Three generations of Ramesh’s family have experienced leprosy. Their story shows how fighting the stigma of leprosy is key to people making a full recovery.

Ramesh’s grandfather had leprosy. However, due to the great stigma and fear of the disease in his rural community, he didn’t receive any treatment.

Years later, Ramesh’s brother noticed leprosy symptoms. Warned by the experience of his grandfather, he knew he should take a different path and went to get treatment.

Ramesh knew what to do

One day, while working in Malaysia, Ramesh himself noticed a patch on his skin. In the back of his mind was the possibility of leprosy, but several hospitals misdiagnosed it as a fungal infection, giving him medicine that didn’t work. Once the patch began to affect his daily life, he returned to Nepal and headed to the regional hospital, which referred him to INF’s Green Pastures Hospital. A skin biopsy confirmed it was leprosy.

After all his family members’ experience with this disease, Ramesh was careful to complete his multi-drug therapy treatment. It was a huge success. Today he farms, raises goats and poultry, and lives actively in his community with no wounds, deformities, or loss of sensation. He manages occasional reactions well with regular medication from Green Pastures. If he had given into fear or stigma and not sought help, things could be very different.

But that wasn’t the end of the story. Six months after Ramesh’s treatment, his five year-old daughter also showed symptoms. Ramesh knew what to do. She was swiftly diagnosed and completed six months of treatment – now she’s fully healthy, thriving and enjoying school.

Stigma is a barrier we can overcome

The story of Ramesh’s family is a powerful illustration of how early diagnosis and treatment can stop leprosy destroying lives. But fear and stigma of the disease can still easily prevent people from accessing it. It’s so encouraging to hear how Ramesh reacted differently to his grandfather, saving both himself and his daughter from complications.

A key part of INF’s community medical projects is to provide education and counter the stigma of leprosy in these rural communities, so that everybody feels able to seek help quickly.