By
Hervé Bazin, University of Louvain, Faculty of Medicine, Experimental Immunology Unit, Brussels, Belgium
Description
Simply, and with great humanity,
The Eradication of Smallpox tells the story of smallpox - it's origins, the horror of
the disease, and the millions of people killed or disfigured by it. During the 18th and 19th centuries, it is estimated that one out
of every ten people died from the disease; some say one out of every seven. Smallpox attacked very young children in particular.
The
story progresses with the practice of variolation, the life of Edward Jenner who first proposed 'vaccination' with cow pox vaccine (little
James Phipps was the first person ever vaccinated in this way), the years of debate about the efficacy of this novel method, and the
later worldwide initiatives to rid the planet of this horrific disease. In 1979, the story culminates in the only total eradication of
an infectious disease that mankind has ever accomplished. This year celebrates the 20th anniversary of this momentous achievement.
In
the intervening years, debate has raged about what we should do with the remaining smallpox viral stocks. Do we destroy them, so they
can't fall into the hands of bioterrorists, or do we maintain them, in case they may be of use in some unexpected way, for therapeutic
purposes? These questions are thoroughly discussed in the book.
