IJTLD: Urine LAM diagnostics can close the deadly testing gap for TB

A urine TB lipoarabinomannan (LAM) test is a simple, affordable and device-free test that allows rapid diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) at the point of care without the need for a sputum sample. In this Letter to the Editor published in the International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, authors from MSF’s Access Campaign and Treatment Action Group (TAG) urge countries to adopt urine TB LAM testing in their national policies and roll out available tests to diagnose TB in all people living with HIV; and call on the diagnostics company Abbott, the supplier of the only TB LAM test on the market, to ensure that all countries with high TB burden have access to the test, including timely registration of the product. The authors also call on Abbott and other developers to accelerate the research and development (R&D) of more sensitive, next-generation TB LAM tests.