Does leprosy still exist? Yes! Every year, 250,000 people around the world are diagnosed with leprosy.1

WHAT IS LEPROSY?

Leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease,1 is an illness that affects the peripheral nerves and skin.1-3 It causes nerve damage which can make patients lose some sensation in their hands, feet and eyes so they can’t feel touch or pain.1,3 This means they can injure themselves and not know that they’ve been hurt, so they don’t take care of injuries in the affected areas.1,4,5 These injuries get worse over time, sometimes causing lifelong disabilities or disfigurement.3,4,5

WHAT CAUSES LEPROSY?

Leprosy is caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium leprae.2 This germ can be passed through droplets from the patient’s nose and mouth when they sneeze or cough.2 But leprosy is not very contagious.1 About 95% of people are naturally immune to the Mycobacterium leprae.1 You can only catch leprosy if you have close, long-term contact with someone who has untreated leprosy.^1,2

CAN LEPROSY BE TREATED?

Yes, leprosy is treatable! Leprosy patients can be treated with multi-drug therapy (MDT).² The medication is provided to patients free of charge.⁵ Patients can live a normal life during treatment – they don’t need to be isolated.⁴

Leprosy in South Africa

There are about 100 new leprosy cases in South Africa every year.

Did You Know? Many people’s attitudes towards leprosy patients today are based on the references to leprosy in the Bible. But Biblical leprosy isn’t the same thing as modern-day leprosy. The Hebrew word, Tzaraath or tsar’ath – which is translated as “leprosy” in the English Bible – doesn’t cover one single disease, like the leprosy that we talk about today. Tzaraath was translated as “leprosy” in the early versions of the English Bible because leprosy was a mysterious and misunderstood condition. The word was used to describe blemishes on the skin caused by a variety of diseases which could cause a person to be ceremonially unclean. Descriptions of Tzaraath in the Bible never mention nerve damage. So, there’s no evidence that the diseases described as “leprosy” in the Bible are related to the disease known as leprosy today.

THE ROLE OF THE LEPROSY MISSION

The Leprosy Mission is a Christian charity committed to helping leprosy patients recover from their disease. We work to continue Christ’s mission of healing and compassion on Earth, by helping these patients to access treatment and enjoy a better quality of life.

“As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.”

– 1 Peter 4:10

What we do:

We provide leprosy patients with free treatment
We show patients with nerve damage how to care for themselves to prevent injuries and disabilities
We train health workers to recognise the early signs of leprosy. Timely diagnosis and treatment reduce the risk of nerve damage and disability
We welcome invitations to speak at churches and other gatherings about what you can do to help those affected by leprosy

Online Leprosy Training Programmes

Our colleagues at The Mission To End Leprosy (TMTEL, formerly The Leprosy Mission Ireland) have developed new online training programmes for primary health care workers involved in leprosy work.

Learn more about the TMTEL programmes here.

WORLD LEPROSY DAY

World Leprosy Day is an event we observe every year on the last Sunday of January.⁸ The aim of World Leprosy Day is to create awareness about leprosy and fight the stigma attached to it, by making the community aware of the facts about leprosy.⁸

“I believe that if each of us takes the trouble to learn the facts about leprosy and share our knowledge, we can help create a world free of problems associated with the disease.”

– Yohei Sasakawa, WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Leprosy Eliminatio

Support the Leprosy Mission south Africa

We couldn’t do what we do without the help of our committed supporters. Your contributions make it possible for our staff to help as many patients as possible, and to educate more people around the country about the realities of leprosy today. Contact us to find out how you can support our work.

Tax Certificates for the tax year ending 28th February 2025 – details required by SARS for tax certificates issued from 2023 onwards

Donations to the Leprosy Mission Southern Africa are tax deductible in the hands of the donor in terms of Section 18 A (1) (a) of the Income Tax Act. The Leprosy Mission Southern Africa will be issuing tax certificates during May 2025 for donations received between 1 March 2024 and 28 February 2025.

The South African Revenue Service requires the Leprosy Mission to include the following information on the tax certificate:

In the case of a natural person, the donor identification type and country of issue
Identification or registration number of the donor
Tax reference number of the donor
Contact phone number of the donor
Email address of the donor
Trading name of the donor (if different from the registered name)

If you made a donation to The Leprosy Mission Southern Africa during the tax year ending 28 February 2025, please send the above information to us so that we can issue you with a tax certificate. SARS will reject tax certificates that do not include this information. Please send your information to peter@tlm.co.za by 31 March 2025.

References:

1. About Hansen’s disease (leprosy). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/leprosy/about/index.html. 2. Leprosy. World Health Organization. Accessed June 17, 2024. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/leprosy. 3. Expert opinion. Peter Laubscher, Executive Director for The Leprosy Mission Southern Africa. June 2024. 4. The Leprosy Mission Southern Africa. Data on file. Video. 2023. 5. The Leprosy Mission Southern Africa. Data on file. World Health Organization leprosy training slides. 6. The Leprosy Mission Southern Africa. Data on file. Leprosy training notes. 2024. 7. Expert opinion. Leprosy in the Bible. Peter Laubscher, Executive Director for The Leprosy Mission Southern Africa. June 2024. 8. World Leprosy Day. World Health Organization. Accessed June 25, 2024. https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-leprosy-day.