Tuberculosis (TB) is among the world’s deadliest diseases, with more than 10 million new cases and 1.4 million deaths every year. It is a bacterial infection that primarily affects the lungs but can pass to other parts of the body.

Patients with TB need long-term treatment with antibiotics to achieve a cure. Treatment for TB is complex and lengthy, usually lasting at least six months, and sometimes, up to two years.

Challenges in TB Treatment Access

TB treatments are successful only if patients take the medications correctly and for long enough. However, getting people to complete their course of TB medication is challenging.

Often, patients fail to get a complete cure due to inadequate treatment adherence. Furthermore, people suffering from TB in poorer countries often face barriers to accessing accurate diagnosis and enough of the right kind of drugs.

There could be many reasons for this, including lack of access to health care facilities because of high costs, social stigma, or migration and homelessness.

The Importance of Expanding TB Treatment Access

Increasing Tuberculosis access is critical to reducing the burden of infectious diseases worldwide.

However, tackling TB, one of the world’s largest killers, involves multiple complex issues, including institution of appropriate diagnosis and treatment, robust compliance, and disease prevention measures. To reduce the incidence of TB, it is crucial to invest in and implement initiatives that address the various challenges to diagnosis, treatment, and care.

Initiatives to Expand TB Treatment Access

The World Health Organization (WHO) has proposed ambitious goals aimed at eliminating TB.

The WHO’s End TB Strategy calls for a 90 percent reduction in TB incidence and a 95 percent decrease in TB deaths by 2035 compared to baseline levels in 2015. This ambitious target requires a multi-sectoral approach and concrete initiatives aimed at expanding TB treatment access.

Investment in TB research and Development of New TB vaccines

There needs to be a global investment in TB research to develop new drugs and also to discover a vaccine that prevents the disease. Currently, only one TB vaccine exists, and it is only partially effective, meaning more work needs to be done.

Also, there is a need to accelerate the testing of new TB drugs and therapies.

Community Empowerment and Health Promotion

Another initiative to expand TB treatment access is community empowerment and health promotion. Community involvement in health services can improve information and knowledge on treatment and care.

It encourages peer support, knowledge sharing, and early detection of cases, which can lead to timely diagnosis and treatment.

Improved Testing and Diagnosis

There is an urgent need for improving testing and diagnosis, particularly for populations that are at high risk for TB, including people living with HIV/AIDS, people who live in crowded settings, and people who work in high-risk occupations, such as miners. Recent innovations, such as the GeneXpert machine can accurately diagnose TB and even detect drug resistance in less than two hours.

Furthermore, new digital x-ray systems, with AI algorithms to scan for signs of TB can revolutionize diagnosis, the scale of implementation remains a challenge.

Strengthening Public Health Systems

Strengthening health systems also facilitates the expansion of TB treatment access.

This includes ensuring that health care workers are trained and equipped with the necessary tools and resources to provide an accurate diagnosis and treatment to their patients. Additionally, developing data management and feedback systems can help strengthen public health reporting and surveillance across local, regional, and global levels.

Scaling up Treatment and Care

Scaling up treatment and care is a crucial part of expanding TB treatment access. TB patients require comprehensive care, including nutritional support and psychosocial support to help them complete the long and often difficult journey of treatment.

Scaling up TB treatment and care means increasing access to the necessary medical supplies, from antibiotics to masks. Additionally, the use of technology to support treatment adherence, such as text messaging reminders, is a promising solution that should be scaled up.

Conclusion

TB remains a significant challenge globally, with inadequate access to diagnosis and treatment in poorer countries. However, expanding TB treatment access, through evidence-based interventions, is achievable.

Addressing TB requires a multi-sectoral approach, from investment in TB research to community empowerment and health promotion. It also requires strengthening TB diagnostic capacity, public health systems, and scaling up treatment and care. These initiatives can help achieve WHO’s End TB Strategy and significantly reduce the global burden of TB.