WHO: Ebola Cases Could Hit 21K if More Isn't Done

The number of Ebola cases could hit 21,000 in six weeks if efforts to combat the deadly disease are not ramped up, the World Health Organization warned Monday.

"We estimate that, at the current rate of increase, assuming no changes in control efforts, the cumulative number of confirmed and probable cases by November 2 will be 5,740 in Guinea, 9,890 in Liberia, and 5,000 in Sierra Leone, exceeding 20,000 cases in total," the WHO report read.

So far, Ebola has sickened more than 5,800 people in West Africa, causing more than 2,800 deaths.
    
Liberia has been hit the hardest by the outbreak.    

"If we don't stop the epidemic very soon, this is going to turn from a disaster into a catastrophe," Time quoted Christopher Dye, a co-author of the study and director of strategy at the WHO. "The fear is that Ebola will become more or less a permanent feature of the human population."
    
Governments around the world are sending more aid to Africa to combat the disease, from building more medical centers in the affected nations to sending troops and millions of dollars' worth of medical supplies.