BBC News - ‘First ever’ fall in global TB

BBC News - 'First ever' fall in global TB

The World Health Organisation has announced that the number of people falling ill with TB has fallen for the first time in history.

The number of people who died from tuberculosis peaked at 1.8 million people in 2003; by 2010 this had declined to 1.4 million.

Spectacular progress was made in China, said the WHO, where the death rate fell by almost 80% between 1990 and 2010. In Kenya and Tanzania there has also been a substantial decline in the last decade after a peak linked to the HIV epidemic.

The UN General Secretary Ban Ki Moon has said, "This is major progress. But it is no cause for complacency"

Future challenges include a $1bn funding gap, and the multi-drug-resistant form of the disease.

See here for the full BBC article.