Seeds of Hope

What is tuberculosis?

ONE-THIRD OF THE WORLD'S POPULATION IS INFECTED WITH TB

Almost three million people a year die of TB, even though it is a curable disease and treatment is cheap. Ten years ago the World Health Organization (WHO) declared TB a global emergency. Since then, the international community has taken a number of steps towards controlling TB, but the number of people infected continues to rise.

Although one-third of the population is infected with the TB bacillus, only 5-10% of those people will become sick during their lifetime. Those who develop TB tend to have a weakened immune system, often due to HIV or malnutrition. Because many Guatemalans live in extreme poverty and a growing number are HIV positive, they are at high risk of contracting TB.

If patients do not complete their treatment, drug-resistant TB can develop. The infected person can pass on this new strain of TB at a rate of up to 15 people a year. Multi-drug resistant TB is expensive and difficult to treat, and can often be fatal.

Educating people about TB and securing quick, effective treatment is our best hope of decreasing the spread of the disease.

Tuberculosis

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