The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced that the Mycetoma Research Center in Khartoum -the only facility in the world dedicated to studying this rare tropical disease – has suffered extensive destruction due to the ongoing war in Sudan, which has lasted for more than two years.
The WHO office in Sudan confirmed to Agence France-Presse that the center was “severely affected” and had “sustained major destruction,” as video footage revealed the extent of the damage inside the building including collapsed ceilings, overturned shelves, and scattered documents.
In a statement, the center’s founder, Dr. Ahmed Fahal, said they had lost everything contained in the biobanks, which held data spanning over 40 years. He added, “This is an unbearable situation,” noting that health authorities are still unable to access the center’s site to assess the damage.
The center, established in 1991 within the framework of the University of Khartoum, the center served 12,000 patients annually and was the only institution in the world dedicated to studying mycetoma (fungal tumor). In 2019, it conducted the world’s first clinical trial for treating the disease, with support from the World Health Organization and the Sudanese government.
Despite the war, the center continued providing treatment over the past two years through alternative clinics most notably in Kassala State, which treated around 240 patients, and another facility that was reopened in the village of Wad Onsa in Sennar State. However, the facilities are facing significant funding challenges.
