BMJ: lymphatic filiarisis could be on way out

The British Medical Journal has published a report which suggests that lymphatic filiarisis, a tropical disease transmitted by mosquitoes also  known as elephantisis, could be eliminated in developing countries. The  main treatment option is a combination of UK pharmaceutical giant  GlaxoSmithKline's albendazole and US drug major Merck & Co's Mectizan  (ivermectin), which are also effective against onocerciasis (river  blindness).

The problem has not been the cost of treatments, as both firms offer  their compounds to the Global Alliance to Eliminate Lymphatic Filiarisis  and the World Health Organization's Global Program to Eliminate  Lymphatic Filiarisis for free. More difficult has been organizing the  delivery of the treatments to affected regions of Africa, with the  target being to cover 80% of the population annually for at least five  years (Marketletters passim).

The BMJ report notes that, in eight years, the GPELF has delivered 1.9  billion doses to people in 48 of the 83 endemic countries. Since 2000,  an estimated 32 million disability-adjusted life years have been saved,  the study's authors claim, with elimination worldwide of LF by 2020 the  target.