Building Partnerships to Improve TB Treatment Options
Tuberculosis as a global health crisis
Tuberculosis (TB) is a preventable and curable infectious disease caused by bacteria that often affects the lungs. Though we don’t hear about TB in the United States very often, it is still a global health crisis. In 2023, 10.8 million people developed TB, resulting in 1.25 million deaths, including more than 160,000 people with HIV. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), TB has likely returned to being the world’s leading cause of death from a single infectious agent.
Though there are treatments for TB, regimens are lengthy, can be costly, come with uncomfortable side effects, and may have a high pill burden. Additionally, drug resistance can impact treatment efficacy. When TB is resistant to more than one drug, known as multidrug-resistant TB (MDR TB), treatment that can take up to 30 months and often comes with much more toxic side effects. While interest in TB treatment research is on the rise, for decades, little progress was made in finding safer, more efficient, and more effective treatments.
Streamlining the path to new TB treatments
Enter FAST-TB, which is supported by the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) in partnership with CRDF Global. FAST-TB’s goal is to encourage a more efficient and streamlined process for the development, evaluation and introduction of novel TB treatment regimens by building a coalition of partners across disciplines and industries. By uniting a global network of researchers, clinicians, advocates, and TB-focused organizations, the FAST-TB program aims to break down silos, foster collaboration and trust, and ensure that TB research builds upon existing findings, effectively reducing redundancy in research and clearing the path for new discoveries.
As the development of new TB drugs and regimens is complex, lengthy, and costly, sharing information on drug combinations and trial designs is key to advancing clinical development and decreasing redundancy —and therefore wasted resources—in research around TB.
Though FAST-TB’s end goal is clear—streamlining the process for development of new TB treatments—the “how” of their work needed further explanation. When FAST-TB met with NIAID representatives, they were tasked with developing a communications plan to ensure they were getting their message out clearly and broadly to bolster their network and accelerate the development of novel TB treatments.
Examples of Our Work
Health and Science CommunicationsHelping FAST-TB build its network and advance TB treatment development
In 2024, CRDF-Global brought Palladian Partners onboard to develop a researched-based communications strategy and plan. Palladian connected with the leaders of FAST-TB to understand not only their public health goals but also their communication goals—who they were trying to reach, what they wanted to tell them, and why. To build an effective network of partners, FAST-TB needed tools and messaging to inform potential partners how they could contribute to the initiative, align their work with FAST-TB’s mission, and benefit from joining the FAST-TB network.
Palladian conducted a landscape analysis of FAST-TB’s existing partners and potential future partners to glean insights about the stakeholders and how they aligned with FAST-TB’s broader goals. Additionally, we assessed the digital tools key stakeholders and leading groups in the TB space were using to determine those most successful —based on engagement rates and media coverage —and where gaps existed that FAST-TB could fill, both with outreach tools and messaging about its mission.
Using this research, we developed a communications plan and key messages, distilling down how joining the FAST-TB community would contribute to a reduction in the global burden of TB and advance innovative solutions to save lives. Additionally, we are partnering with FAST-TB to develop a suite of materials to share with potential partners, including:
- An updated brochure, clearly laying out each of the FAST-TB tracks,
- A social media strategy and initial content,
- Key messages document and program tagline,
- FAST-TB one-pagers/explainers with calls to action, and
- Q&A/FAQ documents about the program and individual tracks.
Through Palladian’s work with FAST-TB, we hope to make an impact on TB rates worldwide, demonstrating the importance of communication in advancing public health goals. Our work with FAST-TB also grows our portfolio in our commercial work and in building coalitions—with federal and non-government clients alike—to advance public health objectives through proven health communication strategies and tactics.