The World Health Organization’s 2024 Global Tuberculosis Report, released Tuesday, presents a mixed picture of the worldwide efforts to combat tuberculosis (TB). Despite a reduction in TB-related deaths from 1.32 million in 2022 to 1.25 million in 2023, the number of new TB infections rose significantly from 7.5 million to 8.2 million. WHO estimates the actual cases may be closer to 10.8 million, given many undiagnosed instances.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed frustration over these statistics, stating, “The fact that TB still kills and sickens so many people is an outrage, especially when we have effective tools to prevent, detect, and treat it.” He urged countries to fulfill commitments to expanding access to these tools, aiming for an end to TB.
The report attributes the rise in TB cases partially to global population growth, noting a slight increase in the TB incidence rate, now at 134 new cases per 100,000 people. TB remains concentrated in 30 high-burden countries, with five — India, Indonesia, China, the Philippines, and Pakistan — comprising over half of the global TB burden. India alone accounts for more than a quarter of global cases.
Notably, 55% of TB cases affected men, 33% affected women, and 12% affected children and young adolescents. While TB is preventable and curable, it continues to spread primarily through airborne transmission from those with active lung TB. Key factors increasing TB risk include undernutrition, HIV, alcohol use disorders, diabetes, and smoking, especially among men.
The report underscores that global funding for TB prevention and care remains significantly under-resourced. In 2023, only $5.7 billion of the $22 billion needed was allocated. WHO warns that without a renewed focus on TB, the world will likely fall short of key reduction targets, noting that TB may have reclaimed its position as the leading cause of death from a single infectious agent, a title it had temporarily ceded to COVID-19.
