TB special including a feature on the new TMC 207 drug, a feature about tracing TB patients who don't take their treatment in Lesotho and a studio interview with Prof Ajit Lalvani from Imperial College, London.
The film starts off by saying that the GeneXpert is hailed by the WHO as a major milestone in TB diagnosis. It talks about how it enables a "why you wait" result and how important this is. It states that the GeneXpert represents a major step forward in terms of processing samples and detecting results, drug resistance etc. and has enormous potential to transform the diagnosis of TB. The film states that it's a robust, but relatively expensive technology and that there is a computer model (developed by Dr Bertie Squire) to make comparisons between the cost of microscopy and GeneXpert. It concludes by saying that if the GeneXpert is used in conjunction with active case finding it will truly revolutionise the diagnosis of TB.
Click to view the full episode on Rockhopper.