Mumbai, 6th September 2022: In an effort to raise public awareness about the devastating health, social and economic consequences of TB in the state of Maharashtra, HaystackAnalytics, a Mumbai-based health-tech startup, supported by the Department of Science & Technology, Govt of India, healthcare veterans like Dr. Velumani, and private players such as GE Healthcare and Intel India Startup Program, has organized a panel discussion along with leading pulmonologists to step up efforts to end the TB epidemic in India.
Addressing the house with a strong initiative to educate the masses on how Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) can emerge as the revolutionary one-stop solution for the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis in India, HaystackAnalytics brought together some eminent pulmonologists like Dr. Nikhil Sarangdhar, Member Central Committee, TB association of India and Master National Trainer, National TB elimination program, Mumbai, Maharashtra, Dr. Anchit Bhatnagar, Assistant Professor in Terna Speciality Hospital & Research Centre, Navi Mumbai, a Consultant Pulmonologist in Ashirwad Hospital, Navi Mumbai and Dr. Pankaj Bang, Consultant Chest Physician, and Intensivist, DNB (Chest), FCCP (USA), Mumbai, Maharashtra along with Dr. Anirvan Chatterjee, Co-Founder, and CEO of HaystackAnalytics, Mumbai, Maharashtra. The objective of the discussion was to put a spotlight on the stigma, challenges, and potential solutions in mitigating the impact of this silent killer.
As per the India TB report 2022, Data in 2020 showed that of the 1.3 lakh persons (who had Covid) screened for TB, at least 2,163 were detected with the disease. Overall, there have been 14,438 TB deaths in the last two years. About 7,453 persons with TB died in 2021 as against 6,985 who succumbed in 2020.
