South Africa: After Setbacks, Rollout of New TB Prevention Pills to Start in Six Districts

After various delays and setbacks, new, less toxic, short-course tuberculosis (TB) prevention therapy is finally being launched in six districts in South Africa - with training of… Read more »

Africa: The Politics and Promise Behind a Proposed Pandemic Treaty

On 30 March, 25 heads of state including South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa called for the creation of an international pandemic treaty through the World Health Organization… Read more »

South Africa: HIV and Cervical Cancer - Behind SA's Extraordinarily High Numbers

A study recently published in The Lancet medical journal found that women living with HIV made up an estimated 63.4% of new cervical cancer cases in South Africa in 2018 - a… Read more »

South Africa: SA Piloting Mobile X-Rays to Improve TB Detection

One of the most striking findings of South Africa's first National Tuberculosis (TB) Prevalence Survey was that of 234 people found to have TB, around 58% had abnormal chest X-rays… Read more »

South Africa: SA Missing Childhood Immunisation Catch-Up Targets

Following a decline in childhood immunisations during the COVID-19 hard lockdown last year, a nationwide child immunisation catch-up drive was launched by the National Department… Read more »

South Africa: SA At Cutting Edge of TB Vaccine Research

It is a hundred years since the BCG (Bacille Calmette-Guerin) vaccine, the only registered vaccine proven to offer some protection against tuberculosis , was first used in people.… Read more »

South Africa: World TB Day - Let's Seize This Moment to Change the Status Quo

This World Tuberculosis (TB) Day, we divert our attention momentarily away from the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV2) epidemic and refocus on a disease that has plagued us for… Read more »

South Africa: New TB Testing Strategy Ups Diagnosis in Clinics By 17%

Though estimates vary and are relatively uncertain, in the region of 360 000 to 390 000 people in South Africa fall ill with tuberculosis (TB) every year. Of these, around 120 000… Read more »

South Africa: Engage Communities and Leverage Covid-19 Innovations to Address TB Crisis

"Our TB patients were neglected during the time of COVID-19." - Community health worker from Hammanskraal, Gauteng Province. Read more »

South Africa: Does Government Have a Moral Obligation to Roll Out the Astrazeneca Vaccine?

South Africa is likely headed for a third wave of COVID-19 infections, experts warn. With no windfall of vaccines in sight, many people at high risk of COVID-19 will remain… Read more »

South Africa: Covid-19 - What It Is Like Being a Student Volunteer

Since the outbreak of COVID-19 a year ago, a fourth-year medical student at the University of Stellenbosch Jessica Wolf has been hard at work volunteering at the Tygerberg Hospital… Read more »

South Africa: Support for Some TB Patients Just a Phone Call Away

With just a tap of a finger, some people with drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) can get in touch with a healthcare worker to get support over the phone. This support can both… Read more »

South Africa: Covid-19 - Childhood Cancer Care in SA's Large Centres 'Relatively Unaffected'

A study published in The Lancet medical journal earlier this month is the first to look at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on paediatric cancer services worldwide. The study… Read more »

South Africa: WTO Waiver Is Important, but So Is Fixing SA's Outdated Patent Laws

Since 2020, South Africa has become the world's champion in the call for equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines. On multilateral platforms the South African government has been… Read more »

South Africa: Covid-19 - Are Foreign Nationals Being Left Behind?

Some foreign nationals in South Africa, their community leaders, human rights lawyers and activists are concerned that their health needs are falling through the cracks. This was… Read more »

South Africa: Interview - From Humble Beginnings to Vaccinating the President

"Mamma, mamma, you're famous. I saw you on television!" This was how eight-year-old Noah Bennett greeted his mother, Sr Milanie Bennett, when she arrived home in Brackenfell on… Read more »

South Africa: 30% Increase in Maternal Deaths During COVID-19 Lockdown Reported

Mortality estimates released by UNICEF in 2019 indicate that about 2.8 million pregnant women and newborns die every year. This means 1 every 11 seconds, and this is mostly of… Read more »

South Africa: What SA's COVID-19 Experience Tells us about NHI

For all the suffering and death the COVID-19 pandemic has caused over the last 12 months, it has arguably also provided a unique opportunity to test some of the mechanisms behind… Read more »

South Africa: In-depth: What We Know About SA's Rampant Gonorrhoea Epidemic

South Africa has one of the highest rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the world, including for gonorrhoea. It is estimated that every year around two million… Read more »

South Africa: New Men's Health Centre in Cape Metro Welcomed

Data the world over suggests men are less likely than women to seek and use health services and tend to be sicker when eventually seeking medical help. In South Africa around a… Read more »

South Africa: Face to Face with Gift of the Givers Founder Imtiaz Sooliman

Gift of the Givers founder Dr Imtiaz Sooliman has declined renewed social media calls that he be nominated for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize. Read more »

Africa: The First Batch of the Johnson and Johnson Vaccine Arriving in South Africa

South Africa's vaccine rollout was set to start early in February, aiming to vaccinate 1.25 million healthcare workers nationwide in its first phase. However, it hit a snag when a… Read more »

South Africa: Pivot to J&J Vaccine Makes Sense in Light of New Findings

In January, preliminary results from over 15 000 people in a large phase III randomised controlled trial of the Oxford University/AstraZeneca vaccine was published in the Lancet… Read more »

South Africa: Will The Right People Get The Vaccine First?

As the first people in South Africa prepare to receive COVID-19 vaccinations outside of clinical trials, government recently released information on which groups of people will… Read more »

South Africa: Survey Finds 'Blind Spot' in Diagnosing People With TB

An estimated 390 000 people became ill with tuberculosis (TB) in South Africa in 2018, according to the country's first-ever National TB Prevalence Survey released on Friday. Read more »