World Health Org. says disease former Pres. Jimmy Carter has fought to end nearly eradicated

Former President and Georgia Native Jimmy Carter has spent most of his life fighting to improve the world, from building homes for those in need with Habitat for Humanity to his and former first lady Rosalynn Carter’s commitment to addressing the mental health needs of the nation.

In addition to all of that, and more, Carter’s dreams for improving the world include eradicating Guinea Worm Disease.

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Channel 2 Action News learned from the World Health Organization that the disease, which devastated hundreds of villages in remote parts of the world during the 1980s, has nearly been erased.

The highly infectious parasite spreads through contaminated water. Those who are infected with the disease get blisters and worms that grow up to three feet long which can burst through their skin.

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In 1986, Guinea Worm Disease hit a peak of infections, with 3.5 million cases.

Just months before the former president’s 100th birthday, the WHO says more than 200 countries have been able to clear the painful and debilitating disease from their lands.

In 2024, only one Guinea Worm Disease case has been reported.

If the disease is fully eradicated, it will be the first disease to be effectively erased from humans without the use of a vaccine.

Global health officials praised former President Carter’s vision and commitment through the Carter Center’s Guinea Worm eradication program for its help in wiping out the disease.

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