A 25-year-old British military nurse was released from a London hospital on Friday, months after she initially contracted Ebola while working in west Africa. She was the first person in the world to be treated with an experimental new Chinese drug, known as MIL 77. (And no, this has nothing to do with TCM.)
Cpl Anna Cross contracted Ebola in Sierra Leone last month, while working with the British military distributing aid in disease-stricken areas. She was rushed back to London, where she requested to be treated by the never-before-used Chinese drug. It was a success, and she has been totally cured of the virus.
Experts are quick to rain on the "cure" parade, however, with Dr. Mike Jacobs telling International Business Times that, "Cross having recovered doesn't tell us [that MIL77] works because, in one patient, we just can't draw that conclusion."
Doctors are reluctant to say that the MIL 77 drug is a workable cure for Ebola because, it turns out, medicine is really complicated.
Nevertheless, this is certainly a good sign for the Chinese producers of the drug. The treatment is so far still in "limited supply," but we imagine production could be ramped up in the wake of a positive treatment.
Cpl Cross told reporters that, now that she has been able to leave the hospital, she wants to "go and eat food and watch TV." We hope that can be arranged.
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