The USA would not have known what to look for or a method to stop it. I cannot say that I agree with my grandfather's proposal, both in terms of the chemical or the elimination of the vector, as I tend to favor solution which deal with the parasite itself, but at the time it appeared to be a ...
valid interim solution. He spend the rest of his career as Professor of Tropical Medicine searching for a more appropriate solution to the parasite. The man was a genius in his field, but couldn't get to the palace without clear instructions for each step of the way to collect his award, lol.
He would, however, be happy that other people have carried on his work and that such progress is being made.