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WHO launches Council to develop TB vaccines, hoping to save millions of lives — Global Issues



Tedros announced the establishment of the TB Vaccine Accelerator Council at a high-level panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

In his opening remarks, he noted that one of the most important lessons from COVID-19 the answer is Innovative health interventions that can be delivered quickly if they are politically prioritized and fully funded: no new tuberculosis vaccine has been licensed in a century, despite its impact on human health.

“The challenges presented by TB and COVID-19 are different, but the components accelerate science, research and innovation same: urgent public investment, prepaid; support from charities; and private sector and community engagement,” said Tedros. “We believe the TB sector will benefit from similar high-level coordination.”

Don’t slow down

The new panel aims to bring together donors, global agencies, governments and TB sufferers, in identifying and overcoming barriers to vaccine development.

tuberculosis, also known as consuming, is caused by bacteria that mainly affect the lungs. It is spread through the air when someone with TB coughs, sneezes, or spits.

The disease is both curable and preventable, yet despite global commitments to end TB by 2030, the epidemic shows no signs of slowing down, he said. WHO.

By 2021, about 10.6 million people will get sick and 1.6 million will die from the disease. Drug resistance continues to be a major problem, with nearly half a million people developing drug-resistant TB each year.

A single vaccine

Currently, the Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine, developed in 1921, is the only licensed tuberculosis vaccine. While BCG is moderately effective in preventing severe forms of TB in infants and young children, it does not adequately protect adolescents and adults, who account for nearly 90% of transmission. tuberculosis globally.

Newly mandated by WHO research on investment in a new TB vaccine, it is estimated that over 25 years, a vaccine that is 50% effective in preventing disease in young adults and adults could prevent up to 76 million cases of the disease. TB.

Furthermore, every dollar invested in a 50% effective vaccine can generate an economic return of $7 in terms of averted medical costs and increased productivity. In addition, approximately 8.5 million lives could be saved, as well as $6.5 billion in costs faced by TB-affected households, especially for the poorest and most vulnerable. most vulnerable.

Meanwhile, a vaccine that is 75% effective could prevent up to 110 million new TB cases and 12.3 million deaths.

Countries will meet later this year at the United Nations Summit to review progress on implementing commitments made in the 2018 political declaration on the fight against tuberculosis. WHO has described the event as an important opportunity to overcome failures in response to the virus, including in the urgent development and delivery of a new TB vaccine.

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