Ebola Drug - 9 questions about this new drug

(CNN) -- Two American missionary workers infected with the deadly Ebola virus were given an experimental drug that seems to have saved their lives.

Dr. Kent Brantly was given the medication, ZMapp, shortly after telling his doctors he thought he would die, according to a source familiar with his case. Within an hour, doctors say his symptoms -- labored breathing and a widespread rash -- dramatically improved. Nancy Writebol, another missionary working with Samaritan's Purse, received two doses of the medication and has also shown significant improvement, sources say.

Ebola is Real: 5 reasons not to panic

It's a terrifying disease for sure. It typically kills 90% of the people who get it, and this most recent outbreak is the largest in history. But you don't need to panic, experts say, and you definitely don't have to worry about the two American Ebola patients who are being treated in Atlanta.

Here are five reasons why:

1. It's fragile.

Ebola is an incredibly fragile virus. It does not fly through the air with the greatest of ease. It cannot be transmitted through a cough or sneeze. It doesn't move easily from human to human like the common cold.

Ebola virus: Nine things to know about the killer disease

(CNN) -- Hundreds of people are dead as the worst Ebola virus outbreak in history sweeps through West Africa. It began as a handful of cases in Guinea in March but quickly spread to neighboring Sierra Leone and Liberia. Here are nine things to know about what the World Health Organization calls "one of the world's most virulent diseases."

Ebola Virus: Transmission, Sign, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Prevention, Treatment and Control

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Key facts

• Ebola virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola haemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often fatal illness in humans.
• EVD outbreaks have a case fatality rate of up to 90%.
• EVD outbreaks occur primarily in remote villages in Central and West Africa, near tropical rainforests.
• The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission.
• Fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family are considered to be the natural host of the Ebola virus.
• Severely ill patients require intensive supportive care. No licensed specific treatment or vaccine is available for use in people or animals.

Ebola Virus Infection You Must Know

Ebola is a rare but deadly infection that causes bleeding inside and outside the body. Although popular movies and books describe major outbreaks of ebola-like disease in the U.S., they're just works of fiction. Ebola strikes mainly in remote villages of Central and West Africa, but it has spread to some African cities, too.

The disease, also known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever or Ebola virus disease, kills up to 90% of people who are infected.