Health workers often have insufficient knowledge about fungal infections as well as the impact of fungi growing more resistant to treatments
World
Health Organization (WHO) has published its first-ever reports addressing the
critical lack of medicines and diagnostic tools for
invasive fungal diseases, showing the urgent need for innovative research and
development (R&D) to close these gaps.
The fungi in the top ‘critical priority’ category of the
WHO’s fungal priority pathogens list (FPPL) are deadly, with
mortality rates reaching as high as 88%. Advancements in treatments mean that more
people are likely to be living with immunocompromised conditions, which also
could mean increases in cases of invasive fungal diseases. This is a complex
challenge to manage due to inaccessibility of diagnostic tools, limited
availability of antifungal medicines, and a slow and complex R&D process
for new treatments.
WHO’s report on antifungal drugs highlights that, in the past
decade, only four new antifungal drugs have been approved by regulatory
authorities in the United States of America, the European Union or China.
Currently, nine antifungal medicines are in clinical development to use against
the most health-threatening fungi, as detailed in the FPPL.
However, only three candidates are in phase 3, the final stage of
clinical development, meaning few approvals are expected within the next
decade.
The new diagnostics report shows that while commercially
available tests exist for fungal priority pathogens, these rely on
well-equipped laboratories and trained staff, which means that most people in
in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) do not benefit from them. All
countries, but particularly LMICs, need faster, more accurate, cheaper and
easier testing for a broad range of fungal priority pathogens, including
diagnostic tools that can be used at or near point-of-care.
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