So wait, the US may have found a cure to Ebola? And
if they have, will they come help patients of this
dreaded disease in Africa? The article below was
written by Dr. Sanjay Gupta for CNN and they are
saying an experimental drug called ZMapp likely
saved the lives of 2 US missionary doctors (pictured
above) who contracted the disease while working in
Liberia...see report below from CNN..
Three vials containing an experimental drug stored
at subzero temperatures were flown into Liberia last
week in a last-ditch effort to save two American
missionary workers who had contracted Ebola,
according to a source familiar with details of the
treatment.
The drug appears to have worked, sources say. Dr.
Kent Brantly's and Nancy Writebol's conditions
significantly improved after receiving the
medication, sources say. Brantly was able to walk
into Emory University Hospital in Atlanta after
being evacuated to the United States last week, and
Writebol is expected to arrive in Atlanta on
Tuesday.
On July 22, Brantly woke up feeling feverish. Fearing
the worst, Brantly immediately isolated himself.
Writebol's symptoms started three days later. A
rapid field blood test confirmed the infection in both
of them after they had become ill with fever,
vomiting and diarrhea.
It's believed both Brantly and Writebol, who worked
with the aid organization Samaritan's Purse,
contracted Ebola from another health care worker at
their hospital in Liberia, although the official Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention case investigation
has yet to be released.
A representative from the National Institutes of
Health contacted Samaritan's Purse in Liberia and
offered the experimental treatment, known as
ZMapp, for the two patients, according to the source.
The drug was developed by the biotech firm Mapp
Biopharmaceutical Inc., which is based in San Diego.
The patients were told that this treatment had never
been tried before in a human being but had shown
promise in small experiments with monkeys.
According to company documents, four monkeys
infected with Ebola survived after being given the
therapy within 24 hours after infection. Two of four
other monkeys that started therapy within 48 hours
after infection also survived. One monkey that was
not treated died within five days of exposure to the
virus.
Brantly and Writebol were aware of the risk of taking
a new, little understood treatment and gave
informed consent, according to two sources familiar
with the care of the missionary workers. In the
monkeys, the experimental serum had been given
within 48 hours of infection. Brantly didn't receive it
until he'd been sick for nine days.
The medicine is a three-mouse monoclonal antibody,
meaning that mice were exposed to fragments of the
Ebola virus and then the antibodies generated within
the mice's blood were harvested to create the
medicine. It works by preventing the virus from
entering and infecting new cells.
The Ebola virus causes viral hemorrhagic fever, which
refers to a group of viruses that affect multiple organ
systems in the body and are often accompanied by
bleeding.
Early symptoms include sudden onset of fever,
weakness, muscle pain, headaches and a sore throat.
They later progress to vomiting, diarrhea, impaired
kidney and liver function -- and sometimes internal
and external bleeding.
The ZMapp vials reached the hospital in Liberia
where Brantly and Writebol were being treated
Thursday morning. Doctors were instructed to allow
the serum to thaw naturally without any additional
heat. It was expected that it would be eight to 10
hours before the medicine could be given, according
to a source familiar with the process.
Brantly asked that Writebol be given the first dose
because he was younger and he thought he had a
better chance of fighting it, and she agreed.
However, as the first vial was still thawing, Brantly's
condition took a sudden turn for the worse.
Brantly began to deteriorate and developed labored
breathing. He told his doctors he thought he was
dying, according to a source with firsthand
knowledge of the situation.
Knowing his dose was still frozen, Brantly asked if he
could have Writebol's now-thawed medication. It was
brought to his room and administered through an IV.
Within an hour of receiving the medication, Brantly's
condition dramatically improved. He began breathing
easier; the rash over his trunk faded away. One of his
doctors described the events as "miraculous."
By the next morning, Brantly was able to take a
shower on his own before getting on a specially
designed Gulfstream air ambulance jet to be
evacuated to the United States.
Writebol also received a vial of the medication. Her
response was not as remarkable, according to
sources familiar with the treatment. However,
doctors on Sunday administered Writebol a second
dose of the medication, which resulted in significant
improvement.
She was stable enough to be evacuated back to the
United States and is expected to arrive before noon
Tuesday.
The process by which the medication was made
available to Brantly and Writebol is highly unusual.
ZMapp has not been approved for human use, and
has not even gone through the clinical trial process,
which is standard to prove the safety and efficacy of
a medication. It may have been given under the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration's "compassionate use"
regulation, which allows access to investigational
drugs outside clinical trials.

Not true they are using Forsythia and it has only worked on half of the patiants trust me I live in the States.