World Tuberculosis Day is marked every year on 24 March, highlighting one of the world's top health challenges. With nine million new cases and 1.5 million deaths each year, tuberculosis is an ongoing epidemic. 24 March 2015 was set as a day to change gear and speed up global efforts to end TB altogether.

For World TB Day 2015, the United Nations, the Stop TB Partnership and the World Health Organization called on governments, affected communities, civil society organizations, health-care providers, and international partners to join the drive to roll out this strategy and to reach, treat and cure all those who are ill today.

The date commemorates the day in 1882 when Dr Robert Koch, the German physician and pioneering microbiologist, announced to the University of Berlin's Institute of Hygiene that he had discovered the cause of tuberculosis. His discovery marked a turning point in the story of the virulent human infectious disease.

According to WHO about one third of the world’s population is infected with tuberculosis (TB) bacteria. Only a small proportion of those infected will become sick with TB.

People with weakened immune systems have a much greater risk of falling ill from TB. A person living with HIV is about 26 to 31 times more likely to develop active TB.

The Millennium Development Goal to reverse the tuberculosis epidemic by 2015 has been achieved. WHO’s Stop TB Strategy aims to ensure universal access to diagnosis, treatment and care for all people affected by TB, and drive down TB deaths and burden.

Facts about Tuberculosis

1)     In 2013, 9 million people fell ill with TB. But tuberculosis is curable and preventable.

2)     A total of 1.5 million people died from TB in 2013 (including 360 000 people with HIV). TB remains one of the world's top infectious killers. About 95% of TB deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries and it is among the top 5 causes of death among women aged 15 to 44.

3)     80 000 HIV-negative children died due to TB globally in 2013. Childhood TB is often overlooked by health providers and can be difficult to diagnosis and treat. There are about 10 million orphan children as a result of adult TB deaths.

4)     TB is the leading killer of people living with HIV. About one in four deaths among people with HIV is due to TB. But about 4.8 million lives were saved over nine years (2005 to 2013) through coordinated TB and HIV services to detect, prevent and treat the dual infections.

5)     The number of people falling ill with TB is declining and the TB death rate dropped 45% since 1990. For example, Brazil and China have showed a sustained decline in TB cases over the past 20 years. In this period China has had an 80% decline in deaths.

6)     About 80% of reported TB cases occurred in 22 countries in 2013. TB occurs in every part of the world. Nearly 60% of new TB cases occurred in the South-East Asia and Western Pacific Regions in 2013. The greatest rate of new cases per capita was in the African region. No country has ever eliminated this disease.

7)     Multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) does not respond to standard treatments and is difficult and costly to treat. MDR-TB is a form of TB that is present in virtually all countries surveyed by WHO. The primary cause of multi-drug resistance is the inappropriate or incorrect use of anti-TB drugs.

8)     An estimated 480 000 people developed MDR-TB in 2013. In some cases an even more severe form of multi-drug resistant TB may develop with bad treatment. Extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) is a form of TB that responds to even fewer available medicines.

9)     About 37 million lives were saved worldwide between 2000 and 2013 through TB diagnosis and treatment. 86% of people who developed TB and were put on treatment in 2012 were successfully treated.

10) The world is on track to achieve the global TB target set for 2015 in the Millennium Development Goals . The target for TB in the Millennium Development Goals is to halt and reverse global incidence.

WHO strategy to end the global TB epidemic:   

Last May, at the World Health Assembly, governments agreed on ambitious new 20-year (2016-2035) strategy to end the global TB epidemic.

WHO’s End TB Strategy envisions a world free of TB with zero deaths, disease and suffering. It sets targets and outlines actions for governments and partners to provide patient-centred care, pursue policies and systems that enable prevention and care, and drive research and innovations needed to end the epidemic and eliminate TB.

Cutting TB deaths and new cases by 95 and 90%, respectively, between 2016 and 2035 is a newly approved WHO strategy to end the global TB epidemic. As well as saving lives, it will also ensure that no family is burdened with catastrophic expenses due to TB, the WHO says. 

A report presented to the World Health Assembly stated that links between existing pharmacovigilance mechanisms, for example, will contribute to promoting safer use and management of medicines.

Achievement of the goals by 2035 will require: Integrated patient-centered TB care and prevention; bold policies and supportive systems; and intensified research and innovation. These three strategic pillars are underpinned by four principles:

-                 Government stewardship and accountability, with monitoring and evaluation.

-                 Building strong coalition with civil society and communities.

-                 Protecting and promoting human rights, ethics and equity.

-                 Adaptation of the strategy and targets at company level, with global collaboration.

To read the full report on the new 20-year strategy click here.

Dr. Shima Naghavi, Director of International Affairs