次の英文の和訳をお願いしたいです。
Approximately 42000 new cases of tuberculosis were reported in Japan in 1997. That marked the first increase in 38 years. Tuberculosis cannot be called a disease of the past any longer.
Tuberculosis is a contagious bacterial disease that usually affects the lungs. In many cases, the body's immune system destroys the bacteria before it does much damage: only a scar or spot is left on the lungs as evidence of the infection. Sometimes, however, the infection spreads and causes a variety of symptoms, including coughing, fatigue, fever, sweating at night, loss of appetite, and weight loss.
The bacteria may also pass from the lungs through the lymphatic system to the bones and joints, kidneys, or brain and spinal cord. Occasionally, the bacteria remain dormant in the lungs for years, flaring up again to do further damage. Left untreated, tuberculosis may eventually cause death.
A tuberculosis patient is usually treated with two to four antituberculous drugs. The reason multiple drugs are administered is that this helps overcome the danger that the bacteria may develop resistance to one of the drugs. The drugs act either by directly killing the bacteria or by preventing them from multiplying. Some antituberculous drugs may cause adverse side effects, such as nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Because of this, special care is needed when taking these drugs.
Drug treatment normally continues until the symptoms have subsided and laboratory investigations such as sputum tests have shown the person to be clear of infection. The treatment usually takes a long time, sometimes more than a year.
Conditions in Japan now suggest that the nation is at a critical point inits fight against tuberculosis. There has been a vast increase in the number of patients infected by multiple-drug-resistant strains. One reason for this is that many TB victims did not complete their treatment and, consequently, the bacteria that remained became resistant to current medications. Now, a great deal of research is under way to develop drugs effective against multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis. It is hoped that the advent of such drugs will represent the final victory in the fight against this stubborn, troublesome disease.
