New TB regime cuts down both pills and cost

A new TB regime will lower the number of pills a patient has to take from nine a week to three, which is expected to increase adherence to treatment. — AFP

A new tuberculosis (TB) treatment that slashes costs and the pill burden for patients will be rolled out in five high-incidence countries this year (2021), international medical research body Aurum Institute said on Feb 3.

TB – a respiratory disease that is preventable and treatable, yet kills more than 1.4 million people every year – is chronically underfunded, with diagnosis and treatment failing to reach millions.