elizabeth cohen, cnn, reporting. >> but it is incredible that it seems these two american patients are responding to this experimental drug. >> it seems like it was very important to their recovery. >> yeah. absolutely. well, still to come here on cnn -- >> typhoon halong is still a few hours away from landfall in japan. we have an update on its path from meteorologist ivan cabrera. next. >>> also, terror experts say isis may be the best equipped of any jihadist group. a look at what's powering that black flag. looks like we're about to board. mm-hmm. i'm just comparing car insurance rates at progressive.com. is that where they show the other guys' rates, too? mm-hmm. cool. yeah. hi. final boarding call for flight 294. [ bells ring on sign ] [ vehicle beeping ] who's ready for the garlic festival? this guy! bringing our competitors' rates to you -- now, that's progressive. female announcer: sundayduring sleep train's triple choice sale. for a limited time, you can choose to save hundreds on beautyrest and posturepedic mattress sets. or choose $300 in free gifts with sleep train's most

as elizabeth cohen mentioned, there's still no cure for the disease.friend here, cnn's suzanne malveaux has her own personal story about battling als. her mom has been battling for the last several years. good to see you. >> it's great to see you, fred. i have to thank you and cnn. we're grateful as a family that we were able to do the three-part series last year on als before it became popular. this is something that 2 1/2 years ago when my mom was diagnosed with this disease, i didn't even know what it was. people come up to us and up to my mom and ask how can we help and what can we do and learning about what this means for so many of us who are directly impacted. >> you know, you have really helped educate so many people about it and along the way with this ice bucket challenge, it has a plight that you have talked about for you, for your mom but really your whole family so we want to show how your whole family got involved in this ice bucket challenge. >> my mom was diagnosed with als 2 1/2 years ago and she is still in the fight. if you would lik

let's go straight to our senior medical correspondent, elizabeth cohen, live in atlanta. and elizabeth, what is the cdc saying? >> brooke, the cdc is saying this person was in sierra leone, working next to, within three feet of someone who later turned out to have ebola. and this person was actively ill. so they said the cdc worker, it was time for them to go home, so we're going to take you home but on a private, chartered plane just in case you do get sick, you won't be with a whole plane full of other people. and the cdc is very clear on this. they said, look, this person does not pose a risk to the public at this time, because number one. >> it was a low-risk situation. they were working next to someone, weren't touching his vomit or anything like that. and secondly, this cdc person is perfectly healthy, has shown no symptoms whatsoever. and you can only transmit ebola if you're actively ill. so this person is taking their temperature twice a day. if they do get sick, it's a whole different story. but right now, this worker has returned to atlanta, and they can go to w

and reporter elizabeth cohen shows us why this fundraiser has been so successful. >> reporter: superman and lois lane got doused, so did homer simpson, matt damon and martha stewart. this guy did it in an airplane upside-down. in just one month it's generated $100 million. as of friday the a.l.s. association said donations are up an astonishing 3,504% from the same time last year. and while you can say that hashtag amazing, there's a worry the dunkers' expectations might be disappointed because even with all this money a cure for a.l.s. is still a long way off. >> progress against these really tough issues takes patience and it takes time. we won't see results overnight and nobody should expect them. >> sylvia buchanan is president for the center for philanhthropic donations in haiti. he said donors often want to see quick results and they want to know where their money is going right away. >> there would be a temptation to give it all away quickly, but it maybe wiser to be more deliberate, see what shows evidence of success, and then and only then fund that in a bigger way. [cheers and

and reporter elizabeth cohen shows us why this fundraiser has been so successful. >> superman and lois lane got doused, so did homer simpson, matt damon and martha stewart. this guy did it in an airplane upside-down. in one month it's generated $100 million. as of friday the als association said donations are up an astonishing 3,504% from the same time last year. and while you can say that hashtag amazing, there's a worry the dunkers expectations might be disappointed because even with all this money a cure for als is still a long way off. >> progress against these really tough issues takes patience and it takes time. we won't see results overnight and nobody should expect them. >> sylvia is a director for the filllan though by. he said donors often want to see quick results and they want to know where their money is going right away. >> there would be a temptation to give it all away quickly, but it maybe wiser to be more deliberate, see what shows evidence of success, and then and only then fund that in a bigger way. >> the a. l. s. association doesn't have a breakdown of how all the

