Philippines has 3rd highest TB cases worldwide

MANILA, Philippines —  Eight countries accounted for two-thirds of global tuberculosis cases last year, with the Philippines recording the third highest number of cases, according to the World Health Organization.

 The WHO said Wednesday that TB remains the world’s leading infectious killer, claiming an estimated 1.23 million lives last year, with recent gains made against the disease fragile.

The eight countries are India, which accounted for 25 percent of global TB cases. Indonesia followed with 10 percent; the Philippines (6.8 percent), China (6.5 percent), Pakistan (6.3 percent), Nigeria (4.8 percent), the Democratic Republic of Congo (3.9 percent) and Bangladesh (3.6 percent).

Deaths from TB were down three percent from 2023, while cases dropped by nearly two percent, it said in its annual overview.

An estimated 10.7 million people worldwide fell ill with TB in 2024: 5.8 million men, 3.7 million women and 1.2 million children.

A preventable and curable disease, tuberculosis is caused by bacteria that most often affects the lungs. It spreads through the air when people with TB cough, sneeze or spit.

Now, TB cases and deaths are both declining “for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic,” which disrupted services, said Tereza Kasaeva, head of the WHO department for HIV, TB, hepatitis and sexually transmitted infections.

“Funding cuts and persistent drivers of the epidemic threaten to undo hard-won gains, but with political commitment, sustained investment, and global solidarity, we can turn the tide and end this ancient killer once and for all,” she said.

Funding for the fight against TB has stagnated since 2020.

Last year, $5.9 billion was available for prevention, diagnosis and treatment – way off the target of $22 billion annually by 2027.

5 major risk factors

The five major risk factors driving the epidemic are undernutrition, HIV infection, diabetes, smoking and alcohol use disorders.

TB is the leading killer of people with HIV, with last year’s death toll standing at 150,000.

In 2024, 8.3 million people were newly diagnosed with TB and accessed treatment.

This is a record high, which the WHO attributed to reaching more of the people who fell ill with the disease.

Last year, treatment success rates rose from 68 percent to 71 percent.

The WHO estimates that timely TB treatment has saved 83 million lives since 2000.

Vaccine research, AI tools

“Declines in the global burden of TB, and progress in testing, treatment, social protection and research are all welcome news after years of setbacks, but progress is not victory,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

“The fact that TB continues to claim over a million lives each year, despite being preventable and curable, is simply unconscionable.”

As for the pipeline of TB tests, treatments and vaccines, as of August this year, 63 diagnostic tests were in development and 29 drugs were in clinical trials.

Some 18 candidate vaccines are being tested on humans, including six in Phase III – the final stage before regulatory approval.

The BCG vaccine has long been part of routine childhood immunization programs in many countries.

But despite TB’s devastating global impact, no new vaccines have been licensed in over a century, and there are no vaccines for adults.

Peter Sands, head of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, said: “We now have shorter, more effective treatment regimens, improved prevention strategies, and cutting-edge diagnostics, including AI-powered tools that can detect TB faster and more accurately than ever before,” he said.

“These innovations are transforming how we fight TB, especially in resource-limited settings.”

DOH to screen 12 million Pinoys

The Department of Health (DOH) yesterday bared its target of subjecting 12 million Filipinos to tuberculosis screening next year.?

In a statement, the DOH said it aims to screen 12 million Filipinos nationwide by 2026 through the use of the ultra-portable AI-powered chest X-rays and WHO-recommended Nucleic Acid Amplification Tests.

Apart from this, the health department said they are employing more improved drug treatments to quickly screen and diagnose TB cases in the country.

“We are already using an innovative all-oral regimen for drug-resistant TB, that cuts the treatment from two years to only six months with a higher treatment success rate,” Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said.

The DOH is also set to roll out the shorter Tuberculosis Preventive Treatment regimens and contact investigation resulting in more than 50 percent increase in TPT enrollment in 2024.

TPT has likewise been expanded to cover contacts of drug-resistant TB cases and is now under advanced programmatic implementation.

Herbosa said the agency is leading a comprehensive national effort to end TB by providing a multisectoral framework for joint action among government agencies, civil society and private partners to eliminate the disease by 2035.

For his part, acting WHO country representative Dr.?Eunyoung Ko said, “Tuberculosis is a global challenge, and progress in any country means bringing the world closer to ending the disease. We know what works, and we’re seeing some encouraging results here in the Philippines.”

He added, “WHO remains steadfast in its support for DOH at the central and sub-national levels. Together, we are strengthening case-finding, getting more people on preventive medicines, and helping people who are infected stick to their treatment plan.

The DOH said TB remains one of the leading causes of death in the country, claiming an estimated 98 Filipino lives each day. - AFP