Developing safer and shorter treatments for a disfiguring and stigmatizing disease

Cutaneous leishmaniasis

Developing safer and shorter treatments for a disfiguring and stigmatizing disease

We are advancing R&D for promising new patient-friendly treatments that are affordable, safe, and effective for both children and adults and helping to build and consolidate research capacity in the most affected countries.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis is transmitted through the bite of sandflies that carry the Leishmania parasite. People affected by poverty, malnutrition, displacement, and poor housing conditions are most at risk. The skin lesions that result from the disease form on the face or other exposed areas, leaving disfiguring, life-long scars that bring severe social stigma, particularly for women and children.

But because cutaneous leishmaniasis is not fatal, it receives little attention from pharmaceutical companies, funding agencies, and local health systems. Current treatments are costly, and often require weeks of painful injections of toxic drugs called antimonials. Despite their severe side effects, these drugs have been used to treat the disease for over 60 years.

0 million

people infected every year

countries are endemic

0 %

effectiveness of current treatments can be as low as

‘There is a huge lack of information on the disease that leads to the use of several things to get cured, such as burned oil from cars. The scars are very ugly, so there is lots of stigma and discrimination.’

Ana Marilus Reyes Morales, whose two children have cutaneous leishmaniasis, Peru

What we have achieved

Through collaborations with the pharmaceutical industry, biotechnology companies, academia, and other product development partnerships, we have identified several promising compounds that are now in different stages of development. In addition, our support for regional disease research platforms is helping to build and consolidate research capacity in endemic countries.

What we are doing for people living with cutaneous leishmaniasis

Our goal is to deliver short, safe, non-invasive, efficacious, affordable, and field-friendly treatments for all forms of cutaneous leishmaniasis, including topical, oral, and immunomodulator therapies.

Loading…

Clinical trials

New CL combination therapies

Combining existing treatments to improve patient outcomes. Preliminary results from our Phase II trial in Peru and Colombia showed better outcomes combining thermotherapy and miltefosine compared to treatment with thermotherapy alone. A Phase III study is now planned in four countries in Latin America. 

Translational research

CpG-D35 for cutaneous leishmaniasis

Boosting immune system’s response to fight infection. We are working to produce an ‘immunomodulator’ that can stimulate the innate immune system to fight the parasitic infection that causes cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Making medical history for neglected patients

We develop urgently needed treatments for neglected patients and ensure they’re affordable, available, and adapted to the communities who need them

Doctor diagnosing a man in a village with his hands on the man's neck

Sleeping sickness

Transmitted by the bite of a tsetse fly and causes severe neurological disorders

We delivered a revolutionary new drug to replace toxic treatments, and have ongoing trials to eliminate this disease

Young boy sitting on a hospital bed being examined by a nurse

Chagas disease

Causes heart and vital organ damage, after people are bitten by blood-sucking bugs

We delivered the first-ever treatment for children; now we’re searching for new drug candidates and working to boost access to care

Hepatitis C

Millions are left without treatment even though effective drugs exist

We’ve delivered a treatment as simple, safe, and effective as the best drugs available today – at a fraction of the cost

Cryptococcal meningitis

Without treatment, deadly for thousands of people with advanced HIV

We’re working to improve access to life-saving treatments and developing an easier-to-use formulation

Father walking in rural village with a cane and holding his son's hand

Filaria: river blindness

Lead to unbearable itching, disfiguring skin lesions, and even blindness

We’re working to develop a safe, effective, and affordable drug for the prevention and treatment of this debilitating disease

Woman standing in front of her door house in a rural village in Sudan

Mycetoma

Often ends in amputation, after people get infected from stepping on a thorn

We’re conducting the world’s first trial for an alternative to current treatments, which are toxic and ineffective

Mother holding her baby in her arms smiling

Paediatric HIV

Without treatment, half of children die before their second birthday

We’ve developed a strawberry-flavoured treatment to meet the needs of children long neglected by the global HIV response

Visceral leishmaniasis

Is one of the world’s biggest parasitic killers, spread by the bites of sandflies

We’re working to develop a new generation of treatments to replace drugs that are painful, ineffective, and cause side effects