LONDON — As West Africa struggles to contain the biggest ever outbreak of Ebola, some experts say an unusual but simple treatment might help: the blood of survivors.

 

The evidence is mixed for using infection-fighting antibodies from survivors’ blood for Ebola, but without any licensed drugs or vaccines for the deadly disease, some say it’s worth a shot.

 

Using blood of survivors is one of the experimental Ebola treatments under discussion at a two-day meeting that began Thursday in Geneva. The more than 200 experts are looking at issues of safety and effectiveness and considering which treatments should be prioritized for testing.

 

There are about a half dozen medicines and vaccines in development. None has been rigorously tested in humans. Early testing of one vaccine began this week in the United States.

 

 

 

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