Tuberculosis (TB) cases have more than doubled this year, triggering an urgent call from an academic for the government to carry out an information campaign to stop the disease spreading.

Civil society takes legal action to contest patent applications filed by Sanofi on fixed-dose combinations of two decades-old drugs used to prevent TB.

05 December 2019 I Geneva, Switzerland – The Stop TB Partnership’s Global Drug Facility (GDF) has expanded its Diagnostics Catalog by adding an IGRA (interferon-gamma release assay) test for latent TB infection. The products required to run the QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFT-Plus) IGRA are now available at a GDF-negotiated price of $15.90 per test by the manufacturer Qiagen (Hilden, Germany). This price is offered to any public sector or not-for-profit buyer in low- and middle-income countries when procuring through GDF.

New drugs to treat strains of TB which have become resistant to treatment are now a possibility following a ground breaking discovery from the University of Surrey.

As an effective vaccine for tuberculosis edges closer, there are calls for a greater focus on prevention as well as treatment until that day comes. Jacqui Thornton reported from the 50th Union World Conference on Lung Health held 30 October - 2 November 2019 in Hyderabad, India in the The Lancet Infectious Diseases.

New York, Dec. 1, 2019 — The World Health Organization has set a goal of ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030. To achieve that goal, the Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS), of which the American Thoracic Society is a founding member, is calling on governments, health advocates and non-government organizations on World AIDS Day to strengthen their response to AIDS and tuberculosis.

Dr Tereza Kasaeva, Director of the World Health Organization Global TB Program, released a message on the occasion of World AIDS Day, 1 December 2019.

Aspirin could be used to treat the world’s deadliest infectious disease, according to new research conducted by Dr Elinor Hortle at the Centenary Institute in Sydney.

The International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union) released its November 2019 newsletter, presenting the initiatives and activities carried out during the month. It also contains information about upcoming events.

29 November 2019 | Hanoi: The pace of progress in addressing TB in children and adolescents remains slow, especially in ensuring access to TB prevention and care. To address this critical issue, WHO convened a global consultation on 26-28 November in Hanoi, Viet Nam, bringing together over 100 stakeholders from across 12 countries including national TB programmes, paediatric societies, technical and financial partners as well as civil society. The consultation was hosted by the Viet Nam Government.