We Must End TB By 2030

“From the Indian Prime Minister to the Russian President, from the Indonesian Vice President to the First Lady of Nigeria, from Ministers of Health from South Africa, Thailand and Belarus to people asking for their rights to diagnosis and treatment ― is TB finally getting the political attention and visibility it needs and deserves?” Ending TB by 2030 is one of the SDGs and an ambitious goal that the world must achieve. It will not be easy as the burden is huge: an estimated 2 billion people infected globally, 10.5 million new TB cases every year with just a bit more than 6 000 000 detected and treated with proper care, an increasing drug resistant burden and just one in nine people affected by MDR-TB being diagnosed, treated and cured. A pathetic and slow decline of 1.5% per year of TB incidence versus the 7-10% decline needed. No vaccine, no point of care diagnosis, no lean and short treatment regimen without side effects. Declining investment in research and development. So, where do I get the hope and belief that we will end TB? Where do I see the silver lining in all this? I see it in the fact that if we – as human beings – really want to achieve something, nothing can stop us and we will do it. And now is the first time ever that I feel that we really, really want to end this disease. I feel it in the continuous amazing and long standing leadership of Minister Motsoaledi of South Africa who dared and pushed away all boundaries and challenges in...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news