Unbeknownst by many, leprosy was renamed Hansen’s disease in 1873. It was renamed after the Norwegian scientist, Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen discovered the cause of the illness. This cause was a slow-growing bacterium called Mycobacterium leprae. Despite the fact the disease was officially renamed, many people and organizations still call it leprosy. In 2016, there were 200,000 cases of the disease in the world. In the United States, about 150 to 250 cases are reported each year.
World Leprosy Day was established in 1954 by French philanthropist, Raoul Follereau. His goal was to raise awareness about leprosy. He also aimed to teach people that this ancient disease is now easily curable. He chose the last Sunday in January as it was close to the anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi’s death, which occurred on January 30th, 1948. Gandhi was known for having compassion for those with leprosy.
The theme of the 2021 campaign is “Beat Leprosy, End Stigma and Advocate for Mental Well-Being”.
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