TB/HIV PROJECT NEWS
Forgotten But Not Gone: Childhood TB Advocacy Meeting
On Thursday January 5, 2012, TAG held a Childhood TB Federal Advocacy Meeting in Washington, D.C. The meeting was co-sponsored by STOP TB, RESULTS/ACTION, the Center for Global Health Policy and the American Thoracic Society (ATS). Some of the highlights of the meeting included an incredibly moving personal account of the struggles and hardships a young mother living in Texas who has a toddler son that was diagnosed with drug resistant TB meningitis over a year ago. There were also presentations from leading childhood TB clinicians and researchers and advocates on pediatric TB basics - epidemiological data, diagnosis, treatment and care issues as well as on TB research needs and gaps. At the end of the meeting there was also a quick discussion on the 2012 fiscal and political advocacy outlook, action items and next steps. Following all of the presentations, the speakers fielded many challenging questions from the audience. Click here for presentation slides and advocacy links.
US Government HIV/AIDS Clinical Trial Sites to Accelerate Completion of Phase III TB Drug Trial
TB Alliance's REMox TB program leverages ACTG sites to advance testing of improved TB treatments
Durban, South Africa— 15 November 2011 The TB Alliance announces the launch of a collaboration with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases' (NIAID) AIDS Clinical Trial Group (ACTG) to conduct and help complete a Phase III clinical trial testing potentially faster-acting tuberculosis (TB) treatments. Few clinical trials for TB have been conducted under modern GCP/GCLP standards in the past 40 years, and the infrastructure to support invigorated global TB drug research is lacking, especially in resource-limited settings where the majority of TB cases are found. The partnership between the NIAID's ACTG and TB Alliance joins available resources with the urgent need for TB clinical research capacity to accelerate testing of new therapies that can benefit both the HIV/AIDS and TB communities.
Time of Great Change in TB Drug Development
Speech delivered to Critical Path to TB Drug Regimens meeting, Washington DC
9 November 2011 - We are living in a time of great change and excitement in TB drug development. The last year has witnessed a number of epochal changes, including the approval and rollout of the most rapid test for TB ever discovered, the GeneXpert; the combination TB drug studies in the relapse mouse model of Eric Nuermberger and Jacques Grosset at Johns Hopkins with support from the TB Alliance; the progression of TMC207 into late phase II and of OPC67683 into phase III; and the first new regimen EBA study, NC-001 also from the Alliance.
Treatment Action Group Issues Latest Update on Global TB R&D Investment Trends
2010 Funding Flat at $617 million, Less Than One-Third of the Global Need
26 October 2011 - LILLE, FRANCE – New data released by the Treatment Action Group (TAG) and the Stop TB Partnership finds that in 2010 the world spent just $617 million in tuberculosis (TB) research and development (R&D), or 0.3% less than 2009 funding levels—the first time TAG documents no growth since it began tracking TB research investments in 2005.
Strengthening the Role of the Stop TB Partnership in the Struggle Against Tuberculosis
11 October 2011 - Dear Professor Atun, We are writing to follow up on our letter of May 3, 2011, regarding the steps being taken by the Coordinating Board to reduce the conflict of interest in the Stop TB Partnership’s relationship with the World Health Organization (WHO), improve transparency and accountability in the operations and activities of the Partnership, and strengthen the Partnership’s ability to fulfill its mandate.
2011 Pipeline Report - Second Edition
September 2011 - HIV, Hepatitis C Virus (HCV), and Tuberculosis Drugs, Diagnostics, Vaccines, and Preventive Technologies in Development
Cepheid Pricing Of The GeneXpert Machines And Cartridges For Public Sector Use In High TB Burden Areas
3 September 2011 - An open letter from the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) and partners to Cepheid calling for affordable and expanded access to the GeneXpert® MTB/RIF TB diagnostic test. We remain concerned that there is little transparency around pricing, particularly as Cepheid is currently in negotiations with South Africa’s Department of Health regarding the procurement of these machines.
Towards Lab-Free Tuberculosis Diagnosis - A strategic vision for R&D into point-of-care testing in resource-poor settings
August 2011 - Although most cases of TB are curable, tuberculosis causes around 2 million deaths each year, in part due to late or missed diagnosis. The control and ultimate elimination of this disease, therefore, still rests on prompt diagnosis and therapeutic intervention to reduce ongoing transmission. Improving the performance of diagnostics and their availability is therefore key to reducing global morbidity and mortality from TB and thus achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
An Evaluation of Drug-Resistant TB Treatment Scale-Up
July 2011 - Globally in 2008 there were an estimated 440,00 cases of incident multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). Despite international calls for action to reach universal access to TB treatment by 2015, governments and ministries of health in high-burden countries have not adequately progressed with scale-up. According to latest estimates from the World Health Organization(WHO), only 7% of the estimated MDR-TB cases in 2008 were reported (29,423) to WHO, and about 1% of patients were enrolled under programs to provide internationally quality-assured treatment. Of the 27 countries considered to have a high burden of MDR-TB, only13 reported treatment outcomes.
Steps Being Taken by the Coordinating Board to Reduce Conflict of Interest and Improve Transparency in the Stop TB Partnership
5 May 2011 - Dear Professor Atun, we want to congratulate you, the Stop TB Partnership Coordinating Board, and the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General, Dr. Margaret Chan, on the recent appointment of Dr. Lucica Ditiu as the Executive Secretary of the Stop TB Partnership (the Partnership).