The wins are there but the underlying reality remains, writes Professor Kogie Naidoo as she likens TB to a bridesmaid awaiting its turn to garner attention. The analogy is relevant given the overwhelming number of new TB infections and deaths each year globally for a disease persistently sitting in the shadow of other communicable and non-communicable diseases.
The persistence of TB is a reminder that medical solutions alone are not enough. Renier Coetzee and Ingrid Schoeman write that the disease thrives in conditions shaped by social injustice, including poverty, overcrowded housing, under-resourced health systems, and unequal access to care.
The only tuberculosis vaccine we have is a century old and offers only limited efficacy in children. With leading South African researchers involved in the pivotal clinical trials of three new tuberculosis vaccine candidates, we are on the verge of a major breakthrough, writes Associate Professor Angelique Kany Kany Luabeya.
The new government TB dashboard is a step forward for transparency and accountability in South Africa’s response to the ancient, but still deadly, disease. It is critical that we use it wisely to boost our testing efforts, argues a group of South Africa’s leading TB activists ahead of World TB Day on March 24th.
Journalist Ufrieda Ho passed away of cancer on 9 March 2026. In a career spanning three decades, she wrote for The Star, Daily Maverick, Spotlight, and many other publications.
Universal health coverage cannot succeed with fragmented systems, weak data, and largely symbolic participation. A recent court-ordered pause to NHI implementation offers a chance to build the foundations properly, argue Dr Haseena Majid and Professor Mogie Subban.
Funding cuts over the last year or so have created a crisis for multilateral health institutions. Which institutions emerge from this crisis, and in what form, will have real consequences for the health of people in South Africa, argues Spotlight editor Marcus Low.
Despite the proven benefits of newborn hearing screening and early intervention, universal screening is not yet mandated in South Africa and is only available at a few public hospitals.
Get to know South Africa’s malaria experts as they outrun hitchhiking mosquitoes and pollution-hardy bugs while navigating a regional funding collapse and a spiralling climate crisis. Joan van Dyk reports.
Antiretroviral therapy has shifted HIV from a fatal to a chronic condition. But neuropsychiatrists say it is imperative for people living with the virus to start treatment immediately as the “duration of untreated exposure” may cause irreversible brain damage and impact long-term cognitive health. Biénne Huisman reports.
Individual rare diseases impact only a very small fraction of people, but collectively they are estimated to affect over three million in South Africa. As we mark International Rare Disease Day on 28 February, Elna Schütz assesses the state of play with rare diseases in the country.
A cutting-edge, South African-led HIV vaccine trial built on decades of research recently kicked off in Cape Town. Elri Voigt unpacks what exactly is being studied, and how the resilience, tenacity and urgency of a group of dedicated South African researchers made it possible.