TEHRAN – Iran has achieved a substantial share of international targets for tuberculosis (TB) control, but significant potential remains for detecting undiagnosed cases of the disease, a health official said.
Speaking at a ceremony marking National Tuberculosis Day, Qobad Moradi, head of the Ministry of Health’s Center for Communicable Disease Management, said the incidence of TB in Iran had declined in recent years, placing the country in a favorable position compared with most countries in the region.
According to Moradi, the World Health Organization estimates that around 9,600 people in Iran have TB, indicating that a portion of cases remain undetected and that further efforts are needed to identify more patients.
He identified close contacts of TB patients, organ transplant recipients, people taking immunosuppressive medications, homeless people, residents of camps and other congregate settings, and marginalized populations as priority groups for screening.
Moradi also highlighted the need to improve treatment outcomes. While the expected TB treatment success rate is around 90 percent, Iran’s rate has remained at approximately 84 percent in recent years, underscoring the need for greater attention to patient management.
In March 2025, Mahshid Nasehi, an official with the ministry of health has said that all diagnosis and medical services for the treatment of tuberculosis are free of charge in the country.
About 15 million people in Iran have latent tuberculosis, that is, they have been living with this infection for years, but they are not sick and they do not transmit tuberculosis to others, IRNA quoted Nasehi as saying.
Global efforts to combat TB have saved an estimated 79 million lives since 2000. However, the drastic and abrupt cuts in global health funding happening now are threatening to reverse these gains. Rising drug resistance especially across Europe and the ongoing conflicts across West Asia, Africa, and Eastern Europe, are further exacerbating the situation for the most vulnerable.
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