diseases
DISEASES.
Humankind is threatened with extinction (or near-extinction) by diseases that are becoming resistant to current treatments. If you think that I am exaggerating, read the quotes below from authoritative sources.
The following quote is from Scientific American (magazine), issue for June 2014, Article:- Germ Catcher, by David J. Ecker (a scientist at Ibis Biosciences, an Abbot company):- “Many microorganisms are becoming resistant to existing drugs - - - The drugs kill off susceptible bacteria but leave some that are resistant to that particular medication. These antibiotic-resistant bugs then multiply unchecked by their now absent competitors - - - - treatment(s) - - -help to safeguard many patients’ health today, but they also unavoidably guarantee the emergence of - - - drug-resistant bacteria tomorrow.” (My highlighting.)
The following quote is from Scientific American (magazine), issue for June 2014, Article:- Seeds of a Cure, by Brendan Borrell:- “Malaria has evolved resistance to just about everything researchers have thrown at it.”
The following quotes are from the book The Long Emergency, by James Howard Kunstler, published by Atlantic Books, 2005.
Page 10:- “AIDS is now a growing menace - - - - with cases doubling every two years around the world - - - - The virus mutates continually and there may be variants too numerous to count. - - - The victory over microbes was short-lived. They are back in force - - - - in new drug-resistant strains.”
Page 171:- “Flu mutates continually - - - and every now and then - - - - - hits a jackpot to produce NEW STRAINS THAT ARE VIOLENTLY DESTRUCTIVE TO HUMAN LIFE - - - SEVERE PNEUMONIA, TOXIC SHOCK, AND ORGAN FAILURE, EVEN IN THE YOUNG AND HEALTHY - - - - The preponderance of deaths - - - - from the 1918 (“Spanish”) flu were among PEOPLE AGE TWENTY TO FORTY.” (My capitals.)
Page 174:- “Within the last few years there has been an emergence of bacteria resistant to vancomycin – a last defense drug for some illnesses, including - - - - pneumonia caused by Staphyloccocus bacteria.”
Page 173:- “Methods of factory farming - - - have included massive dosing of the animals with antibiotics; the predictable result has been the evolution of - - - bugs that are resistant to drugs.”
Page 170:- There is also reason to suppose that the mutation of the resourceful HIV virus is not over - - - -One great fear lurking in the epidemiology of AIDS no is that THE HIV VIRUS COULD FIND A MEANS TO SPREAD BY AEROSOL MEANS – EXPOSURE OF MUCOUS MEMBRANES TO COUGHING AND SNEEZING. In this event, the consequences for the human race could be fateful in the extreme.” (My capitals.)
Page 169:- “By 2004, roughly three quarters of newly infected HIV cases were showing resistance to one or more of these (antiviral) drugs. - - - - In Botswana and Swaziland - - - - the (HIV) infection rate is 39 percent.”
This is a quote from an article in Time (magazine) issue for March 27th 2017, Article:- Simple Drugs Stopped This Child From Getting HIV From Her Mother - - - - , by Alice Park:- “HIV - - - - AN EPIDEMIC THAT HAS KILLED 35 MILLION - - - - Globally more than 400 babies are born every day with the virus - - - - THE COST OF THE DRUGS (to treat HIV) WHICH RUN INTO THE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS ON AVERAGE PER YEAR (I assume that this means per patient.) - - - - 80 percent (of babies with HIV) will die before age 5.”