The most widespread and virulent case of the Ebola virus outbreak is still raging across West Africa where, now, over 2000 people are infected and more than 1,200 people have already died from the virus. The World Health Organization has been forthcoming in saying that there is no cure or vaccine that can be used against the deadly disease but, because of the scale of infection and the announcement of a global public health emergency, the Organization has allowed the ethical use of experimental drugs and vaccines for people who have been infected with the disease, or who are at a direct risk of contracting the virus. These drugs have not previously gone through human testing, but can be administered with patient consent. However Health officials are now faced with a predicament because of the sheer number of people who have become infected since the virus has re-emerged this year and the limited amount of drugs that are available for use.
Epidemiologists Oliver Brady and his colleagues have conducted data analysis on the situation and they estimate that if health organizations and national governments around the world intend to battle the current outbreak, they would need to stock up on tens of thousands of these drugs. If these estimations are correct, it means that pharmaceutical companies that are tasked with the development and production of Ebola drugs need to increase their output and distribution. A suggestion that is unlikely to happen with the current scope of infection.
For the first time since its discovery, the Ebola virus could potentially be prevented or cured using one or several of the experimental drug candidates. So far, the WHO has considered promising candidates from different categories including vaccines, antivirals, and blood-derived treatments. However, despite the decree for the ethical use of experimental drugs, there are still very few doses of these drugs that are available, and some have even already run out. They say that to be able to address the current situation, development, production, and distribution of these drugs would need to be expanded quickly.