Thousands of men, women and children have died.

Thousands more are infected.

If unchecked, this epidemic could kill hundreds of thousands of people in the coming months.

Hundreds of thousands.

When President Obama spoke these words at the United Nations in 2014, an epidemic

of the deadly Ebola virus was raging in West Africa.

A small outbreak that had begun in the forested region of southeastern Guinea had spread

to five neighboring countries.

The situation on the ground was grim.

Hospitals were overrun.

Patients were dying in the streets for massive internal hemorrhages.

Other families were being wiped out.

Fears that the virus would spread to other parts of Africa and beyond were mounting.

One health worker in Sierra Leone compared fighting this outbreak to fighting a forest fire

with spray bottles.

But with our help, they can put out the place.

The help Obama was referring to was coming in part from the Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention, which was leading the international response to the outbreak.

Just like in the current coronavirus pandemic, the key to the CDC's response was testing.

The early symptoms of an Ebola infection, a high fever, a bad headache and weakness,

can easily be mistaken with other tropical diseases like malaria or typhoid fever.

The only thing that can tell them apart before a Ebola ravages the body is an accurate

...