When Dr. Firdausi Qadri thinks about the number of cases of cholera in the world today—that ancient disease that still kills tens of thousands each year—she's frustrated. "It's a disgrace that we see so much cholera today, including in countries that haven't had the disease for many years," she says. Qadri has studied and fought the scourge for much of her decades-long career with the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b for short).
Within the last six months, 30 countries have reported cholera outbreaks, ranging from Haiti to Lebanon to Mozambique. A few factors appear to be fueling this latest global outbreak: lack of clean water, infrastructure degradation, political instability, climate change and lack of resources due to other medical emergencies like mpox and COVID-19 that have consumed attention and funds.
