WHO raises alarm over 2.2 million missed TB cases

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that gaps in tuberculosis diagnosis and treatment continue to undermine global efforts to control the disease, with an estimated 2.2 million cases going undiagnosed or unreported in 2025.
The warning came as the organisation disclosed that 10.6 million people developed tuberculosis worldwide last year, while 1.1 million died from the disease.

In its 2026 Global Tuberculosis Report, released on Thursday, the WHO said only 8.4 million of the estimated cases were diagnosed in 2025.
It added that just 59 per cent of newly diagnosed patients were tested using a WHO-recommended rapid diagnostic test, below the target of ensuring that all newly diagnosed patients receive the test by 2027.
The report noted that although TB deaths had declined by 35 per cent over the past decade, the disease remained the leading cause of death from a single infectious agent.

It said the reduction in deaths meant the world had achieved the first mortality milestone of its End TB Strategy, although five years behind schedule.
The WHO, however, expressed concern over the slow decline in new infections. Global TB incidence fell by only 14 per cent between 2015 and 2025, against the 50 per cent reduction target for 2025.

The organisation's Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, described the continued decline in cases and deaths as encouraging, despite funding difficulties in several countries.
“The continued decline in TB cases and deaths is very encouraging, especially given the challenges many countries have faced from funding cuts,” he said.
Tedros, however, warned that more than one million people still died annually from a preventable and treatable disease.

“We urge countries and partners to urgently expand access to TB services, protect essential funding and accelerate the development of new tools to end this epidemic,” he added.
The report said the burden of tuberculosis remained concentrated in 30 countries, which accounted for 88 per cent of all people who developed the disease in 2025.

On regional performance, TB incidence declined by 30 per cent in the WHO African Region between 2015 and 2025, while the European Region recorded a 42 per cent reduction.
South-East Asia recorded an 18 per cent decline, while incidence fell by 6.6 per cent in the Eastern Mediterranean. The Western Pacific recorded no net change, while the Americas experienced a 13 per cent increase compared with 2015.
The WHO also raised concerns about drug-resistant tuberculosis, reporting that an estimated 370,000 people developed rifampicin-resistant TB in 2025, but only 42 per cent received treatment.

However, uptake of the organisation's recommended six-month treatment regimen among patients receiving care increased from 18 per cent in 2024 to 42 per cent in 2025.
On financing, the report said domestic investment in TB programmes rose by 14 per cent to $5.6bn between 2024 and 2025, partly offsetting a similar decline in international funding.

It described investment in TB research as critically insufficient, noting that funding stood at $1.2bn in 2023, less than a quarter of the $5bn annual target required by 2027.
The WHO called on governments and development partners to increase sustainable funding, expand access to prevention, rapid diagnosis and effective treatment, and accelerate the development of new vaccines, diagnostic tools and treatments.