Recent news
April 2011
New TB diagnostic making strides in Africa
April 1, 2011 -- Global Health Frontline News recently reported on the positive impact of new diagnostic tools for tuberculosis (TB) with a video on CNN. The GeneXpert System and the Xpert®MTB/RIF test are diagnostic tools developed by the Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) in partnership with the device manufacturer Cepheid. The GeneXpert System, the video explains, is revolutionary in that it can diagnose a patient within two hours and can identify drug-resistant forms of TB within the same time frame with a Xpert®MTB/RIF test. With 9 million new cases of TB each year, the World Health Organization has hailed the GeneXpert System and the Xpert®MTB/RIF test as major milestones in TB control and has endorsed the device and test, a critical step to enabling roll out of new health products in the developing world.
While the diagnostic tools are already making significant strides in Uganda, as evidenced in the video, challenges remain in implementing the system and tests on a large scale. One major barrier associated with the tools is cost. The discounted price of the GeneXpert System is approximately $17,000, and each Xpert®MTB/RIF test costs $17 to run. However, experts at FIND explain that with time, the price is expected to go down and that DNA testing for TB will become routine worldwide. See link below for more information.
