Tuberculosis Overview

TB can be successfully treated.

Directly observed therapy short-course (DOTS), the recognized case management approach for tuberculosis (TB), has been implemented in the 184 countries that account for 99 percent of all estimated TB cases. Using DOTS, at least two of the six regions in the world are on track to achieve global targets for halving the number of cases, and five of six regions are on track to halve the number of deaths due to TB by 2015.

However, TB still disables and kills millions.

One-third of the world’s population is infected with TB. Although most people carrying TB germs in their bodies do not have symptoms and are not contagious, “active” TB is debilitating and contagious. Every year, nearly 9 million people develop active TB and TB remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide.

TB affects the growth of countries.

Because TB principally attacks young people during their most economically productive years, affected communities get caught in a cycle of illness and poverty.

Efforts to control TB are now under threat.

Co-infection with TB and HIV (TB/HIV) and a surge in multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB), a form of the disease that is resistant to at least two first-line TB drugs, are threatening to disrupt recent global successes in TB control, as there is no effective treatment available for these forms of TB.

New drugs, diagnostics, and vaccines are urgently needed.

The drugs, vaccine, and diagnostics used to fight TB are antiquated, slow, and ineffective. The rise of MDR-TB and TB/HIV co-infection has given a new sense of urgency to develop new tools to vastly improve the way the world responds to the disease.

We're working to develop and deliver innovative tools and approaches to help prevent, diagnose, and treat TB around the world.

Next: Our Approach

Our goal is to accelerate a reduction in TB incidence. Our strategy supports efforts to:

Develop new vaccines.

We believe that investing in a new TB vaccine would provide the best long-term hope for eliminating TB. We fund efforts to develop new, more effective TB vaccines and ensure they are affordable and available to all who need them.

Develop more effective drugs.

Current drugs for TB take too long to cure and are not safe to take concurrently with HIV therapies. Our strategy supports the discovery and development of more effective and faster-acting TB drug regimens that can be used by all infected people, including those with drug-resistant TB or HIV.

Develop better tests to diagnose TB.

Rapid and accurate TB diagnosis is critical to TB patient care and halting disease transmission. We support research and development of new diagnostic tests that will identify people with TB rapidly and before they infect others.

Make better use of existing methods.

There are a number of innovative therapies and diagnostics available for TB, but their adoption in many countries has been slow. We’re working to promote the rapid uptake of these innovations. Our support includes facilitating the widespread use of isoniazid-preventive therapy for TB among populations with a high burden of HIV and working with governments and the private sector to introduce new tools in high-TB burden countries such as China, India, South Africa, and Brazil.

Raise public awareness and advocate for funding.

The shortage of funding to fight TB remains a significant challenge. We support efforts to inform policymakers and the public about the importance of TB. We also work to encourage other funders to increase support for the fight against TB.