TB Campaign
TB anywhere is TB everywhere
If you thought tuberculosis (TB) was a thing of the past, then think again. Every 22 seconds someone in the world dies of TB. TB is the world’s deadliest infectious disease, and kills more people than AIDS and malaria combined.
TB diagnosis is not always straightforward – many countries still use 100-year-old techniques to diagnose the disease. You can watch the story of TB survivor Demi to understand the delays and difficulties faced even in Australia by people who have TB.
While TB can be treated, the current treatment is long (6-8 months) and mostly uses drugs that were discovered 50 years ago. There have been several new drugs introduced recently, but their current price and the volumes produced makes it difficult to access them in many countries..
Treatment for drug-resistant forms of TB (those for which the standard drugs are not effective) is even longer.
So why is TB still so common and deadly? Tuberculosis has not received enough political and public attention, resulting in very little public investment to find new diagnostics, drugs and a TB vaccine.
Please see our frequently asked questions if you want to know more about TB.
“We have known how to cure TB for more than 50 years. What we have lacked is the will and the resources to quickly diagnose people with TB and get them the treatment they need.”
– Nelson Mandela
Our campaign ask
Increased funding for Tuberculosis
Increased funding for TB services through the bilateral aid budget in 2020/21 to high-burden countries in our region.
Increased funding for TB R&D
Increased funding for TB research and development (R&D) to meet Australia’s globally agreed ‘fair share’ target of 0.01% of our gross R&D.
What can I do?
Write a letter to your MP
Let your MP know why you care about ending TB globally.
Share on Social Media
Spread the word and tag @RESULTS_AU in you social media posts!
Subscribe to Results
Click the link below to subscribe to our regular newsletter.
Our Voice
Ingrid Schoeman
TB survivor from TB Proof, South Africa
Watch Ingrid share her vision of a world with out TB.
Dr Joyce Sauk
Watch Joyce, a medical doctor and a TB survivor from PNG, talk about the importance of Australian investment in Tuberculosis.
Demi Mason
Grassroots Advocate for Results Australia.
TB survivor.
The below graphic depicts the summary results from a modeling study, conducted by the Stop TB Partnership in collaboration with the Imperial College, Avenir Health, Johns Hopkins University and USAID.
- While stringent COVID-19 responses may only last months, they would have a lasting impact on TB in high-burden settings, through their effect mainly on TB diagnosis and treatment.
- 3-month lockdown and a protracted 10-month restoration is a worst case scenario used in the modelling.
- While the modelling analysis principally focuses on India, Kenya and Ukraine, findings from these countries were extrapolated to the global level.
- Long-term outcomes can be strongly influenced by the pace of short-term recovery.
Australian Tuberculosis Caucus
The Australian TB Caucus (ATBC) is a key component of Results work on TB.
The ATBC brings together federal Members of the House of Representatives (MPs) and Senators with a keen interest in TB to work together to ensure Australia makes its best contribution to global eradication of the disease.