|
Dr.
Francisco De Balmis and His Mission of Mercy
By
Willie T. Ong, MD, MPH
 On
February 5, 1805, Dr. Francisco Xavier De Balmis
took along 25 Mexican children and embarked on a
dangerous voyage from Acapulco to Manila, carrying
with them the vaccine for smallpox. Using the
orphan children as living repositories for the
vaccine, Dr. Balmis reached the port of Manila on
April 15, 1805.
From
this seminal beginning, we can better appreciate
the WHO declaration of a world free of smallpox in
1980.
Commemoration
of the 199th Year Since the Mexico
Expedition
Through
the initiative of the Embassy of Mexico and the
Department of Health, this special relationship
between Mexico and the Philippines will be
highlighted at the unveiling of the bust of Dr.
Francisco De Balmis at the Research Institute of
Tropical Medicine (RITM) compound on February 5,
2004.
The
Inter-Agency Committee for this event is headed by
Dir. Remedios Paulino (chair), RITM Director
Remigio Olveda (co-chair) and Mexican Embassy
Deputy Chief Carlos Angel Torres (vice-chair).
Discovery
of the Smallpox Vaccine
 Edward
Jenner describes smallpox as the “severest
scourge known to humanity.” In Europe, in the
late 18th century, an average of
400,000 people died yearly from smallpox. Through
hard work and persistence, Jenner had discovered a
means to prevent smallpox by injecting the
exudates from a cowpox pustule to the arm of
eight-year old James Phipps on May 14, 1796.
Jenner’s vaccine led to much debate, but his
discovery was later accepted by the medical
community.
 A
few years after this breakthrough, the King of
Spain’s son died from smallpox, and
the King swore to help rid the world of smallpox
using the method discovered by Jenner. Thus, on
September 1, 1803, King Charles IV issued a royal
order for an ambitious vaccination expedition to
Spain’s colonies. King Charles appointed Dr.
Francisco De Balmis and Dr. Jose Salvany to lead
this mission of mercy.
The
Balmis Expedition
 On
November 30, 1803, Balmis and his associates left
the Spanish harbor of La Coruna and travelled to
Puerto Rico and Venezuela, vaccinating thousands
of people along the way. Reaching Venezuela, they
divided into two groups. First, Dr. Salvany
journeyed to various countries in South America,
where the rigors of travel and work took its toll
and Salvany died at 34 years of age.
 Fortunately,
Dr. Balmis travelled to Mexico, Central America
and the Philippines. In Mexico, Dr. Balmis took 25
orphan children, ages 4 to 6, from the provinces
of Morelia, Guadalajara, Queretaro, Zacatecas,
Fresnillo, and Sombrerete and set sail on February
5, 1805.
Why
were the Mexican kids so crucial to the trip? We
must remember that in those times, there were no
ice plants yet to preserve the vaccine, nor were
there airplanes for quick transport. Thus, the
smallpox vaccine had to be kept alive by
arm-to-arm vaccination from one child to another.
Each
child would be a repository for the vaccine for
around 10 days. After which, an extract from the
child’s arm lesion (lymphatic fluid) was cut
into next child, and so forth. Balmis vaccinated
two kids at a time for safety, just in case
something terrible happened to one. Thus, by
computation, 25 kids could carry the vaccine for a
3 to 4 month trip, if all went well.
Dr.
Balmis Arrives in Manila
As
fate would have it, just two months later, Balmis
and the children successfully
arrived in Manila with much fanfare and rejoicing.
Quickly, Balmis guided the Spanish authorities in
Manila on how to perpetuate the vaccine. Balmis
wrote with much foresight that the goals were (1)
to spread the benefit of vaccination and (2) to
assure its perpetuation. Balmis said Manila was
the ideal site for a Central Board of Vaccination
to coordinate a nationwide vaccination campaign.
Did
Balmis’ Efforts Succeed?
Probably,
yes. By 1806, a smallpox institute and vaccination
board were established in Manila. Two years later,
immunizations were already being administered in
the provinces.
In
1850, borrowing a new technique perfected in
Italy, local authorities set up a vaccine farm
using carabao calves. Thereafter, detailed
regulations regarding smallpox vaccination were
issued in 1851, 1873, and 1893. But despite these
efforts, smallpox epidemics still occurred, most
prominently in 1886.
When
the Americans arrived in 1898, one of their first
efforts was to build the
Bureau of Science, where smallpox vaccines and
other vaccines were produced in large quantities.
By 1905, rigid and systematic efforts on
vaccination were enforced.
The
last serious smallpox epidemic occurred in 1918.
And by the time the Americans left in the 1940s,
smallpox had ceased to be a major public health
threat. By 1980, the WHO finally declared the
world free of this deadly virus.
Lessons
From The Past
But
still, we remember fondly, the exploits of Balmis
who sacrificed and endured great peril to start
the Philippine smallpox campaign. Filipino
Historian Jose Bantug writes that the introduction
of vaccination in the Philippines “reads like an
epic poem” worthy of pride and praise. The great
Edward Jenner refers to the Balmis expedition as
such: “I don’t imagine the annals of history
furnish an example of philanthropy so noble, so
extensive as this.”
But
more than a beautiful story, the Balmis expedition
underlines the close link between Mexico and the
Philippines, more specifically the children of
both countries.
Today,
our world is threatened not just by deadly viruses
but also by war, conflict and the spread of
terrorism. It may serve us well to remember the
courage and the legacy of Dr. Balmis and 25
Mexican children, whom two centuries ago, had
spread a message of hope and peace for this part
of the world.
back
to top
|
