MSF: Ebola advancing at unprecedented rate in DRC amid insufficient containment efforts

Two months after its official declaration, the Ebola epidemic in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo is spreading at an "unprecedented rate," with containment efforts deemed insufficient, according to Médicos Sin Fronteras (MSF).

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Every delay costs lives. We are still chasing the outbreak instead of getting ahead of it. More and more people are getting infected, more families are losing loved ones, and the epidemic is becoming increasingly difficult to contain.

"Every delay costs lives. We are still chasing the outbreak instead of getting ahead of it. More and more people are getting infected, more families are losing loved ones, and the epidemic is becoming increasingly difficult to contain," said MSF emergency coordinator Trish Newport in a statement. She stressed the need for "stronger, more coordinated international action to act faster and improve access to both Ebola medical care and other essential health services."

MSF highlighted that in just two months, the current outbreak, the seventeenth to affect the DRC, has become the third-largest and fastest-growing on record. The Congolese government's latest data indicates 2,011 confirmed cases, including 754 deaths. The situation is particularly alarming as the epidemic continues to expand geographically.

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We need stronger, more coordinated international action to act faster and improve access to both Ebola medical care and other essential health services.

"The key to curbing and ultimately stopping the spread of the epidemic is to bring the response closer to communities, while strengthening the medical response and surveillance system so that cases can be identified and isolated as quickly as possible," MSF stated. The organization also emphasized that Ebola is "a crisis amidst multiple emergencies," occurring within a context of armed conflict, displacement, and simultaneous health crises like cholera and malaria.

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The key to curbing and ultimately stopping the spread of the epidemic is to bring the response closer to communities, while strengthening the medical response and surveillance system so that cases can be identified and isolated as quickly as possible.

The affected provinces include Ituri (the epicenter), North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele, and Tshopo. The outbreak, declared on May 15 in Ituri, has spread to Uganda, with 20 confirmed cases, 15 of which are considered imported from the DRC, resulting in two deaths. The outbreak corresponds to the Bundibugyo strain, which has a fatality rate of 30% to 50% and for which no authorized vaccine or specific treatment exists.

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Ebola is 'a crisis amidst multiple emergencies'.