Dr. Mick Foley
We interviewed Doctor Mick Foley about his research in relation to Malaria. This is one of the four main diseases that we are researching and our interview with Dr. Foley proved very effective in finding research for Malaria. He taught us how complicated the disease really is, and also how money plays a major role in prioritising diseases.
While answering our topic question (which disease should we cure first?) Dr. Foley explained that we can't just focus on one disease and forget about the rest, but we need to have a balance. He also explained that if a 1st world country was to put money into curing a disease in a 3rd world country, the government would not recoup its money and won't make a profit. This is a major factor and a reason why the government of 1st world countries have to think about where to put their money in curing diseases.
There are many reasons why 1st world countries are not pouring their money into curing diseases in 3rd world countries. First of all, the government has to think about their own country and to make sure that as a 1st world country, all the requirements are met and the people have cures for their diseases. After this, the government can start to think about helping 3rd world countries and giving a certain amount of money into researching and helping cure these diseases.
Bill Gates has had major input in helping cure diseases in 3rd world countries and has put most of his money into it. Overall, Bill Gates has put more money into these diseases (mainly malaria, tuberculosis and HIV) than all of the governments in the world, and he has made a huge contribution to research and prevention of these diseases. Warren Buffet has also made a big financial impact and he has tackled these diseases side by side with Bill Gates. Due to the impact that these 2 billionaires have made on Malaria, the rate of this disease is starting to decrease for the first time in about 20 years.
Dr. Mick Foley helped us understand how prioritising diseases is a very complicated process and that we have to look at the major issues such as money. He explained that 1st world countries need to worry about their own problems before they think of putting their money into 3rd world countries which they know is not an investment. He believes that overall the government are not going to make the difference whether a 3rd world country disease is cured, but it is the successful billionaires that are willing to put all their money towards curing these diseases that will make the difference.
Dr. Mick Foley believes that Malaria is not a main priority as a disease. Even though around 2 million children die of this disease every year, the focus is mainly on 1st world countries and the diseases most prevalent in those countries such as cancer. Most of the medical research in the world is conducted in 1st world countries and instead of focusing on 3rd world countries, they focus on diseases that are relevant to them and diseases that they can profit from.
Instead of criticising these big companies that are not putting any money into curing 3rd world country diseases, we have to work with them in finding a solution. Although Bill Gates and Warren Buffet are throwing their money at Malaria, they are also investing some money in 1st world country diseases and providing a stable income to continue giving money to Malaria. They are showing the big companies that even though they are helping cure 3rd world country diseases, they are also making profit from helping cure 1st world country diseases.
Dr. Mick Foley has showed us that Malaria is slowly becoming a bigger priority to 1st world countries and people are starting to recognise how big the disease really is.
Dr. Matt Dixon
We were lucky enough to get another interview to reassure us on the disease of Malaria. Dr. Matt Dixon told us his opinion on Malaria and was even kind enough to show us around his laboratory. He focuses more on the bacteria of Malaria and the scientific side of the disease as well as finding and developing new formulas for it. Malaria research is very important as there is no vaccine for the disease yet.
A quarter to a third of the world's population live in areas affected by Malaria. This is a shocking fact that we took into consideration for prioritising this disease. Dr. Dixon also explains that having a disease like Malaria puts a burden on the person and also their family. This is especially so in 3rd world countries, where the conditions are hard enough to live with without a disease, but with a disease, the person almost becomes useless and instead of helping the community, he/she becomes a burden.
Dr. Matt Dixon believes that this disease is becoming a main priority and people are starting to take Malaria into consideration but it will take at least 10 years after they have found a successful vaccine to be able to sell it to anyone in need. Dr. Dixon's staff were kind enough to show us some of the experiments they were testing and also let us look through microscopes to see what the Malaria bacteria looked like.
Overall, we learnt a great deal about the disease of Malaria, and we took this information into consideration when deciding which disease we should cure first.
Written by Arthan Ioannou
