EXPLORATIONS - In an Age of Modern Science and Medicine, Inf

EXPLORATIONS - In an Age of Modern Science and Medicine, Infectious Diseases Remain the World's Leading Killer¹
By Jill Moss²

Broadcast: Wednesday, September 21, 2005

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VOICE ONE:

I'm Faith Lapidus.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Steve Ember with Explorations in VOA Special English. Today we tell about efforts in the fight against some of the major health threats in the world.

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VOICE ONE:

 
An AIDS treatment center in Burundi. 40 million people are believed to be infected with HIV around the world
The World Health Organization says infectious diseases remain the world's leading killer. These diseases cause one out of every four deaths. The spread of AIDS has been especially serious. Forty million people are now infected with H.I.V., the virus that causes AIDS. Africa is the hardest hit continent. The disease killed more than two million people in Southern Africa alone last year. The disease also is spreading quickly through parts of Asia and Europe.

VOICE TWO:

The W.H.O. reports more than eight hundred sixty thousand people are infected with H.I.V. or AIDS in Russia. About eighty percent of the officially reported cases are among people who inject drugs. Most of them are under age thirty and are living in cities like Moscow and Saint Petersburg.

A similar situation exists in Ukraine. The number of newly reported cases of H.I.V. and AIDS there has almost doubled in each of the first three years of this century. Experts say the five republics of Central Asia could face similar problems soon if no immediate³ action is taken. The Baltic nations of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia currently have low numbers of AIDS victims, but infections there are increasing quickly.

VOICE ONE:

Robyn Montgomery works for AIDS Foundation East-West. This independent group is trying to stop the spread of AIDS in the former Soviet⁴ Union. Miz Montgomery told VOA reporter Lisa McAdams that governments have been slow to react there. In addition, she says unjust treatment against AIDS victims has worsened the situation.

In March, AIDS Foundation East-West launched an H.I.V. and AIDS prevention project in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The goal is to train medical workers and others. It is the first of its kind in Central Asia. The group hopes the program will serve as a model for governments across the former Soviet Union.

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VOICE TWO:

The disease known as bird flu is also spreading through Russia and parts of

 
Farm birds are destroyed in Vietnam to stop the spread of avian influenza⁵
the former Soviet Union. But, the problem is worse in Southeast Asia. A deadly form, or strain, of this influenza has killed more than sixty people in Southeast Asia over the past two years. Most of the victims were in Vietnam. In addition, about one hundred million birds around the world have either died of the virus or been killed to prevent bird flu from spreading.

The H-five, N-one strain of bird flu is deadly for chickens and some other birds, but it has rarely infected humans. Health officials, however, fear the strain could change into a form that passes easily from person to person. If this happens, bird flu could spread around the world and kill millions of people.

VOICE ONE:

American scientists say they have successfully tested a human vaccine⁶ against the H-five, N-one bird flu virus. But, they say it could be months before it is approved for manufacture and public use. Until then, governments are pressing ahead with other measures.

For example, health officials in Vietnam have started to vaccinate⁷ more than two hundred million chickens and ducks against the disease. Van Dang Ky works for the Ministry⁸ of Agriculture. He told VOA reporter Kay Johnson that if the program is completed by November, the number of human flu patients would likely be reduced this winter.

VOICE TWO:

Asia is also concerned about Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome⁹. SARS first appeared in southern China in two thousand two. It apparently¹⁰ spread to humans from animals. The disease quickly spread around the world. In less than one year, more than eight thousand people in twenty-nine countries were infected. The disease killed almost eight hundred people, most of them in China.

Roy Wadia works for the World Health Organization in Beijing. He told VOA reporter Benjamin Sand that SARS showed that what happens in one country can affect the whole world. SARS threatened to become an international public health crisis. Many people caught the disease after they sat near an infected passenger on an airplane.

VOICE ONE:

SARS has largely disappeared today, although doctors do not know why. Yet, they are using lessons learned from the outbreak to develop treatments for future emergencies.

Health officials say international cooperation is necessary to fight diseases. When SARS first appeared, China denied reports of the outbreak, and then refused to cooperate with international health workers. As a result, scientists say it took much longer than necessary to find the cause of the disease and to identify treatments.

China has since worked more closely with international researchers. Chinese doctors are now trying to develop a vaccine for SARS.

VOICE TWO:

SARS was a new disease. But, the Ebola and Marburg viruses have been know to modern science for many years. In less than forty years, the diseases have killed about two thousand people, mostly in Africa. Although this seems like a small number of victims, both viruses have the ability to kill millions. The World Health Organization describes them as among the most deadly organisms known to infect humans.