elizabeth cohen, cnn, atlanta. >> elizabeth, thank you. >>> we should point out that nigeria is taking own steps to head off sick passengers at their airport. they are looking for fever, a telltale sign. it's not that simple. patrick, welcome. >> brooke, thanks for having me. >> okay, patrick. the headline of your piece that i read, there's really no way to screen for ebola at airports. all right. that said, let's talk about the thermal scanners that you get into to protect feverish patients. would it work with ebola? >> not so fantastically. there are airports, south african airports and also in china they are using thermal scanners to screen patients getting off the planes with feverish symptoms. the period with between which you can contract ebola and start showing symptoms, like fever, it can be two days to 21 days. you can be carrying it, move into the country and have absolutely no signature of like elevated temperature show up on a thermal scanner whatsoever. it's not going to detect fever the same way it does with bird flu and even in those instances it was not seen as particul

reporter elizabeth cohen shows us why this fundraiser has been so successful. >> reporter: superman ands lane got doused. so did matt damon and martha stewart. this guy did it in an airplane, upside down. in just one month, the ice bucket challenge has generated $100 million. as over friday, the als association says donations are up an astonishing 3,504% from the same time period last year. and while you can say that's #amazing, there is a worrying that these dunkers' expectations might be disappointed because even with all this money, a cure for als is still a long way off. >> progress against these really tough issues takes patience, and it takes time. but we're not going to see results overnight, and nobody should expect that. >> reporter: sylvia buchanan is president for the center for effective policy. he says whether it's an earthquake in haiti or an attack on the homeland, donors often want to see quick results and they want to know where their money is going right away. >> there will be a temptation to give it all away quickly, but it might be wiser to be more deliberate, see wh

here's cnn's elizabeth cohen. >> when kent brantly and nancy writebol were released from the hospitalwas great happiness and joy but there were some people who expressed maybe quietly but did express they were concerned these two people who had ebola will be out in the general public. was it safe for other people. the answer from the doctors at emory who treated them is yes. there is no threat to people in the general public. there is nothing to worry about. the reason for that is they no longer have the virus in their blood and they know that because they tested these people over the course of two days, did more than one blood test and they know it is no longer there. >> of course, many people are wondering the secret serum, this new experimental medicine these two people received is that what saved them. the doctors said there is no way of answering that question. maybe it was, but maybe it wasn't. let's take a look at some of the facts. in this particular outbreak, nearly half the people lived and these people didn't get that the new medicine. nearly half the people lived even with

here's elizabeth cohen. >> reporter: superman and lois lane got doused, so did homer simpson, matt damonuy did in a plane upside down. in just one month, the ice bucket challenge has generated $100 million. as of friday the a.l.s. association says donations are up an astonishing 3,504% from the same time period last year. and while you can say that's #amazing, there's a worry these dunkers' expectations might be disappointed. because even with all of this money, a cure for a.l.s. is still a long way off. >> progress against these really tough issues takes patience and it takes time. we're not going to see results overnighting and nobody should expect that. >> reporter: phil buchanan is president of the center for effective philanthropy, whether it's an earthquake in haiti or attack on the homeland donors want quick results and know where their money's going right away. >> a temptation to give it away quick lu but it might be wiser to be more deliberate, see what shows evidence of success, and then and only then, fund that in a bigger way. >> reporter: why would there be pressure to distr

cnn's senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen caught up with her husband to find out how she's doing>> reporter: when nancy contracted ebola in africa, her husband, david, the man she had spent the last 40 years with, couldn't even touch her. do you remember the haslast tim you could hug her or hold her? >> i was able to be in personal protection equipment and i patted her just to let her know that i was there, that i loved her. >> reporter: now she got ebola remains a mystery. part of her work as a mission tear included cleaning hospital equipment. >> she was very detailed and meticulous about her work. she also trained others to do the decontamination work. the doctors and staff are well trained. they were following the protocols very carefully. >> reporter: nancy is recovering from ebola at a hospital in atlanta. she remains one of the few people to be given the experimental drug, but is it working? >> each time i talk to her, i get a sense her voice is clearer and brighter. so i'm imagining that she's getting stronger and she tells me that she is feeling better and getting strong

