Global Cause
In this issue
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s Sponsored
How consolidated information can help improve coordination and collaboration in AMR R&D
The global information hub that provides researchers and funders with a new weapon in the battle against antimicrobial resistance. Information is a major weapon in fighting the silent pandemic of global antimicrobial resistance (AMR). It’s essential that researchers and funding decision makers know what work is being funded, not just in their own country, but...
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s Sponsored
Urgency of collaborative science to save millions of lives
Not-for-profit drug development is key to addressing R&D gaps for neglected diseases and drug-resistant infections. The global response to COVID-19 has led to the development of vaccines, treatments and diagnostics at unprecedented speed, but it has also revealed the ugly truth about the inequalities of our global biomedical innovation system. It is therefore timely that...
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The cost of inaction: economic impact of TB mortality
The catastrophic economic and social consequences of TB are well known but the substantial economic benefits of ending TB however, have been unknown until recently. Assessing the economic impact of TB mortality in 120 countries: what it will cost if we don’t achieve the End TB targets finds that by meeting the originally planned End...
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HIV and COVID-19: Pandemics of inequality
The COVID-19 pandemic, disproportionately affecting people facing disadvantage and discrimination, has shone a light on existing health inequalities across disease areas, but the parallels are particularly stark with HIV. Ill health and death “The global HIV epidemic has been underpinned and driven by socioeconomic inequalities since its emergence in the 1980s,” said Dr Vanessa Apea,...
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Learning from COVID-19 – from panic to preparedness
Whilst we are still in the midst of COVID-19, the worst pandemic since 1918 which is affecting every part of our lives, we can draw some lessons that will allow us to be better prepared for the future. The first lesson of the pandemic is the importance of translational research; applying basic science and research...
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Innovation for patients’ futures
Infectious diseases are everyone’s business. That’s why treatments must be effective, accessible and equitable for patients who need them. Effective antibiotics treat common infectious and historically life-threatening illnesses. They also enable safe cancer chemotherapy, organ transplants and caesarean sections. Drug-resistant pathogens are emerging and spreading globally, threatening how effective our treatments are and rendering infections...
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Issues around testing for early viral infections
Diagnosing infection early is important to initiate containment through contact tracing and behavioural modification, as well as allow timely introduction of treatment interventions. Similar themes are relevant across infections; we are focussing on the examples of HIV and SARS-CoV-2 to discuss this. The early diagnosis of a viral infection can be affected by the following...
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Helping support those living with HIV during the pandemic
Since COVID-19 first emerged as a major health threat, the risk of severe illness, death and who was most at risk were major questions. Especially for those living with HIV. As an organisation, our priorities were to understand the interplay between COVID-19 and HIV, to address uncertainties and anxieties expressed by colleagues and, most importantly, people...
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The need for medical expertise to tackle infectious diseases
Many infections, such as tuberculosis, have cases and deaths in the millions, but they are neglected as the world is suffering from COVID-19. COVID-19 has caused about two million deaths; tuberculosis (TB) causes numbers like this annually. Although TB has a “World Day” on 24th March, was characterised as a global WHO emergency and received...
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Lessons from the pandemic: Managing infectious diseases and the use of POC testing
The worldwide COVID-19 response has provided a blueprint for the management of infectious diseases moving forward. Although rapidly devised and rolled out, the systems for testing, recording and sharing infection data has led to strategies in each global territory for controlling the spread of infection during the pandemic. Clearly that response can be refined and...