Overview
- The outbreak has grown rapidly into a large epidemic with more than 1,400 confirmed cases and over 430 deaths concentrated in Ituri but now reported in North Kivu, South Kivu, Kisangani and across the border in Uganda.
- World Health Organization partners began a randomized treatment study that enrolled its first patient on Thursday to test Mapp Biopharmaceutical’s MBP134 monoclonal antibody and Gilead’s remdesivir, with the trial needing many months and roughly 1,000 or more patients to show clear results.
- FIND has fast-tracked field trials of rapid antigen tests and selected five manufacturers for mid-July deployments while laboratory capacity has expanded to about 10 sites, though delays, reagent shortages and poor roads still slow timely diagnosis.
- Violence and deep community mistrust are disrupting the response, highlighted by an arson attack on a Nia Nia treatment centre where patients fled, bodies were removed and a police officer died, hampering contact tracing and safe burials.
- Health workers warn the outbreak is straining services and diverting routine care, raising the risk that malaria and other diseases could cause more deaths because bed‑net campaigns were cancelled and many people now avoid clinics.