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Rapid-test TB kits on their way

    JOHANNESBURG
    Medical Services International (MSI), a Canadian firm, has started shipping its VScan tuberculosis (TB) rapid-test kits to Africa, where the pulmonary disease is a leading cause of death among HIV-positive people. MSI already supplies parts of the continent with its VScan HIV rapid-test kits, and it was recently awarded a US $25 million tender by Nigeria for these kits. The firm said it planned to bring its new VScan HIV/TB rapid-test kit, which uses a single kit to simultaneously detect HIV and TB, to the global market. MSI said in a statement: "This kit will have a significant impact on the market in both detection and treatments. Early detection of TB can speed treatment of HIV/AIDS by prompting patients to seek medical help early enough for the life-prolonging antiretroviral drugs to work - the solution to stop this TB/HIV/AIDS emergency is to treat both diseases together."

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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