Leprosy is a tropical disease which today if caught early is curable by drugs. Sadly many cases are not diagnosed until the damage done can cause amputations and loss of sight along with other deformities. Because of the stigma it is often discovered too late for full healing. There are still between 2 and 3 million cases in the world today. The main concentration of the disease is in India, Brazil, Indonesia as well as the Congo and Bangladesh. In all it occurs in 161 countries in the world.
Leprosy is a global disease which it is hoped can be eradicated by the use of modern drugs. There are leper colonies in various parts of the world and The Leprosy Mission is one organization which is working towards this goal and hoping to build a new laboratory in Nepal, another country affected by the disease.
Lepers today are treated better than they were in the time of Jesus as we read in the Bible. Then they were outcast even more than they are today. How wonderful that Jesus healed many of them. Today there is hope.