Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the deadliest diseases worldwide, causing over 10 million new infections each year globally. It is estimated that around 28% of the world’s new TB cases occur in India. An estimated 5 lakh deaths occur due to TB each year in the country, which is about one TB death every minute.
Despite significant medical advancements, detecting TB remains a major challenge, particularly in remote and underserved populations. The government’s National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP) aimed to eradicate TB in India by 2025, five years ahead of the global target of 2030, but the chances of this are looking bleak. Despite the India TB Report 2024 revealing a 16% decrease in the incidence of TB (new cases occurring annually) and an 18% decrease in TB-related death since 2015, elimination remains a challenge.
Traditional diagnostic techniques frequently fail to detect TB in its early stages, particularly in children and people with low bacillary loads ( M. tuberculosis concentration present in a sputum sample). This means that many cases may go undetected, contributing to the disease’s spread.
Many people are also unwilling to seek a second diagnosis if the first test result was negative, and often, are only diagnosed at late stages. Slow and insufficient diagnostic facilities are another issue: residents of rural and remote areas have to travel long distances to get tested. While the government has made TB treatment free, travel is often a big cost for patie.