Ending Leprosy in India

Together, we can end leprosy in India

Leprosy Still Exists

You may think that leprosy is an ancient disease, but today it continues to devastate the lives of people living in poverty across South Asia.

Every year, around 200,000 new cases of leprosy are reported.

Shockingly, over 60% of these are in India.

Cure a child of leprosy, today

Even though there is a cure, leprosy robs people of family, jobs, and dignity

Severe discrimination means many people with leprosy hide their symptoms for as long as possible, living in fear of what will happen to them. Worryingly, this means the number of people with the disease is much higher than reported.

If leprosy is not cured quickly, it can cause blindness and loss of feeling in hands and feet. If you can’t feel pain, daily tasks become fraught with danger. Hands get burned while cooking, and walking on sharp stones injure your feet. Injuries often ulcerate, which can then lead to amputation. Your fingers curl inwards and won’t straighten, making it impossible to care for your children or hold a tool to work in the fields. All of this adds to your daily struggle with poverty.

Poverty causes leprosy. Leprosy makes poverty worse.

You can help break this cycle.

The reality of leprosy

For many of the people we serve, the pain of rejection is the worst thing about a leprosy diagnosis. Fear and misconceptions about leprosy mean that even today, people with the disease can face terrible discrimination. Isolation and loneliness are sadly far too common for so many. Can you imagine the heartache of knowing you have family you’ll never see?

Kamalamma knows this pain far too well. She’s almost 70 now, but first developed leprosy when she was 20. She’s a widow and lives alone in a leprosy colony. Kamalamma is badly disabled and needs help with daily activities. Life is hard.

She’s lost the feeling in her hands, and her fingers don’t work. Walking is a struggle and she suffers with recurrent ulcers on her feet that just won’t heal. Her greatest sadness though, is that her daughter’s husbands have forbidden them to see their mum. Such is the stigma of leprosy, that they don’t want to be associated with this gentle elderly lady. Kamalamma has heard she has two grandsons and two granddaughters. How she longs to see them!

“I can’t go to my daughters. My husband is gone. My grandchildren are strangers. Without the care I get here, I know I’d be dead. You are loving us and providing for us. You have become our family. Thank you.”

Could you be family for someone like Kamalamma?

	What is leprosy?
	Leprosy is a disease caused by bacteria. It is believed to be spread by airborne water droplets (like a sneeze).
	Leprosy is a disease of poverty. It can strike anyone with low immunity caused by malnutrition, poor sanitation, and basic living conditions.
	Leprosy is cured with three antibiotics called Multidrug therapy. But if not treated quickly, the disease causes nerve damage, which leads to disability.
	Over three million people live with disability caused by leprosy.
	Today, someone will be diagnosed with leprosy every two minutes.

Together, we can change the future for people affected by leprosy.

The Leprosy Mission is the leading international development organisation focused on combatting leprosy across nine countries. We will not stop until every person affected by leprosy is found, cured and supported to build a future filled with hope.

Leprosy can be a thing of the past in our lifetime. Together, we can stop the injustice of another child being diagnosed with this disease.

Will you invest in the fight to end leprosy for the next generation?

Can you stand with people affected by the disease today to bring healing, equity and independence?

You can help to provide:

The cure for leprosy
Specialist surgery, prosthetics and mobility aids
School screening and medical camps
Counselling to heal emotional wounds
Community education to break down discrimination
Housing and clean water
Education, training, and job creation
Advocacy for fair and equal treatment
Pioneering research to end leprosy

Are you a business?

Are you a trust?

Sustainable change through partnership

Do you believe that people affected by leprosy deserve more than a life of shame, rejection and disability? We do.

We’re committed to defeating leprosy and you can partner with us in the fight against this disease. Together, we can bring long-term, meaningful change to communities and transform lives forever.

What difference do you want to make in your lifetime? Whether it’s providing surgery to correct disabilities, education opportunities, job skills training, or fighting against discrimination and prejudice through advocacy, your investment will have a lasting impact.

Suffering. Pain. Disease. Injustice.

Each of us has a part to play in helping to restore our world. Our mission is to bring healing, wholeness and fullness of life to people affected by leprosy. But we can’t do it without you.

Whether you’re an individual or a business, click here to find out about the difference you can make

Alternatively, you can contact Louise Timmins.