Advocates call on PEPFAR to roll out LAM test
TB advocates urge PEPFAR to provide immediate access to the LAM test for TB diagnosis in HIV-positive people with advanced immunosuppression.
In an
open letter
sent to the leadership of the President’s Emergency Plan
for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) on 8 February 2017, TB advocates
congratulated PEPFAR for its prioritization of expediting
diagnosis of TB in people with HIV and asked for PEPFAR’s
support for the immediate introduction of the LAM test for
detection of TB in extremely vulnerable people with HIV in all
PEPFAR-funded countries and programs.
The test,
marketed as the Determine TB LAM Ag test by Alere, is a rapid,
urine-based, low-cost, point-of-care test. It is recommended by
the World Health Organization and is the first TB diagnostic
test ever to demonstrate a clear mortality benefit in a
randomized study among HIV-positive people with advanced
immunosuppression.
“We are concerned that people with advanced HIV are
missing opportunities for simpler, faster diagnosis of TB and
therefore survival.”
The signatories requested a response before 27
February 2017.
To read the full letter, click
here.
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On 27 February 2017, PEPFAR leadership
responded agreeing that
“the LAM antigen assay is a useful test, with the
potential to save lives”, outlining the steps and measures already undertaken by PEPFAR
to roll out the test in the PEPFAR-funded countries and
programs, and highlighting what remains to be done.
To read the full response, click
here.
