Note: World Lung Foundation united with The Union North America. From January 2016, the combined organization is known as “Vital Strategies.”
(New York, USA) ––World Lung Foundation today warned that a perfect storm of factors has led to the rapid spread of Multi-Drug Resistant-Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) and a major effort is needed to combat the increasing toll of the disease. MDR-TB threatens to undo decades of progress and brings new urgency to invest in healthcare systems, medicines and vaccines.
MDR-TB is much harder and more expensive to treat than TB. In countries like India and China, MDR-TB patients already number in the tens of thousands. In parts of Eastern Europe, MDR-TB represents 25-50 percent of all cases of TB. Missed cases are a common problem, so the actual numbers are likely to be much higher. In some countries there is a lack of capacity and expertise to diagnose MDR-TB. In countries where medical care and medicines are expensive, people who may have contracted TB may be unwilling to seek out, pay for or complete treatment. These situations can lead to a higher number of people being exposed to MDR-TB – increasing the risk of infection.
Dr Neil Schluger, Chief Scientific Officer, World Lung Foundation, commented: “MDR-TB threatens to halt years of steady although too slow progress in reducing the global burden of tuberculosis. While all cases of TB are estimated to be decreasing by two per cent per annum, these figures disguise a frightening number of cases of MDR-TB.
“Governments cannot ignore this issue in the hope that the majority of cases are somewhere else. In our global economy where cross-border movement is common, TB spreads between countries very easily. To quote an old truism, TB anywhere is TB everywhere. Yet the pipeline for new treatments is drying up. While we may be able to shorten drug treatment regimens using existing medications in new ways, we are more likely to successfully combat MDR-TB in the long term if new treatments come on stream.
“Until then, we need to do more of the basics and to get them right. That means encouraging and helping nations to develop their capacity and optimise their healthcare systems. Governments also need to appreciate that outmoded methods of treatment – like keeping TB patients in hospital for extended periods of time – are counter-productive. Community-based treatment programmes and the use of DOTS are more effective and cost less.
“Ultimately we still need new tools to fight this battle, but global funding of TB research declined by USD $30 million to only USD $650million in 2013 – just as the global problem of MDR-TB is becoming ever more urgent. New investment and research into TB and MDR-TB is needed now, before MDR-TB goes from being an out-of-control public health problem to a global public health emergency.”