Going undetected

The MSF medical director says MDR-TB can go unnoticed during a routine TB exam. Its symptoms are similar to the more common form of TB. Dr. Shanks explained why it’s spread so quickly and so far.

“We know that drug resistance is a man-made problem. It comes from incorrect treatment. It comes from the availability of over-the-counter tuberculosis medications. It comes from patients not taking their drugs properly or drug supplies running out. So they’re not able to finish their treatment. And sometimes it comes from just doctors’ prescribing patterns,” she said.

There’s good reason why patients with MDR-TB would stop taking their medication. They have to swallow about 14 pills daily of highly toxic drugs. Treatment can last up to two years and there are many unpleasant side effects. Plus there are additional injections required. Regular TB treatment has few, if any, side effects and lasts about six months. There are also a lot fewer pills to take.

Out with the old…

Current drugs are many decades old. Shanks says there’s little incentive to discover new TB drugs.

“There’s very little market for this. We’re really pushing now that there is funding for new drug development for clinical trial; and that pharmaceutical companies are working on drug development to address this issue,” she said.

She says without new drugs it will be difficult to deal with the expanding scope of MDR-TB. She adds the disease knows no borders and that developed countries are not immune.