We have been fighting tuberculosis (TB) for a long time. In the pre-antibiotic era our most effective intervention was rest and fresh air. Now we have effective diagnosis and treatment, full-scale national programmes and cutting-edge technologies.
Progress is encouraging. Since 2000, 9 million lives in the Western Pacific Region have been saved from this deadly disease. The concerted efforts of so many have paid off in reducing TB deaths and prevalence by more than 50% since 1990. The estimated number of people falling ill with TB declines every year. We have achieved all the TB-related targets linked to the Millennium Development Goals.
Unfortunately, these high points do not mean we are close to ridding the world of tuberculosis. The development of drug-resistant TB, in particular, puts decades of progress in peril and threatens to put us back at the starting line of our long battle against TB.
Tuberculosis can be hard to detect. The germ often hides in communities that public health efforts have trouble reaching, such as poor and marginalized populations, migrants and inmates in closed settings. The germ can also be hard to detect in the elderly and in young children. The result is that these groups continue to be pockets for transmission.
Going forward, we must focus on maintaining approaches that have worked well while incorporating new methods and technology to address evolving challenges. Last year, the World Health Assembly endorsed the End TB Strategy, building on existing efforts and engaging key players that can make a difference. The strategy targets a 90% reduction in patients suffering from TB and a 95% reduction in deaths from TB by 2035 — all while protecting families from catastrophic costs that push them into poverty.
On this World TB Day, let us reinvigorate our efforts to reach, treat and cure all patients suffering from TB including drug-resistant forms. We need the concerted efforts of all sectors, not just health workers, to find and fight this disease wherever it hides.
Together, we can make the world TB free.