Giving treatment to TB patients (Illustrative image. Source: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) - TheNational Lung Hospital, the National Programme against Tuberculosis (TB) andthe Patients Support Foundation to End Tuberculosis (PASTB) and the NationalHumanitarian Portal 1400 have launched a text message campaign to support TB patients.
From March 3 to the end ofMay 9, 2019, mobile service subscribers can text TB to 1402 to contribute18,000 VND (0.78 USD) to the fund.
According to Assistant Prof.Nguyen Viet Nhung, Director of the National Lung Hospital, each message will providefunds to help TB patients overcome the disease and reduce infection risk in thecommunity.
Ending TB would mean saving12,000 lives each year and ease the worry of infection for hundreds of thousandsof people, he stressed.
The National Programmeagainst Tuberculosis recorded 124,000 new TB cases in 2017. TB deaths inthe year were estimated at 12,000, mostly in undetected and untreated people.
Globally, TB is the second leadingcause of deaths among infectious diseases, killing about 1.6 million peopleeach year.
Vietnam currently ranks 16th out of 30 countries interms of the number of cases of the disease per year and the amount of moneyspent treating it.
Last year, a similar campaign received 23,232 messages worthmore than 418 million VND (17,974 USD), which was used to help some 100 poor TBpatients pay health insurance, hospital fees and for meals.-VNA
VNA
