Tuberculosis Cases Can be Reduced in 2024 with Vaccination

Thousands of healthcare professionals, advocates, and public policymakers from over 170 countries are participating in the annual Global TB Summit as the world confronts the resurgence of tuberculosis as the second deadliest infectious disease.

After a decline of about 2% per year between 2020 and 2022, the global tuberculosis incident rate rose by 3.9% in 2022. An estimated 10.6 million people worldwide fell ill with tuberculosis in 2022, leading to 1.3 million deaths.

“Tuberculosis remains a significant global threat, even though it is both preventable and curable. At the Global TB Summit 2024, we focus on the most pressing challenges. Our mission is clear: to harness innovation and foster global collaboration in our fight against this deadly disease. Only by coming together and leveraging our collective expertise can we seek to have a TB-free world,” said Glen Hansen, Chief Medical Officer at QIAGEN, in a press release on October 7, 2024.

After 27 years of declining tuberculosis cases, in 2023, the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia provisionally reported 9,615 TB cases, representing an increase of 16% compared with 2022.

Many of the cases were confirmed in children living with adults infected with TB.

The U.S. CDC stated in March 2024, 'Continued progress toward TB elimination will require strong public health systems capable of maintaining essential disease prevention and control activities.'

One of the prevention options is vaccination since TB is a vaccine-preventable disease.

Globally, there are over ten tuberculosis vaccines available in 2024.

In the U.S., the BCG vaccine is not commercially available or integrated into the CDC's vaccination schedule for children.