CURE FOR LEPROSY.

Taranaki Daily News, 23 June 1925, Page 5

CURE FOR LEPROSY.

FIVE HUNDRED CASES. TREATMENT IN THE PHILIPINES. San Francisco, May 4. United States doctors claim to have ejected a permanent cure for leprosy, and amazingly successful results in that direction have been made by the use of chaulmoogra oil at Cui]ion, the leprosy asylum in the Philippine Island's, according to a cablegram received in San Francisco from Governor Leonard Wood, who has charge of the American possessions in the Pacific. Cullion is the world’s largest leprosy colony, and Governor Wood states that 500 cures have been made at Cullion during the past four years. He believed leprosy would be a disease soon controlled and eventually eradicated. “The situation at the leprosv colony at Cullion is one full of encouragement,” Governor Wood said. “More than 400 negatives—almost 500 cures—have been made in the past four years, and several hundred more are now in sight. People are beginning to look on Cullion as a place for treatment, rather than a place of segregation, and confinement, a place breathing hope instead of despair. “I believe we are on the way to make big results, and if these are followed we will eradicate leprosv entirely, not only here, but everywhere else. It is too early now to make a definite statement, but the situation is full of promise.” Cullion doctors are more optimistic thaja even Governor Wood, and they have stated that cure was poetically certain if treatments were started before complete ravaging of the body had taken place. A great problem of the fight, dvel.-u- v.

cover infected persons before the disease had progressed too fur, although often it takes 15 years for the disease to incubate.

At Cullion there are 5000 patients, with 4000 under treatment at this time. At least 75 per cent of these are constantly improving, it was stated