Lower Malaria Numbers Reflect Better Estimates and a Glimmer of Hope

At first glance, a new report by the World Health Organization (WHO) appears to herald good news in the global battle against malaria: The number of cases is down from the 350 million to 500 million WHO estimated in 2005 to 247 million, and deaths from more than 1 million to 881,000. But the report's authors say that the drop isn't a sign we're winning the battle, just that the methodology of gathering data is better. Among other things, WHO has a better way to estimate the true number of malaria cases from the figures reported by governments—which are known to be inaccurate.