Prime Highlights:
- Guinea worm disease is closer than ever to being only the second human disease eradicated after smallpox, with just 10 cases reported worldwide in 2025.
- The Carter Center and WHO’s ongoing efforts in prevention and safe water access are driving significant progress in ending the disease.
Key Facts:
- 200 countries have been certified free of Guinea worm; only six, Angola, Chad, Ethiopia, Mali, South Sudan, and Sudan, remain uncertified.
- Prevention is crucial as there is no vaccine or cure, and infected individuals can spread the disease when trying to relieve pain.
Background:
Guinea worm disease is closer than ever to being the second human disease to be wiped out after smallpox. In 2025, only 10 cases were reported worldwide, the lowest number ever, showing big progress in fighting the disease.
The Carter Center, a U.S. non-profit leading the effort to stop Guinea worm, shared these numbers. Adam Weiss, director of the Carter Center Guinea Worm Eradication Program, said, ‘Guinea worm causes great suffering, not just for the person infected, but also for their family and community. He emphasized that the disease is entirely preventable and reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to achieving zero cases.
Dracunculiasis, commonly known as Guinea worm, spreads through contaminated drinking water. Infection leads to the formation of a painful blister, usually on the lower leg, from which the worm gradually emerges 10 to 14 months after transmission. Since 1986, when the Carter Center intensified its eradication efforts, annual cases have fallen dramatically from an estimated 3.5 million to just 10.
To officially declare a disease eradicated, every country must be certified free of both human and animal infections for at least three consecutive years. So far, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared 200 countries free of Guinea worm. Six countries still have cases: Angola, Chad, Ethiopia, Mali, South Sudan, and Sudan. In 2025, South Sudan had two cases, and Chad and Ethiopia had four each. Angola, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, and Mali recorded zero cases for the second consecutive year.
There is no vaccine or cure for Guinea worm, so stopping it before people get sick is very important. The WHO helps provide clean water through wells, boreholes, and filters. People with Guinea worm can spread it when they try to ease the pain, which can start the infection again.
The WHO is also working to get rid of other diseases like yaws by 2030. Experts hope that with careful prevention, Guinea worm could soon become only the second human disease ever to disappear.
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