Announces Strategy to Accelerate Efforts Toward Ending the TB Pandemic

BALI,Indonesia,Nov. 11,2024 -- TB Alliance is honored to join today's High-Level Meeting hosted by the Indonesian Ministry of Health. Leaders and experts in tuberculosis (TB) have convened to discuss strategies,innovations,and achievements in the global fight to end TB. The full-day session will bring together a distinguished group of global stakeholders dedicated to addressing and eliminating the TB pandemic.

TB researcher and clinician examines a DR-TB survivor who was treated with the BPaL regimen. Credit: Veejay Villafranca/TB Alliance

The meeting will feature a series of expert panels that will delve into comprehensive analyses of the current state of TB,alongside forward-looking strategies that prioritize groundbreaking solutions in treatment,diagnostics,and vaccine development. Representing TB Alliance,Dr. Mel Spigelman,President and CEO,Dr. Eugene Sun,Senior Vice President of R&D,and Sandeep Juneja,Senior Vice President of Market Access,will speak on panels addressing the transformation of TB research and development (R&D) and the accelerated rollout of TB drugs globally.

During the High-Level Meeting,Dr. Spigelman announced that TB Alliance is pioneering a transformative "one by one" approach to TB treatment: The goal is to treat latent TB infections in one day and to treat active TB in one month. "This ambitious vision aims to simplify TB care dramatically,making treatment faster and more manageable for all people with TB," said Dr. Spigelman. Built on the latest scientific breakthroughs,TB Alliance's vision offers a path forward to not only contribute to the elimination of TB but to ease the treatment journey for millions. "This isn't a far-off dream," he continued. "It's a feasible goal grounded in today's scientific advancements. We are working with new tools,promising compounds,and novel approaches that are setting the stage for faster,more effective treatments for both active and latent TB. This approach has the potential to transform TB care globally,and we're moving purposefully toward making it a reality for people with TB everywhere."

With shorter treatment durations,a universal regimen,and innovations that help simplify treatment – including once-daily oral drugs,fixed-dose combinations,and long-acting injectables – TB Alliance is following the science to find the next TB therapies.

"Our mission to end TB demands innovation at every step. TB Alliance's R&D strategy is focusing on identifying and developing new cures that simplify treatment by making it shorter,easier to administer,and more effective. Our objective is to save lives by advancing science," said Dr. Eugene Sun. "With bold,people-centered solutions,we can redefine what's possible in TB care and accelerate the end of this devastating disease."

In recent years,TB Alliance's research and access strategies have pioneered a paradigm shift in the global TB landscape,which has made treatment breakthroughs possible and more accessible to all who need them.

At today's event,Sandeep Juneja underscored the critical role of early and deep collaboration with high-burden countries,including Indonesia. "TB Alliance's access strategy has reduced by 2/3rds,the time taken to provide widespread access to life-saving treatments to communities in need. Working closely with Indonesia and other high-burden countries is essential to further speeding time to access and accelerating the end of the TB pandemic," he said. "Together,we are building a pathway to more equitable access to innovative,ultra-short therapies of the future and making them available faster than ever before."

This high-level meeting will serve as a crucial forum for sharing insights,establishing cooperative frameworks,and catalyzing actions that could accelerate the path to eliminating TB worldwide. For TB Alliance,participation in this event reflects its commitment to global collaboration in advancing not only innovative treatments but also effective implementation and access strategies that will ultimately help save millions of lives and advance the fight against TB.

About TB

TB is a difficult infection to cure,requiring patients to take a combination of medicines for at least four to six months. Even after symptoms disappear,medicines still need to be taken so that the disease can be fully eradicated. The scope and intensity of TB globally is in large part fueled by antiquated and inadequate TB drugs. Novel drug regimens are urgently needed to bring the TB pandemic under control.

About TB Alliance

TB Alliance is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to finding faster-acting and affordable drug regimens to fight TB. Through innovative science and with partners around the globe,we aim to ensure equitable access to faster,better TB cures that will advance global health and prosperity. TB Alliance operates with support from Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade,Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,Foreign,Commonwealth and Development Office (United Kingdom),Cystic Fibrosis Foundation,Germany's Federal Ministry of Education and Research through KfW,Global Disease Eradication Fund (South Korea),Global Health Innovative Technology Fund,Irish Aid,Korea International Cooperation Agency,National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases,National Institutes of Health through the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs,South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs,Unitaid,and the United States Agency for International Development. For more information,please visit: www.tballiance.org.

Media Contact: JessicaWiggs,communications@tballiance.org