For World TB Day 2024, the WGND is spotlighting a monumental achievement in TB drug research and development: the Global TB Drug Pipeline has never been bigger than it is today. The number of drug candidates being clinically evaluated for use in the treatment of adult pulmonary TB has surpassed that of all previous years. The WGND is tracking 19 drug candidates that have initiated or completed a Phase 1 clinical trial for use in treating Tuberculosis. Most have been or are currently being evaluated in a Phase 2 clinical trial and one has made it to Phase 3. These 19 do not include Bedaquiline, Delamanid, and Pretomanid that have been approved for specific indications by regulatory authorities in recent years and are actively being evaluated in novel TB drug regimen trials.
This is a result of a massive effort by many NGOs, consortia, government agencies, private companies, donors, academic labs, clinical trial sites, and many more who have successfully filled the pipeline with new TB drugs. Anyone who works in drug development can attest to the enormity of work that goes into a single drug candidate entering clinical evaluation. This is truly an achievement worth highlighting this World TB Day.
Take a look at the summary slide with the names of all the drug candidates in clinical evaluation by clicking this link: Global TB Drug Pipeline PowerPoint Summary
New TB Drug Regimens Pipeline
TB treatment has historically always included 3-or-more drugs, so with the most robust TB drug pipeline in history, the question on all of our minds should be: which new combination of drugs will be used to treat the various forms of TB? Many drug sponsors and consortia are tackling this very question. The WGND has put together a pipeline of clinical trials evaluating novel TB drug regimens. The new pipeline graphic displays the clinical trials and the specific drug regimen(s) being evaluated. The pipeline also displays whether the regimen will treat drug-susceptible or drug-resistant adult pulmonary TB. Click here to view the New TB Drug Regimens Pipeline.
With the most robust TB drug pipeline in history and all the clinical trials evaluating novel regimens, the future of TB treatment is bright; however, the fight is not over. We need donors to keep investing in TB drug R&D. We need sponsors to continue to evaluate new drug candidates and regimens rigorously to ensure that a safer, shorter course, and more effective treatment is available to all those suffering from TB. Alongside a new vaccine and new diagnostics, a new treatment regimen for TB is paramount if we hope to finally end TB in our lifetime.