Greece’s Roman Road

Chapter 21: anxious philip

The amount of the test drug given by Constantine was not much, and after the preliminary test confirmed, there was not much left.

Among the eight experimental cases, what surprised Philip's experimental team was that the speed of malaria disease disappearance in two patients taking artemisinin was two hours faster than that in two control patients taking quinine .

Seeing that the experimental drug was indeed effective against malaria, Philip's team originally planned to follow the planned steps to continue the next more detailed drug verification test.

Drug experimentation is a very serious and cautious process. It is impossible to rashly determine that an experimental drug is indeed a special drug for malaria just because an experiment is successful.

It's just that an accident happened at this time.

One of the experimental team, a young doctor named Teres, served as one of Philip's assistants in the experiment. His sister Kyra was admitted to the Athens City Hospital after suffering from malaria.

Fifteen-year-old girl Kayla has severe symptoms of malaria, sometimes fever, profuse sweating and flushing.

Occasionally it gets cold. In April, the weather is covered with three or four pairs of quilts, but it is still cold.

After taking the expensive German-made quinine, the symptoms are still not relieved, but the price of quinine is high. This is a real imported drug, and the price is very expensive, and a single dose costs hundreds of delamarks. (One pound is about 25 dramarks)

At the end of the 19th century, about 70% of the raw material of quinine circulating in the market was cinchona bark, which came from the Netherlands-controlled Java Island, Peru and other Andes Mountains (the origin of the cinchona tree) countries, relying on wild golden pheasants. Nashu, occupying the remaining market.

Although the Dutch have a monopoly on cinchona bark, the embarrassing thing is that their chemical technology is powerless to extract quinine from cinchona bark.

Because the technology of extracting quinine was monopolized by the Germans.

The Dutch traveled thousands of miles from the island of Java, spanning half the world. The collected cinchona bark must be sent to a chemical factory in Germany for processing to extract quinine.

This double monopoly keeps the price of quinine high.

By 1890, the chemical industry of extracting quinine had developed into a huge industry in Germany with an annual output value of 200 million marks.

For example, Germany's famous Bayer, BASF and other companies engaged in the chemical industry are all engaged in this industry.

Moisturized by huge profits, by 1900, the Germans could be said to be alone in their quest for defeat in chemical technology, leading no other country.

The Dutch cinchona bark contributed to this.

In the ward, Teres saw her usually lively and active sister, her face was ravaged by malaria. In just a few days, her originally white and red face became thin and dark yellow, and her heart was greatly touched.

To make matters worse, after my sister took quinine, the side effects of vomiting and diarrhea were extremely serious.

Under the double torture of malaria and side effects, Kayla's body is getting weaker and weaker.

Even if the family gritted their teeth, they could still raise the money to buy another dose of quinine, but Terris still felt that the possibility of cure was not high.

Teres, who participated in the drug trial, immediately thought of the new anti-malarial drug being tested.

Although it is only a preliminary experiment, taking it rashly is very likely to cause an accident.

But my sister, Kayla, can't afford it anymore. She has malaria sequelae of anemia and splenomegaly.

This means that her life is in danger.

Tris found Philip privately and begged Philip with tears to let his sister Kayla take the artemisinin that was receiving the experimental drug.

His colleague, Teres, was in grief and infected Philip. Out of sympathy, seeing that Kayla's condition could not be delayed, he agreed to Teres' request.

After Kayla took the dose that Philip thought was appropriate, the symptoms of chills and fever were quickly relieved, and there was no recurrence the next day.

After taking it for three consecutive days, the alternation of cold and heat has disappeared, Kayla can sleep peacefully every night, and the malaria is obviously cured.

After seeing the performance of artemisinin, Philip, who has been in the doctor's industry for many years, is keenly aware that a new special medicine for malaria has appeared.

Philip came in a hurry, just wanting to know the specific situation of this drug.

Just look at the Peruvian government strictly prohibits anyone from selling cinchona seeds or saplings to foreigners, and the Dutch have spent thirty years trying to grow them on the island of Java, to see how lucrative this is a lucrative industry.

"Your Excellency, when will this drug be available in the market?" Philip asked eagerly.

The source of the drug, he wisely did not ask.

Even if he asked, Constantine could not have said it.

"Circulation?" Constantine was startled by Philip's question.

To be honest, he has no plans to sell artemisinin in the near future.

As soon as word spread that Constantine had mastered a new malaria drug, people with deep backgrounds and well-informed people would soon follow.

Either coercion or inducement, the status of a Greek crown prince is simply not enough to rely on~www.wuxiax.com~ Given the current predicament of Greece, they can always find reasons that Constantine could not refuse.

From the very beginning, Constantine only intended to use artemisinin as a supply material for the Royal Guards that were about to go to the Congo River Basin, in order to reduce the non-combat attrition of African operations.

Malaria, an infection that can be spread by mosquitoes, is a big threat in the hot climate of southern Africa.

"Philip, for various reasons, it is unlikely that this drug will be available in the near future," Constantine said.

The reason why Philip was in a hurry to ask clearly was not because he wanted to get a piece of the pie.

Instead, as a doctor with a lofty sense of mission, he deeply hates malaria, a widespread infectious disease.

Quinine, a popular malaria drug on the market, is expensive, and many poor patients cannot afford it.

If another malaria drug appeared to compete with quinine, the cost of treating malaria patients would be greatly reduced.

Philip, who has been working in the hospital for many years, felt desolate when he thought of the tragic situation of those patients who could not afford to buy quinine and could only endure the torture of alternating cold and heat, waiting to die.

For the doctor who treats and saves people, in the face of such a tragic situation in the world, he bears a strong condemnation in his heart.

There are often doctors who can't stand this heart-wrenching torment and secretly use quinine to poor patients.

Because the price of quinine is so high, patients cannot afford the medicine. Although occasionally some rich people or churches donate money to charity, it is not enough to cover the loss, and in the end, only the hospital can bear it.

As the director of the hospital, Philip had already dealt with several such incidents and could only reluctantly fire these doctors or nurses.

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