TB in 2026: Are We on Track to Eliminate the Disease?

• Dr. Dimitrios Kantas — Dimitrios is a board-certified interventional pulmonologist, intensivist, and somnologist, and a PhD candidate. He is Chair of the International Assembly of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) and serves as AASM’s International Ambassador for Europe. He also chairs the Inclusion Committee of the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) in Minnesota and is a member of the EDIC Committee of the European Sleep Research Society (ESRS). Additionally, he serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine and Nature and Science of Sleep, and reviews for leading sleep medicine journals
• Dr. Oluwafemi Ojo — Dr. Oluwafemi Ojo is a pulmonologist trained at Lagos University Teaching Hospital. He had additional clinical training at Deriford Hospital UK, Royal Brompton Hospital UK and Mountain View Regional Medical center USA. He is also a research scholar of PAN African Thoracic society Methods in Epidemiological, Clinical and Operational Research program. He currently works as a consultant physician/pulmonologist at Lagos State University Teaching. He is also a faculty member and Subdean at Lagos State University college of Medicine. His areas of research interest include asthma, COPD, sleep medicine and interventional pulmonology. He has collaborated in publishing about 50 peer reviewed manuscripts in local and international journals. He is the current Secretary General of Nigerian Thoracic Society. He is also a member of Pan African Thoracic Society and European Respiratory Society and American Thoracic Society. He is currently the deputy chairman, Medical Advisory Committee at Lagos University Teaching Hospital. He is happily married with 3 children
• Dr. Sandra Kwarteng — Prof. Sandra Kwarteng Owusu is an Associate Professor of Child Health and Paediatric Pulmonology at KNUST, Ghana, and an Honorary Consultant at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital. She leads the Pediatric Pulmonology Unit and established Ghana’s first paediatric pulmonology service.Her research focuses on pneumonia, asthma, tuberculosis, and child lung health, with active involvement in major international studies. She also serves as Vice President of the Ghana Thoracic Society and an Executive Member of the Pan-African Thoracic Society. She plays a key advisory role in Ghana’s National Tuberculosis Programme and has contributed to national asthma and TB guidelines. She is widely recognized for her leadership in advancing paediatric respiratory care and research in Africa
• Prof. Dr. Mohamed Awad-Tag El Din — President - The Egyptian Society of Chest Disease and Tuberculosis. Professor and Consultant of Thoracic Diseases Ain Shams Faculty of Medicine, Abassia Cairo, Egypt Advisor for the President for Health and Preventive Affairs Former Minister of Health and population Former President of Ain Shams University President of the Egyptian Society of Chest Diseases and Tuberculosis Egyptian and Regional Partnership Coordinator
• Prof. Dr. Mayank Vats — Co-Chair, Inclusion and Diversity Committee, American Association for Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology; Member, Emirates Thoracic Society.

Pulmonology

Tuberculosis (TB) remains an important global infectious disease challenge, but advances in rapid diagnostics, effective treatment regimens, and public-health strategies have strengthened the pathway toward disease elimination. Modern diagnosis increasingly combines rapid molecular tests, drug-susceptibility testing, imaging, microbiological evaluation, and clinical assessment to identify TB earlier and detect drug-resistant disease promptly. Management requires appropriate, complete, and supervised antimicrobial therapy tailored to disease site and drug-susceptibility results, together with monitoring for treatment response and adverse effects. Preventive therapy for eligible individuals with TB infection, early identification of contacts, infection-control measures, vaccination strategies where appropriate, and strong surveillance systems are essential components of TB control. Addressing barriers such as delayed diagnosis, treatment interruption, drug resistance, stigma, and limited access to healthcare is equally important. An integrated approach combining modern diagnostics, patient-centered treatment, prevention, contact management, and public-health action is critical to reducing transmission and moving toward TB elimination. The Egyptian Society of Chest Disease and Tuberculosis would conduct a medical conference entitled "TB in 2026: Are We on Track to Eliminate the Disease?"