| When I was in high school, many years ago, I recall | | | | styles with different colors. One apartment, however, |
| reading Edgar Allen Poe's short story, The Masque of | | | | was black and blood red. Most of the guests didn't |
| the Red Death. The story is an allegory, which means | | | | go into this apartment because it seemed so dark |
| that the point of the story lays beneath and | | | | and foreboding. |
| between the words Poe penned. Poe claimed to | | | | Because HIV/AIDS suppresses the human immune |
| dislike allegories. But despite his professed aversion to | | | | system, diseases that were normally suppressed |
| them, in 1843 he wrote the 'Masque' and it became | | | | within the human population have returned. |
| one of his better-known works. If you have never | | | | Tuberculosis (TB) is one of those diseases. Contrary |
| had the opportunity to read it, I highly recommend | | | | to what most people believe, TB was never actually |
| that you do. You can find the story on the Internet | | | | cured. Through a regime of drugs, man found a way |
| and read it for free. | | | | to suppress the disease. But for the most part, the |
| The story tells the tale of Prince Prospero who ruled | | | | disease is suppressed by one's own immune system. |
| in some far off land. A plague came to his realm and | | | | Today, it is believed that as many as one-third of the |
| struck with ferocity upon the people he ruled. The | | | | human population on Earth carries a TB strain within |
| plague became known as the "Red Death" and in | | | | their bodies. But so long as their immune system is |
| Poe's own words: | | | | unimpaired, these estimated 2 billion people may |
| " The scarlet stains upon the body and especially | | | | anticipate living their entire lives without ever |
| upon the face of the victim, were the pest ban | | | | experiencing a single symptom of TB. |
| which shut him out from the aid and from the | | | | The ball the prince holds is a delight to everyone in |
| sympathy of his fellow-men. And the whole seizure, | | | | the castle. People are enjoying themselves and seem |
| progress and termination of the disease, were the | | | | to be completely oblivious to the horrors taking place |
| incidents of half an hour..." | | | | outside the castle walls. But then, all of a sudden, |
| When about half of the people Prince Prospero ruled | | | | there appears one person who is costumed as a |
| over succumbed to the illness, the prince hatched a | | | | victim of the Red Death. The crowd shrieks in horror |
| plan to take one thousand healthy friends and take | | | | and moves away in fear and loathing from this |
| refuge in one of his castles. He barred entry and exit | | | | person. The Prince flies into a rage at seeing one of |
| from the castle and intended to wait out in splendor, | | | | his apparent guests mocking and terrorizing both he |
| the disease that coursed through his land. | | | | and everyone else at the ball. He demands that the |
| At the end of 2006, according to the World Health | | | | perpetrator be apprehended and hanged from the |
| Organization (WHO), between 34 million and 47 million | | | | castle wall for his effrontery. |
| people are living with HIV/AIDS. During 2006, | | | | Because of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa, and the |
| between 2.5 million and 3.5 million people died from | | | | lack of drugs and money to combat the disease, TB |
| AIDS. Over half of all the people who live with HIV | | | | has not only returned to plague the people of Africa, |
| AIDS and die from AIDS live in Africa. | | | | it has also mutated into new strains. Multi-Drug |
| In Sub-Saharan Africa, 5.9% of the adult population is | | | | Resistant TB (MDR-TB) is a strain that is extremely |
| infected with HIV/AIDS. In the same area, 2.1 million | | | | difficult to control and requires the use of many |
| adults and children died of the disease in 2006. In | | | | anti-retroviral drugs to combat. WHO has issued |
| North America, 0.8% of the population is infected, | | | | repeated warnings that, left unchecked, this new |
| and 18,000 people died from AIDS in 2006. | | | | strain of TB can become a global pandemic. Because |
| Prince Prospero's idea was simply to let the Red | | | | TB is spread by air, there is no way to protect |
| Death burn itself out. Once the disease had left, he | | | | oneself from contracting the disease. If you are |
| and his guests could leave the castle and repopulate | | | | around someone with active TB, then you are |
| the land. This is the reason why the prince chose his | | | | probably going to contract the disease. |
| guests principally from among the nobles and knights | | | | Now, a new strain of TB has been discovered and |
| of his realm. To be fair, he also brought in some | | | | identified as Extremely Drug Resistant TB (XDR-TB). |
| entertainers and artists, knowing that he and his | | | | Some scientists believe XDR-TB is untreatable. In |
| guests would have to be entertained during their | | | | studies conducted by WHO and the U.S. Center for |
| seclusion. | | | | Disease Control, in Russia and Asia, 53 patients |
| In 2001, the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, | | | | suffering from XDR-TB were treated with |
| and Malaria was started. Since then, $3.3 billion has | | | | anti-retroviral drugs. Despite this treatment, 52 of the |
| been obtained from nations throughout the world to | | | | patients died within just 25 days of contracting the |
| help fight disease in Africa. In addition to this, the U.S. | | | | illness. |
| Government has contributed an additional $1.1 billion | | | | The prince and his knights pursue the offending guest |
| under the President's Plan for AIDS relief. | | | | through the apartments until they corner him in the |
| According to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, in | | | | black and blood red, seventh apartment. There, to |
| 2005, the U.S. Government distributed nearly $3 billion | | | | their shock and horror, they discover that the |
| for HIV/AIDS assistance to the 50 states, Guam, | | | | perpetrator was not wearing a costume, but in fact, |
| Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. This | | | | is infected with the Red Death plague. Within a short |
| single-year assistance is nearly equal to all of the | | | | time, the prince and all who had gathered within the |
| assistance given by all nations over the past 5 years | | | | castle walls perished from the disease. |
| to combat HIV/AIDS in Africa. | | | | According to WHO, today approximately 4% of all |
| After being locked up in the castle for six months, | | | | known XDR-TB cases are found in patients residing in |
| Prince Prospero's guests were experiencing a little | | | | the United States. WHO and other agencies warn |
| "cabin fever". So the prince decided to throw a big | | | | that the failure of developed nations to seriously |
| costumed ball in his apartments within the castle. The | | | | confront and combat this growing epidemic and the |
| prince had seven apartments - a not insignificant | | | | HIV/AIDS epidemic that has spawned XDR-TB, will |
| number. Each apartment was decorated in differing | | | | result in a severe mortality impact worldwide. |