We're gaining momentum against tuberculosis, UN expert says

Momentum in the fight against tuberculosis (TB) is growing, said Dr. Lucica Dițiu, a Romanian doctor who has led the United Nations’ Stop TB Partnership for more than a decade.

In an interview with Politco, Dr. Dițiu, outlined several recent innovations helping accelerate progress against the ancient killer. These include what Dr. Dițiu characterized as a “revolution” in diagnostics, a new tuberculosis vaccine in the final testing phase, and a shorter treatment regimen.

Dr. Dițiu also highlighted new hand-held x-ray machines and the use of AI to interpret x-ray images, and other new diagnostic tools, including a breathalyzer that can detect TB and an app that can assess the sound and frequency of coughs to screen for the disease. Together, these innovations have the potential to greatly accelerate diagnosis and access to treatment.

A new TB vaccine will soon enter phase 3 trials after more than 19 years of development.

At the same time, the first new treatment regimens developed for TB over the past 50 years is shortening the length of treatment. These require only four months of treatment for regular TB and six months of treatment for drug-resistant TB instead of the previous six months for regular TB and even longer for drug-resistant strains.

Despite these advances, the disease still infected more than 10 million people and killed an estimated 1.6 million people globally in 2021. Tuberculosis is the world’s leading cause of death from a single infectious agent.

Experts hope that the second high-level meeting at the United Nations on the fight against TB on September 22, 2023, will accelerate the adoption of these promising technologies in low- and middle-income settings. The meeting will review global progress and identify challenges to continued progress. The theme of the meeting is: “Advancing science, finance and innovation, and their benefits, to urgently end the global tuberculosis epidemic in particular, by ensuring equitable access to prevention, testing, treatment and care.”

Dr. Dițiu told Politico: “I also expect to see a big part of the political declaration after the meeting centered on the adoption and implementation and rapid rollout of new tools, digital technologies and artificial intelligence.”