and reporter elizabeth cohen shows us why this fundraiser has been so successful. >> reporter: superman and lois lane got doused, so did homer simpson, matt damon and martha stewart. this guy did it in an airplane upside-down. in just one month it's generated $100 million. as of friday the a.l.s. association said donations are up an astonishing 3,504% from the same time last year. and while you can say that hashtag amazing, there's a worry the dunkers' expectations might be disappointed because even with all this money a cure for a.l.s. is still a long way off. >> progress against these really tough issues takes patience and it takes time. we won't see results overnight and nobody should expect them. >> sylvia buchanan is president for the philanthrope by center in haiti. he said donors often want to see quick results and they want to know where their money is going right away. >> there would be a temptation to give it all away quickly, but it maybe wiser to be more deliberate, see what shows evidence of success, and then and only then fund that in a bigger way. [cheers and applause] >>

and let everybody get together and get all the facts together. >> reporter: elizabeth cohen, cnn, new berry, south carolina. >> elizabeth, thank you. >>> just ahead here on cnn, a new witness coming forward, talking to cnn. does this gentleman's account contradict the others? >>> plus the u.s. says it has never seen a terror threat like isis. and one father whose son disappeared to join jihad risked his life to go and find him. and not only did he come face-to-face with those fighters, he is now helping other dads find their sons who are joining this militant group. don't miss this. oohh, you got it!o i love the looks of it. (sound of garage closing) nobody touches my dodge dart, jake johnson not even your best friend slash neighbor? no one i can still get in craig i'd like to see you try all i'd have to do is roll in, dude. let's see it i choose not to right now come on indiana common, let me in. let me in! mmmm let me sit in the car mmmm ♪ don't touch my dart your studied day and night for her driver's test. secretly inside, you hoped she wouldn't pass. the thought of your baby girl

and elizabeth cohen, i appreciate you, as well. coming up next here on cnn, the only nonmedia question this morning is that autopsy news conference was asked by a woman who lives in ferguson, missouri. >> my question is, the fourth shot that entered the body, i'm assuming that he could have survived. >> yes, he could have survived -- that's good. i should have mentioned something. all of these gunshot wounds were survivable, except for the one in the top of the head, that went through the brain. >> i'll speak live with that woman who is a peace of protester. she is a mother, she is a grandmother, who has been forced to have a talk with her young grandson about interacting with police. don't miss it. ♪ [ woman ] if you have moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis like me, and you're talking to your rheumatologist about a biologic... this is humira. this is humira helping to relieve my pain. this is humira helping me lay the groundwork. this is humira helping to protect my joints from further damage. doctors have been prescribing hum

joining us with more now, senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen. beth, tell us about this vaccine how promising, how long until we know whether it works? >> you know, john, it would be so great if we could just get this out there immediately, right. that would be so amazing. this process takes time. first they have to start with phase one where they try it out in a small group in 20 people. take a look at some of the basics of what they're trying to do here. they'll be giving this vaccine to healthy volunteers and then measuring whether they see an immune response when they take their blood. they'll be starting at nih and moving on to try this in u.k., gambia and mali. one of two candidate vaccines. the one question that is so important, i mean usually this would take years, but they said look, we're going to finish this first part by late 2014, by late this year and have discussions about whether we want to bring the drug to africa like maybe directly to africa which usually they don't do that. usually they do more testing. they'll have discussions

. >> reporter: elizabeth cohen, cnn, newberry, south carolina. >>> still to come.as sends a terrifying message to israel in the form of mass executions of possiblis rail eye informants. we'll have more on the story in just a moment. >>> hamas-run television says a man and girl were killed and at least a dozen people were wounded on an israeli air strike. they are scrambling to pull victims from the rubble. israel warned that hamas would pay a price for an attack on a parking lot that killed a boy. it was fired from a place that hamas uses as a shelter. it later retracted. hamas executed some people they say were informants. we must warn you that some of the video you're about to see may be disturbing to some viewers. >> reporter: images of men sentenced to die. they were guilty of treason for collaborating with israel. their identities concealed possibly to avoid embarrassing their families or to hide the death of penetration of israel's intelligence service. we don't know much about these men, but what we do know is that the very public execution sent a strong war

