Nelson Mandela: Speaks about his battle with Tuberculosis

Sep 30, 2014 Ruchira Dhoke Lifestyle & Health 0

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First isolated in 1882 by a German physician Robert Koch who received Nobel Prize for the discovery, Mycobacterium tuberculosis is the causative agent of the infectious disease Tuberculosis in humans. Tuberculosis is the leading cause of death in the world of bacterial infectious diseases. It affects 1.8 billion people per year which is equal to one third of the entire world population.

The major setback suffered by the healthcare providers is the disease-related stigma and knowledge which is believed to be associated with the patient’s willingness to seek treatment and adherence to treatment. Today in the 21st century all we need is the process of demystification of tuberculosis and the image of the one who suffers from it.

While the social representation of Tuberculosis is full of stigma and prejudices there comes a man “who’s been there and done that”- Nelson Mandela an extraordinary man with an equally extraordinary contribution towards society….!!!

Nelson Mandela was born on July 18, 1918, in Transkei, South Africa. He became actively involved in the anti-apartheid movement and joined the African National Congress in 1942. For 20 years, he directed a campaign of peaceful, non-violent defiance against the South African government and its racist policies. In 1994, Mandela was inaugurated as the country’s first black president.

Nelson Mandela has committed his life to fighting injustice and inequality.

In 1988, during the period of apartheid, Nelson Mandela contracted tuberculosis (TB) while imprisoned at Pollsmoor Prison in Cape Town, South Africa. Fortunately, his strain of TB was treated and cured before the disease reached an advanced stage, but the experience left an imprint on him

He chose to tell the story of his four-month bout with the disease during the 15th International AIDS Conference .The icon of struggle against racism urged that the fight against AIDS should  be extended to conquering tuberculosis as well as every minute, three people living with HIV unnecessarily lose their lives to TB.

He recounted the reaction of members of his political party, the African National Congress, when he told them he had tuberculosis. “There were long faces drawn. My friends objected to me sharing my personal affairs,” he recalled, referring to the stigma of tuberculosis in many developing countries, where it is seen as a disease of the poor.

“But I consoled them and told them that the doctors and hospital staff knew about my status and I therefore had no reason to hide this information from those close to me.” He said speaking openly brought support that helped him heal. He also urged other TB patients not to be embarrassed about disclosing their illness.

 Since that time, he has sought to increase awareness about the dangerous implications of TB for the international community. While speaking at the 15th International AIDS Conference, Nelson Mandela sent a powerful message to the world: ” We are all here because of our commitment to fighting AIDS .We cannot win the battle against AIDS if we do not also fight TB. TB is too often a death sentence for people with AIDS.”

Mandela also observes that “what we have lacked is the will and the resources to quickly diagnose people with TB and get them the treatment that they need.”

In a life dedicated to overcoming adversity and injustice, time and time again, Nelson Mandela has refused to quit as he relentlessly presses for social changes and shifts in political will. Nowhere are the themes of his life more applicable than in the fight against tuberculosis. He noted that mankind has known the cure for TB for more than 50 years, but said that what has been missing is the “will and the resources to quickly diagnose people with TB and get them the treatment they need”.

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• AIDS, Nelson Mandela, Pollsmoor Prison, Tuberculosis, Tuberculosis symptoms

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