Global Community Must Work Together To Achieve Progress Against Drug Resistance

The Guardian: Act now to tame the superbugs that are killing 700,000 a year
Ed Whiting, director of policy and chief of staff at the Wellcome Trust

“The U.N. General Assembly recognized drug-resistant infections last year as one of the greatest threats facing humanity. … Tackling drug-resistant infection is everyone’s business. The threat transcends that of HIV, TB, and cancer. To achieve real progress, those already suffering from untreatable infections need a voice. … [W]e must also put our energy into the other great challenge with regard to antibiotics: access. … In recent years, warnings of antibiotic resistance, improper and overuse of antibiotics, and the dire need for new treatments have become familiar. But what has often been missing from this rhetoric is a focus on improving access to antibiotics to all who need them. This complex mixture of better prescribing twinned with better access is complicated and requires nations to act in a way which fits their needs. To stop superbugs undermining modern medicine, to prevent lives being lost through lack of access to effective medicines, we must work together. We cannot afford to delay” (10/8).

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