-scale study of two potential treatments began earlier this month, the Associated Press reported, BTA reported.
At a treatment center in Bunia, Ituri province, the study began in parallel with the daily struggle to save patients, as the hospital accepts new infected people and medics work in isolation wards.
The cause of the outbreak is a rarer strain of the Ebola virus - Bundibujo, for which there are no approved specific vaccines or therapies. More than 1,400 cases and 438 deaths have been reported so far, the World Health Organization (WHO) said.
The study, which has already enrolled its first participant, is testing the antiviral drug remdesivir, the experimental antibody treatment MBP134, or a combination of the two, with the aim of increasing the chances of survival. Patients will be followed for 28 days after the start of treatment.
International institutions, including the University of Oxford and the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, are participating in the project.
Local residents are taking the news with hope. A recovered patient even said she was ready to participate in the next phases of the trials.
However, some people are expressing fear and skepticism about the new therapies. Additional difficulties are created by overcrowded treatment centers, delayed access to medical care, and the insecurity in the affected areas.
The study is currently being conducted only in Bunia, with authorities planning to expand if conditions permit.