The Lancet reported an analysis suggesting that anti-TB treatments, combined with a strategy to identify close contacts could reduce the number of deaths by up to 35%.

Out of the 850,000 lives that could be saved between now and 2035, some 700,000 would be children under 15 age.

According to the research, 1.6 million people worldwide died of tuberculosis in 2021, an infectious bacterial disease that affects lungs and is spread through the air when infected people cough, sneeze or spit.

That same year, 10.6 million people were reported with TB globally despite the fact that it can be cured and prevented, as evidenced by the fact that 74 million lives were saved between 2000 and 2021 thanks to early diagnosis and treatment.

The study conducted by John Hopkins University, the Arum Institute and UNITAID concluded that a combination of drug treatment and contact tracing can lead to an estimated cumulative reduction of 13% in the number of contacts who develop TB.

It is currently the 13th leading cause of death and the deadliest infectious disease behind Covid-19 and ahead of HIV-AIDS.

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