TB Fact Sheets
The TB Epidemic
Many people think of TB as a disease of the past, but in reality, over 2 billion people are currently infected with the TB bacterium, roughly one-third of the world's population. In 2009 alone, TB killed 1.7 million people. That's 4,658 deaths a day or one death from TB every 20 seconds.
As a result of inadequate treatment, drug-resistant strains of TB are emerging that are much more difficult, and sometimes impossible, to cure. Cases of multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) and extremely drug-resistant TB (XDR-TB) have been found in almost every country of the world. In 2008 there were an estimated 440,000 cases of MDR-TB.
Standard and drug-resistant TB are undermining years of progress against HIV/AIDS. TB is the leading infectious killer of people with HIV: individuals are able to live with HIV but are dying from TB. Without proper treatment, 90% of those living with HIV die within months of contracting TB.
Keep in mind, the drugs to treat standard TB cost only $20 per patient in the developing world, and are very effective in curing a person of the disease when taken properly, even among people living with HIV.
It is a lack of political commitment and funding that keeps TB a leading global killer; resources available to adequately tackle the disease have long been insufficient. The World Health Organization estimates that it will cost approximately $7.4 billion annually to reverse the TB epidemic. Currently, only slightly more than half of that is projected to be available at current funding levels. This gap is costing millions of lives.
Information on various issues relating to the TB epidemic:
TB Signs and Symptoms
TB-HIV Co-Infection
Drug-Resistant TB
TB and Women
TB and Poverty
New Tools to Fight TB
Video: The Human Face of TB
For detailed data by region, please refer to the WHO Global Tuberculosis Control Report.
Fighting TB
Investments to fight TB come from a variety of sources, including bilateral aid programs, multilateral funding agents, and endemic countries’ domestic resources. These funding sources vary substantially in both amount and quality. A recent increase in investments has helped to bolster the fight against TB, but additional resources must be mobilized to continue progress. Advocacy aimed both at increasing the flow of resources from external sources and expanding domestic investment in TB in endemic countries is required to realize a world without TB.
Below are a series of fact sheets detailing the major sources of TB investment:
