UNGA president celebrates news of possible Ebola treatment, prevention

President of the United Nations General Assembly (PGA), Ms Maria Espinosa, “is delighted” by news that Ebola may soon be a preventable and treatable disease.

Her spokesperson, Ms Monica Grayley, disclosed this while briefing UN correspondents in New York on Tuesday.

“The PGA welcomes the news that two of the four Ebola drugs being tested in the Democratic Republic of Congo have shown to be more effective.

“Espinosa is delighted to hear from the Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, that the patients can now be offered an even better chance of survival.

“She commends the incredible work of WHO and other health professionals in tackling the outbreak of Ebola in the DRC,” Grayley said.

Reports say two people cured of Ebola with the experimental drugs were discharged from a treatment centre in Goma, eastern DR Congo, on Tuesday and reunited with their families.

The drugs, named REGN-EB3 and mAb114, work by attacking the Ebola virus with antibodies, neutralising its impact on human cells, according to the BBC.

The news outlet said the trial started last November and was conducted by an international research group coordinated by the WHO.