CDC Joins Forces with Global Partners at the United Nations General Assembly to Discuss Multidrug-resistant TB

CDC is joining with other U.S. government agencies, public health stakeholders, and global partners this week to discuss the growing threat of drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) at the United Nations General Assembly in New York. This meeting provides CDC with a unique high-level opportunity to emphasize the unique value and expertise the agency brings to the fight against global TB.

During the meeting, global leaders are expected to address the severity of antimicrobial resistance and agree on sustainable and effective approaches that can intervene and save lives. Former CDC Director, Dr. Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, will be presenting on the opportunities for global action against multidrug-resistant TB (MDR TB) in a forum hosted by the CDC Foundation. Joining Dr. Frieden at the conference will be the Director of CDC’s Center for Global Health, Dr. Rebecca Martin, and Health and Human Services Secretary, Sylvia Burwell.

MDR TB is resistant to at least two of the first-line drugs used to treat TB, and it is now found in every country in the world. WHO estimates that there were nearly 500,000 MDR TB cases globally in 2014, only one in four of which were diagnosed. Compared to TB that is not drug resistant, MDR TB takes a hefty human and economic toll – it requires longer treatment times and costlier drugs, can cause serious and permanent side effects, and significantly increases the risk of death.

CDC’s Division of Global HIV & TB works with global partners, providing on-the-ground interventions in more than 25 countries, to help end TB as a global public health threat. To learn more about CDC’s efforts to fight MDR TB across the globe, see the following resources:

Fact Sheet

The impact of MDR TB around the world and CDC’s work with partners to fight this epidemic around the world

Video

Dalene von Delft, a young South African doctor, developed MDR TB while treating patients. After years of toxic treatments, facing the prospect of deafness and even death, she was finally cured of her TB. Now, as a full time ER doctor, she and her husband have dedicated their lives to advocating on behalf of TB sufferers around the world.

One Young Doctor’s Journey Back from a Two-Year Battle with MDR TBExternal