Sigmaringen/Berlin, March 23, 2025 - Schistosomiasis is the second most common tropical disease after malaria and, according to WHO estimates, affects around 300 million people worldwide. The German doctor and scientist Theodor Bilharz discovered in 1851 that tiny parasites - so-called couple flukes - cause the disease. These flukes, which live in shallow waters, penetrate the human body as larvae through the skin and, if left untreated, can lead to severe organ damage such as liver cirrhosis or kidney failure. Although effective medication exists today, many of those affected have no access to treatment due to poverty and a lack of healthcare. The German Network against Neglected Tropical Diseases (DNTDs) is therefore committed to improving care for sufferers.
Theodor Bilharz was born in Sigmaringen in 1825 and initially studied philosophy and natural sciences before turning to medicine. He obtained his doctorate in Tübingen in 1850 and then went to Egypt, where he worked as a senior physician at the surgical clinic in Cairo. He later became head physician of the internal medicine department and finally professor of anatomy. He died in Cairo in 1862 at the age of just 37.