Scientists say it is difficult to research these viruses because they often appear in areas that are hard to reach. Doctor Robert Swanepoel works with South Africa's National Institute for Communicable Diseases. He spoke¹¹ to VOA reporter Delia Robertson. Doctor Swanepoel says carrying out research during an outbreak of disease is hard because the people in affected¹² areas are frightened. He says that until a vaccine or cure is developed, the best hope of preventing the spread of Ebola or Marburg is early discovery and containment¹³.

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VOICE ONE:

The World Health Organization is one of several groups that supervise the world's infectious disease situation. The W.H.O. depends on a Canadian-based early warning system called the Global Health Intelligence Network. Network officials collect and share media reports of possible disease outbreaks, including possible biological weapons attacks by terrorists. The network operates in seven languages, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

The United States government also operates laboratories in this country and in several other nations. Joseph Malone heads the Defense¹⁴ Department's Global Emerging Infections System. He told VOA reporter Amy Katz that the system plays a supportive role when outbreaks happen in the United States and around the world.

VOICE TWO:

Both the Global Health Intelligence Network and the Global Emerging Infections System respond to natural public health threats. But some officials believe a poisonous chemical or biological agent could cause a more frightening health crisis. They believe it would not be difficult for terrorists to release a deadly chemical, virus or bacteria into the food supply or the air.

William Raub supervises America's public health emergency preparedness for the Centers for Disease Control. He says the government considers the anthrax organism and the smallpox¹⁵ virus the two leading biological weapons that terrorists could use in an attack. So the government is developing new vaccines¹⁶ against the diseases.

The disease smallpox was ended in the nineteen seventies. Only small amounts of the virus remain under high security in the United States and Russia.

VOICE ONE:

Doctor Anthony Fauchi heads infectious disease research at the National Institutes of Health. He told VOA reporter David McAlary that money spent preparing for a biological attack is not money wasted. But, he warned that no country can ever be completely ready for such an attack. Doctor Fauchi said there is a need for drug companies to develop vaccines against a disease outbreak or a bio-terrorist attack that may never be used. Last year, the Bush administration approved a five thousand million dollar program that provides drug companies with economic reasons to manufacture such vaccines.

Still, the rate of progress remains¹⁷ troubling for some medical experts. They fear there might be a major health crisis in the future for which no treatment exists.

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VOICE TWO:

This program was written by Jill Moss. It was produced by Mario Ritter. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Faith Lapidus. Join us again next week for Explorations in VOA Special English.

1 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

2 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

3 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

4 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

5 influenza   

n.流行性感冒，流感

参考例句：

• They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施
• Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

6 vaccine   

n.牛痘苗，疫苗；adj.牛痘的，疫苗的

参考例句：

• The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives.脊髓灰质炎疫苗挽救了数以百万计的生命。
• She takes a vaccine against influenza every fall.她每年秋季接种流感疫苗。

7 vaccinate   

vt.给…接种疫苗；种牛痘

参考例句：

• Local health officials then can plan the best times to vaccinate people.这样，当地的卫生官员就可以安排最佳时间给人们接种疫苗。
• Doctors vaccinate us so that we do not catch smallpox.医生给我们打预防针使我们不会得天花。

8 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

9 syndrome   

n.综合病症；并存特性

参考例句：

• The Institute says that an unidentified virus is to blame for the syndrome. 该研究所表示,引起这种综合症的是一种尚未确认的病毒。
• Results indicated that 11 fetuses had Down syndrome. 结果表明有11个胎儿患有唐氏综合征。

10 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

11 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

12 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

13 containment   

n.阻止，遏制；容量

参考例句：

• Your list might include such things as cost containment,quality,or customer satisfaction.你的清单上应列有诸如成本控制、产品质量、客户满意程度等内容。
• Insularity and self-containment,it is argued,go hand in hand.他们争论说，心胸狭窄和自我封闭是并存的。

14 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

15 smallpox   

n.天花

参考例句：

• In 1742 he suffered a fatal attack of smallpox.1742年，他染上了致命的天花。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child?你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

16 vaccines   

疫苗，痘苗( vaccine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His team are at the forefront of scientific research into vaccines. 他的小组处于疫苗科研的最前沿。
• The vaccines were kept cool in refrigerators. 疫苗放在冰箱中冷藏。

17 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。