As the Fix the Patent Laws campaign gains traction and South Africa moves closer towards the kind of intellectual property reform that will vastly improve access to affordable medicines, a number of claims are being publicised by the pharmaceutical industry and their allies seeking to protect their business interests. The purpose of this myth-buster is to clarify that adopting legal TRIPS safeguards will not only support public health efforts but also benefit local industry and economic development.

Approximately 25% of people with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in the UK are not completing the recommended course of treatment, data published in the 3 October edition of Eurosurveillance shows. Treatment was completed by 71% of patients in 24 months or more, which was below both the World Health Organization (WHO) and UK targets (75 and 85%, respectively).

Brasilia/Rio de Janeiro, 9 October 2013 — Brazil has joined a growing list of middle-income countries taking action in tackling the high cost of medicines, with the launch today of a parliamentary committee report that recommends reforming Brazil’s patent law and introducing new models of innovation. International medical humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) welcomed the high-level report, ‘Brazil’s Patent Reform: innovation towards national competitiveness’, saying it should spur the Brazilian Parliament to support legislation that would reform Brazil’s patent law to improve access to affordable medicines.

2013 International Union Against TB and Lung Disease World Conference
Date: 1 November 2013
Time: 18h00 - 22h00
Location: Hôtel Concorde La Fayette, Batignolles/Longchamp Room, 3, Place du Général Koenig, 75850 Paris Cedex 17

Meta-analysis of 20 articles involving World Health Organization (WHO) group 5 drugs suggested that linezolid significantly increases the probability of favorable outcomes in people with extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB). Adding other group 5 drugs to linezolid had little impact in this analysis.

Drug shortages, especially of tuberculosis (TB) drugs, have become increasingly common in the United States. Over the past year alone, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported shortages (also referred to as stock-outs or supply interruptions) of various TB products including second-line injectables (capreomycin and amikacin), required to fight drug-resistant TB (DR-TB)­, and tubersol and aplisol, important products for TB diagnosis.

The United States is losing ground in its fight against the tuberculosis (TB) epidemic within its own borders. Sequestration and shifting priorities of Congress and the Obama administration have led to a waning of political support and resources for domestic and global TB programs. More than 10,000 people are diagnosed with active TB disease every year in the United States, and an estimated nine to 14 million American residents are currently living with latent TB infection. Perceived low prevalence, coupled with a lack of political vigilance and declining federal and state resources for TB control and elimination, has set the stage for a dangerous and costly resurgence of domestic TB.

Friday 1 November 12h45 – 14h15
Hotel Le Méridien Etoile, 81 Boulevard Gouvion-Saint-Cyr, Paris (directly near the Palais des Congrès in Paris where the 44th Union World Conference on Lung Health will be held)

Abstract (provisional)

Abstract