first elizabeth cohen is joining us. what's the latest on the ebola outbreak right now?> wolf, there was a hearing on capitol hill today amidst questions of why this outbreak has gone on for so long and why so many people have died. in the meantime, two american patients are recovering. today the husband of one of the two american ebola patients shared had his thoughts on his wife's battle. >> i'm grateful and happy she's in a place that enables her to receive the best care possible. and that will give her every opportunity to get better and to recover. >> to hear the cdc tell it it, nothing, would to treat ebola. >> we've reviewed the evidence of the treatments out there, and don't find any treatment that's had proven effectiveness against ebola disease. >> but what about the experimental drug given to dr. kent brantly and nancy writebol that likely saved their lives? they got the drug when african patients didn't. many critics now asking, why did the two americans receive the serum when hundreds have already died in west africa and many more at risk? currently, there's

. >> elizabeth cohen for us there. >>> coming up, the u.s.s looking beyond its current air strikes in iraq with the possibility of the tailored air strikes in syria. looking at all the possibilities that now face world leaders to push isis out. that's next. visine® gives your eyes relief in seconds. visine®. get back to normal. i'm spending too much time hiring and not enough time in my kitchen. [ female announcer ] need to hire fast? go to ziprecruiter.com and post your job to over 30 of the web's leading job boards with a single click; then simply select the best candidates from one easy to review list. you put up one post and the next day you have all these candidates. makes my job a lot easier. [ female announcer ] over 100,000 businesses have already used zip recruiter and now you can use zip recruiter for free at a special site for tv viewers; go to ziprecruiter.com/offer5. >>> welcome back to cnn's special coverage. here are the top stories. we want to warn you, our top story from iraq has disturbing and sound. it was taken during a ho

joining me now, cnn's senior medical correspondent, elizabeth cohen. what exactlyñwill medical examiners be looking for? >> right. so forensic pathologists, brooke, are going to look for things like cuts and abrasions and bruises. they'll especially be looking at the knuckles, we think, because a friend of officer wilson's says that michael brown through a punch at his face so they'll want to look at bruises on his knuckles. >> the forensic pathologist said so far no signs of a struggle, correct? >> right. so far no signs of a struggle. it will be interesti'g to see what the first autopsy said, which we still don't know that answer. and, of course, this third one done on monday. it's interesting, the pathelologist i interviewed yesterday she said sometimes with darker pig membemented peo you have to cut inside and look for bruising there. >> thank you. you can watch elizabeths entire piece tonight on "precisely this" on anderson cooper 360 here on cnn. >>> quote. if you don't want to get shot by a cop, don't challenge me. just do what i tell you. end qu

we'll talk with elizabeth cohen how that will work, next. always been all fun and games, here at the harrison household. but one dark, stormy evening... she needed a good meal and a good family. so we gave her purina cat chow complete. it's great because it has the four cornerstones of nutrition. everything a cat needs for the first step to a healthy, happy life. purina cat chow complete. share your rescue story and join us in building better lives. one rescue at a time. >>> and we continue on, ton of the hour, i'm brooke baldwin. you're watching cnn. we begin with this freed american overwhelmed with emotion, tight fighting back tears. peter theo curtis was held hostage for nearly two years by militants in syria. and just this morning, journalists in cambridge, massachusetts, offering thanks to the hundreds of people who offered help for his release. the relief in his eyes were a stark contrast to this, these grim images. he was held by al-nusra, a syrian group with ties to al qaeda. >> first of all, i want to thank you all for coming out h

let's bring in our senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen. >> what i'm hearing is this employeeorking in sierra leone and ended up -- they were working next to, within three feet of an international health worker who was sick, had symptoms, and later it turned out that person had ebola. the cdc employee is completely fine, has no symptoms at all, but it was time for this person to company home. they put the cdc employee and a private chartered flight from sierra leone to atlanta. this employee landed this morning. this employee has to take their temperature twice a day just to make sure they don't get sick. it's interesting, while they're here in atlanta, there's no restrictions. this employee can go to work, can go out, can do whatever they want. >> is that -- shouldn't they air on the side of caution maybe? because sometimes it takes a while for symptoms to develop, right? >> wolf, i think that's a question a lot of people will be asking. here's the reasoning behind it. you're not contagious with ebola until you're actively sick. this person is not sick and had what is conside

