The event was organized by the Central Lung Hospital and the National Tuberculosis Control Program to mark the 61st founding anniversary of the Central Lung Hospital (June 24). It also aimed to encourage regular physical exercise to improve people’s health and raise public awareness of lung health.
In his remarks, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Viet Tien noted that although the number of TB cases in Vietnam has been significantly reduced, there are hundreds of thousands of new TB patients detected annually while many others are receiving treatment.
The event was based on the “Walk the Talk” event initiated by the World Health Organization (WHO), which took place in May in Geneva, Switzerland.
At the event, the organizers also called for donations to a fund supporting treatment for TB patients and those who are affected by the disease.
TB remains the leading cause of fatality in the world, leading to the deaths of nearly 2 million people every year, particularly drug-resistant TB has threatened global health.
In Vietnam, the WHO estimates that there are nearly 130,000 new cases of TB diagnosed each year, resulting in some 16,000 deaths in the Southeast Asian country in 2015.
Vietnam ranked 16h among 30 countries with the highest number of TB patients globally. It also ranked 13th among 30 countries with the biggest burden of multi drug-resistant TB in the world.
The country is a leading nation in terms of TB prevention efforts. The rate of successful treatment for multi drug resistant TB in Vietnam is over 70 percent, much higher than the world’s rate of 54 percent.
Thanks to early detection and effective treatment, TB-related deaths reduced 3,000 cases during 2015-2016. The country has set a target to cut 30 percent of TB infection cases and 40 percent of TB deaths during 2015-2020.
Source: VNA