Gilead extends WHO partnership to eliminate second-deadliest parasitic disease
Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) announced a renewed five-year collaboration framework with the World Health Organization (WHO), extending an institutional partnership targeted at eliminating visceral leishmaniasis (VL) as a public health threat by 2030.
Under the updated terms of the agreement, the Foster City, California-based biopharmaceutical developer will provide $9.2 million in direct financial support and donate more than 400,000 vials of AmBisome (amphotericin B liposome for injection).
The financial and material provisions will fund disease surveillance, laboratory diagnostics, and clinical treatment infrastructure across nations that collectively represent approximately 74% of the global VL burden.
Targeted countries include historical endemic hotspots such as India, Bangladesh, and Nepal, alongside an expanded deployment scope covering Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda, Yemen, Chad, and Djibouti.
The upcoming five-year cycle will specifically focus resources toward expanding clinical capabilities within high-burden communities across East Africa, where geographic isolation and fragmented health systems slow intervention timelines.
Visceral leishmaniasis, commonly known as kala-azar, is a neglected tropical disease caused by protozoan Leishmania parasites transmitted through the bite of infected sandflies.
As the second deadliest parasitic infection globally behind malaria, VL attacks internal organs—including the spleen, liver, and bone marrow—and results in a near-total fatality rate if left untreated.
The institutional tie-up between Gilead and the WHO builds upon a public health initiative established in Southeast Asia in 2005.
That sustained deployment helped drive a 95% reduction in documented VL cases across the Indian subcontinent.
The operational model achieved validation in 2023 when Bangladesh became the first nation globally to receive formal WHO certification for eliminating visceral leishmaniasis as a public health problem.
The program expansion aligns with the WHO’s 2030 Neglected Tropical Disease roadmap, which prioritizes shifting burden management from donor-reliant acute treatment models to self-sustaining localized surveillance networks.