here is our senior medical correspondent, elizabeth cohen. >> reporter: the husband of one of the twohared his thoughts on his wife's battle. urge we are grateful and happy that she is in a police to receive the best care possible that will give her every opportunity to get batter tonight recover. >> reporter: to hear the cdc tell it, nothing works to treat ebola. >> we've reviewed the evidence of the treatment out there but don't have a treatment that has proven effectiveness against the ebola disease. >> what about the experimental drug given to dr. kent braptly and nasa writebol that saved their lives? they got the drug when african patients didn't. many critics now asking why did the two americans receive the serum when hundreds have already died in west africa and many more are at risk? currently, there's very little of the drug to give. >> the world's supply of that drug, i imagine works fit in a tea cup. >> reporter: but that of course is fixable. they could, with time, make more. the ethical problems are much thornier. >> look, we've had two people who got it but you want to w

our senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen is about to show you for many who are infected withtant to give researchers the names of their friends and loved ones. take a look. >> reporter: ebola spreads from person to person so the only way to stop the disease is to keep meticulous track of everyone who has had contact with an infected person. one contact gets lost and the scourge may continue. >> if you leave behind even a single burning ember it's like a forest tire and flares back up. >> reporter: earlier cdc disease detective spent three months there getting list. >> we did have patients who were hesitant to provide contacts or would provide only one contact when you knew they had contact with more people than that. >> reporter: the big reason contacts are slipping through the cracks, fear. >> i think people are scared. when i first arrive there had there were rumors that if your name got put on the contact tracing list that it was a death list or an order with which people might die. and, of course, you don't want to say your child, you know, if you might believe that you d

cnn's medical correspondent elizabeth cohen is here with more. >> when kent brantly and nancy writebols from emory who treated them, yes. there is no threat to people in the general public. there is nothing to worry about. the reason for that is they no longer have the virus in their blood. they know that because they tested these people over the course of two days and it is no longer there. many people are wondering it serum or medicine these two people received is that what saved them? the emory doctors said there is no way of answering that question. maybe it was, but maybe it wasn't. let's look at the facts. in this particular outbreak, nearly half the people lived and these people did not get that medicine. nearly half the people lived without the medicine. here is another thing to think about. writebol and brantly had terrific supportive care. what i mean is they were kept really well hydrated. that can help someone survive an ebola infection. they were not given necessarily the same kind of care the others have received. six people have been given the medicine and five of them a

liberia is getting stronger every day, according to her husband, david writebol, who spoke to cnn's elizabeth cohennger and she tells me she is getting better and feeling stronger. still very weak and still not necessarily -- it's moving in the right direction. >> nancy writebol remains in isolation at emory university hospital she received the experimental drawing zmapp. her husband david is under quarantine after returning from africa but showing no signs of the virus. nancy's son jeremy writebol joins me from atlanta. i saw you watching your dad there. have you had a chance to talk to him as well? >> i've had an opportunity a couple times to chat with dad on the phone and he seems to be doing very well. i've been encouraged by his health and progress and glad to have him back in the states again. >> let's talk about mom. does she have any idea how many people have been sending prayers for her and sending good thoughts along the way, been aware of the flurry of news, her name has made? >> she's embarrassed by it, i think. she definitely knows that there are tens of thousands, if not millions of p

elizabeth vargas on this store and why she had to take off her jewelry and shoes just to do the interview. >> reporter: for joyce cohena new york city street is a landmine filled, anxiety ridden trek. even wearing industrial grade ear protection she calls earmuffs, joyce is on high alert for sirens and squealing kids, high heels and honks, manhole covers and motorcycles. do you go everywhere in these earmuffs? i mean, do you ever go out without them? >> almost never. it's too hazardous. >> reporter: even with sounds muffled, a doorman hailing a taxi sends joyce reeling. >> oh my god. >> reporter: joyce's strange affliction is an auditory condition called hyperacusis. for her, everyday noises are agonizingly loud and cause horrific pain. you once wrote that it feels like your ears were being filled with burning acid. that sounds pretty awful. >> i felt as though my entire head was being crushed. >> reporter: to limit noise during our interview, we took precautions. a carpeted hotel room. mats to absorb sound. phones silenced and equipment secured. despite that joyce and her husband ben encountered a squeaky door we had