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By 2040, Over 62.4 Million People In India Might Have Tuberculosis: Study
A recent study has projected a staggering 62.4 million tuberculosis (TB) cases across India by the year 2040. According to the research, this alarming rise in TB cases would also lead to a devastating 8.1 million deaths caused by the disease’s bacilli over the same period.
The financial impact of this crisis could be equally catastrophic, with the Indian economy potentially suffering a cumulative Gross Domestic Product (GDP) loss of over $146 billion USD.
Despite India setting an ambitious target of becoming TB-free by 2025, the study suggests that the nation is far from achieving its goal. The researchers highlighted that low-income households would bear a larger burden of health and economic consequences while high-income households would face relatively larger absolute economic burdens.
The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to reduce TB deaths by 90% by 2030, compared to the 2015 figures. However, meeting this target appears unlikely, as funding for TB remains far below global financing targets and significant investments in research and development are necessary to develop new tools to prevent TB among the approximately 1.7 billion people infected worldwide.
According to the study, the most effective strategy to curb the rising number of TB cases is to detect new cases promptly. Improved detection and diagnosis methods could yield better results than developing new drugs for the disease.
The Stop TB Partnership, a non-profit organization based in Switzerland, has reported that only about 40% of the needed funding of $2 billion per year, or approximately $0.9 billion was invested globally for the development of new TB diagnostics, drugs, and vaccines in 2020.
In contrast, if the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEPI) treatment regimen is developed and rolled out, combined with an expansion of TB detection rates, the study concludes that it would be approximately cost-neutral. This combined approach could prevent more than 7 million fatalities and over 48 million cases of TB.
The stark reality highlighted by this study underscores the urgent need for governments, organizations, and individuals to come together in a concerted effort to combat this public health menace.
Source: http://www.forbes.com
