Shedding light on leprosy
The late Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist and political ethicist Mahatma Gandhi always championed public awareness on leprosy, a disease which first had its breakthrough in the 1940s.
When he was assassinated on 30 January 1948 in New Delhi, India, French humanitarian Raoul Follereau chose the last Sunday of January to be World Leprosy Day in order to raise awareness on the condition now known as Hansen’s Disease.
World Health Organization (WHO) defines leprosy as an infectious disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae. Symptoms, such as discolored patches of skin and painless ulcers on feet soles, may occur within one year but can also take as long as 20 years or even more to occur.
Leprosy can be transmitted via droplets from the nose and mouth and during close and frequent contact with untreated cases. If left untreated, WHO says it can cause an even more progressive damage to the skin, nerves, limbs and eyes.
The third week of February every year is observed as Leprosy Prevention and Control Week in the Philippines in pursuant to Presidential Proclamation 467. This observance aims to create awareness among Filipinos on the nature of leprosy and its prevention and corresponding treatments.
The Department of Health supports this effort through the multi-agency National Leprosy Control Program that aims to integrate leprosy services while advocating for stigma discrimination, self-care and rehabilitation of leprosy in the country.
The DoH targets for a Leprosy-free Philippines by 2022.