The World Health Organization has reported that a record 8.2 million new cases of tuberculosis were diagnosed worldwide last year - the highest number since global tuberculosis surveillance began in 1995.
WHO said its Global TB Report to 2024 highlights "mixed progress in the global fight against TB, with persistent challenges such as significant underfunding."
Although the number of TB-related deaths has fallen from 1.32 million in 2022 to 1.25 million last year, the total number of people affected by the infectious disease has risen from 7.5 million to 8.2 million.
However, not all new cases are diagnosed and the WHO estimates that around 10.8 million people actually contracted the disease last year.
"The fact that tuberculosis is still killing and sickening so many people is outrageous when we have the tools to prevent, detect and treat it," WHO head Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus said in a statement.
"WHO calls on all countries to meet their specific commitments to expand the use of these tools and to end TB. "The report said the increase in cases between 2022 and 2023 largely reflects the growth in the global population.
Last year, the TB incidence rate was 134 new cases per 100,000 people - an increase of 0.2 percent compared to 2022.
The disease disproportionately affects people in 30 high-burden countries.
And five countries - China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Pakistan - account for more than half of the global TB burden, with more than a quarter of cases detected in India alone.
According to the report, 55% of people who developed TB were men, 33% were women, and 12% were children and adolescents.
A preventable and treatable disease, tuberculosis is caused by bacteria and most commonly affects the lungs. It is spread through the air when people with pulmonary TB cough, sneeze or spit.
WHO said a significant number of new TB cases are attributed to five major risk factors: malnutrition, HIV infection, alcohol abuse, diabetes and, especially among men, smoking.
"Global milestones and targets to reduce the burden of TB disease have not been met," WHO said.
Last year, only $5.7 billion of the $22 billion global annual funding target for TB prevention and care was available.
"In 2023, tuberculosis will likely again be the world's leading cause of death from a single infectious agent, after three years in which it was replaced by Covid. | BGNES
