In 1970, Japanese scientist Satoshi Omura discovered a unique bacterium in a soil sample that completely eradicated parasitic worms.
Working with Merck, it was developed into Ivermectin.
What followed revolutionized global medicine: • Near-total elimination of River Blindness across entire regions • Billions of doses administered with an extraordinary safety profile • Awarded the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine • Recognized on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines
It was safe, widely accessible, and inexpensive. In 1996, its patent officially expired.
Then came 2020.
In April 2020, researchers at Monash University tested Ivermectin against SARS-CoV-2 in vitro. The result: a 500-fold reduction in viral load within 48 hours with no toxicity to healthy cells.
Epidemiological data soon emerged from Africa, showing that regions using widespread Ivermectin for parasitic control experienced drastically lower COVID-19 mortality rates compared to non-treatment zones.
Frontline physicians began observing remarkable clinical outcomes.
Clinical Case 1 (Miami, USA): Dr. Jean-Jacques Reiter treated an elderly ICU patient on the verge of mechanical ventilation. Following the administration of Ivermectin, her oxygen levels stabilized within 48 hours. She was discharged fully recovered one week later. Out of hundreds of patients treated under his care, hospitalization and mortality rates remained virtually zero.
Clinical Case 2 (Care Facility, Canada): During an outbreak of scabies, residents on one specific floor were treated with high-dose Ivermectin. When COVID-19 subsequently infected staff across the facility, not a single resident on the treated floor contracted the virus.
Peer-reviewed studies and real-world implementation data from Mexico, Peru, and Argentina reflected identical patterns: sharp, immediate declines in hospitalizations and fatalities.
In late 2020, critical care specialist Dr. Pierre Kory testified under oath before the U.S. Senate, presenting extensive clinical data on its efficacy in reducing transmission and disease severity.
Yet, rather than rigorously evaluating an established, off-patent therapeutic, mainstream public health communication shifted toward dismissing it entirely—often labeling it simply as "horse paste."
Emerging research faced institutional resistance, and participating physicians were routinely censured.
The broader lesson remains clear: when off-patent therapeutics conflict with modern medical monetization, institutional support rapidly evaporates.